ScubaLab: 14 New BCs for Local Diving, Tropical Diving or Both

No piece of dive gear is required to multi-task more than your BC. It has to secure tank, hoses, and accessories. It has to provide for weight pouches and cargo pockets and still maintain a streamlined profile. It has to enable you to safely control your ascents and descents, and afford relatively comfortable surface flotation. That's a tall order. Clearly, no one BC can hit all the marks for all divers in all diving conditions. But if you can identify where you spend most of your wet-time, it's not so hard to find the BC with your name on it.

Getting down to business

The 14 new BCs rounded up for this year's ScubaLab BC shootout offer a good mix of jacket, back-buoyancy, and hybrid styles that we divided into three "Use" categories: General Purpose (full-featured, high lift, generous ballast capacity, for temperate water diving), True Travel (lightweight, low-profile, easy to pack, for tropical diving), and Dual Purpose (designed to function well in both climes). Following ScubaLab's time-proven three-phase test protocol, we put them through their paces.

In phase one, each BC was unpacked and assembled, tested for fit and strapped to a tank. Everything from D-rings to pockets to padding was scrutinized, valves were exercised, integrated weights dry-tested for function, and owner's manuals reviewed.

Once all systems proved to be in proper working condition, BCs were hauled down to the test pool for phase two, where we measured each BC's inherent buoyancy - the less IB, the less ballast weight you have to carry with you. Then we checked the actual buoyancy against manufacturers claims - with one exception, all BCs showed a zero to eight percent variance. (Based on the different methods used to measure buoyant lift, we consider a 10 percent variance between claimed and measured lift capacities to be quite reasonable, and up to a 20 percent variance not cause for much concern. But beyond that, we feel manufacturers are not providing reasonably useful data to divers who need accurate buoyant lift figures to make sure the BC they choose actually meets their individual diving needs.) Finally, we put the BCs through a battery of flow rate tests, pitting a simulated "stuck" inflator button against each applicable dump valve in a heads-up ascent position to determine if deflation could keep up with out-of-control inflation.

Then it was time to augment the lab tasks with the human touch: the ergo tests, the fun stuff, where ScubaLab staffers got to take each BC on a dive and rate it in nine areas of real-world performance, from comfort and adjustment to attitude and stability to, of course, ascent control.

General Observations

• Assembly: Not that many years ago it wasn't unusual to find, at most, only half the BCs we tested offering a tank positioning strap, or a flexible carry handle that could double as a tank positioning strap, that enables a diver to hang the BC on the tank valve at a position of choice while strapping BC to tank. It's a small feature that's huge in terms of convenience. Manufacturers now all seem to agree, because this is the second year in a row where every single BC reviewed has been equipped with a tank positioning strap or a flexible carry handle that does double duty. Can we call this a trend? We're counting on it.
• Weight loading: All BCs in this review came with integrated weight systems that could be loaded easily prior to climbing into the rig. However, many divers want to avoid muscling all that extra weight onto their shoulders by donning the BC first, then inserting their ballast weights. Therefore, ergo test results for weight loading reflect the ease or difficulty of loading weights while wearing the BC, without assistance from a dive buddy.
• Underwater stability: The lack of stability, or the inability to attain or maintain a proper swimming attitude at depth, is often blamed on a BC's design. But tests have shown that it's more commonly due to improper fit or poor ballast/trim weight distribution. We found that when properly sized, weighted, and trimmed, all BCs in this review were able to provide a good swimming attitude and a comfortably stable ride.
• Valve Operation: In our "emergency" valve flow tests, all BCs were able to keep up with a simulated stuck inflator button with at least one applicable deflation valve, which is the industry's compliance standard. Most BCs could keep up with two deflation methods, which is a nice bonus, and two BCs could keep up with three deflation methods, which is a bodacious bonus. Interestingly, in years past the deflator button located on the power inflator module at the end of the corrugated hose, when held overhead, was one of a BC's most efficient deflation methods. But as power inflators have been downsized, their effectiveness as an emergency deflation method appears to be diminishing. This year, only five of the 14 BCs reviewed were able to stay ahead of a stuck inflator valve using the depressed deflator button held overhead method. And those five all use older (and larger) power inflator designs. Note: this applies only to "emergency" stuck inflator button scenarios; in a normal non-emergency dive, when engaged in controlled ascents and descents, the deflate button held overhead method was effective on all BCs in this review.
• Surface Floating: People don't tend to buy a BC to bob around on the surface, but you do end up there occasionally, so it's nice to be comfortable. In general, it's easiest to achieve an upright and comfortable surface floating position with a jacket-style BC; it tends to be hardest with a back-buoyancy BC. On the surface it's all about inflation control. With jacket-style BCs you add air to increase surface stability and comfort, especially if the bladder is designed to inflate away from your body, eliminating squeeze. But try that with a back-buoyancy BC and you'll get slammed onto your face. On the surface the best place for a back-buoyancy diver to be is on his back. However, if you find yourself struggling with your face in the water, resist the instinct to inflate your back-buoyancy BC and instead deflate. Without the excessive buoyancy working against you it will be easier to fin kick into a vertical position and regain control.

New BC Reviews

The following reviews, linked in the table below, reflect the consensus opinions and comments of the ScubaLab staff. All specs are based on a size large BC unless otherwise noted.

JACKET STYLE, BACK-BUOYANCY OR HYBRID

Which is best depends on the type of diver you are.

Jacket-style BCs offer a sense of security by wrapping around you like a comfortable coat. Bladders are positioned under your arms, on your waist and to a lesser degree behind you. Jacket-style BCs tend to be stable and are less dependent on trim weights to ensure a good swimming attitude. They float you on the surface in a more comfortable position¿generally. However, jacket-style BCs are bulky when compared to back-buoyancy BCs, and some styles can create some serious body squeeze when fully inflated.

Back-buoyancy BCs, on the other hand, put all their inflation behind you. Up front you have nothing but shoulder and sternum straps and maybe a couple contoured weight pouches. With back-buoyancy BCs you'll never suffer from body squeeze, and the separation of air cell from harness on many models allows you to mix and match air cells and other options. However, unlike jacket-style BCs that provide good stability without the diver having to do much of anything, with back-buoyancy BCs getting good stability and attitude at depth can take a bit of effort. The proper positioning of ballast and trim weights is critical. Get it wrong and you'll be constantly fighting a tendency to roll or pitch. On the surface, with most back-buoyancy BCs a good surface position usually is achieved by minimizing instead of maximizing inflation.

Hybrid BCs usually feature rear air bladders balanced by some additional buoyancy around the waist. Hybrids tend to be stable at depth and comfortable while in a surface floating position. They offer a bit more bulk in the waist area than pure back-buoyancy BC, but you won't suffer from squeeze in a hybrid like you would in some jacket styles.

The Best of the Bunch

General Purpose category

SCUBAPRO Glide Pro (Tester's Choice)

• An Evolution of super performance
• Excellent comfort features
• Most secure weight system

Mares Prestige MRS Plus (Best Buy)

• Everything we could ask for in a Jacket BC and none priced lower in its category
• Loads of padding with less than one pound of inherent buoyancy
• Excellent weight system and huge cargo pockets

Dual Purpose category

Aeris 5 Oceans (Tester's Choice and Best Buy)

• Complete freedom to dive wherever you wish for under $500
• Very stable and streamline
• User friendly weight system

True Travel category

Zeagle Zeus (Tester's Choice)

• Fits like a glove with nothing to get in your way
• Unique entry lets you set it and forget it.
• Very light and compact at only 6 pounds

Cressi Travelight (Best Buy)

• Stability and comfort in a soft pack
• Excellent weight system
• Lightest jacket BC at only 6 pounds