How Much Money Did You Spend In Your First Year of Diving?

[grazie42]

I spent about 1500$ the first year of diving.
This year however I´ve spent a lot more...
I´ve made on trip to the Red Sea and two to Florida this year.
The trip to Red Sea cost about 1500$
Two trips to Florida with wreck and trimix training (and some gear) and fun dives about 5000$.
Set of doubles, BP, extra reg and all the rest to do wreckdives back home 2000$.

Total (so far):8500$

I dont think I´ll spend a lot more...I´m pretty poor at the moment (just got back from my last trip to Florida, narrowly avoiding Frances)...All this helps motivate me for my coming salary negotiation with my boss though, If I do well I´ll be able to squeeze in another trip to the Red Sea this year )

 

[LosR3]

I didnt realize it but I spent a good bit. I bought mask and snorkel and bottle before finding class. During class I bought BC ,fins, shorty and weights. During check off I bought Lite knife and few other things...and of yea all those really cool plates stickers,shirts and hat that state
"DIver Go Down and Stay Down LOng" still buying gear it is very addictive. THis stuff is adding up

 

[Barracuda2]

i can't remember 1958 prices for a round mask, weights and belt, US Divers wet suit (first lined suit), a 70 cubic steel tank with a J-valve and a metal backpack,US Divers single hose reg (first one), a snorkel that leaked, and duck fins that were as stiff as a board. I do know that it surly was under $300.00 I've paid more for a BC than I did for my entire first dive gear!!!

Barracuda2

 

[brssmnky]

My first year still has several months left, but so far I can guestimate over $3,000 and counting... and if I had more to spend, I would. But I am a po' non-profit employee.

 

[alikws]

for me, pre certification (classes,mask,fins,boots,snorkle,geer rental for certification dives, and campsite rental} was sub $500, first year was all rental and 1 trip {$750,unexso} so less then $1k... later years was one major piece of geer (a bc &c} and a minor piece {new mask}, so less then $1k average for the last 10 yrs......

 

[northcoast_diver]

...HOLY COW!!!!!!!! was I suprised as to how much I had spent...I figured somewhere in the ballpark of 3-4 grand...but with my purchase that day, I hit the Five Thousand Dollar Mark!!! ...

$5000 is what I spent, on high quality non-technical gear, the first time around, including a wetsuit.

The advantage of getting high quality, the first time, is that if you should then advance to tech diving, you can still use most of your gear for it, plus another $5000 of add-ons.

If you got cheap gear the first time, you could probably stay under $2500. But then for tech, you would need to start all over, and make the $10,000 mark after all. So the penalty for being cheap becomes the first $2500 you spent. Thats a 25% penalty for being a scrooge.

 

[Desa]

I bought my first mask fins & snorkle and a HUGE knife from K-Mart for less than $35.00. Used steel 72 for $30.00 Dacor backpack, nemrod horse collar bc and wieght belt for $25.00 I did splurge and bought a new regulator gave almost $100.00 for a Dacor Pacer 350. My first "luxury" piece of equipment was an SPG. I was the envy of the group, I actually knew how much air I had left, not that it mattered, I still dove until I had to trip the J valve, then start the accent. Those were the days!!!!

I actually dove for about a year and a half before I went and got certified. Only reason to get certified back then (late 70's) was it started to become difficult to find a place to get air without a c-card.

Now that I reflect back, how did I live through all that???????

 

[dlndavid]

The question is kind of misleading, how much did you spend AFTER certification?
I have spent very little after certification, it was the $3000 or so I spent before completing my certification.

 

[Gary D.]

The first year Hummmmmm.

Around $100.00. That was for the class, 2 piece unlined Farmer John, mask, fins, fire extingusher and a regulator.

I made my first dive watch, weight belt, gloves, hood and boots from scrap.

Things were so simple then.

Gary D.

 

[Gomer Piles]

OW Cert $150
Gloves $25
Boots $58
Fins $136
Wetsuit $100 (deep sale price)
Hood $40
Reg $270 (also good sale)
Other $130

So so far that's approx $909 plus tax so far...
Still need to get a BC, AirII, Gauges (too poor to get a comp)... Beyond that I figure I'll just rent tanks for awhile... And then on top of that I'll need a bunch of random crap, a new mask, more certification... I'm gonna be one broke *** white boy...