Quote Originally Posted by acelockco View Post
I don't know, maybe the cylinders we are speaking of are made by a different manufacturer. I recently rented a steel 95 for a dive in California and it looked like the same size as my AL80 at home. It might have been slightly larger or smaller, but it was close. My wife rented a steel 80 and it was a lot shorter than the AL80 she usually uses at home. They probablly were 8" instead of 7.25", but that is not much of a difference at all! It really did not seem to be wider, but 3/4" of an inch is not much to notice when you are looking at a lot of more intresting things on the ride to Anacapa.

Now about the weight issue: the steel is about 6lbs heavier than the aluminum, BUT remember that you also get to take about 6lbs off of your weight belt. So this question is just for you....ready

If you are wearing 28lbs of weight on your weight belt (or in your bc or whatever) and you add 6lbs of weight to your gear by adding a steel 95, but then you remove 6 lbs of led from your weight belt, how much did you change your total dive weight?



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You don't change your weight at all.

No do the same problem again, but add 2 steel 95 tanks so we are at a total weight of 12 additional lbs, now remove 12 lbs of led from your weight belt. Let me know what you come up with.


It is way too late to do math problems tonight, besides that is Bama cave divers slice of the diving pie. What I was refering to, was the weight characteristics AT THE SURFACE. Once you hit the water, that is a whole new ball game. As for the size thing, you may have steel 94's. I have not seen these in many years, but they are slightly taller than a standard AL 80 but the same circumference (if memory serves me correctly). I don't have the specs. handy. The LP steel 80's are shorter and fatter, and rather nice to dive. As I said before, I like the steel tanks, it is just that they are not the solution for every dive profile. I strongly advocate steel tanks as a way to remove weight from the hips (on a belt). The results are better gas consumption, due to less work pulling weight through the water. Better trim, due to less weight on the hips. Much better comfort during the dive equals better dive experience.