A to Z manufacturers

There are many manufacturers in the market that produce the whole range of scuba gear a diver could need.
From mask to slates, from regs to fins, from boots to compass.
Several makers are of real good quality, some not. However can a single manufacturer produce a good piece of gear for every need ?
I mean, Oceanic has masks, PDCs, fins, boots, knives, and so on, the same Cressi, the same Technisub, etc.
There are other vendors that solely produce a special piece of gear, regs, for example, and the quality is superb, also the price.
I have not yet bought a lot of gear, mask, snorkel, knife, compass, PDC, fins, boots, gloves, lights, nothing beyond basic gear and things that normally are not within the equipment you rent in a dive trip. When I choose a piece of gear I try to get the best for the money, no matter the manufacturer or I have not any preference for a specific manufacturer.
Just my thought.

Many things are not as they seem.

First of all there are a lot of houses with multiple brands like Sherwood/ Genesis, Oseanic/Aeris, Aqualung/US Divers/Apeks/Seaquest.

Then there are many items made by 3rd parties that get sold to multiple brands to fill out the line. This is common in dive computers.

Many items are contract manufactured off shore. A company has a design but they get somebody to build the product. A factory could be building brand A this month and something else next. More often than not it's not a close knit state side company that is producing your gear with pride.

In the end there is a lot of marketing and the innovation gets peanut buttered across the industry for the most part. There are some pockets of uniqueness and innovation but you need to look for them.

Pete

Branding may have some value, to the extent that a company exerts design and quality-control influence on the manufacturer to protect the brand's reputation. My gear selection is fairly eclectic, but if I had to buy all my gear from one brand it would be Scubapro. I have used and liked buoyancy compensators, a wetsuit, fins, a knife, booties, and computers sold by them. And their regulators have a good reputation, though I think I prefer my Atomics.

A better focus than "getting the most for the money" would be to "get the best for the purpose". Buying all your gear from one manufacturer is probably not the best idea. This is one of the reasons I like the back plate/wing system of diving - it is easier to mix different products to your needs while providing a central "philosophy" as a guideline. My rig includes a Golem wing, Salvo plate, Dive Rite hog harness, Scuba Pro reg with Oceanic octo on bungee, OMS fins, Dive Rite mask, Pinnacle wetsuits, Suunto Vytec computer, etc. It's fun for me to build a dive kit that is tailored to my needs - maybe a little like building a hot car from various components.

emoreira:

There are many manufacturers in the market that produce the whole range of scuba gear a diver could need.
From mask to slates, from regs to fins, from boots to compass.
Several makers are of real good quality, some not. However can a single manufacturer produce a good piece of gear for every need ?
I mean, Oceanic has masks, PDCs, fins, boots, knives, and so on, the same Cressi, the same Technisub, etc.
There are other vendors that solely produce a special piece of gear, regs, for example, and the quality is superb, also the price.
I have not yet bought a lot of gear, mask, snorkel, knife, compass, PDC, fins, boots, gloves, lights, nothing beyond basic gear and things that normally are not within the equipment you rent in a dive trip. When I choose a piece of gear I try to get the best for the money, no matter the manufacturer or I have not any preference for a specific manufacturer.
Just my thought.

Click to expand...

Most major brands do not manufacture their own products ... they bulk purchase from a manufacturing facility that makes essentially (or exactly) the same product for multiple companies and put their own name on the product.

This is true for masks, regulators, SPG's and a host of items commonly marketed by scuba equipment "manufacturers". Most of these products are mass-produced in countries where labor is cheap, and re-branded for sale by companies like Oceanic, ScubaPro and others.

For example, I have two masks currently in my collection ... one says Oceanic and the other says Halcyon ... and yet they're identical masks. I have no doubt they were made at the same facility ... probably in China.

There is no such thing as "best for the money". Scuba purchases are extremely subjective, and purchasing decisions are made more often by availability or familiarity than by quality or applicability. Most divers either buy what their instructor is using or what their LDS staff tells them they need.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)