New to rebreathers - what do you recommend based on this?

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LOL, that's perfect!!!

I wouldn't put a lot of energy into matching your buddies. I have buddies who dive rEvo, lol. And that unit is total garbage. Yes, I dove one for years before I knew any better.

There are lots of good rebreathers. And people are right, there isn't one best rebreather. Every single one has pros and cons. I like the Optima. It's probably my favorite. Resale is the best for the buyer because there are a LOT of them out there, and the electronics are fantastic. The liberty is too heavy and I think I'm the only one in the world selling a used one right now. It's a fantastic unit, but for travel, it's going to be a pain in your back and wallet. And not much of a second hand market. With Huish now owning Hollis, I wouldn't buy a prism. They are selling cheap though. You can get lucky and find a meg for 4k. I've seen Titan's sell for under 2k. And they are great, light units. They just had bad marketing/ownership so they didn't take off. If i see a cheap one, I'll pick it up for my daughter or son. Ultimately, look for great deals in your area, and then ask the crowd about the pros and cons. Weigh the good and the bad. For example: rEvo is super simple... it also sucks in every conceivable way. See, Pros and Cons... LOL

Ok, what specifically makes a rEvo so bad? I see lots of eRvo divers here in the Great Lakes.

Never mind, read enough replies
 
Full disclosure, I am that buddy. I flooded the hell out of @kensuf ‘s loop during my MOD1 class. We were doing an ascent drill and when we got to the surface I “thought” I was closing his loop but I opened it all the way and popped the BOV out of his mouth. You could hear the gurgling of water going in and you could probably see my eyes from the check in shack at the Grotto. I remember Ken saying “You just flooded the $&%# out of my loop, so let me show you how we fix that.” We went back down and did a dewatering drill and then did 2 more hours on the loop. Flood recovery is good.
Which unit was that?
 
Ok, what specifically makes a rEvo so bad? I see lots of eRvo divers here in the Great Lakes.

You may notice a lot of these comments come from Florida types where rEvo distribution and teaching was limited to one outlet, and such has been caught up in the petty diving politics of the region, some of the comments clearly come from butt hurt want to be rEvo instructors.
 
Most of the revo instructors in Florida have moved on to better units. Lol

The margin is crap. The rebreather is crap. And I dropped the revo 3+ years before I ever became an instructor.
 
Common complaints about rEvos, not flood tolerant and too many cells. In Florida you can also add the shop/instructor have a history ego and legal issues. The rest of the world simply accepts them as a fairly normal rebreather.
 
I didn't mention the adv because they all suck, except for the Optima. That thing works great. But I've come to accept that they almost all are terrible and don't use them on anything now.

The SF2 ADV is super slick. I'm actually going to de-tune mine a bit so I can tell when I bottom out my CL. As stock, you almost can't tell when you're breathing directly off the ADV in the back mount version (until your PO2 crashes). In sidemount it makes your trim/buoyancy go to hell pretty quickly, so that was a fun cascade to correct.

-Chris
 
Nobody is really questioning the OP's motivation...
Photo/Video is not magically becoming easier or greater on a rebreather. Bright video lights will freak out big and small fish alike even without bubbles.
Then there is the danger of being task focused and screw the pooch because of tunnel vision. There is a reason why on aerial shots there is a pilot and a cameraman.
This to simply point out that you need to need a rebreather for the move to really make sense in the long term. Typically, it is not photography per se, but depth or duration (technicality) of the dives.
As for traveling with a rebreather, don't dream: your options will be far more limited than on OC.
My 2 cts.
 
Nobody is really questioning the OP's motivation...
Photo/Video is not magically becoming easier or greater on a rebreather. Bright video lights will freak out big and small fish alike even without bubbles.
Then there is the danger of being task focused and screw the pooch because of tunnel vision. There is a reason why on aerial shots there is a pilot and a cameraman.
This to simply point out that you need to need a rebreather for the move to really make sense in the long term. Typically, it is not photography per se, but depth or duration (technicality) of the dives.
As for traveling with a rebreather, don't dream: your options will be far more limited than on OC.
My 2 cts.

Can we please retire the word “need” in any discussion about CCR? No one ever “needs” a rebreather, except perhaps navy divers in combat or covert action. “Need” is virtually meaningless in relation to leisure time activities. No one “needs” to dive a wreck or survey a cave, people elect to do these things because they want to. Very few people need 4 wheel drive, but many people buy 4wd vehicles because they don’t want to get stuck in the snow or may go off pavement a few times a year. Whatever device you chose to use for your elective activities will either be more or less useful for your particular purpose. I got a CCR in 2002 to enhance my wildlife encounters, which according to the wreck enthusiasts was a “myth”. Lucky I didn’t listen to them, 1000+ hrs of fantastic CCR diving later I have memories that will last a lifetime. I’ve had lots of amazing CCR dives where I spent most of the dive above 100’, so the quality of a CCR dive may have nothing at all to do with depth.

I’ve never heard anyone suggest that photography “magically” becomes easier with CCR. But not everyone uses strobes and getting close to your subject is the object. If a flash goes off and scares the fish away after the shot, no big deal. There are also photographers who use natural light. Tunnel vision should not be an issue with modern CCR HUDs. And for what it’s worth to the OP, I would get an MCCR with a needle valve and some type of HUD/inline computer. Dial the flow rate down when you’re not moving and setting up for a shot, dial it up when you need to work. Holding a tight SP is of limited value, especially if you’re not doing a lot of deco. The buoyancy changes which will result from moving up and down a few feet while trying to frame a shot will be exacerbated by an ECCR trying to hold SP, as opposed to an MCCR.

The OP already stated he had a good deal of discipline, and to my mind that is the only real prerequisite for CCR diving. In threads like these I think it would be best to stick to pros and cons and providing information, as opposed to opining on anyone’s particular motivations...
 
I needed to switch to rebreather when I decided to go tek, because I am too skinny to carry a set of double. I may reconsider that if I end up readjusting the targets I have set for myself. A rebreather is not needed for most of my diving, but I need to dive it regularly enough to remain proficient. Not everyone is a tech instructor or pro diving on a weekly basis if not more.
Video lights scare fish small or big. It is a fact that I can testify about in my neck of the woods. Clearly strobes are a different issue, but the OP mentioned video.
And some critters are skittish, not matter how few bubbles you emit. A diver is a big ugly thing to witness in your environment when you are a potential meal for most of the neighbors.
The point of my posts to putative new rebreather divers is simply this: yes, there is a honey moon phase where everything feels great. But eventually you'll have to get real: cost, complexity, potential risk need to be rationally considered. They don't always make sense for everybody.
As for discipline, I guess all guys who didn't come back from their last dive had none and some people are born with a supernatural ability to never screw up.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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