Best Comprehensive Book on Diving

[pauldw]

Utah has multiple LDS in every town. So why do I still have trouble getting tank fills?

Well I like our LDS, and our LDS's. I went into one trusty local dive shop one day to pick up my tank, and it hadn't actually been filled yet. Incorrect information on the phone. So the guy said they could get it done right then and there. We headed to the back with my tank, still chatting, so I followed him, and we had a nice talk while the tank filled. Except for when he had to take pauses to kick the part of the compressor that wasn't working well, to keep it going. That's living real, right there! None of that sickly corporate polish at all.

 

[Saboteur]

+1 @NW Dive Dawg … go dive.


View attachment 824067

Sitting in a bar, having a drink and a smoke, MOF, looking so manly and cool. It’s why I joined “the set”.

 

[crofrog]

This book covers pretty much everything you need to know

The Fundamentals of Better Diving (2021)

[html format="php_code" different_values="0"] The newest revision of The Fundamentals of Better Diving charts a fresh course for those seeking to get the most out of their diving, demonstrating what is distinctive in both the theory as well as the practice of GUE. This book is a treasure trove...

www.gue.com

 

[Bigbella]

I have always been fond of The Essentials of Deeper Sport Diving by John Lippmann, along with Technical Diving in Depth by Bruce R. Wienke.

Of the two, Lippmann is a bit more readable for a newcomer.

Sadly, knowledge of dive tables has fallen at a similar rate as those now capable of manual transmission use; though I had used tables for my first fourteen years or so of diving, before computers came along, and am still breathing -- though still prefer my 5-speed Toymotor . . .

 

[boulderjohn]

Of the two, Lippmann is a bit more readable for a newcomer . . .

I have long said that many people did not disagree with Wienke because they really couldn't be sure what he actually said.

 

[PDodson]

Read The Complete Diver last year, it has a good amount on the history of diving and introduces many of the scientific concepts, while not going too in depth. I'd say it is a great follow up to an OW class.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Dennis Graver's Scuba Diving is probably the most complete basic Open Water manual there is. No disrespect to the NAUI OW manual, but Graver's has more info and no agency BS marketing.
Though they had manuals when I was teaching for the YMCA and SEI, I never used them. Always used Graver's instead.

Scuba Diving 5th Edition

The best-selling authoritative guide returns, packed with the latest recommendations, dive tables, and instruction. Full-color photographs and illustrations depict the latest equipment, gear selection, dive locations, technologies, and techniques. Scuba Diving is an indispensable resource for...

us.humankinetics.com

 

[rx7diver]

Dennis Graver's Scuba Diving is probably the most complete basic Open Water manual there is. ...

When the univ bookstore here could no longer source (even used) copies of "The New Science of Skin and Scuba Diving, 6th Ed." in the late 1980's, the professor of the univ's NAUI/YMCA scuba course chose Dennis Graver's book as a replacement.

rx7diver

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I have two books for you:

The NOAA Diving and Safety Standards Manual:

http://www.omao.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/NDSSM%20Final_041217.pdf

The Silent World, by Jacques Y. Cousteau.

I read The Silent World three times when I was a kid, and got enough knowledge to safely scuba dive before I could get certified.

I started diving in 1959, and got certified in 1963. The book we used for our certification in 1963 was The New Science of Skin and Scuba Diving. There are four editions of this book on Amazon right now, including the old one (now expensive) that I learned on in 1963.

And, of course, there's the old standby, the U.S. Navy Diving Manual, Rev. 7, 01 December 2016.

https://www.navsea.navy.mil/Portals/103/Documents/SUPSALV/Diving/US%20DIVING%20MANUAL_REV7.pdf?ver=2017-01-11-102354-393

SeaRat

 

[Pbdiver84]

I read Wikipedia’s description of the various editions of the NOAA manual. Are there anything significant changes that would compel a rec diver to buy the 6th edition rather than download the 4th edition available here on SB?

Do not ever pay for US Gov documents. They are by law free. Download the latest of the NOAA website.