"Doing it Cheap" Why?

[rhwestfall]

dmoore19: again, you are confusing "can" with "must"..... that is where the whole thing is silly....

and again, "safe" and "skilled" though are equally important are not the same.... one does not automatically mean the other.

 

[Wookie]

Its not, nor should anyone care. OP says it does....

I think that the OP's point is that price should not be the only factor in picking dive gear. I dove my first 3,000 dives on a Sherwood Oasis 2, a fairly mediocre regulator. By the time I was in St. Lucia teaching on it, I was rebuilding the first stage every 50-100 dives (about 2 weeks) and getting parts was a mutha in St. Lucia. I switched to an Atomic, and the difference in WOB and reliability was worth the $1250 to upgrade. What was wrong with my Sherwood? Nothing, I just flat wore it out. Now, the same Atomic has been to 330 feet, it also has 3,000 or so dives on it, and I've rebuilt the first stage exactly twice, and never the second stage. 99% of divers will never wear out a regulator, and if I'd bought a Mk 10B/G250B instead of the Sherwood, there is no doubt I'd be diving it today.

If you want a Ford, have at it. I drive one, and I have since 1977. I had a Toyota in there somewhere, but I couldn't keep a timing chain tensioner in it. If I needed a Lexus or wanted a Lexus, I'd surely have one, but carrying a 4x8 sheet of plywood is really difficult. Like training, equipment is really just tools in a toolbox for what you want to do. Everyone in the United States owns a hammer. Some have it in the junk drawer for hanging pictures, some have it in the toolbox for putting up fence, some in the roll-away for driving ball joints. I have everything from a 12 oz ball peen for when I don't want to break it to a 16 lb sledge for when its already broken. Choosing the correct tool for the job is a matter of having the knowledge to do the job. Buying the cheapest hammer would not be appropriate.

 

[ams511]

I believe the internet has created this focus on " the cheapest price wins ". Scubaboard serves a sound board for divers to brag about " How cheap I got it "

The internet makes comparison shopping much easier especially for people that live in areas where there are not many dive shops. I have been a member of SB for a long time and there are very few bragging posts especially on new gear.

Let's face it, everyone likes a great Deal. The problem is when cheap doesn't equate to the best value. Or cheap crosses the line into being a bad deal.

It is basic economics that people want an item for the least possible price. I am sure you and Pete both comparison shop when purchasing something expensive. I noticed you linked to a regulator you are selling at a discount. How do you think people that bought that regulator at full price feel?

 

[Peter Guy]

Sounds like for a few people I really hit a nerve.

Nothing in the opening post says don't go for value -- this is all about going cheap -- and yes, there is a huge difference.

I suppose what really got me going was this thread -- http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/co...6362-compressor-air-testing-cost-who-use.html -- the guy had purchased and rebuilt a compressor and now was bitching about the "high price" of testing his air. Don't get me wrong -- there is nothing wrong at all with shopping and determining that X is offering a good deal -- perhaps the same thing as Y but at a lower price. But, really, bitching about the high cost of testing the air in a compressor you just rebuilt? Really, is one's life honestly that cheap?

A huge problem for people entering this activity is that they really don't know what a good value is. Maybe, in fact, the $99 Living Social Coupon deal is a great value, but maybe it isn't. As some have written, doing one's homework is the key.

But there still is no reason for "Doing It Cheap" as opposed to "Doing It With Value" -- for they are NOT the same thing.

 

[Wookie]

How do you think people that bought that regulator at full price feel?

Which is exactly why I don't discount. The LOBs that discount get a whole different feel on them as soon as someone mentions price. The first person to mention price is the guy who thinks he got the deepest discount....

 

[rhwestfall]

so, would I be a better diver if I stopped using my SP156 and only used a G250V? Oh wait, that has been replaced with the G260! Crap, I'm so incapable because I'm diving a $20 garage sale regulator...

---------- Post added February 15th, 2014 at 11:09 AM ----------

But there still is no reason for "Doing It Cheap" as opposed to "Doing It With Value" -- for they are NOT the same thing.

Okay, now I'm warm and fuzzy with it! Signing out.

 

[Wookie]

so, would I be a better diver if I stopped using my SP156 and only used a G250V? Oh wait, that has been replaced with the G260! Crap, I'm so incapable because I'm diving a $20 garage sale regulator...

---------- Post added February 15th, 2014 at 11:09 AM ----------



Okay, now I'm warm and fuzzy with it! Signing out.

If you're using that $20 garage sale regulator on trimix to 300 feet without having a gander at the internals, I might not say incapable, but I might have other words for you....

 

[ams511]

Pete, the assumption of the guy looking for an air test is all labs are the same quality. I am not sure if that is true or not, but if true then why pay $300 for one company when another will do it for $100?

 

[redacted]

Sounds like for a few people I really hit a nerve.

Nothing in the opening post says don't go for value -- this is all about going cheap -- and yes, there is a huge difference.

I suppose what really got me going was this thread -- http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/co...6362-compressor-air-testing-cost-who-use.html -- the guy had purchased and rebuilt a compressor and now was bitching about the "high price" of testing his air. Don't get me wrong -- there is nothing wrong at all with shopping and determining that X is offering a good deal -- perhaps the same thing as Y but at a lower price. But, really, bitching about the high cost of testing the air in a compressor you just rebuilt? Really, is one's life honestly that cheap?

A huge problem for people entering this activity is that they really don't know what a good value is. Maybe, in fact, the $99 Living Social Coupon deal is a great value, but maybe it isn't. As some have written, doing one's homework is the key.

But there still is no reason for "Doing It Cheap" as opposed to "Doing It With Value" -- for they are NOT the same thing.

Perhaps you should have titled your post "Doing It With Value".

 

[dmoore19]

If you find diving a $20 garage sale regulator then good for you. Dive it, but don't tell me what I find value in.