No more chuckles!

Well, as I am sure many of you had a chuckle when you asw my LDS quote for a few select pieces of gear that I posted the other day. My questions is, I can find the same gear over the internet for hundrends of dollars less. So I figured that I would buy it from the internet and pocket the difference. My only concern is the regulator. Now, I know that if I want an Atomic I will have to pony up the money, but shouldn't I buy atleast my reg from my LDS (not necessarily Atomic) since that really is my life support and I would want to have the total benenfits of warranty and a place to have it serviced, etc...

Thanks

Is your LDS able to service Atomic (or whatever) regs you are considering? If the reg is your concern, why not have your LDS order it for you? Especially if they are qualified and willing to service your reg for you.

Fish,

I made another post about some equipment i was going to purchase and it came to an astronomical price (albeit it did have the Atomic T2)

The other equipment I can get over the internet much cheaper.

For example, I wanted the Ranger Ltd. my LDS has it for $739 - 15% = 628.15
I can only get the 15% off if I buy the BC and Reg together so. The Atomic came to $1745 before discount or with = 1483.25

I can get the Ranger Ltd. for 524.95 at LeisurePro etc, of course I no longer have a warranty, but I do not expect there to be too many problems with my BC since my LDS is a dealer in both Zeagle and Atomic so I can get it serviced there anyway.

Now, I guess it really boils down to how set am I on the T2. While I know it is an excellent regulator I am starting to feel the impending doom of the price tag. I guess, theoretically I would never have to buy another reg again, or could I just get a B2 instead?

I think I am getting further and further down the rabbit hole

Rob

I don't know enough about equipment or servicing to really offer any advice... I've been using a fairly cheap Sea Elite reg since I started diving, (A whole whopping year, now), and it has served me well. What if you started out with a cheap but dependable reg, and saved up for "Excalibur," as your diving, experience, and bank account advance a little?

Check maintenance cost too. I like Scubapro, because the kit for overhaul is less. And available all over the world.

robbanks78:

Fish,

I made another post about some equipment i was going to purchase and it came to an astronomical price (albeit it did have the Atomic T2)

The other equipment I can get over the internet much cheaper.

For example, I wanted the Ranger Ltd. my LDS has it for $739 - 15% = 628.15
I can only get the 15% off if I buy the BC and Reg together so. The Atomic came to $1745 before discount or with = 1483.25

I can get the Ranger Ltd. for 524.95 at LeisurePro etc, of course I no longer have a warranty, but I do not expect there to be too many problems with my BC since my LDS is a dealer in both Zeagle and Atomic so I can get it serviced there anyway.

Now, I guess it really boils down to how set am I on the T2. While I know it is an excellent regulator I am starting to feel the impending doom of the price tag. I guess, theoretically I would never have to buy another reg again, or could I just get a B2 instead?

I think I am getting further and further down the rabbit hole

Rob

Click to expand...

For the price on the Atomic reg you could buy 4 Zeagle Flathed VI regulators.

It's not like you're going to notice a performance difference between the two...

Sure, having a regulator that is a 3/4 of a pound lighter is plenty schpiffy and all... and the 2 year service interval is swell, but you're going to pay $1k extra for those "features".

I don't know what service on an Atomic costs, but Larry at Scubatoys will take care of your Zeagle for $40. Assuming the service costs are the same, it'll take 50 years before you break even on the service cost.

Both will last a lifetime.

-Brandon.

robbanks78:

Fish,

I made another post about some equipment i was going to purchase and it came to an astronomical price (albeit it did have the Atomic T2)

The other equipment I can get over the INTERNET much cheaper.

For example, I wanted the Ranger Ltd. my LDS has it for $739 - 15% = 628.15
I can only get the 15% off if I buy the BC and Reg together so. The Atomic came to $1745 before discount or with = 1483.25

I can get the Ranger Ltd. for 524.95 at LeisurePro etc, of course I no longer have a warranty, but I do not expect there to be too many problems with my BC since my LDS is a dealer in both Zeagle and Atomic so I can get it serviced there anyway.

Now, I guess it really boils down to how set am I on the T2. While I know it is an excellent regulator I am starting to feel the impending doom of the price tag. I guess, theoretically I would never have to buy another reg again, or could I just get a B2 instead?

I think I am getting further and further down the rabbit hole

Rob

Click to expand...

If you are going to be diving with both air and NITROX you might want to consider the B2 instead of the T2.

Atomic states that you have to make the determination at time of purchase whether you want to use it for air or NITROX and use it only for that purpose.

I was facing the same decision as you and went with the B2.

I looked at it this way. The second stage on the B2 and T2 are identical (other than the gray face plate versus blue or yellow). The only difference is the first stage.

The first stage on the T2 is about 8 ounces lighter than the first stage on the B2. I certainly am not going to notice the difference of 8 ounces when I have it in my gear bag and will never notice the difference of 8 ounces under water.

Given those choices the decision was a simple one. I saved approximately $700 and got an excellent regulator that I can use for both air and NITROX.

The only other difference is that the swivel on the hose to the first stage is titanium on the T2.

I bought it at the LDS. They have treated me very well over the last few years. As a result I bought all of my life support equipment for both me and my daughter at the LDS.

OK this is the setup I am going to go with:

Zeagle Ranger
Atomic Z2 with Z1 octo
any analog spg & depth

I am estimating that it will run about $1200 with tax and all.

Does that seem like a fair price?

Rob

Hi robbanks78,

For $1200 you can get a heck of a lot of really good gear... I really mean good!!!

You might not want to do DIR but this thread is a really good start since it recommends gear by guys who have bought, sold and finally decided on what they should have gotten in the first place to save $$$$$$.
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=132121

Both catherine96821 and Da Aquamaster recommend Scubapro and I would say get a MK17/555/250 octo or MK17/S600/250 octo
I've seen a MK17 / R390 on ebay for $300 and I'm sure Larry will help you.
or
Apeks DS4 first stage/ATX50/TX50 octo
Great if you are doing tech or DIR $500
or get a really crap daco reg and trade it in with larry at scubatoys:http://www.scubatoys.com/store/regupgrade/index.asp

For a bc, you cab't do wrong with a DSS singles rig... or a Oxycheq singles rig for $460 or so.

Even with a set of gauges, you will save at least $100.

SangP

robbanks78:

I can get the Ranger Ltd. for 524.95 at LeisurePro etc, of course I no longer have a warranty, but I do not expect there to be too many problems with my BC since my LDS is a dealer in both Zeagle and Atomic so I can get it serviced there anyway.

Click to expand...

I hate to keep sounding like a Scubatoys ad, but if you call Larry he will almost certainly match that LP price, or even recommend something better (from a value perspective). And since he is an authorized Zeagle dealer, you get the manf. lifetime warranty.

LP has low prices, but they aren't exactly the type of people you'd want to get gear recommendations from (i.e. they aren't actually divers).