Buying first equipment- Advice?

Tom W · Jul 20, 2005

I'm buying my first equipment and would appreciate any advice. I've been certified (OW) about 3 years and have been diving mostly with my Brownies Third Lung here around sarasota and in the keys. I have only about 20 dives with tanks using rental equipment but now have decided to start diving with tanks more. I will probably start getting some advanced certifications.

The equipment I was looking at is,

BC- Scubapro Knighthawk -(Back inflation) with the combination octopus-inflator.

Suunto Vyper console computer

Aqualung Titan LX regulator.

I am going to purchase locally rather than on the internet to keep the business local and for service.(and theres only about $150 difference anyway) I want to get good equipment that I don't have to upgrade later.

Thanks in advance.

Wijbrandus · Jul 20, 2005

My wife has that exact same bc (well, the LadyHawke) with the Air2. She loves it. She won't trade it for nuttin.

I don't have anything else to contribute, other than I recommend you rent them first to make sure you like them, and that you have chosen some brands with excellent reputations.

PS Welcome to the boards! If you do a search on those brands in their respective forums, you will find a ton of opinions and information on them, far more than I provide.

Damselfish · Jul 20, 2005

Sounds like good gear. I've got a Vyper and a Ladyhawk.

Have you dove with and without an Air2, and read anything about the pros and cons of the combined units? If not you might want to research that part some. Some people like these but others have reasons for preferring a regular separate octo. (The rental gear we used in class had these but I never liked it so bought a separate octo.)

O'Malley · Jul 20, 2005

Purchased a Knighthawk couple months ago for my OW cert and 32 dives later, very happy with purchase...this is, however, the only BC I have used and can not provide any comparative info...my ONLY complaint...the dump valve toggles (right shoulder and right rear) are relatively small and sometimes difficult to locate quickly.

theskull · Jul 20, 2005

Excellent gear choices! And nice that you plan to buy locally, although that's an easier decision to make in Florida where dive shops are in abundance and the gear is sold at a discount.

theskull

wunat · Jul 21, 2005

Tom W:
The equipment I was looking at is,

BC- Scubapro Knighthawk -(Back inflation) with the combination octopus-inflator.

Suunto Vyper console computer

Aqualung Titan LX regulator.

I am going to purchase locally rather than on the internet to keep the business local and for service.(and theres only about $150 difference anyway) I want to get good equipment that I don't have to upgrade later.

Thanks in advance.

I am using Aqualung Titan LX regulator and is very satisfied with it. In fact I am getting a set for my girlfriend.

Heard lots of good comments about Scubapro Knighthawk. If you are interested in back inflation, you might want to take a look at SeaQuest Balance. BP+Wing might come up on some suggestions so might want to consider it too. (There are lots of thread on it.)

Tom W · Jul 21, 2005

Thanks for the help. Yes, I have looked at the Seaquest Balance. It was at another dive shop here and was my second choice. The only turn off was the shop sales people actually had less experience that me (hard to believe) and I heard their service was not that great.
I'm going to go into Tampa this weekend to look at a shop that has Zeagle to look at the Stilletto.
I have'nt dove with an air2 before, but it seems like a good idea to get the octo out of the way. I have talked to people who love it. I heard that it is tough to give to your buddy to breath tho.
Thanks again.

BabyDuck · Jul 21, 2005

are you supposed to give the air2, or give *your* reg and breathe the air2 yourself?

DivesWithTurtles · Jul 21, 2005

BabyDuck:
are you supposed to give the air2, or give *your* reg and breathe the air2 yourself?

You're suppose to give the air2 to your worst enemy, then install a proper inflater and alternate.

jonnythan · Jul 21, 2005

BabyDuck:
are you supposed to give the air2, or give *your* reg and breathe the air2 yourself?

Can you imagine forcing an OOA diver to breathe off your inflator hose?? Ugh.

I think that if you insist on using an Air2, the best bet is to use a longer-than-normal primary hose, if not a bona fide long hose, on your primary, so that you actually have enough hose to dontae to keep the OOA diver out of your face.

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