Posted by Northcoast_diver on October 25, 2004 at 11:03:33:
In Reply to: Most of that advice is wrong...... posted by ChrisM on October 23, 2004 at 11:34:59:
Chris M gave you a really good summary of the MINIMUM lift needed. I calculate 5 lbs for a single tank dive or 10 lbs for a twin tank dive. My drysuit is a trilam shell, not crushed neoprene however.
As far as the COMFORTABLE level of lift is concerned, you may want more, in order to float yourself higher at the surface, before or after your dive.
You should try different sized wings in a pool, with all of your gear on.
IF you want your geat to float on its own, when you ditch it at the surface, then the lift needs to support the full tanks as well as the rest of the negative buoyancy of the gear attached to the rig as well. That helps, when you are diving from a small boat, and you put your gear into the water first, then get in the water yourself and don your gear in the water rather than in the boat. Not everybody is trained well enough to do that, however; its more of an advanced skill for a RIB or for a small Boston Whaler.
As with all questions, the answer depends on a lot of other things.