DIR- Generic Advice for new to DIR

[KevinNM]

Yes, don't put too much pressure on yourself. It's hard, the standards are high. The videos the instructor will show you about that you are actually doing will surprise you, and not in good way. My suggestion is to do fundies in a wet suit and single unless you have previous tech training and have no problem holding the buoyancy standard. Just getting the skills needed for a rec pas is huge for most people.

Precision buoyancy is probably the most important thing or a tech pass, and dry suits make that very hard. I found it took dozens of dives to get really comfortable that I had it down, and actually stopping an ascent at 20 plus or minus 1 foot is still sometimes not there.

You might be different, but it's easy to turn a hard but rewarding class into a vale of tears if you show up with gear you are not very comfortable with and overreach. To get a tech pass you need to not just meet the standard one of of 20 times, you need to show the instructor you can do it on demand nearly ever time.

 

[MichaelMc]

An option to start learning now is getting tiny doubles (AL40/LP50) and using them instead of your single tank. Not for valve drills yet, but as one tank that lets you practice reaching and turning valves and setting up your rig. It gets you in the water with the structure if not the mass of (full) doubles. Once taught valve drills, you can practice them without lugging around the land mass of full doubles. I like mine. (Though I like my tiny sidemount more)

What is your regular diving like? Do you just get one dive in or two? Do you rent tanks? Will the 'site', shore/boat/pool, accommodate a set of big doubles, or a set of tiny doubles and maybe a single for a second dive? Do you want to deal with a full doubles set as you practice, or would tiny doubles be more user friendly.

AL40 doubles are closer to being top light like a single AL80, or AL80 doubles, so are a drop in replacement to AL80 on weight, but may not teach you what you need on balancing heavy doubles above you. LP50 doubles are denser, so top heavy, more like single or double LP85 and bigger, so would go further toward learning how to handle big doubles. AL40s are useful for other things; LP50s not as much, except sidemount or CCR.
DGX Custom - Doubles Package - Faber LP-50 | Dive Gear Express®

On wings, the DiveRite Rec handles small (LP85/AL80) and tiny doubles, or possibly singles. I got it for my tiny doubles based on recommendations here. It will get you to LP85 doubles but not beyond that.
What wing for double 7L/LP50s? Or also 12L S72 LP85(?)
Dive Rite Rec Wing | Dive Gear Express®

Past threads suggested that tiny doubles do not really test how you handle the full doubles of follow on classes, so for that reason may not be viewed as suitable for use for a tech Fundies pass. To me, either AL40 or LP50 certainly let you get accustomed to more about doubles than a single does. With 40s being very easy to move to and easy to dive but not as useful for learning heavy doubles. So LP50 are likely better for you. If tiny doubles look appealing.

(I like my Deep6 fist stages, and second. My others are Mk25/S600/154/109. Mk2)

 

[Kevin Floyd]

An option to start learning now is getting tiny doubles (AL40/LP50) and using them instead of your single tank. Not for valve drills yet, but as one tank that lets you practice reaching and turning valves and setting up your rig. It gets you in the water with the structure if not the mass of (full) doubles. Once taught valve drills, you can practice them without lugging around the land mass of full doubles. I like mine. (Though I like my tiny sidemount more)

What is your regular diving like? Do you just get one dive in or two? Do you rent tanks? Will the 'site', shore/boat/pool, accommodate a set of big doubles, or a set of tiny doubles and maybe a single for a second dive? Do you want to deal with a full doubles set as you practice, or would tiny doubles be more user friendly.

AL40 doubles are closer to being top light like a single AL80, or AL80 doubles, so are a drop in replacement to AL80 on weight, but may not teach you what you need on balancing heavy doubles above you. LP50 doubles are denser, so top heavy, more like single or double LP85 and bigger, so would go further toward learning how to handle big doubles. AL40s are useful for other things; LP50s not as much, except sidemount or CCR.
DGX Custom - Doubles Package - Faber LP-50 | Dive Gear Express®

On wings, the DiveRite Rec handles small (LP85/AL80) and tiny doubles, or possibly singles. I got it for my tiny doubles based on recommendations here. It will get you to LP85 doubles but not beyond that.
What wing for double 7L/LP50s? Or also 12L S72 LP85(?)
Dive Rite Rec Wing | Dive Gear Express®

Past threads suggested that tiny doubles do not really test how you handle the full doubles of follow on classes, so for that reason may not be viewed as suitable for use for a tech Fundies pass. To me, either AL40 or LP50 certainly let you get accustomed to more about doubles than a single does. With 40s being very easy to move to and easy to dive but not as useful for learning heavy doubles. So LP50 are likely better for you. If tiny doubles look appealing.

(I like my Deep6 fist stages, and second. My others are Mk25/S600/154/109. Mk2)

thanks for the input. I think I would just want to jump into it all the way.

I have been emailing with one of the GUE instructors trying to find a date that works. Based on those conversations I think I’m going to set doubles aside for a bit an focus on getting super comfortable in the dry suit.

 

[kensuf]

I too have heard mixed things on leaky argonauts. Steve Gamble here in Florida isn’t a fan and he typically will recommend brands he doesn’t sell. All his opinions are based on all the suits he fixes.

"That's a piece of crap. You should just get a wetsuit." I love Steve, I'm going to miss him.

 

[kensuf]

If you think Fundies is just about buoyancy and trim, you're going to miss the most important part of the course. It's about teamwork.

 

[Ayisha]

...Past threads suggested that tiny doubles do not really test how you handle the full doubles of follow on classes, so for that reason may not be viewed as suitable for use for a tech Fundies pass...

Some of the GUE instructors use double 50's plus a stage regularly, and students have gotten Fundies tech passes in double 50's, of course without stages.

 

[PullYourselfTogetherMan]

I did Fundies with Mer back in April. I got a rec pass and I told her I planned on coming back next year with a drysuit and doubles and getting my tech pass. So far, everything is going according to plan and my drysuit is arriving in March. The doubles I'll be getting used locally from a b&m tech shop owner (double 108s). I'm buying the DGX doubles wing (55#) because I bought their singles wing and really like it. I already have a doubles regset (Two MK25's, a Halcyon Halo and a G250). Thats just my plan, subject to change.

 

[MichaelMc]

Some of the GUE instructors use double 50's plus a stage regularly, and students have gotten Fundies tech passes in double 50's, of course without stages.

Huh. First I hear of Fundies tech pass in 50s. Or instructors using them. That is encouraging as I've little interest in fighting top heavy doubles. Pages 2-3 of this thread suggested against that. Doubles setup recommendation.

LP50s make sense for the basic skills and team stuff. Requiring a size as 'gateway to further classes' would not seem to make sense if it still allowed say twin AL80s, as they are light and balance should be much easier. Requiring mastering rather negative doubles would make sense for 'gateway' to huge tanks, but no one has quite expressed it that way.

 

[arthurng311]

I’m not sure if I said this earlier but the shop I did my dry class with is a Fourth Element dealer, they are about the only shop in town that offers a dry class regularly ( and the only one that has a rental suit in a 3x). They recommend the Fourth Element Argonaut. Last year when everyone else was ordering theirs, was the first time the shop has done the FE BioMap. It was just for that reason that I waited to see how everyone else’s turned out. Any thoughts on that suit? Looks to be well reviewed and everyone else at the shop that got theirs really likes the fit.

When I did my tech 1 with gideon, he was wearing the aggronaut, he was soaked when we got out of the water, I asked him whether there was a problem with a drysuit and he nodded but didn't say a thing. Another gue instructor (my longtime dive buddy) has complained to me that his aggronauts leaks a lot. I personally own a black pearl and have no problems with it. Most my other dive buddies use a Santi, which they love as well.

 

[Kevin Floyd]

When I did my tech 1 with gideon, he was wearing the aggronaut, he was soaked when we got out of the water, I asked him whether there was a problem with a drysuit and he nodded but didn't say a thing. Another gue instructor (my longtime dive buddy) has complained to me that his aggronauts leaks a lot. I personally own a black pearl and have no problems with it. Most my other dive buddies use a Santi, which they love as well.

based on some more in-depth research I have found a few reports of the argonaut leaking.

and today I saw that deep 6 has their Makara custom fit suit on a Black Friday discount. Even when you add the field replaceable seals and p value it’s going to come in nearly $1000 less then the Argonaut.