Equipment Help

[crpntr133]

1) I have never heard of a LDS requiring ALL your own gear, not that yours doesn't.
2) I just spent $400 on my BC, I don't think $1000 is going to go very far for good gear.
3) You say that you THINK lobster hunting would be a blast. Rent until you know that this what you want to do. I know several people that have said that they thought SCUBA would be awesome, and then hated it.
4) There is also the issue of buying online. If you need a quick fix then your LDS is probably not going to take care of it if they don't carry that line. If they do repair it they might stick it to you since you didn't buy it from them.

Personally I think that you are wanting to get certified for the wrong reasons. I don't blame you for wanting the extra money from work but that doesn't mean that you have to have your own gear. Rent and make sure this is what you want.

 

[Buoyant1]

Sounds like a statistic waiting to happen, if ya ask me! I dive because it's something I've always WANTED to do.

I'm buying my LIFE SUPPORT gear from my LDS because I know that they'll be able to set it up and support me if I have any problems with it, they also use the same stuff so they ARE experienced in it's functionality, AND I'm going there becase I want to make sure that they're there to help me in the future!

Price at my LDS vs. LP? Comparable! I would probably save about $150.- $200. between them and LP, but..my LDS will cover the yearly maintenance for me...will your IDS? (internet dive shop)

re: your LDS and their idea of purchasing gear before you even take your first pool session....that's funny! Maybe you need to find another one!

$18,000..is that the price of life these days?

 

[cyklon_300]

I'd get certed in a heartbeat...I'd learn to BASE jump or wrestle crocs for that kind of coin. Even if you don't have a burning desire to dive, unless you're completely phobic about being in/under water, you'll probably enjoy diving once you get exposed to it.

Tell the LDS to bugger off if they don't want to work with you on sales.

Retailers that bully customers and make ridiculous demands for customer loyalty when they can't even spell 'customer service' will become extinct. The internet is a fine place to purchase a lot of gear, but you need to know what you're doing. Everyone makes a few boneheaded purchases...but, you'll learn over time.

 

[scotty921]

I found a guy over that was pretty straight forward about everything and the only thing I need for class will be mask,snorkel,fins,weight belt,gloves and some booties after that I pay for $99 plus the cost of books for class ($80.00) I really like the new mask (Ocean Master 2005 EQUALIZER PROFILE MASK) and the fins (APOLLO FULL FOOT BIO FINS) I just going to get those items first and go out snorkeling to test then out after that I'm going to get the rest of the stuff I mentioned above and wait for class to start.I already bought the 3m full body wet suit so I'm good to go there. The guy said those other ppl was trying to take me for a ride. He said that we will supply me with the expensive stuff but the above Items I will need. So for now I will just buy the basic and hold off on the expensive stuff. Your right about the maint. too, This guy would service the equipment for a year or more If I ever have problems with it.I've been AROUND the ocean over 15 years , Fishing it,snorkeling it just never farther than 15 feet under it .I enjoy it so even if It don't impress anyone I'm still wanting to make diving a weekend priority. It just so much better than snorkeling away from all the up close stuff.Plus I have underwater metal detector that was bought and used a couple of times, It's rated for diving so I'm looking forward to that.he Talked to me about nitro mix? Can't use till after certified but said the stuff was great, Got me

 

[FatCat]

Talked to me about nitro mix? Can't use till after certified but said the stuff was great, Got me

Nitro? Isn't that the stuff that blows up when you shake it?

 

[dive]

Nitro? Isn't that the stuff that blows up when you shake it?

LOL... Like someone said statistic waiting to happen...

 

[Toadie]

Talk to Larry at scuba toys.... I'm a newbie and they've been great so far, plus they come highly recommended. Although, even as a newbie I can tell you that your post worries me. You start off wanting to impress management and then as you get criticized you change your answers. The answer to your original question is Larry at scuba toys, my two cents is that you're playing with your life... budget accordingly.

 

[tkrock]

One word "Rent"

 

[StSomewhere]

scotty921, a couple of things. Some SB'ers tend to forget what forum they are in (hint: New 2 Scuba), not sure that picking on the noobie in this forum is even particularly sporting. Or helpful. Esp. if you are already comfortable in the surf and underwater...

People become commercial divers all the time in the hope of making more money. I've seen worse reasons for getting OW certified, including the lady in my class hoping to impress a potential boyfriend. :11:

Nitrox is just compressed air with more oxygen than normal and is filtered better because its often mixed using pure oxygen which is an accelerant. Normal air is approx 79% nitrogen and 21% oxygen. Nitrox often has 32% or 36% oxygen, the sales pitch is that its safer, though as a point of fact its mostly used to extend your bottom time. You'll need a separate cert for that, you can do that at a later point. For now just know that you should stick to regular compressed air and stay away from tanks with the wide green/yellow NITROX/Enriched Air stickers wrapped around them. The only other thing you need to know is that if you are buying a dive computer, get one that will supports Nitrox since they aren't upgradable later -- but don't spend a fortune on one.

The LDSs that say you have to buy all your gear in advance sound slimey, they are trying to get your money before you find somewhere else to spend it. Technically, the LDS is not supposed to be selling you gear until you *are* certified (liability issues). I'd stick with the one that didn't try to sell you the works. I'd ask the others why they sell equipment to people before they are certified, against the industry's best practices and I'm sure against their laywers advice.

Interview your instructor, since that's who will ultimately be training you. Walter here wrote a great comparison of the agencies (YMCA/NAUI/PADI) curriculums, but I can't find it at the moment. Search SB on "interview" and "instructor" there have been some great threads about what questions to ask and what answers are red flags.

I've dove in FLL, and I'll tell you right now the price you were quoted probably doesn't include your OW checkout dives, ask where/when/how much that will be on top of your classes and pool sessions.

Anyway, enjoy the new goggles and fins, and get signed up so you can start reading your OW book. It will answer lots of your questions. Check out http://scuba.about.com/ for some good background info. The people at Scuba Diving magazine used to maintain http://www.newdiver.com/ with good info, but it hasn't been kept up to date so many of the links now point to nowhere, but whats there is still good information.

 

[scotty921]

The only one who has gave me any real advice in this forum is STSOMEWHERE, Why is that ? All i wanted was some help for this issue and all anyone could do was tell why i was doing it for the wrong reason. TOADIE WTH forum are you reading ? Just because I don't post My whole life story in one post doesn't mean I'm changing anything. I enjoy the water and always have , I do live 6 miles from the beach for at least 20 years BTW I should have posted that also , Im also 35 with 2 kids married 10 years oops my bad yea i can see how things are changing here. When someone gives the chance at making an average of $18,000 a year more (depending on hurricane season)
that's a big money difference on that check at the end of the week. That's more things I can provide for my family. So yes call it what you want but after class and I show them the certs for cpr course that I already took , The required storm water C cert for my job and the soon to be diving certification, I will have a better position in my company and more worth, After I do get my hands on that extra $18,000 a year I probably goto the bahamas and do a little diving with my new cert. It's really sad that I have to defend myself on what I'm doing when I'm in the right forum under "newbie"
I appreciate the help and yes I new the name was nitrox but forgot to type the x on the end SA. I think it was probably a bad idea to come here and probably won't come back. Thanks for the needed help STSOMEWHERE.