GUE Prospect

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The gear you take to Fundies is pretty important. I took some Tusa fins, they weren't rigid enough to adequately back kick in or helicopter turn in - so beg borrow or steal some jet-fins. I can back kick in the Tusa's well now but, I had to learn first on my new OMS's

GUE is more rigid in the way they want their gear set up than some TDI instructors will insist - and its would be a mistake for you to assume close enough is good enough. I think it OK to take non-Halcyon gear, but they will want it set up in the same way as Halcyon Gear. IE BP/Wing, OPV left hand side, power inflator LHS, long hose primary etc etc.

I would send your Instructor a photo of all the gear that you are going to use, just to be sure. If you don't have the right stuff, get it before hand. I relied on renting mine and the the doubles sized wing I ended up with for my single tank just added to the pressure / task loading, I felt, whilst trying to maintain poor trim.

If your looking for a tech pass from the course, then you are going to need the doubles gear / lights / back up gear specifically set up for that, as per their very detailed brief on the GUE fundamentals standards. Also a tech pass will require you to be really comfortable with your gear, prior to getting there, so you will want to have practised with it before hand.

Have a look at GUE.TV there is lots of stuff there about gear set up. the first 3 days GUE.TV are free.
 
...I was kind of taken back because a couple of the responses said he needed to buy Halcyon set up.

As mentioned earlier, I do not need to purchase equipment for my training, but if I decide to do so in the future is this what I should expect? Meaning only X brand allowed.

The gear has to be philosophy compliant, not brand compliant.
As long as it meets all the requirements in the Equipment Configuration Appendix A, it's compliant. Small changes to a student's proposed equipment are sometimes made if it's just a matter of changing webbing or a crotch strap or removing an extra D-ring, etc. Some brands have some gear that's compliant while other gear is not compliant.

If you're interested in buying particular gear, it would be a good idea to ask your GUE Instructor if it's philosophy compliant.
 
I agree with the others. As long as the gear is compliant, it's the diver, not the gear. GUE stands by Halcyon and most of (if not all) instructors will promote it; I think it's great gear, in my opinion, but there are definitely other options out there. Don't feel like it's a must. It's just that they've been using it for a very long time and they (among others) know that it works quite well.

You'll also find out they seem to promote Santi suits over others as well. I can't comment here as I am not into the drysuit realm yet.

With that said, use what makes you comfortable. With practice, you'll look just as good as those wearing the H with another brand. Don't feel pressured by it.

- Jake
 
yes the Halcyon webbing is a great product, I changed it to all my plates even when all my other gear is different brands. And probably will stick with the H webbing from now on.

most of the GUE trained persons here dive Apeks regs as far as I have seen... they are much easier to get serviced here and are more affordable than H branded regs and almost every store sells them. I have seen lots of Halcyon wings in use by DIR divers though.

the local divers including myself use Ursuit drysuits a lot... one of the factors is that it is manufactured locally so they are easy to get serviced and customized quickly. some have Santi or other branded suits as well. Most seem to use Weezly or Santi undergarments and I will probably look for Santi undergarments as well when having enough money to go for heated version (intending to do some ice diving this winter) .
 

Thanks for posting this, I didn't notice they had an equipment configuration list and would help many people understand the proper configuration, and the proper setting of some items for example:

Necklace: Designed to hold the back-up regulator within easy access.
D-rings: No more than two on the chest
Long Hose: Optional in shallow, open water diving, but mandatory in deeper or overhead diving; the long hose simplifies air sharing. When used, the long hose, along with the primary regulator, should ALWAYS be placed on the diver's right post.
Knife: Waist-mounted in front, near the center of the diver's body, for easy access.

And so on

I heard many times questions on these topics
 

Wondered the same

To the OP. Are you not going to have dove a bp/w and long hose setup prior to class? From the sounds of it, it seems you'll be borrowing "new to you" gear for the class. I'm surprised by this. I would have thought that you'd want some experience in the gear for the class prior to class. Maybe that's more for the tec side of fundies.
Good choice on fundies. My wife and I both have several 1000 dives, are cave certified with 200+ cave dives each, and we still plan to take fundies to perfect our skills and find our weak spots ( I already know my frog kick and back kick could get better).
 
I'm a new diver, took fundies at 25 dives and I failed (well, the whole class did). It was my first time in a backplate and wing, I strongly do not recommend trying out the gear for the first time during the class. There is actually very little time for remedial work as there are only 6 dives, and you have to be comfortable if you hope to pass. You'll still learn stuff anyway, but consider the time and money you're putting into it.

With respect to Halcyon vs not, for wings and backplates it's the standard. Some brands deviate a lot, some very little. For example, Light Monkey wings are 100% GUE compatible, and cheaper than Halcyon. In fact, the lack of a dump valve plastic "knob" (in line with EU regulations) and the use of a simple knot make them even more compliant.

Also, not everything Halcyon makes is a good idea. The ACB10 pockets I have are pretty poorly designed and falling apart. The Halcyon cinch also seems to drive some GUE instructors seething with rage. Do not assume that Halcyon automatically means great for GUE. Oh, I also got criticized for purchasing an expensive Halcyon spool. It was advertised as Delrin but it turns out newer ones are made of molded plastic, sub-optimal for GUE. Be careful what you buy.

If you're lucky enough to have an instructor that will meet you to go over your gear first, do that. If they'll dive with you before the class, even better. One of my local instructors just spent 2 full weekends prepping prospective students for fundies (and they were not new to backplate, wing, or doubles). Why not maximize your chances?
 
I did fundies very recently and our class consisted of me and another very new diver.
The other diver had her first encounter with drysuit and bpw the day before the course started, needless to say she struggled a lot during the course.
But the progression she made from the first dive (which was an epic failure on her part) to the last dive was so good it was almost hard to grasp.
She didn't take fundies to move on to further classes or even get a card, the only reason she took the class was to improve her skills and become a better diver.
In just 4 days she went from trainwreck to a better diver than most divers you'll typically run into, it was truly amazing to see her progress.
Although she got a provisional, I would say that she progressed and learned a lot more as a diver than I did even though I passed.

If you're looking for a pass and your cert from a fundies to either move further into GUE courses or for some other reason, you should ideally practice a fair bit before the course in the right gear, that will really help you during the course.
If you're just looking to become a better diver and improve your fundamental skills, there isn't anything wrong with having your first encounter with new gear at the course.
Sure, you'll struggle and you most likely won't pass, but you will receive top notch instruction on how to handle your new gear and how to further progress your skills with it after the course.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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