Beginner scuba setup.. New?

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taymag

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Location
South Florida
So, I posted a link yesterday and it seems like that was a good set but it was already sold for $500. Does anyone know of a new complete package that would be good for a first buy at a decent price? I know the options are endless but I would rather have suggestions here than the local dive shop trying to sell me what they have in stock. Any link or info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
Just my .02, but I would look at a backplate / wing. They are versatile and can grow with your experience. There are many on the market, but my favorites are HOG and OXYCHECK. Jim Lapenta is on this site and can hook you up with what you need and you can trust what he tells you.
 
Take your time to find a good deal. If you are in a hurry, then chances are you will jump at the wrong deal. If you are patient, you can get some very good deals on awesome equipment.
 
If you are only going to do rec diving than that set is adequate. However, if you ever decide to do anything beyond rec you'll essential have to restart because that is an unbalanced yolk regulator, the computer is on the spg not wrist mounted, and it's a rec bcd rather than a bp/w. IMO even if you want to only do recreational diving with recreational gear you can still get a better setup by selecting your own gear than by purchasing a package. I'd start doing some research so you can choose exactly what you want, rather than purchasing a generic package that someone tells you to buy that you aren't particularly knowledgable on.
 
If you are only going to do rec diving than that set is adequate. However, if you ever decide to do anything beyond rec you'll essential have to restart because that is an unbalanced yolk regulator, the computer is on the spg not wrist mounted, and it's a rec bcd rather than a bp/w. IMO even if you want to only do recreational diving with recreational gear you can still get a better setup by selecting your own gear than by purchasing a package. I'd start doing some research so you can choose exactly what you want, rather than purchasing a generic package that someone tells you to buy that you aren't particularly knowledgable on.

I feel like the master divers on here with 5,000 posts are going to be able to tell me way more than any research I could do.

Is there a setup I could buy that leaves the options for more advanced things?

And the reason I am looking for a new setup now is because after reading the post from the guy that posted that link on my old article I am thinking that after servicing it all I am already another $150 down, and that set is $300 more brand new.

I will be diving again this week, I am doing my research but I feel like there has to be a "semi-standard" setup for someone in my situation. I will eventually get my advanced cert in these next few months which allows 100' or so from what I remember so I am not sure if the "bare essentials" are usually okay with that. And by rec diving I don't know exactly what you mean but everyone I know only does a 2 tank dive so thats what I will be sticking with.

Thanks again for the responses :D
 
If you want room for more advanced things I would go with the bp/w setup, balanced DIN regulator, wrist mounted computer, and if you want you could throw in some of the DIR options such as long hose/necklace for regulators (I did when I was in your position). I haven't seen any bp/w packages, but even if I did I wouldn't recommend a package. Spend some time on the board reading about people's opinions on backplates, wings, regulators, computers and pick what you think is the best you can afford from each category. That way you will know all of the positives and negatives of each individual piece of gear and end up with a much better set than buying a general vacationer package. Of course this is just my opinion and I am certainly not one of the master divers with 5000 posts. Being that this is scuba board I'm sure this will get derailed and become a heated argument about the best gear setup from which you will learn all sorts of things you didn't ask about :rofl3: good luck!

---------- Post added May 12th, 2014 at 06:44 PM ----------

By rec I meant the recreational limits of 130' with no decompression or any other technical procedures. Yes, the general packages will allow you to achieve that but don't provide much room for growth beyond that and there is certainly other gear that can perform the same dives more efficiently or easily (again just my opinion)
 
if you are willing to buy used you can get a better setup. a bp/w, hollis reg set, and a puck or zoop should be around the same price.
 
Have a road trip, you're in South Florida. Way back in 1979 my wife and I moved to Vero Beach. In spring of 1980 we got into diving at a shop in Ft. Pierce.
I had a fun little Ford Fiesta with a sunroof. We decided to take a US1/AIA road trip from Vero Beach down to Key West. We decided everytime we saw a red dive flag we would check out the shop. We explored back & forth across the ICW hitting dive shops and exploring our new home area. Fun food, cheap hotel rooms and movies at night. Well, we hit 101 dive shops in our 3 day road trip. What a way to see everything, shops, boats, equipment, places to eat and places to dive. You don't have to take 3 days, but maybe a full tank of gas trip, 1/2 tank out and 1/2 tank to return. We saw so many dive packages and great deals.
To be young and full of energy and not a care in the world, had time, a job, time off and some money.
Go have fun.
 
Sounds like some good advice to me. I am a BP&W diver too. I started with a jacket BC and quickly wished I had not bought a "package" setup. I wish I had listened to divers like WestCoastDiver and others that suggested a BP&W, wrist mount computer and no jacket BC. Keep looking, keep asking and listen above all else.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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