Should I buy gear or take more classes?

[zamburinha]

Get some gear and dive! The classes you mention are a good idea, but you will get more out of them if you take them in gear you are familiar and comfortable with and with a few more dives.

I personally don't think that the BCD, the computer and the regs would be the first thing to buy. Those are the most expensive pieces of gear and the ones where some knowledge really helps you make a good decision. Many people change their mind regarding their ideal BCD as they gain experience.

If I was buying my equipment now, I would start with mask and exposure protection. There is nothing more distracting than a mask that leaks constantly, and a wetsuit that fits well makes a huge difference in how warm you feel in the water. You can select those 2 items without much experience as it is easy to judge whether they work properly. Fins are also an easy item to buy and most will be perfectly adequate. After that I would get a set of regs. There I would look for a used set in the classifieds here or in ebay, there are very good deals to be had and, as long as you have them serviced, should be perfectly fine.

Selecting a BCD is a more involved decision and, in my opinion, the one where having some experience really helps. It is not easy to judge how well the BCD works for you if you are still working on your buoyancy and trim ... Try to rent a few different styles or ask more experienced divers about the model they use and why.

Happy diving!

 

[fjpatrum]

I'm beginning to sense a theme here... Buy some gear and dive. Training classes are great, but they don't do much good if you can't afford to dive after taking them.

I've gotten 2 BCs, 3 tanks, reg/octo/console/computer, all serviced and inspected, for well under $1k by buying mostly used. If you shop around there are plenty of good deals to be had. You'll be a lot more motivated to dive if you buy your gear than you will if you have the added hassle of picking up and dropping off rental gear (not to mention paying rental fees) every time you want to dive. It will also be easier to plan things "last minute" and just go dive.

I don't know from experience but I believe the general consensus here is that you gain more from advanced classes after you get 20-30 dives or so. That seems to make logical sense to me so that's the option I chose.

 

[txapacheguy]

Do all three... Start buying your own gear, dive it, and continue your education. $1500 can go a long way towards all of those goals in a year's time.

I have been gathering gear since the summer, mostly from craigslist advertisements between Colorado Springs and Denver. I now have four or five reg sets with less than $350 invested, two AL80's purchased, hydro'd VIP'd and filled for around $125 for both, a drysuit I paid $150 for with an undergarmet... I can go on, but you get the idea. I ended up buying a new BP/W setup, but really did not have to since I also acquired a Zeagle Ranger for about $40. (could not find a used BP/W locally)

I finished the rescue course a few weeks ago without having to rent or borrow any gear. My expenditures for diving since the summer probably tally up a bit under your annual budget, and I can now go diving whenever I want without having to worry about the logistics of it...

I see a lot of decent gear advertised down in NM pretty regularly, so there is no reason you could not take a similar course of action if you choose to do so. Either way, good luck and safe diving!!!

 

[abies]

I just struggled with this a bit, I ended up with both but that is just because I found some money I hadn't planned on so I bought gear. I did my advanced and found it to be a good introduction to some specialties, I really liked Nav but always have, I added the full Dry suit cert as well and that let me get a late Oct dive in that I don't think I would have enjoyed in a wet suit. If I had it to do over or without the found money, I would skip AOW and do just the Drysuit and buy gear. I had Mask, snorkel, fins, boots and added BCD, Regs, hood, and gloves. I went back inflate BCD and as much as I would have loved to have gotten a chance to rent one, I didn't find one available at my LDSs, I knew I didn't like jacket, and they get positive comments here so I went with it.
Long story short, get gear and dive, the training can wait.

Ben

 

[359]

Hey everybody!
I was really surprised and thankful for the overwhelmingly helpful and thoughtful responses I got. I have to admit, I wasn't expecting so many so fast! (I'm new to the online forum scene). I have looked into all of your suggestions, and they are all really great, but the general consensus seems to be that I should buy gear and just dive more before more classes. I'm now more clear about the order in which to buy gear. I am likely to buy the bulk of equipment online, or even here, I think I might also contribute to my LDS's continued existence and buy at least the wetsuit there. Beyond that, I'm not sure, (probably a Scubapro Brute or a Uwatec Aladin Tec 2G 2- both seem very nice) but thanks to you all I'm now on a logical path and looking for some sort of mentor. Thank you all for answering my questions!

 

[on_two_wheels]

Actually, the Brut is Sherwood, not Scubapro. Don't forget to check out HOG regulators. Great product at a great price....and I don't even own one (yet). Finding a mentor is a matter luck AND desire. They may not come to you so you may have to simply find one. Bribe him/her with lunch or post dive eats. A $25-30 meal is WELL worth some excellent guidance. After following a much more skilled diver on many dives and learning as we went (including locking my hands), my buoyancy control, trim & propulsion skills were such that an instructor offered to simply sign me off for peak performance buoyancy. I hadn't asked him for training nor offered to pay. I just mentioned that I might get the Master Diver cert just for the hell of it (not gonna bother now). Didn't take him up on it since I don't need it but it was great to hear such a compliment. Stay the course and find that mentor.

 

[fnfalman]

Dive more. Train later.

 

[dburg30]

My brother just got certified and we went diving over the weekend just to get wet and try out his shiny new c-card . He borrowed my wetsuit, has his own weights, mask and boots, but had to rent the rest. After we were done and on the way home, he commented that he had a really good time, but wouldnt be diving again til he got the majority of his own gear. He, and I agree, just couldnt see spending $40-60 per day to rent stuff. You do that just a couple of times and you could have added another piece of gear (ok maybe not that cheap, but you get the point).

So while I would LOVE to go diving this weekend (also to continue to dive in colder waters to see where my cutoff is for what I consider too cold to dive wet), I wont be going since he cant go.


So IMO get gear so you can at least dive without 'wasting' money on rentals.

 

[White Knight]

Hello all.
I am a recently certified diver who is strongly interested in taking additional classes with SSI, the only real option around Albuquerque, NM. While their are no dive locations around the city, there is one in Santa Rosa, called "Blue Hole" and it is an hour away. I would like to gain experience diving, and herein lies the dilemma. I could take more classes, specifically the so-called "Advanced" class (really four in one), the "Stress and Rescue/CPR and O2 provider" classes and eventually either the drysuit or Nitrox classes. All the time I take these classes, I would be spending both the amount required to take the classes and also about $100 a pop per day for gear (B.C., 7mm Wetsuit, Weights, Regs., Gauges, Cylinder) for my own personal use outside of the classes. Needless to say, with renting money runs out fast. Alternatively, I could buy most, if not all, of my own gear and go to Blue Hole quite often at much less than $100.
In summary, I can either take more classes or get more dives.
So the real questions are (in your opinion):
Should I
a)Take more classes, get less dives
b)Take less/no classes, get more dives
c)Buy the gear that costs most to rent and take some classes as well as a middle ground of dive amounts
or
d)Something else (I am open to suggestions).

Just some additional information: My max dive budget is ~$1500 for this year. I want to gain as much experience for the least money.
Also, any feedback on about how much a decent, complete/semi-complete gear set suitable for a new diver costs (minus computer, unless you feel it's extremely important. I like the tables) would be appreciated.

Thank you!

p.s. If there is a thread that is extremely similar please inform me of its whereabouts so I can delete this one and read that one.

Just start buying gear now....Why wait....You'll be buying gear the rest of your life. Might as well start on it now!

 

[oly5050user]

Hey everybody!
I was really surprised and thankful for the overwhelmingly helpful and thoughtful responses I got. I have to admit, I wasn't expecting so many so fast! (I'm new to the online forum scene). I have looked into all of your suggestions, and they are all really great, but the general consensus seems to be that I should buy gear and just dive more before more classes. I'm now more clear about the order in which to buy gear. I am likely to buy the bulk of equipment online, or even here, I think I might also contribute to my LDS's continued existence and buy at least the wetsuit there. Beyond that, I'm not sure, (probably a Scubapro Brute or a Uwatec Aladin Tec 2G 2- both seem very nice) but thanks to you all I'm now on a logical path and looking for some sort of mentor. Thank you all for answering my questions!

why buy the gear online?? Talk to the lds and tell them you are serious about purchasing your own gear..Perhaps they can offer you an advance class and with you purchasing the gear give you the class at no charge!
We offer to credit the cost of our ow course-academics and confined water,, $269. to the cost of a new bcd,regulator,computer package..Purchase after academic/confined water,when completing the 4 ow training dives and we deduct the cost of our training dives -$240.and supply rental tanks and weights at no charge for the training dives.