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As someone who gets cold very very easily....I wear a 5mm in all water temps 80 degrees and above. Below 80 degrees, I'm in a 7mm wetsuit. Below 75 degrees, I'm in a 7mm wetsuit with a 7mm step-in vest. I buy nice suits. I have a very nice Bare Evoke 7mm that fits like a glove - I still get...

There's a decent amount of river diving in Florida; most people stick to Rainbow River, which is a spring-fed river, clear and shallow for the entire stretch. But some people also dive the Peace River looking for fossils etc., and a decent number drift parts of the Sante Fe when the water levels...

The CX3 at least is already on sale - there's one sitting in my kitchen right now. Nice light!

I attached a boltsnap to the wrist lanyard that ships with the TG-6, and keep it clipped to my chest. When diving in the caves, I add a second lanyard, and clip one end to my chest D-ring and the other to a waist D-ring so the camera is clipped to me much like you would a stage bottle.

I carry a linecutter, plus safety shears in the cave, on different spots.

You might have better luck posting on one of the many Facebook groups (It's Dive O'Clock Somewhere in Central Florida, Scuba Monkey Dive Club, Florida Springs Dive Club). There are also guided dives available if you can't find a buddy.

I like the DGX lights. I probably have 400+ dives on my DGX600, including long dives at depth (150’-200’).

This 100%. I’m local to Florida cave country, and took about nine months (25-30 dives) between intro and full. Full was pretty easy for me, and I think I probably could have done it right after intro, but am really glad I didn’t. I got so much more out of the course taking some time in between...

I dive the 60-lb DiveRite Classic XT (single bladder) with HP100s, and like it very very much. I’ve tried other wings too, and don’t notice a ton of difference between doughnut-style wings (aside from lift capacity). I like the lift that the 60lb wing gives you once you start adding stages etc...

Any details on the stage/deco regs?

You really need two different setups for sidemount and backmount; I've dived some of the hybrid wings and they are.....not fun. Most of the SM wings are pretty packable - I have a Nomad Ray right now and it would be very easy to pack it down and slip it in a suitcase along with my recreational...

You're not wrong. I'm a college prof; the eTraining for TDI for "Overhead Environments" is mediocre at best and the eTraining for AN/DP downright atrocious. Like, I'd be sent for remedial coaching with our teaching center if those were the materials/assessments for one of my own online classes...

Instructor always matters - why else are you taking the course? Folks who are saying that the instructor doesn’t matter likely have not had the experience of having truly great instructors; the dive industry is certainly full of many mediocre ones. Honestly, unless you are lucky enough to be...

This is what we do too - thorough discussion of the plan before the dive, with reference to the map, but nothing written down. I will typically note major points (when we hit a jump for instance), and mentally note the time and my PSI but very rarely (if ever) do I write any of that down in a...

I had a fantastic experience with them a couple years ago and would highly recommend them; they were wonderful both with me and with one of my newer inexperienced buddies. Really a great shop, and incredible customer service.

Really recommend Horizon, Silent World, or Conch Republic! Would personally avoid Rainbow Reef.

If you’re looking for books, I think you’d enjoy “The Six Skills and Other Discussions: Creative Solutions for Technical Divers” by Steve Lewis. It’s a collection of essays/talks on core skills but also the general mindset/approach. And it’s well-written, interesting, and a good read!

My Z2 and M1 regs are about a decade old; no issues with either.

As several people have said, this is easier to discuss on the surface ahead of time or with a regular dive buddy. In general, touch contact works okay in zero vis if you’re close enough, and nobody is panicked. For a situation where one buddy has gone through a silted out restriction and the...

Our stages are literally just a hodge podge of spare regs accumulated over the years (DiveRite, Ocean Reef, ScubaPro, etc).