One of Central NY's newest diver says hello.

[syrarff21]

Well, after putting it off for 38 years, I am jumping in with both feet and taking the class.
Although I snorkel whenever I get the chance, I have not gotten around to get my SCUBA cert. Class starts mid January. Now, where do I buy great equipment for pennies on the dollar??????????

 

[Web Monkey]

Well, after putting it off for 38 years, I am jumping in with both feet and taking the class.
Although I snorkel whenever I get the chance, I have not gotten around to get my SCUBA cert. Class starts mid January. Now, where do I buy great equipment for pennies on the dollar??????????

Find someone that can't dive anymore and see if he'll give you all his old stuff! (that's how got started )

Terry

 

[augk]

Hi welcome to the board you could check out craigs list you can always find somthing interesting.
even right here people have stuff they are trying to sell.
ScubaBoard - Gear / Equipment Classifieds

 

[PePaw]

Would recommend that you try out the mask and fins at your local dive shop. Fit and comfort are everything. Buying cheap is the most expensive way to go. Buy the best you can afford and buy once.

Although I believe firmly in supporting your LDS, you can get the brand name and sizes in person, then look online.

Welcome Aboard !

 

[DivingPrincessE]

Welcome to the board! Good luck with your classes.

If you poke around SB you will see that it is HIGHLY recommended that you just get mask, snorkel, fins, boots to start out. Don't buy the rest of the equipment for a while. Get certified. See if you like it. Rent for the first year or so, try out lots of different stuff to see what you like. If you are just going to do warm water dives at a resort once a year you may buy different stuff than if you planned to do cold water diving locally. Also if you are only going to dive a few times a year while on vacation, you may just want to rent so you don't have to worry about buying expensive equipment, transporting it to and from, getting it serviced, etc. If your instructor is saying that you should buy a whole set of equipment before the class, then he is just after $$ (I know because my first experience with a dive shop was like this). In that case you may want to find another shop/instructor, like I did.

Have fun, enjoy, and good luck!!

 

[Web Monkey]

Although I believe firmly in supporting your LDS, you can get the brand name and sizes in person, then look online.

That's sure to make friends.

"Hi! I'm new to diving. Would you mind spending an hour or so with me trying on equipment, so I know what size to order from your competitor?"

Terry

 

[PePaw]

That's sure to make friends.

"Hi! I'm new to diving. Would you mind spending an hour or so with me trying on equipment, so I know what size to order from your competitor?"

Terry

I agree. And personally, the wife and I have purchased every piece of gear from our LDS.
But I don't know everyones situation.

 

[keezdiver]

welcome to the world of diving...well i guess that's a bit premature since you havn't started yet:14:

as for gear. WAIT...see what you like, try on other people's stuff, see what they like/dislike. rent diferent setups.

they research and buy.

LDS are great...but with some doing 40-50% markups....how the heck can you afford to NOT shop online?

 

[syrarff21]

Thanks for the input everyone. I have several friends that dive and looked at / tried on some of their gear. I also am the kind of guy that despite advice to the contrary, will buy stuff anyway just to have it. (One of those quirks my wife hates.) I purchased all my own gear needed so I could learn on what I will use later. and am rather glad I did. We performed our open water dives this weekend, April 5th & 6th, in a local lake where the water temp was 36 degrees. I should mention that we followed our OW class with a dry suit class and combined the open water dives so the temp wasn't too bad. (the 1/8" moving ice on the second day made me question how much I really wanted to be there though.) Now that it is over I, like many of you I'm sure, find myself almost sad it is over. Not being able to go dive once a week until summer is a bummer even if it is in a pool. Anyway, thanks for making me feel welcome on the board and for the advise though I didn't take. While I'm not much of a poster, I read the comments often to get the valuable insight from those [all] of you with far more experience than me.