I third on the Mark Powell books.
Books to consider about scuba diving
- Thread starter Antonios (Holy Diver)
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Eric Sedletzky
Contributor
Get a copy of “The New Science of Skin and Scuba Diving”. You can find it on Abebooks
This was/is considered the bible for many years. It has been reprinted many times with updated material. It’s very thorough and gives you an idea of what training was like back then and what was expected.
NAUI still refers to it in university programs.
This was/is considered the bible for many years. It has been reprinted many times with updated material. It’s very thorough and gives you an idea of what training was like back then and what was expected.
NAUI still refers to it in university programs.
Robert H. Diver
Contributor
Robert H. Diver
Contributor
If you’re interested in cave, get “basic cave diving, a blue print for survival”, and “taming of the slough.”
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Though more specifically aimed toward technical divers, you would probably enjoy reading parts of Steve Lewis' book, "The six skills and other discussions"
The six skills: buoyancy, trim, movement, breathing, situational awareness, and emotional control. I am not a technical diver, have read through and enjoyed the book several times
Best of luck
The six skills: buoyancy, trim, movement, breathing, situational awareness, and emotional control. I am not a technical diver, have read through and enjoyed the book several times
Best of luck
DiveDay
Contributor
Some suggestions:
1. Mark Powell's Technical Diving: An Introduction
This is a great book for a beginner. It will introduce you to some technical diving gear/notions and has some condensed overview of deco theory as well. I gave my copy away since the material covered was included in other books/sources but it's a great one stop shop to see where you could go with your diving and training.
2. Mark Powell's Deco for Divers
This book is the go-to primer on decompression theory. Primarily aimed at technical divers, so you don't have to read it right away but if you are interested in theory/physiology of scuba diving it should be a book you read.
3. Steve Lewis' Six Skills and Staying Alive
Lewis is another legendary technical/cave diver and now retired instructor, and his books are short and sweet. Six Skills is a bit disjointed (it was built out of his class lectures notes) but full of useful info. If you buy just one get Staying Alive (in my humble opinion). If his humour and slightly romantic and at times meandering writing style appeal to you, you will love these books. I certainly do.
4. Since you asked about it, Jablonski's The Fundamentals of Better Diving is included in GUE course packs. I read the older edition, it's a good book, but a bit biased towards one way of doing things (as is typical of GUE). For a beginner, I would actually start with the Recreational Diver 1 manual. It's called Beginning with the end in Mind and is included with Fundies course packs but you can buy it on the GUE store. I found it enormously helpful, even though it has some spelling errors here and there and could use a second revision/edition. It is a GUE manual, but has a good overview of practical deco theory and clear explanation of concepts like a balanced rig and how to achieve it which are very relevant to rec divers. Edit: I should add, these books teach a DIR/GUE configuration, so if you don't have that equipment you may find them frustrating, but they are a good way to figure out if you want to follow that kind of training course.
1. Mark Powell's Technical Diving: An Introduction
This is a great book for a beginner. It will introduce you to some technical diving gear/notions and has some condensed overview of deco theory as well. I gave my copy away since the material covered was included in other books/sources but it's a great one stop shop to see where you could go with your diving and training.
2. Mark Powell's Deco for Divers
This book is the go-to primer on decompression theory. Primarily aimed at technical divers, so you don't have to read it right away but if you are interested in theory/physiology of scuba diving it should be a book you read.
3. Steve Lewis' Six Skills and Staying Alive
Lewis is another legendary technical/cave diver and now retired instructor, and his books are short and sweet. Six Skills is a bit disjointed (it was built out of his class lectures notes) but full of useful info. If you buy just one get Staying Alive (in my humble opinion). If his humour and slightly romantic and at times meandering writing style appeal to you, you will love these books. I certainly do.
4. Since you asked about it, Jablonski's The Fundamentals of Better Diving is included in GUE course packs. I read the older edition, it's a good book, but a bit biased towards one way of doing things (as is typical of GUE). For a beginner, I would actually start with the Recreational Diver 1 manual. It's called Beginning with the end in Mind and is included with Fundies course packs but you can buy it on the GUE store. I found it enormously helpful, even though it has some spelling errors here and there and could use a second revision/edition. It is a GUE manual, but has a good overview of practical deco theory and clear explanation of concepts like a balanced rig and how to achieve it which are very relevant to rec divers. Edit: I should add, these books teach a DIR/GUE configuration, so if you don't have that equipment you may find them frustrating, but they are a good way to figure out if you want to follow that kind of training course.
I could always recommend Technical Diving in Depth by Bruce R. Wenke, though I’ve noticed that copies are now running anywhere from US 50.00 to 600.00.
My own copy was one of the better 15.00 that I had ever blown.
if you ever get a chance to pick up Vance Harlow’s Scuba Regulator Maintenance and Repair, for a decent price, jump at it, regardless of whether you ever work on your own gear. It is truly a grassroots approach to the subject; and just getting any insight into regulator workings is valuable enough and makes for a more knowledgeable consumer — far less likely to get screwed by the little ole LDS, one of whom recently described a frequent customer, within earshot, as an “emby,” an old carnie term for a sucker, all the while smiling at him, ear to ear.
While not directly associated with diving, I also recommend Bruce Halstead’s Dangerous Marine Animals, which is a valuable reference (and has appeared in many versions over the years); and older copies can be had on the cheap. My own copy, dating from the late fifties, had a chapter on marine mammals, along with a grainy photo of a sea lion, with the caption, “Don’t shoot these.”
I have religiously followed that advice . . .
My own copy was one of the better 15.00 that I had ever blown.
if you ever get a chance to pick up Vance Harlow’s Scuba Regulator Maintenance and Repair, for a decent price, jump at it, regardless of whether you ever work on your own gear. It is truly a grassroots approach to the subject; and just getting any insight into regulator workings is valuable enough and makes for a more knowledgeable consumer — far less likely to get screwed by the little ole LDS, one of whom recently described a frequent customer, within earshot, as an “emby,” an old carnie term for a sucker, all the while smiling at him, ear to ear.
While not directly associated with diving, I also recommend Bruce Halstead’s Dangerous Marine Animals, which is a valuable reference (and has appeared in many versions over the years); and older copies can be had on the cheap. My own copy, dating from the late fifties, had a chapter on marine mammals, along with a grainy photo of a sea lion, with the caption, “Don’t shoot these.”
I have religiously followed that advice . . .
revdive
Registered
"The Complete Diver" by Alex Brylske is my current read. It has been a good way for me to stay grounded in learning the basics while really digging into specifics, at times.
I'd echo DiveDay's list - I also highly recommend "Diver Down: Real-World SCUBA Accidents and How to Avoid Them" for new divers.
It's a very approachable book organized around accident analysis ; each chapter starts with an (actual) incident, which is then used to highlight a key concept of what went wrong with that dive. If some of the technical books feel a bit advanced for you right now, it's a great place to start and review the basics, especially if you read the incidents with an eye to trying to figure out yourself what went wrong (before the author tells you).
It's a very approachable book organized around accident analysis ; each chapter starts with an (actual) incident, which is then used to highlight a key concept of what went wrong with that dive. If some of the technical books feel a bit advanced for you right now, it's a great place to start and review the basics, especially if you read the incidents with an eye to trying to figure out yourself what went wrong (before the author tells you).
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