First Rebreather Purchase - Lots of Questions

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Messages
4
Reaction score
2
Location
Seattle, WA
# of dives
100 - 199
It looks as though most people scour the interwebs for months on end to finally land on two and then flip a coin on which rebreather they land on. Im hoping I can give a few bits of information and some tried and true experts on this forum can help me narrow the search while my wife will still let me make this purchase.

1. Currently diving with a Shearwater Perdix computer - which I thoroughly enjoy but am not 100% married to
2. Want the ability to travel with
3. Not really into tech diving - looking more for extended bottom times - super deep is not a big concern, but Id like to still have options down the road

Hopefully this narrows the field a bit.

Thanks!
 
It looks as though most people scour the interwebs for months on end to finally land on two and then flip a coin on which rebreather they land on. Im hoping I can give a few bits of information and some tried and true experts on this forum can help me narrow the search while my wife will still let me make this purchase.

1. Currently diving with a Shearwater Perdix computer - which I thoroughly enjoy but am not 100% married to
2. Want the ability to travel with
3. Not really into tech diving - looking more for extended bottom times - super deep is not a big concern, but Id like to still have options down the road

Hopefully this narrows the field a bit.

Thanks!
ISC Megalodon, there home base is close to you. You can go with the new Tiburon that has Shearwater HUD and Handset or buy a used 2.7. I went with a used 2.7 a few years ago for a fraction of the cost of new and that thing is bulletproof has never let me down easy to set up and tear down and not bad to travel with. It is capable of serious tech diving or greatly enhancing your bottom time, we were doing three hour shore dives in Grand Cayman and that's about long enough for me. My biggest regret is that I didn't do it sooner.
 
not a tried and true CCR expert, but I'm sure those like @kensuf that actually are will pipe in. That said, here's my 2 cents

1-doesn't matter since the Perdix can't be used on a CCR. You can use it for decompression information since it has CCR mode, but it can't talk to the CCR. You will likely want to take this with you on all of your dives as an extra monitor source. Most CCR's these days use Shearwater controllers and that interface is near identical to the perdix which will be good for you.
2-most all of them travel reasonably well. Nothing that I've seen travels better/smaller than the Sidewinder, but it isn't for everyone.
3-CCR diving is certainly tech diving, there's no way around that at all. Extended bottom times come with decompression obligations, and the CCR requires a certain mindset to dive safely.

Unfortunately those questions don't really narrow the list at all.
Here's my questions.
1-travel where?
2-Do you currently sidemount or have an interest in sidemounting?
3-what dive profiles would you like to see? Time, depth, temperature
4-do any of your local dive buddies have any CCR preferences that they're using now?
5-where do you want to do your training? If local, which instructors have you looked and which units do they teach?

That should help narrow the list a bit
 
@tbone1004 Thanks for the response. I know the Perdix wont work, but like the display and the ease of use - its the style of comfortable with now. I know most use a Shearwater in some shape or form, so just a preference to stick with the same company / style, but again not a deal breaker.

Ive traveled quite a few spots, but here in the Seattle / PNW area there would be shorter trips up to BC and then more of the serious destination spots globally (already have been to Cocos and Galapagos so those are checked off the list)

Local buddies are diving Revo as we do have a local instructor for that. We also have some Hollis and KISS instructors locally along with ISC. Although I dont mind traveling if need be.
 
The no tech diving comment kind of threw me off. Tbone is right, CCR is a serious machine and requires a specific mindset and ability.

If you don't mind me asking, what is your diving experience currently like? Are you currently diving doubles and deco? What tanks are you using, what are your run times, etc?
 
2-most all of them travel reasonably well. Nothing that I've seen travels better/smaller than the Sidewinder, but it isn't for everyone.

Since you brought up the sidewinder, the OP is local to me, and I actually own one... I will chime in here. Bad idea for Puget Sound diving in general.

1) Its not really recommended in <50F water (which is half our year). You can make it work with the optional insulated and heated scrubbers, but they are costly and its brutal on the $$$ battery.
2) Its a challenge to put enough lead on any plausible BC with it
3) You cant actually gear up on many local boats in it as the doorways are too small and thus you cant do a proper pre-breathe on it here. And you have to splash with no power inflator connected which is problematic.
4) Its epically difficult to gear up for a trimix dive with dry gloves in this unit. I have been working on it for 6 months still
5) You have all the wrong BO gas volumes and have to rotate deco gases which end up banging around on your legs on the simplest dives
6) No local instructors at all

Unless you actually NEED a sidemount CCR there are better choices for Puget Sound diving. And if you really want a SM CCR I would look at the liberty, sidekick, or SF2 over the sidewinder in cold water - there are no SM instructors here capable of teaching you on any of those units either but at least they are cold water capable.
 
Those guys are both right about the tech part of it, it does require attention to detail and it does take a certain mindset..I have a few friends that I am glad aren't interested in CCR.
 
@rjack321 I threw the sidewinder out specifically because of how easy it travels compared to everything else. That said, unless you're cave diving, which it is utterly brilliant for, it really isn't a great option for most people. You listed pretty much all the reasons why.

@ccmurphy2005 can you answer the rest of the questions that will help narrow it down further?
 
Megs are local (made in Centralia)
Capable of any dive you want to do here
Have an active local community including
Travel reasonably well, especially the cave can version can almost completely fit in a carry-on sized rollerbag

Also locally popular with instructor options:
any of the revos,
some of the backmounted Kiss units,
the Hollis (why I dunno),
JJs in the GUE crowd
and there are a few backmount SF2s.

Just starting out around here (from outside the GUE universe) I would look hard at a meg, revos, kiss classic, or SF2

Why those 4? Available, capable, local instruction, with a developed local community.
 
I have a good CCR buddy here in Seattle who is pretty active and I believe would be happy to chat with you about it. Send me a PM and I can put you two in touch. I am not sure of his model...he did go to FL for training in 2013...been diving it here in Puget Sound ever since :)
 

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