Dive BC's

BC's Oceanic Probe QLR

Gear Snapshot

I dove with an Ocean BC for the past three years and was real happy with it with not intent to replace it.  But fate had a different plan for me.  While staying at a hotel in Miami while returning from reviewing the Conch Republic Divers in Tavernier, Florida, all my dive gear was stolen! So, it was time to start over from scratch. So, after a lot of on line research, it was off to my favorite dive shop where with additional research I bought a new Sea Quest Pro QD i3 BC.

Features: I must admit the first time I tried this BC on it felt a little long.  There is a reason for the extra 3". This is where they mount their magic i3 BC inflator control.  It is this little device that sold me on this BC.  I hate things that hang and dangle from my BC.  Hose, gauges, and stuff that gets in the way, drags, or gets tangled, is a real pain.  This little built in inflate-deflate control system eliminates the hose that typically dangles from the left side of the BC.  Does it work?  You betcha. Does it take a lot of time to retrain to use it?  Oh, about 5 minutes!  What about venting and dumping you ask?  There are two large and I might add, very flat dump valves on the back of the BC.  Press the lever downward and both vents exhaust air while not allowing sea water to get back inside.  Slick.  Real slick. There is a small diameter manual inflation tube tucked up into a pocket at the top of the left shoulder.  And yes the tube is easy to access and use.  Additionally there are manual pull dumps in the typical right shoulder location.

Two very deep pockets can hold all kinds of stuff.  On this first series of dives, including a night dive, I stuffed my safety sausage, a golf ball I found on the wreck, my backup flashlight, my defog, and there was even room to stuff a Florida spiny lobster into a pocket.

The swivel buckles are sweet.  They are easy to buckle and release for climbing in and out of the BC. There are an appropriate distribution of ss D rings (5) for attaching stuff that needs to be externally attached. There are convenient grommet holes for mounting my favorite Wenoka Titanium Squeeze knife.

The BC's integrated weight system is a marvel to behold, sort of.  The ditchable bags are huge with the ability to pack two rows of weights into each.  The secure latch seems to be solid yet easily  pulled for ditching.  The two rear trim weight pouches are located in an inconvenient location between the air cell and the BC's body.  Additionally, there is both a Velcro cover and a snap buckle.  A little over kill, I think and somewhat a nuisance to get the weights in and out of.

Performance:  The i3 really works well.  I love it.  Descents are a piece of cake with the i3. The BC inflates primarily in the back portion of the air cell first making it perform almost like a wing.  I was able to reach and maintain trim very quickly.  The adjustment straps were easy to use to tweak the fit at depth.  This BC is a great performer and anyone who likes jacket style BC's and would like to get rid of that dangling hose will love this technology.

I really wanted to give this BC 5 Stars, but there were a couple of little things that annoyed me such as the rear non ditchable weight pockets.  Nothing really to complain about, just a little nuisance.
 

Long Term Report:  I now have about 20 dives on my Seaquest BCD.  I love it.  It is comfortable, reliable, and the I3 control more intuitive all the time.  Only one additional complaint.  There is only one D ring on the bottom edge - the right side.  Since I prefer to hang my game bag off my left side this has forced me to change a few habits.  Sigh.  Oh well. 

http://aqualung.com/us/

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