buying used gear

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Rocknrone

Registered
Messages
58
Reaction score
20
Location
Idaho
# of dives
50 - 99
Just got certified and I'm looking for my first gear purchase.

Problem is I'm also buying a set for my wife and my 14 year old son.

I don't want to buy new in case they don't like it very much.

Lot's of used gear around here to choose from. I have a couple of questions.

1. How important is it to buy the same brand that our local shop deals in? (Tusa, Aqua lung)

2. Are parts for other brands not available to them?

3. Can I order parts and fix things myself?

4. When I go to look at regulators and BC's what do I look for?
 
getting gear serviced is very important, Buying used gear is great way to save some cash....

1) for your BC and especially your son I would go with a Backplate and wing they are less expensive than traditional BC's and IMO a lot better. For your growing son they will be an asset since as he grows you can adjust the straps to fit him reducing the need to have 2-3BC's. Same could be said about your wife as one of thenmost common complaints from womes is they can notseem to get BC that fits right again thats where BP/W shine as they are custom fit to you. To Save cash I would recomend looking into the HOG line which is the least expensive but very good quality (Especially the reg's which are very high quality some that have them even say they are better than the big manufactures (Scubapro/oceanic/Apeks) I tried them and they worked very well. Best thing is they are about 1/2 the price of others reg's and you can get these new.

Hog regulators you can take a class and get your own parts and service them your self. I believe with all other you need to be apart of a diveshop.

For reg's I personally like ones that are adjustable also looki into what type of climate if you will only be diving in warm waters any reg will work. If you will be diving in colder waters than you want a reg made for cold water. (a cold water reg can dive in water Cold/warm most can even perform in polluted as they are sealed)

I 2 places I could recomend purchase is

www.diverightinscuba.com Ask for mike and talk to him he will work out a great package deal for you and trully takes care of his customers

Piranha Dive Mfg. Same could be said here Owner Name is randle and will also work out a terrific deal for you and same goes he takes caer of his customers.

You could probably get into a brand new HOG system regs/BC for about the price 1 new reg set from Scubapro/Apeks would cost you.
 
Just got certified and I'm looking for my first gear purchase.

Problem is I'm also buying a set for my wife and my 14 year old son.

I don't want to buy new in case they don't like it very much.

Lot's of used gear around here to choose from. I have a couple of questions.

1. How important is it to buy the same brand that our local shop deals in? (Tusa, Aqua lung)
Very important unless you want to pay shipping back and forth to get them serviced. I have Aqualung regs and love them.


2. Are parts for other brands not available to them?
They may be able to get them but it would drive the price up and duration of the overhaul longer. My LDS will service almost any reg but don't warranty their work on them.

3. Can I order parts and fix things myself?
You can with training but I don't suggest it unless you are very experienced.

4. When I go to look at regulators and BC's what do I look for?
Regulators: do your homework to see which regulators are best suited for the environment you will be diving in (cold water, dirty, warm/tropical). As far what to physically look at in a reg, you want to look for any signs of defects like hairline cracks, corrosion, anything more than minor scratches would throw a red flag to me. Unless you personally know the person selling them to you (even if you do sometimes) you should get them looked at and bench tested at your LDS before taking them in open water.

BC: Again, make sure it's appropriate for the type of diving your doing. If your buying used make sure it is in great shape with no rips, warn spots and the inflator hose assy doesn't show any signs of corrosion and most of all look for dry rot. There are to many used BC's for sale out there to settle for one in poor shape. People buy them all the time and dive them a few times and sell them because they weren't quite what they wanted (I've done it a few times myself).

If you aren't sure if they will like it or not rent a few times and let them see before you drop a lot of money on gear (even used gear will cost a lot by the time it's all said and done). The plus side to doing it that way is trying different stuff before you buy. I rented a lot different gear before I decided what I actually wanted.

This is just my opinion but I hope it helps.

Best of luck in what ever you decide to do.
 
I agree- apart from the basics like a good set of mask and fins, there's nothing wrong with renting gear for the first 10 dives until you get a feel for what works for you.

It is good to get gear that can be serviced local- the reg at least. Personally I would buy the reg new from your LDS. It will normally be more expensive than what you can find online, but $300-400 on a decent no-frills reg is money well spent IMO.

Jacket BCD's are fairly generic.

I wouldn't rely on internet forums on advice on buying used diving equipment, just as I wouldn't for buying a used car.
 
If you're on a budget, the older Aqualung Conshelf line is great. I picked up my set...Conshelf XIV 1st + 2nd + octo, with a Farallon console for under $100. To rebuild the Conshelfs, you're looking at about $25 per 1st stage, $10 per 2nd stage. They're quite easy to rebuild, and share a lot of parts with the Aqualung Titan lineup. The bodies are solid chromed marine grade brass. They were / are the US military's SCUBA regulator of choice as well.

Wetsuits are tough to shop for on the used market. They have a lifespan that is dictated by build quality, diving conditions, and upkeep. I got lucky with mine, it was only dived once. Just keep in mind, the zipper usually blows out after about 300 dives with most modern wetsuits. Repairing the zipper usually costs almost as much as buying a new wetsuit.

The Neosport wetsuit lineup is a bargain if you want something new that hasn't been peed in.

BCs, look for fading, stitch quality...take off the hose and smell the inside of the bladder. Does it smell like it has been kept clean? Or does it smell like a heavily used pair of wet shoes?
 
Our diving will be cold and warm. We travel to Seattle and Ft Lauderdale every year.

We have rented a few different setups. I'm partial to the Aqua Lung brand. However, I think I could get used to any brand BC.

Our shop carries Tusa, Aqua Lung, and Oceanic. Any suggestions for regulators from these guys.

Can you manually inflate a BC enough to tell if it leaks?
 
Can you manually inflate a BC enough to tell if it leaks?

:confused: Yes. Unless you put it in water, you may not hear minor leaks but anything major will be audible.

Diving warm and cold you'd need two types of exposure suit. Look to get a vest as well- they can be worn under any wetsuit you may buy and insulate well for their size/bulk. I use just the vest in here in the Maldives as temps are in 29-30C range.

Aqualung Titan is a good solid reg. The cheaper Calypso is also a good choice for normal recreational diving and popular as a rental model for it is pretty much bulletproof and easy to service.
 
Just got certified and I'm looking for my first gear purchase.

Problem is I'm also buying a set for my wife and my 14 year old son.

I don't want to buy new in case they don't like it very much.

Lot's of used gear around here to choose from. I have a couple of questions.

1. How important is it to buy the same brand that our local shop deals in? (Tusa, Aqua lung)

The issue you have is getting service. Most shops will not service a brand that they do no carry (it's likely they do not have access to parts). By sticking with a brand the local shop carries it makes your life easier. Plus they are more motivated to order parts if they are a dealer as opposed to hunting down a supplyer of parts they do not have ready access to.

2. Are parts for other brands not available to them?

That is very likely, scuba manufs are real picky about dealing with only their "authoized dealers".

3. Can I order parts and fix things myself?

Depending on the brand and model you may or maynot find them available. While I am a big DIY fan, you still need to understand how to service your own equipment. Looking for a brand/model you can do yourself down the road is not a bad idea but I would suggest you leave the service to the pros until you have some diving experience and time to learn to work on the gear. We have a very active DIY section on this board, I would encourage you to follow the threads even if you don't have that kind of gear, you will learn a lot hearing what others are doing.

4. When I go to look at regulators and BC's what do I look for?

Brand, model, fit and overall condition are your main concerns. Avoid brands or models that are from the smaller brands or brands you can not find dealers for. Dacor is a good example. In the day they made good regs but they are now out of business and parts are diffcult to find. While there are a lot of good brands on the market, Scubapro and Aqualung (aka US Divers) are the better bets if you are looking at older regs, most of their regs from the last 30 years or so you can still get parts for......assuming your LSD wants to. When looking at used regs, take a careful look at the hoses. 3 new hoses will set you back over $100. Add that to the $120-150 service you will need and the price jumps a lot. I am not saying used is a bad investment, far from it but you do need to keep the service cost in mind.
BCs are not as big a deal. Blow it up orally and see if it holds air for an hour or 2, if it does and it looks in good mechanical shape (fading is not a big deal) you are good to go. If it doesn't check to see if you can find the leak, small leaks around dump valves are common and often times good cleaning will solve that. No reason to pass on an otherwise good BC just because of a dirty valve.

I will have to disagree with shady on the BP. While great BCs, they are not the be all, end all theirs fans make them out to be. They are a royal pain in the rear to adjust and rarely are less expensive than a new mid range BC. While they are widely adjustable, the benefit of that is must less than you are lead to believe. Most modern BCs will adjust over a fairly wide range (and much easier). Unless you are swapping the BC around between several family member that widely vary in sizes it makes little difference that the BC is "infinitely adjustable". Even with growing kids, a used BC can be used for several years and resold for most, if not all your original purchase price (assuming you got a good deal to begin with). Between regs and BC, your best saving money oppertunity is with the BC. Often times you can find a quite servicable BC for under $50.



On last thing on used. I highly recommend you avoid online buying such as eBay. While you can sometimes get great deals, you need to understand what you are doing, otherwise you may end up with an expensive paperweight. Local places like Craigslist are much better options. You can get your hands on the gear and evaluate it better. If you can find a local diver who understands equipment you will be way ahead.
 
1. How important is it to buy the same brand that our local shop deals in? (Tusa, Aqua lung) 2. Are parts for other brands not available to them? - It is usually helpful to buy brands that your shop stocks. They are more familiar with 'quirks' and they have access to parts, in a timely manner, at a reasonable price, and they are more likely to be willing to service the gear.

3. Can I order parts and fix things myself? Not easily (order parts) but potentially yes (fix things yourself) with some training and experience.

4. When I go to look at regulators and BC's what do I look for? Most regulator brands include a continuum of models that vary in price and functionality - e.g. an entry level model, a mid-range model and a high-end model. The entry level models are seldom optimal for cold water diving (you mention Seattle, for example), while the high-end models are usually excessively pricey, because of needless bells and whistles that have been added, so look for a mid-range model (manufacturer websites are very useful). For a BCD, you will find that decisions center around jacket style vs back-inflation models (and I prefer and recommend back-inflation, but dive both styles) and weight-integrated vs not weight-integrated (and the majority of BCDs being produced and sold now are weight-integrated). I personally prefer a backplate / wing but you might find it a bit challenging to buy a good used single-cylinder wing. I suspect that whatever you buy will not be your last purchase, if you continue to dive. So, the criteria is brand (local servicability), functionaltiy (does it hold air, etc.) and cost (for a first rig, cheap is OK, since new divers 'outgrow' their first gear purchases in many cases).
herman:
I highly recommend you avoid online buying such as eBay. While you can sometimes get great deals, you need to understand what you are doing, otherwise you may end up with an expensive paperweight.
Herman has a great deal of experience working with (very) used equipment (aka vintage) and his words are to be heeded. I agree with the comment that you really need to understand what you are doing, especially on eBay. I see a lot of 'irrationally exhuberant' bidding on eBay that simply makes no sense whatsoever. But, I am not quite as reluctant to support buying on eBay, as I have made a substantial number of scuba gear purchases on eBay with consistently good results. A big part of 'understanding what you are doing' is to a) determine in advance what you are looking for (develop a brand and model list and stick to it), b) determine what the abolsute best online NEW price is for each item, and c) limit your bid to no more than 50% of that lowest new price.
Rocknrone:
Lot's of used gear around here to choose from.
If that is the case then Herman's comment about Craigslist is spot on. You have a better chance to inspect the gear before you buy.
 
If you're on a budget, the older Aqualung Conshelf line is great. I picked up my set...Conshelf XIV 1st + 2nd + octo, with a Farallon console for under $100. To rebuild the Conshelfs, you're looking at about $25 per 1st stage, $10 per 2nd stage. They're quite easy to rebuild, and share a lot of parts with the Aqualung Titan lineup. The bodies are solid chromed marine grade brass. They were / are the US military's SCUBA regulator of choice as well.

Wetsuits are tough to shop for on the used market. They have a lifespan that is dictated by build quality, diving conditions, and upkeep. I got lucky with mine, it was only dived once. Just keep in mind, the zipper usually blows out after about 300 dives with most modern wetsuits. Repairing the zipper usually costs almost as much as buying a new wetsuit.

The Neosport wetsuit lineup is a bargain if you want something new that hasn't been peed in.

BCs, look for fading, stitch quality...take off the hose and smell the inside of the bladder. Does it smell like it has been kept clean? Or does it smell like a heavily used pair of wet shoes?

+1 on the older model Conshelf regs. These are easy to service yourself as they do not require any special tools. I have done the same thing with older Scubapro regs that I picked up on Ebay. I choose Scubapro as I am very familiar with servicing that brand but the principal is the same. Your local shop should be able to return an old Conshelf to like new condition assuming it is in reasonable condition to start with.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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