What size Tekwing?

[Rookie]

I need some help on this one! I am looking at a Buddy Tekwing/Travelwing, and don't know what size. I like the look of the buddy wing, plus the whole lack of clutter thing, and have only really seen good reviews. Also the rediculously low price and 'flexibility' to upgrade at a later date to a steel plate all fits in with my plan. I have my final Ocean diver dive on Wednesday, (nd will be looking to buy at the Birmingham show), so wanta a size that will not be too big for my single 12l, but will then take a pony, and possibly allow me to step up to twins, in the next few years (with a steel plate I guess). I have very dodgy knees, so will probably limited to twin 10's, if I go that route. I currently use a 7mm semi, carry about 11kg's of lead and weigh 80Kg's, though a dry suit will probably soon follow. IIRC Buddy do the wing in ether the 13kg (28lb), 16Kg (35lb) or 22Kg (48lb). Any ideas which is most suitable, or is it better to go straight for the larger wing?

Also, I understand the wing is the same as the Redwing (not interested in just getting one of these and a plate, due to extra cost - well, could be convinced!), And that the red wing is normally converted from RH dump to LH dump. If so, do you still get a blanked off hole in the RH side of the Tekwing, and could you fit a toggle operated dump there also? Just curious!

Cheers,

Phil the Rookie.

[MATTBIN]

I have a Tekwing 22Kg lift model. I have used it on my 12 and 15 with pony and twin 10's (232) using plastic b/p. It works fine on all of that. I now have an ali plate and twin 10's cos it feels better, travels light and I dont need a steel plate. Add to that I also sometimes carry a pony as a stage thingy. IT WORKS.

With the single you wont need to use it for anything other than surface support, dont gas it right up or you'll end up face down in the water, you'll soon find out how much you need to inflate to get support without tipsy forward status. With twins you might need to use it to get you bouyant during the dive, they trim very nicely if you use Beaver 10's as they are a tad longer than Fabers so your feet will drop nicely. Fabers cause a bit of a head down attitude.

I have taken the plastic plate off, re webbed and used most of the fitting off the original harness, one of the shoulder straps makes a nice crotch strap as they are soft.

Let me know if you want any more info, but I reckon for the price they are the dogs danglies, especially if you can get one off e-bay second hand and in good nick.

Of course you can always buy another make if you want to be a fashion victim

Where's me coat .......
Matt

[Muzzer]

I use a Redwing with an ally backplate (Diverite) and single piece harness. I currently dive with a 15l and 3l pony with a view to moving to twins when I can afford it, it works great and is much more comfortable than my old BC. Swapping the dump from RH to LH is dead easy, you just unscrew the inflator hose assembly and swap it with the overpressure valve (basically a standard dump valve with out the string) on the other side. I've also added a cord and toggle to this to use as a normal shoulder dump, routing the cord through a small patch of webbing with a piece of tubing in it glued and stitched to the shoulder of the outer shell (take the bouyancy cell out first! ) and through a 'snoopy loop' and a small ring tiewrapped to the RH D-ring/weight retainer. This seems to work fine, though I dont use it that much.

Steve

[Justin Owen]

what they say....!

[tom]

Have you tried diving a wing? Wraysbury use Tekwings as their hire gear, so it might not be a bad idea to go down there for a day and see if you like them before making a decision.

[greekbird]

Originally Posted by Rookie

IIRC Buddy do the wing in ether the 13kg (28lb), 16Kg (35lb) or 22Kg (48lb).

tekwing 22.5kg lift
redwing 22.5kg lift (redundancy wing)
travelwing two sizes 13&16kg

IMHO if you want to progress to twins go for the tekwing. I used it on single 12, 12+pony and now with twin 10s and it's perfect. (ss backplate on also) I think that the travelwing might be too small(not enough lift) for a twinset.
some people find wings push them forward on the surface...i cant say i 've had that problem.
HTH

[nikos]

Originally Posted by greekbird

some people find wings push them forward on the surface...i cant say i 've had that problem.
HTH

I find that a fully inflated tekwing with twin 10 232s pushes me forward slightly...not a problem as I let some air out!

gor for it!

[greekbird]

Originally Posted by nikos

I find that a fully inflated tekwing with twin 10 232s pushes me forward slightly...not a problem as I let some air out!

gor for it!

maybe have two bouyant things infront of me helps
try growing a beer belly

[nikos]

Originally Posted by greekbird

maybe have two bouyant things infront of me helps
try growing a beer belly

1....no comment!
2......hardly a problem!
3......erhhhhhh?

[Rookie]

Cheers guys, looks like a trip to Wraysbury may be in order. I'm down that way soon anyway. To answer one question, I have tried a wing, although a 'ladies' wing, and a little to big for me, but the improvement over the BC I am training in was beyond comparison.

Cheers,

Phil