New diver here! I am curious what everyones recommendations are for gear as a beginner.

[tndelveaux]

I will likely be diving in mostly warm water climates, should I purchase my own wetsuit? Will a full body rash guard suffice? Just a shorty or long sleeve swimsuit? Is it worth it to purchase your own computer? Brands you recommend? I welcome any advice!

 

[Outbound]

What exposure protection you use is completely dependent on your cold tolerance. For 80-ish degree water, as an example (typical of what you will find for most of the year throughout most of the Caribbean), some people will wear a rashgard and shorts. Others will use a 3mm shorty or a full suit. I dive a 5mm wetsuit. You'll also want to consider protection from cuts, abrasions, and stings.

As to whether you buy or rent a wetsuit, that's up to you. Just consider this: most dive ops will only have 3mm shorties to rent, and think about what people do in their wetsuits and whether or not they get rinsed and disinfected after.

A computer is a good purchase to consider, because you'll then be familiar with it and won't have to worry about trying to figure out a new rental computer with each trip. But, you might want to rent at first until you decide what features and options you want (AI, wrist vs console, watch-size, etc.). As for brand, Shearwater computers are awesome, with great customer service.

 

[inquis]

I like a full 3mm for warm water. Helps with any stinging floaties or knocks getting aboard a boat or rocky shores. Also helps when diving several days in a row on a trip -- even if a rash-guard would work for a single dive, the chill is a bit cumulative.

Since tables can't easily be used to plan/execute multi-level dives, a computer is very valuable for having more reasonable bottom times on such dives. Just following a guide or buddy's computer is generally not a great idea.

 

[Still Kicking]

Get a computer. A Shearwater Peregrine is a great investment if you can afford it but any reasonably priced computer will be a good asset to you as a traveler. And get nitrox certified.

If you are going to spend a significant amount of money to get some place to dive, then a computer and nitrox allows you to maximize your valuable time underwater while you are there without compromising your safety.

 

[BabyLitigator]

Computer and a mask that fits your face. If you are traveling to reputable places you may be able to rent everything, but a mask is personal to your bone structure (or it leaks) and a computer helps you track your dives, and manage NDL if you get more into it. Wait to buy more until you know what you want to do (or if you are going somewhere you think the gear rentals will be sketchy).

 

[Angelo Farina]

I second what others already said: a full single piece, stretchy 3mm, with additional separate hood for when needed (not needed most of the time).
And a good computer, very important is a good display which you can read easily.
I like to have my own fins and mask, which are perfectly suited to the peculiarity of my body. But probbaly you already own these items.
You can survive with rented regulator and BCD: they are decent in most places, and expensive to purchase. But if you make more than 20-30 dives/year, you can consider purchasing them as a good investment.
Most recreational, tropical scuba divers do not need to purchase tanks or weights, you always rent them on site.
Regarding certifications, you generally need OW, AOW and Nitrox. If you are OW, you can get AOW simply diving during your next holidays, and Nitrox is usually an out of water, purely theoretical certification, possibly followed by a single "test" Nitrox dive.
Whilst AOW and Nitrox are not strictly necessary, they allow you to adhere to the diving policies in more varied situations, without the risk of being excluded from what the others are doing.

 

[DreadnoughtNH]

IMO...
Mask, fins, exposure protection, computer. In that order.
Rent everything else until you start to recognize your preferences.
No offense intended, but most new divers don't know their preferences until about ~50 dives.
'Better gear' does not solve for bad technique or lack of skills.

I'm a fairly dedicated warm water diver (80+) and a longsleeve rashguard with 2mm leggings and boots is perfect for me for consecutive days of 5-6 tanks. But I dive with people in those same temps who prefer a 5mm. It really is a personal thing.

Computer-wise, you really can't go wrong with anything from Shearwater; it's pricey but an AI capable Perdix or Tern is a good long term investment. Check the used market.

 

[lowwall]

A 3mm fullsuit is the best generic answer for warm water diving. If it's really warm, say above 82F (28C), then a shorty might be more convenient. But that depends on your cold tolerance.

And definitely get a computer. You want something wrist mount and Nitrox-capable. They are all equally safe and reliable for recreational diving, additional money gets you a better screen and features that may or may not matter to you, but are never a necessity.

Air integration (AI) capability is the one big price differentiator that you need to decide on if you are looking above the budget options. This will allow you to replace your SPG and its hose with a small transmitter that talks directly to the computer. You won't be able to use this unless you buy your own regs and the transmitter, but if it's something you may want in the future you'll need to get a computer that has the capability built in.

Let's use Shearwater for example. They are not cheap, but are still popular because they have probably the best user interface and really nice screens. They basically have two sizes of recreational computers, one is watch size and the other is a larger rectangle, but still wrist-mounted. If you can live without AI, your options are the watch-sized Tern at $650 or the larger Peregrine at $530. If you want AI someday, it won't cost much more now to move to the Tern Tx at $775, but there isn't currently an AI version of the Peregrine so you'd have to go up to the tech-capable Perdix at over $1100. Note that you'd still need to buy the transmitter separately for another $400.

On the cheap end of the spectrum. Something like the Mares Puck Pro+ will get the job done for $200.

Mares Puck Pro+ Wrist Computer

When Mares introduced the Puck Dive Computer on the market in 2008, it sent a shockwave rippling through the industry: a super intuitive, easy-to-use, and full featured RGBM Nitrox computer at an extre

www.scuba.com

 

[grantmac]

Mask and computer for vacation divers, everything else is usually included.

 

[Ez E]

So new diver here
Certified in 2001 and just got back into it this year. Less than 10 dives total. Here is what I did and so far I think I went down the right path.

First purchase: Mask, snorkel, boots and fins. This allows me to snorkel on vacation and have atleast the basics for divings.

Second Purchase: Shearwater Peregrine. Great purchase. Seems a lot of places want you to have a computer now to dive. You can rent them but they are usually like $25+ to rent.

Third Purchase: 1st and second stage with octo and console. I got sick of the crappy rental regs and the new setup breathes so nice. Im glad I got these when I did.

Fourth purchase(hasnt happened yet): Its going to be a BCD and a 7mm wetsuit as I live in Ohio. The wetsuit probably should have came earlier but because I was diving tropical right after my comprehensive refresher I didnt want a 7mm full for aruba, or buy a 3mm shortie that I cant use at home.

Im not sure if any of my rambling helps you. But make sure to have mask, snorkel and fins first. After that you can kind of custom tailor your experience. I really do recommend a computer right after buying the basics.