What would you buy first

[beaverdivers]

I believe a regulator should be in your near future!

It is a very personal piece of gear.

 

[tkevcu]

Thanks for all of the responses. My LDS is recommending a reg setup as well. I guess I've got some more thinking to do.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Put me down for the reg setup. That's what I care about most in all my gear. It's my baby. I can and have bought different wetsuits along the way. Yah, don't like renting them but they aren't life support equipment for me (now a www). Back in my other life coldwater dive days, I rented suits but wanted my own regs and bc asap. Was able to work something out with my LDS to get better pricing on my chosen package of regs/bc. Later I bought a computer and later yet upgraded that. Somewhere along the line I replaced my bcd and as often as I think I might like new regs, my old sherwood maximus are still doing the job. Take care of your gear and it will take care of you.

 

[BigJoeBob]

I would say go top down.

Mask/snorkel are cheap and personal fit on the mask is critical.
Most buy fins next but those could wait.
Next big buy is usually Reg/Octo. No one wants to bite into a half chewed rental mouth piece.
Next is probably gauges to go on the Octo, probably a computer for good measure.


Then BC
Lastly wetsuit and
Fins, hood, gloves and boots if you haven’t picked them up along the way..

Then once you get a few dives in and really know what you want, the upgrades can begin.

Then it is on to the advanced stuff like air mixes, dry suit and tech gear.

This is why divers are always complaining about the cost of air refills.

---------- Post added February 5th, 2013 at 07:13 PM ----------

Full disclosure. Since I have to fly to do any diving in water above 30deg, to save weight and lugage space I typicaly only take my mask&snorkel and buy or request a new mouthpeice for the rental reg. On longer trips like liveaboards I will aslo take my fins, BC, Reg/Octo & hot skin. I just bought my first computer because I think it is vital for multi day dives.

I still haven't bought a wetsuit because I don't mind renting and I doubt it would be dry enough for packing home. PI'EW!

 

[xyrandomyx]

The way I look at it, the most critical things to own are things that have to fit to work. Exposure protection is a big one in this category -- if you are renting a wetsuit, it is unlikely to fit as well as something you bought for yourself, and poor fit means a colder dive. If you aren't comfortable, you won't go diving, so wetsuit, hood, gloves and boots are high on my list of early purchases.

After that, your BC is another thing that has to fit. If it's sloppy or not proportioned for you, it will be uncomfortable and the tank won't be stable in the middle of your back.

In contrast, a regulator is a regulator. So long as the rental regs to which you have access are well-maintained, they are fairly universal, so I think that purchase can wait.

A computer is an odd one. Although many rigs have console computers, so there is no "fit" involved, it IS nice to learn the displays and menus of your computer well, and a lot of people keep their dive logs by downloading their computers. So that's an item that might take a higher priority, despite being rather generic.

I second this reasoning. I've bought gear in this order so far:

1. Mask & Snorkel
2. Wetsuit
3. Boots
4. Fins
5. Computer

My next purchases will be:

1. Drysuit
2. BC
3. Regulator

or

1. BC
2. Regulator
3. Drysuit

I'm waiting to see how I handle the temperatures for winter diving here. If I'm too cold in my wetsuit, I'll get a drysuit -- without it, I'm just not going to do much diving.

 

[Shftrdog]

I like the BCD but I would get a wet suit first. It is over looked a lot but well worth having your own a 1mm if you are doing warm water dives. Then it would be Regs

 

[divingpyrate]

Wetsuit
BC and Regulator
Computer

ditto

 

[Jim Lapenta]

For warm water multi dive trips a 3 mil suit.
Then a lightweight BC and reg set up. You don't need to spend $1000 to do it. You can get in a new reg set and travel type BC for around $600 complete with analog gauges.

 

[tphelps]

I'm wondering... in what order would you buy your gear?


I bought the mask, fins, snorkel, boots when I was OW certified. My first equipment purchase after that was a computer. For Christmas, i received some gift cards and I will probably get more when my birthday comes.


I'm not sure what I am going to buy next. I'm leaning towards a BC (probably a BP/W setup). For those of you who have been diving for a while, I'm curious what order you would buy your equipment in if you had to start over.

Hey mate, the first thing I recommend buying is a dive computer. But since you say you bought one already, I would recommend buying a good regulator. It is more pricey than a wetsuit/drysuit (like the others are recommending) but I think much better. I recommend Atomic or Apeks, I have regulators from both and they are phenomenal. I will never go back to renting one of those hard-to-breath rentals. But then again, having the proper exposure suit is important too. Anyways hope that helps, feel free to PM me if you have any more questions! Cheers.

 

[Reck Diver]

I would think twice about the BPW set up. Yes, it is part of the official tech diver-joe cool diver uniform, but the prices are just plain silly. Go on E Bay and look for a Zeagle Ranger. It is a quality BC. They can be found in very good condition for about 1/3 of the retail price. With care, the Zeagle will last you a lifetime. My reg is a Sherwood Oasis, also from EBay. 1st stage, Primary, Octo and console with SPG, Depth Gauge and Compass $150. Even taking it in for service you are still at about 1/3 retail. I eventually found another one for $150 I purchased for a backup. The key is to be patient. I have a friend that picked up a New Poseidon BESEA for $250. There are a lot of bargins out there.

If you can find a new ex-wife having a garage sale you can just about get the stuff free.

Let someone else pay retail.