OMS Gear

[Dan Gibson]

There is a certain dive shop in Florida that has/had an OMS sticker on the trash can. The first time I saw that I laughed my *** off.

It's because OMS has a bad image and tends to be looked down upon by a lot of people here. The OMS "technically correct" pictures on their web page are sort of the poster child for "how not to do things." You hear "Other Manufacturer's Gear" used to refer to the fact that OMS doesn't really make much, and they have a history of doing.. well, contradictory things. They will issue "safety advisories" about other manufacturer's products, then two years later introduce a copy of the same product.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with OMS gear, but they make very little stuff that isn't done as well or better by someone else, and their rep is not a good one.

(I just know I'm going to get flamed for this one)

 

[Tanked Monkey]

My singles wing is OMS (non bungie-of course), and I like it quite a bit, even after about 30 dives on it. I have nothing to compare it to, as it is my first rig. My BP is by another manuf. At least I had the foresight to not go with bungies and to remove the elbow dump.

When I bought the wing (Dec 2004), I didn't see any of the "other company bashing" that is mentioned in this post. If I did, I might have bought a wing from another company, as I don't like manufacturers that operate this way.

I guess I'm a tek-wannabe, as I am not currently a technical diver, but hope to get there one day (long-term plan). I do not own any other OMS equipment, and don't plan to, since I have recently discovered another company that starts with an H

I'm not trying to defend OMS and their practices here, just share my experiences (albeit limited) with one of their products. Of course, when it comes to regs, I never considered OMS, and leaned toward Apeks and Scubapro.

Mike

 

[aquaoren]

Be glad it doesn’t show 35 bar MORE than the rest! Can’t you have it recalibrated somehow?

I have the same gauge; mine seems to be as accurate (or inaccurate as the case maybe) as my other gauges and AI computers.

Hehe, glad that your SPG works for you.
I don't see a reason for me to start calibrating a brand new SPG. Wouldn't even know how to do it and I wouldn't trust it as I should for an instrument that tells me for how long I can still stay alive.
I contacted the store, where it was bought and they apperantly stand behind the products they sell better than the manufacturer itself, judging by the experience of some people here and elsewhere. The shop promised me an exchange.

 

[Boogie711]

From http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=6559&highlight=OMS*

I can only hope they're about to disappear. I think OMS is a horrible company - my loathing for OMS is well known.

I was asked why - I'll repeat it:

For a couple reasons.

A) They're the living embodiment of (dare I say it) "Strokery." For example, I have a tough time supporting any company that feels it's necessary to make a 100 lb wing, and then dare to insinuate that it's ok to use with a single tank.

B) I feel that they basically take other peoples stuff, put their logo on it and then once they've got your money, tell you to screw off. Their customer support after the fact is notoriously horrible.

C) I feel their marketing practices are deceiving and downright cheese-assed. The living proof of this is the so-called "Safety Bulletin" where they slam Halcyon's gear all over the place without coming right out and just saying "look, we just feel our gear is superior, and here's why." http://www.omsdive.com/news2.html

D) They're inconsistent, and what they do release takes forever to manifest. One style of manifold is bad, until they decide to sell that manifold. Painted tanks are better, until they decide to hot-dip galvanize... then they don't. Their new single tank wing was on their website for the better part of a year until it was released to the public.

Is it all subjective? Oh heck, yeah. I don't expect others to agree, that's fine. But in a nutshell, that's why I think OMS is a bad company.

 

[Lil' Irish Temper]

Shows how my search skills suck, Hmmm, everytime I put in OMS I get, Sorry - no matches. Please try some different terms.

Sorry about that guys, and sorry about saying the "O" word Boogie

 

[mossym]

From http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=6559&highlight=OMS*

ah tell us how you really feel..don't hold back now..

 

[Boogie711]

LOL - that's OK. It was an older post, rescusitated only because it's relevant.

Now - ask me how I feel about the Air2. :11:

 

[aquaoren]

LOL - that's OK. It was an older post, rescusitated only because it's relevant.

Now - ask me how I feel about the Air2. :11:

So, what do you think about the Air2?

 

[jagfish]

"OMS: We Outfit Tech Posers".

LOL! I wouldn't have said it originally, but this is exactly my impression as well...