First piece of scuba gear

[proyce]

I already have mask, snorkel, fins, and skin suit. I live in Minnesota and have completed my OW cert. I am now looking at purchasing scuba gear, but I can't afford it all at once. My question:

What do I buy first? Regulator? or wetsuit appropriate for Minnesota lakes?

I'm thinking the reg, but it costs more to rent the wetsuit.

 

[Randy43068]

Get a regulator then get a Back Plate and Wing!

 

[Ishie]

Hmm... good questions. Depends on what equipment is available and how reliable. If your LDS is a little questionable on equipment, I'd go with the regulator since it's the most critical piece of "life support gear". I've seen a poorly maintained rental reg fall apart on a buddy, and though he handled taking a lung full of water exceptionally well, yikes.

If the rented gear is trustworthy, I'd recommend going with the wetsuit first, particularly since you're diving cold water like I do. Even good shops tend to rent wetsuits that are not wildly comfortable, and a perfect fit is essential to comfort and often warmth, since one that's too baggy doesn't work well at all.

I have a cold water wetsuit (J/J 7 mil) and a warm water wetsuit (3/2 full). Both were relatively inexpensive (under 200$) and both are exceptionally comfortable. My first wetsuit was a bought rental that was made out of aquaseal and hope, it was too tight, thus making it uncomfortable to dive in it, and so switching made a huge difference.

Second on comfort, I'd try out a few styles of BC and then determine what you like best. I started with a 50 dollar ancient scubapro BC which was quite functional, but not wildly comfortable. I'm not happy with being squeezed by gear AND as being female there are certain areas I really don't want gear squeezing, so when I tried out Dive Rite's Transpack wing system, I loved it and it's made a huge difference in my comfort level because I can have it full to bursting if I so choose with no discomfort. If the jacket style is your thing, again, finding one that fits you perfectly and has the features you want is going to increase your diving comfort.

Hope this helps!

 

[J75]

I'd go with the reg. You can find wetsuits pretty cheap on line. But once you have your own reg, you'll be a lot more comfortable in the water I think.

 

[garyfotodiver]

Get the wetsuit first. It is one thing to have a poorly fitting suit in the Bahamas, but in cold water... Brrr! Regulators are one size fits all; if the dive shop doesn't have a wetsuit for you, you are out of luck.

The next item I'd get is a BC. Same reasoning.

 

[VTernovski]

I'd go with a wetsuit. regulators you can get anywhere.. but a good fitting wetsuit is not always available, not to mention people pee in them.. also, it's cheaper to rent a reg. of course, the next purchase is the regulator and BC... as someone else mentioned, back plate and a simple one-piece harness is always a better choice than any other traditional BCD's there on a market. but do your own research.

 

[PerroneFord]

If I lived in Minnesota, I think my first purchase would be a drysuit! LOL!

I bought my wetsuit first, but other things followed pretty quickly. The wetsuit and the regulators are probably the first two things I would look at. One is CRUCIAL to comfort, the other you really do place your life in it's hands. After those two, I'd probably look at the BC, instruments, and finally a bag or something to haul all this stuff around in!

All joking aside, if I lived in a cold climate, a drysuit would probably be HIGH on my list, just so that I could open up the opporrtunity to dive locally most of the year.


Best of luck with your purchases.

 

[The Kraken]

In your neck of the woods I would definitely go with personal thermal protection. Given the temperatures of the waters you'll be diving, maintaining you core temperature is going to be a primay, critical concern.

An ill fitting wet suit, or dry suit with inadequate undergarments, will serve only to jeopardize your health and your dive.

Stay warm, stay safe and you can concentrate more intensely upon other tasks at hand.

In my personal opinion I think you order of purchase precedence should be:
1: Thermal protection
2: Buoyancy compensation device
3: Regulators

the K

 

[cudachaser]

I always tell my classes to start with thermal protection, then BC finally a regulator system...always tell them to save the tanks to last.

 

[BarryNL]

I already have mask, snorkel, fins, and skin suit. I live in Minnesota and have completed my OW cert. I am now looking at purchasing scuba gear, but I can't afford it all at once. My question:

What do I buy first? Regulator? or wetsuit appropriate for Minnesota lakes?

I'm thinking the reg, but it costs more to rent the wetsuit.

I'd probably go for the wetsuit. A well fitting wetsuit will make diving more comfortable while a rental regulator is not a problem, assuming the shop is always fastidious with their servicing.

Of course, putting the money towards a drysuit instead is probably the best way to go if you can afford it...