Beginner looking at Scuba Gear

[davsholm423]

Hello, I'm just getting into the amazing sport of Scuba diving. I'm not even fully certifed yet :-[ , but I was wondering how much it would cost to get a quality set of Scuba equpiment. How would you recommend a financially limited, beginner, to do this? At the dive shop I'm going to become certified at, I noticed scuba packages for 1500 - 2000 dollars. But recently I've been looking at scuba packages on the internet and they're priced significantly lower. Has anyone had an expierence with buying scuba gear on the Internet?

Also, what brand would you recommend for a beginner with a budget, but not wanting to sacrifice safety. And what would be a good all around size of wetsuit for MN lake diving??

Thanks a lot

[jasondbaker]

Lotsa questions. Let's get started.

My rule is that the worst time to buy dive gear is right before or after you get certified. The dive shops might not like to hear that because they love it when the minnows stop in and max out their credit cards. But it's the truth. You really don't know what equipment will work best for the diving you want to do. You don't know if you will really like diving locally. You should consider renting equipment for a season so that you can try out different gear.

If you really have to buy equipment now you have a couple options.

1) Read some of the older posts on this forum to see what brands of equipment experienced MN divers are using. There is a reason we use certain suits, regs, BC's, computers, etc.

2) You can buy all your gear from a diveshop, or some gear from a shop and some online, or all your gear online. I buy from shops and from online. There are pros and cons to both. Everyone has a different perspective. You will find plenty of forum discussions on this topic.

3) People sell used dive gear on mnscuba all the time. They move, they stop diving, or they get married (haha). You can find incredible deals on complete packages if you are patient.

4) Many of the local dive shops sell their rental inventory at the end of the season (Fall). You might be able to get a decent package this way.

Once you have a specific gear package in mind post the list to the forum so that we can offer feedback. You will want at least a full 7mm wetsuit for local diving.

[davsholm423]

I've noticed Akona Wetsuits on the internet a lot. I know it's not name brand, but it's definently a lot cheaper than "scubapro" ect. Has anyone heard anything about "Akona"

Thanks

[DanL]

Take Jason's advice - be patient and buy only after you try different equipment, do a little research and talk to other local divers and diveshops.
Akona wetsuits? They, like other manufacturers, probably have different styles and grades. A 7mil jumpsuit or farmer john is probably the minimum for local diving, but the features and quality of neoprene can drive a big difference in price.
My reco - buy the wetsuit in a local diveshop because fit is very important and all suits fit a bit differently. Go to different shops and look for end of season sales and try suits until you find the one that fits and feels just right. Cheap neoprene supposedly compresses more at depth and thins out over time with repeated compressions. You want maximum insulation value, so a higher quality suit with high quality neoprene is worth the investment.

[freedivernd]

definitely pay attention to the wetsuit... diving the waters here can be cold and it's no fun if you're cold.. well, at least not as much fun. Although lake diving is usually the most interesting between the surface and 20', there are locations and times when the place to go is deeper..and into colder water like we've had almost all this summer, that's when a good wetsuit makes all the difference. As far as masks.. of course you need one that fits and has a good field of view (I like the cressi big eyes and cressi horizon, but other masks are good too). Fins.. well, myself, I prefer real loooooooooong ones but that's another story. I sure like my rubber weight belts too. Sorry, I don't know a thing about b.c.'s and stuff... so if, when I go sdiving, that gets rented. I do own sherwood regs, a shadow and an oasis, and I understand they're good... it's just I took them in for service last march or so and haven't even picked them up yet... I really should do that one of these days.

[davsholm423]

Okay, thanks for all the information.

This upcoming Christmas I'm traveling down to Cozumel, and I'm going to do my openwater checkouts and some extra dives. Before my certification class I'm planning on buying a Mask/Snorkel/Fin's package to upgrade my 30 dollar snorkeling package I bought many years ago. I would want what I buy to work in both Cozumel and our cold native waters of Minnesota. Are there some types of masks, and other equipment that are made especially for coldwater? Would it be bad to bring a "coldwater mask" or other equipment,(if there's such a thing) into the warm carribean waters, or vice versus.

Thanks a lot

[AandA]

Although you certainly could wait until ging to Cozumel to obtain your certification, I would reccomend you get it NOW. Learn to dive here with one of the dive shops. Get at least a few dives under your belt. In this way when you arrive in Cozumel you will be a much better diver: less problems with bouyancy, less of an air hog, more familiar with various pieces of equipment, etc. In my opinion you will enjoy the experience a whole lot more, if you get certified now, and then go down as a certified diver. When we've been in Cozumel we've seen several divers obtaining their certifications. These divers are spending their time in paradise just learning and trying to demonstrate their basic open water skills to their instructor. Meanwhile we're off watching all of the pretty fishies ;D and going GA-GA over the coral swim throughs ;D. The new divers often experience MAJOR problems with bouyancy control. This is a big concern in a very delicate marine environment where crashing into the coral can have devastating results on both the diver and the coral. :-[ ( You can take a bouyancy class even in a pool this fall/winter which would help you to perfect these skills before going down to Cozumel.)

As to equipment Aly and I do a lot of local diving, and have taken our equipment down to Cozumel and used it down there also. About the only things we leave here are our 7MM suits (we bring our skins and 3/2 suits to Coz), our tanks, and our weights. Using our own equipment when traveling provides us with a higher level of confidence. The equipment is familiar and we KNOW it is in good working order.

[aristoff]

Hello, when I started out I thought about renting my equipment, that did not last long. after speak to divers I purchased my equipment. I know what I have and the care of the equipment is up to my standards. ;D

If you buy quality items they will last a long time and money spent now will pay off in the long run. I purchased Scuba Pro and Aqua Lung for the majority of the items. for the wetsuit I went with Scuba pro stec and along with a hooded vest it was fine for the cold water of this spring. 8)