SS vs AL plates

[thefeve]

Hey all,

Question for those of you who dive doubles and thoughts on plate choice. I have a DSS SS plate with STA for my singles rig, but when switching to dubs, was pointed toward an AL plate to help shift the weight down lower. Or, because with steels you just don't need as much weight. The AL plate was cheap, so its not really a matter of the extra cost, but my question between the two for dubs mainly comes after reading a lot of the "BP/W - what do i get!?" forums I've seen recently.

One of the "selling points" on a plate, is that with an STA, it can be easily swapped out and used with doubles. I'm curious as to how many of you actually do that, vs just having a separate doubles harness? And, for those that do use a SS plate with dubs, how much it affects your trim, setup, etc. I dive dub 95s and a set of 72s and i could see the added weight higher maybe being a problem there for trim. Maybe its just less of an issue with tanks that trim out better?

More just a curious thought for me. I really like my DSS plate, and recently saw the adjustable strap add-on that allows you to expand one shoulder for donning and doffing the rig, and thought it'd be a nice feature to have.

I'll be keeping the AL plate regardless, if for nothing else as a travel rig, but would love to know how others approach it.

Thanks for the thoughts!

[kdupreez]

diving doubles only adds the weight of the gas at 300-500psi + bouancy charactersitcs of the tanks near empty plus manifold + bands + regulator.

In my experience you would still need weight with a SS plate and doubles.

for example, in a single tank setup, I use 24-26lb of weight total inthe form of a 6lb steel plate + 6lb weighted sta + 10lb lead on waist + 4lb lead in trim pockets on tank.

And when using doubles I still have to add about 9lb of weight + a 6lb SS plate for a total of 15lb

this is consistent with the math of my additional HP100 steel tank that is 2lb negative when empty, 2lb of gas at 300-500psi, 3lb for bands, 2lb for manifold, 1lb for extra regulator = 10lb

So thats 15lb of weight in lead and SS plate lus 10lb of negative bouyancy in what doubles bring to the table.. Total = 25lb

thats pretty much exactly what I use on a single tank kit..

All this said the best and most accurate way is to breathe your tanks down to 300psi and do a weight check in your doubles.

[thefeve]

Thanks for the response!

I guess I should have been more clear in my post. I understand the overall weighting method stays the same, given the things you mentioned (gas at low psi, plus added buoyancy and added manifold, etc). I'm about in the same boat (plus a few pounds) between my singles and doubles rig. I guess my question was more how many people prefer the AL plate for the location of the weight for trim, not because the plate is lighter - rather, because it allows you to put more weight in a location lower on the body... right?

I've done the weight check and am getting things dialed in pretty well, i should probably just take a few pounds off the weight belt and try the SS plate sometime to see for myself!

[spatman]

Weighting is a very subjective thing. Do what works for you.

[ljjames]

I use short aluminum plate on doubles and CCR for exactly that reason (allows me more variability to balance kit). I imagine if you dive 'the right' doubles all the time this isn't an issue, but I have a few sets of the old hp 100's which appreciate a goodly bit of tail weighting. My philosophy is this: yes, I can trim out most any tank with body position and fin sculling, but I prefer not to work any harder to dive than I have to, so I can focus energy on cameras n stuff. An aluminum plate helps me do this at times.

[CaptnJack]

I know very few men who are so challenged to trim out doubles in Puget Sound that they need an Ali plate. Women often have a much harder time trimming out because they are shaped differently and they often benefit from the slightly lighter plate up top and more lead down south.

This assumes that the doubles are actually suitable in the first place, e.g. the HP fabers (-7lbs each) are not for instance.

[kdupreez]

Ah - I dont have any issues with trimming out using a SS plate.

in fact, I have a 12lb SS plate and only use a 3lb "tail weight"

If you dont have one already, you could have a look at those 3-5lb tail weights that will help. but mostly body positioning seems to work well.

what i find useful is to put some air in my arms & hands of the drysuit and it seems to help.

[Peter Guy]

My guess is that most who dive doubles AND who dive a single tank have at least two plates and use one for doubles, one for singles. Its not that you can't use one for both but, what the heck, you need to spend the money somewhere!

In addition, it is possible your harness may well be set differently for a single vs. doubles.

And then you'll need (yes NEED) a warm water plate and then.....

[Jeremy]

My guess is that most who dive doubles AND who dive a single tank have at least two plates and use one for doubles, one for singles.

Yep!

An separate regs for both as well...

[Norris]

My guess is that most who dive doubles AND who dive a single tank have at least two plates and use one for doubles, one for singles.

Yep!

An separate regs for both as well...

Agreed, so much simpler just to grab the kit you need....

I also rock one of each...regs too

[LCF]

I definitely ended up with separate rigs for singles and doubles, for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is that I like to run my shoulder straps loose in my singles rig and make up for it with a tight crotch strap. Makes the rig very easy to get in and out of in the water, when that's necessary. In addition, I did need to move weight down to balance doubles, so the aluminum plate allowed me to hang a big half v-weight off the bottom bolt, which significantly helps my trim.

[kdupreez]

My guess is that most who dive doubles AND who dive a single tank have at least two plates and use one for doubles, one for singles.

Yep!

An separate regs for both as well...

Agreed, so much simpler just to grab the kit you need....

I also rock one of each...regs too

ditto that.. makes your life much easier!

[ljjames]

only one of each?

slacker...