Kevin,

I have found (and I have dove every one Halcyon makes) that the 27# will
work, but its definitely a bad idea in a wetsuit with cold water weight
needs. You will run out of lift around 100 fsw as your suit collapses due to
pressure. I had to swim mine up once at that depth. It was fully inflated,
blowing the OPV, and I was still dropping. Also, the Halcyon wings *don't*
provide the actual amount of lift they are rated at. Don't get me wrong,
they are the best thing going, but a 27# wing wont float 27# of lead. A
number of divers up here don't like the 27# wing as it floats you at about
nose level. Some people like to be lifted a little higher out of the water
when floating on the surface. Also, there are the issues of floating your
rig if you have to don/doff to get in or out of an inflatable or other small
boat.

The difference between the 27 and 45# wing is the side panel. Under water,
pressure squeezes any of them flat as a sheet of paper, so the difference in
drag is not an issue *when diving a dry suit*. With a wet suit, you are
going to be using the wing to offset compression and buoyancy loss of the
wetsuit with depth, so you have to balance your lift needs and the drag
issues.

The weighted STA and the stainless plate put a total of 12# right along your
spine. This does two things:

It allows you to take weight off your belt, and put it right along your
spine to trim out better, and if you are unconscious at the surface, it will
make it *much* easier to roll you over onto your back so that your airway is
out of the water. Many people who first dive a BP wing notice immediately
that the back inflation tries to put you face down. The weighted STA
eliminates this issue. It is very simply a balance issue.

Ditchable weight is an issue at the surface. If you have an incident, you
get the diver to the surface and dump weight to get them absolutely
positive. People have to get rid of the idea that dumping your weight on the
bottom, and rocketing to the surface is a reasonable self rescue option. It
has been the cause of more than one fatality.

Scott


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Metcalfe Kevin J COCA [mailto:kmetcalfe@ns*.na*.mi*]
> Sent: Monday, February 12, 2001 3:58 PM
> To: 'techdiver@aquanaut.com'
> Subject: Halcyon wing recommendation
>
>
> I'm a recreational diver in Northern California.  I dive in a 7mm wet suit
> and use a PST 95 tank.  I recently acquired a SS back plate and
> am close to
> purchasing a Halcyon wing and a single tank adapter.  Will the 27 lb wing
> provide sufficient lift for my diving and equipment?  I demoed a Halcyon
> system in September with a 27 lb wing and used 14 lbs of lead if
> that helps
> any.
>
> To compound the previous question, the STA that I'm going to buy is the
> steel one that Scott Koplin makes.  I am considering getting the
> one that he
> melts the lead into and weighs about 6 lbs.  That leaves me wearing only 8
> lbs of ditchable weight.
>
> So I guess the first question is, Is 27 lbs enough lift for me
> with a normal
> STA?  Second, If yes to question one, then would the 6 lb STA push me over
> the edge.
>
> And yes, I know that it would be better to dive dry, but one thing at a
> time.
>
> Thank you,
>
>
> Kevin Metcalfe
> kmetcalfe@ns*.na*.mi*
> 925-246-5938
> DSN 350-5938
>
>
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