The Litehawk came in hot on the Zuma’s heels as this year’s top Travel BC. The BC carries no inherent buoyancy, and its generous buoyant lift in all sizes makes it well suited for both tropical and temperate water diving.

The Geo is feather light, packs compactly, and is comfy and functional in the water. Plus it carries less than 1 pound of inherent buoyancy, so you might not need a weight system after all.

The Aquapro 5 is a comfortable and stable BC. If you like jacket-style rigs, this is a good travel version.

The Zuma was this year’s runaway favorite BC in the Travel category. It not only earned the first place spot on every test diver’s favorites list, but it also turned in the best ergo scores.

This is the most serious rig in this year’s roundup. For divers who like to switch from rec diving to tec diving and then back again, the Tech 10 is an excellent choice.

Overall, test divers liked the Tortuga. The hybrid air-cell design offers the best of both jacket and back buoyancy worlds, creating a comfortable fit and a stable ride.

It takes a little longer to get that perfect fit with the SeaLion, but once there you’ll be strapped into a solid temperate water rig.

The Seahawk is a do-it-all back-buoyancy BC. The Super Cinch tank-strap and weight system take some getting used to, but once you do they become got-to-have systems on a got-to-have BC.

The Versa 3000 is a big BC in many respects: It tends to be cut big; it comes with big cargo pockets; it also offers some big-time buoyant lift and a large-capacity weight-ditch system. On the other hand, the BC is surprisingly lightweight; in ...