BCD troubles

[dwhthediver]

I am going to reiterate what others have said here, and dispel some of the generalities, not all dive shops have heavily chlorinated BCDs, the shop I teach at has pool BCDs, and rental BCDs, so when we sell off rental gear , it was only used in open water. As a newer diver who probably did their training in a jacket style, you will be more comfortable at the surface in a jacket style, as you will float upright at the surface, however, it is harder to achieve horizontal trim with a jacket. A lot of people recommend a bp/w, and it is a wonderful setup, I love both of mine. My single setup is a DiveRite transplate with a Rec EXP wing and integrated weight pouches, trim pockets and STA. My only modification to this rig, was changing the cam band straps and replacing them with the ScubaPro straps. I travel with a ScubaPro Knighthawk, and it is a great BCD. I have had women your size in class, and the XS Aqualung BCDs we use as pool and rental seem to fit them well. It is you gear, your choice, dive what makes YOU comfortable.

 

[Capt.Gene]

Thank you for all the advice. I've been looking at craigslist and I did find a small one someone is selling and I'd like to go and try it on. I think that's my next problem is finding a used one that will actually fit me! I'm a bit small, 5'1 and 100 pounds. The one I'm using for my cert is a little too big but they didn't have any smaller ones at the place! I'll probably end up going to dive shops and just try on every BC they have haha.

I think a Ranger Junior would properly fit you. You might be OK with the price of $336.00, New with Zeagle Warranty.
This is a full feature BC sized for the new diving youth who's parents are not willing to spent $500 for a BC they will outgrow. This will obviously fit small adults as well. I assume these are sold as a loss leader to start the new diver using Zeagle gear because there is nothing cheap or lesser quality about them. These are even made from 1050 denier balistic nylon, which is the good stuff.
Features include 24# lift ballistic bladder, 16# capacity Ripcord weight system, Sterum strap, (4) 1 1/2" SS D rings, Personal Fit System that allows re--sizeing components for perfect fit.
You might not find a used one but I do know where you can get a new one. They are well worth the money.

 

[LowDrag]

Everyone seems to be focusing on BC's so I will chime in on the reg's side of things. In my OW class I used rental ScubaPro reg's from my LDS. Long story short, I did not feel like I could breathe thru them very well. May have just been in my mind because I had some other things going on as well. My wife and I bought new reg's from our LDS and completed OW with the new set's. I felt as if I could breathe so much better. I dove a local lake last weekend and had zero issues with my breathing. What others have said about doing research is extremely good advice. I ran into a guy on Craigslist that had an old ScubaPro G250 that was about 20 years old. The reg is considered by many divers as a work horse reg and well worth purchasing. The only thing is, after talking to people here I found that paying $150 for that reg even with the 1st stage was ridiculous. I even talked to my LDS owner and he confirmed what others have said here about not paying too much for used reg's. As for me, I wanted reg's that were new so that I knew the history on them right out of the box. You can get good reg's for a reasonable price that are brand new and will perform very well. I picked up a ScubaPro set - Mk11/C300 - for a decent price in a package thru the shop and I really like them. This not to say that you should buy ScubaPro or this type of reg just giving you something to think about. Good luck in your gear search.

 

[Capt.Gene]

Used Rental Gear?
Because inexpensive regulators (and BC'c and wet suits) generate the same per day rental rate as expensive high end gear, most used rental gear for sale is often the same gear you would not select to purchase if you were buying new gear.
Exceptions certainly exist, but a businessman buying 20 regulators for rental use is concerned with durability( simple is the the friend of durable) and cost.