Brand New Diver

[JD Smith]

After years of talking about wanting to get certified, I finally got my feet wet and learned to blow bubbles. New Open Water certified diver I am now am. I'm looking at future certifications, but I want to gear up first and get some time underwater before I choose which direction I want to take this. I'm in North Idaho and I don't get much time to venture too far away from home being a Dad and Husband. My wife has no desire, but my daughter loves the water so I am hoping as she grows and sees me diving and telling stories she will get the urge to do it too when she is old enough. She already loves using a mask and snorkel in bath tub. I came here looking for people who have dived or do dive up in my area that can not only guide me to great sites, but even perhaps steer me to find some dive buddies. I don't have many acquaintances that dive so my opportunity is even more limited. I'll be checking the forums for information on my area and maybe even the chance to pick up some used gear to save me some money as I get going on this. I think I know what gear I want to buy, but I also don't want to limit my sights on just a few brands when there are so many options available. Anyway, there is my introduction. I am looking forward to learn as much as I can in these forums.

 

[Rob Bibber]

Welcome. I'm pretty new myself. North Idaho? Cool. I live in an RV and travel around a lot but home base is in NW Montana near Flathead Lake. I used to snorkel a lot there - very cool rock formations and generally crystal clear water. Should only be a few hours for you to drive there ;-)

 

[JD Smith]

Welcome. I'm pretty new myself. North Idaho? Cool. I live in an RV and travel around a lot but home base is in NW Montana near Flathead Lake. I used to snorkel a lot there - very cool rock formations and generally crystal clear water. Should only be a few hours for you to drive there ;-)

Yep, I know right where Flathead Lake is. For work, I often go into Whitefish and stay overnight. Sadly, I can't take any gear with me and I am not there long enough each trip to make it worthwhile anyway. But if I do go into Whitefish by vehicle, we drive right by Flathead. It is only about a 3 hours drive from my home.

 

[TMHeimer]

Are you anywhere near those two lakes on the panhandle (Pend D'Oriel, Coer de Laine--sp?)?

 

[JD Smith]

Are you anywhere near those two lakes on the panhandle (Pend D'Oriel, Coer de Laine--sp?)?

Yes. Just north of Coeur d'Alene and a smidge south of Pend Oreille. Both less than an hour drive from my front door.

 

[NAM001]

After years of talking about wanting to get certified, I finally got my feet wet and learned to blow bubbles. New Open Water certified diver I am now am. I'm looking at future certifications, but I want to gear up first and get some time underwater before I choose which direction I want to take this. I'm in North Idaho and I don't get much time to venture too far away from home being a Dad and Husband. My wife has no desire, but my daughter loves the water so I am hoping as she grows and sees me diving and telling stories she will get the urge to do it too when she is old enough. She already loves using a mask and snorkel in bath tub. I came here looking for people who have dived or do dive up in my area that can not only guide me to great sites, but even perhaps steer me to find some dive buddies. I don't have many acquaintances that dive so my opportunity is even more limited. I'll be checking the forums for information on my area and maybe even the chance to pick up some used gear to save me some money as I get going on this. I think I know what gear I want to buy, but I also don't want to limit my sights on just a few brands when there are so many options available. Anyway, there is my introduction. I am looking forward to learn as much as I can in these forums.

Congrats for getting your OW.

You have up sides and down sides.

First diving is expensive and the less you do it the more it costs. To start buying gear means you are commited to the sport cause you will never get your investment back if you , or your wife decide its not for you. You will hear a lot about BPW and jacket's which regs and so much more. I am a BPW guy but that does not mean it is the best for you. I could give you a dozen pros and little cons regarding that but those are only my opinion at this point. If you are going to get gear at this point i would recommend you get your own wet suit , then reg and computer. Again so many choices , each with pros and cons. If you ask around you will find that many (including myself) have several of the same items of gear we no longer use. By the time you get a pair of fins that work for you, you may spend 500 $ or you find a more efficient way of evaluating before buying. The problem is that you don't know how to evaluate the products cause you don't know what they are supposed to do. Let me give you an example. 5 people give you 5 different fin recommendatons. so you take one of them and it happens to be a warm salt water diver. they dont work for you because you wear a full wet suit in fresh cold water and he wears a shorty and your shorty fins dont have the neg buoyancy to hold your legs down in a full wet suit. Result 5 good recommendations but for 5 different sets of thermal protection. There will be things you should get from your LDS and perhaps other things you should get on the net because of cost savings. Getting your own tanks are fine till you try to fly with them. oNE PERSON USEs AL TANKS AND ANOTHER USES STEEL TANKS TO replace the amount of lead on the waist. No two bodies are the same. Your brother may be short and drives a prius but you are a foot taller and that makes the car still a good car but not for you. Every component you get has an effect on the other parts of your get up or kit as it is sometimes called.

What you should look for on scuba board when it comes to gear is guidance on how to select your items for purchase. You will find when you start this you will learn quickly just how much you don't know about buoyancy trim, strap and hose routings etc., Not to mention the taboos like split fins ect. Keep in mind that everything you get you want to be able to use it for many years under many conditions (with or with out gloves) and it has to be simple to access and use. Dive computers are very much subject in the simple to use catagory problem. I have settled on a pretucular brand because it has large screen and 2 buttons , a scroll and a select button, to operate a menu system that is for me the most intuitive there is. Although i doubt it but it may not be intuitive for you. Many computers have things like hode button 3 and 1 together for 5 seconds to get to the flying sub menu.

You have alot of experience on this site. Do a lot of reading on buoyancy and trim. it effects depth control gas consumption and so much more.

Again welcome, dive safe and never be afraid to ask an opinion. You cant ignore what you never get.

 

[JD Smith]

Congrats for getting your OW.

You have up sides and down sides.

First diving is expensive and the less you do it the more it costs. To start buying gear means you are commited to the sport cause you will never get your investment back if you , or your wife decide its not for you. You will hear a lot about BPW and jacket's which regs and so much more. I am a BPW guy but that does not mean it is the best for you. I could give you a dozen pros and little cons regarding that but those are only my opinion at this point. If you are going to get gear at this point i would recommend you get your own wet suit , then reg and computer. Again so many choices , each with pros and cons. If you ask around you will find that many (including myself) have several of the same items of gear we no longer use. By the time you get a pair of fins that work for you, you may spend 500 $ or you find a more efficient way of evaluating before buying. The problem is that you don't know how to evaluate the products cause you don't know what they are supposed to do. Let me give you an example. 5 people give you 5 different fin recommendatons. so you take one of them and it happens to be a warm salt water diver. they dont work for you because you wear a full wet suit in fresh cold water and he wears a shorty and your shorty fins dont have the neg buoyancy to hold your legs down in a full wet suit. Result 5 good recommendations but for 5 different sets of thermal protection. There will be things you should get from your LDS and perhaps other things you should get on the net because of cost savings. Getting your own tanks are fine till you try to fly with them. oNE PERSON USEs AL TANKS AND ANOTHER USES STEEL TANKS TO replace the amount of lead on the waist. No two bodies are the same. Your brother may be short and drives a prius but you are a foot taller and that makes the car still a good car but not for you. Every component you get has an effect on the other parts of your get up or kit as it is sometimes called.

What you should look for on scuba board when it comes to gear is guidance on how to select your items for purchase. You will find when you start this you will learn quickly just how much you don't know about buoyancy trim, strap and hose routings etc., Not to mention the taboos like split fins ect. Keep in mind that everything you get you want to be able to use it for many years under many conditions (with or with out gloves) and it has to be simple to access and use. Dive computers are very much subject in the simple to use catagory problem. I have settled on a pretucular brand because it has large screen and 2 buttons , a scroll and a select button, to operate a menu system that is for me the most intuitive there is. Although i doubt it but it may not be intuitive for you. Many computers have things like hode button 3 and 1 together for 5 seconds to get to the flying sub menu.

You have alot of experience on this site. Do a lot of reading on buoyancy and trim. it effects depth control gas consumption and so much more.

Again welcome, dive safe and never be afraid to ask an opinion. You cant ignore what you never get.

I couldn't agree with more with everything you said above. I came here to read what people are out there doing and using everyday while diving. I hope to glean some knowledge from this group.

 

[NAM001]

I couldn't agree with more with everything you said above. I came here to read what people are out there doing and using everyday while diving. I hope to glean some knowledge from this group.

Thanks i am always available, just leave a personal PM and yo can get me any time.

 

[rek_diver]

To start buying gear means you are commited to the sport cause you will never get your investment back if you , or your wife decide its not for you.

That might be true if you buy new from a local shop. I buy most of my gear online, and wait for really good deals or auctions that don't draw lots of bidding, I've hooked up several people with good sets of used dive gear that they can turn around and sell for at least what they paid for it and probably even make money on the resale.

You will hear a lot about BPW and jacket's which regs and so much more. I am a BPW guy but that does not mean it is the best for you.

It's been my experience that a BPW is not for new divers, it's something that divers evolve into over time as they develop skills. It's also my understanding that a BPW is going to cost a heck of a lot more than a basic weight integrated BCD by the time you're done putting it altogether and adding the basics to it.

If you are going to get gear at this point i would recommend you get your own wet suit , then reg and computer. Many computers have things like hode button 3 and 1 together for 5 seconds to get to the flying sub menu.

My preferred order when hooking up a new diver is Mask/Fins/Snorkel. You can often find them used and cheap on Craiglist or other classified sites, and have the opportunity to try them on for fit. Then a computer if they plan to do dives deeper than say shallow 30 ft reefs, because the rental cost of a computer is typically $10 a day or more, and a good used computer can be found for under $100 and if you own it, you know how it works which can make a big difference in a new sport that can easily become "task overloaded". The dive computer I use is over 10 years old, it's two button and only 2 submenus and is very easy to navigate through. Newer computers are not necessarily better, but they're always more expensive.

Next get yourself some exposure protection based on the sort of diving you plan to be doing, be it a dive skin for the tropics or a 7mm for coldwater diving, or both.

Finally get yourself a BCD and regulator set to finish off your list, you can buy locally but there are several qualified regulator technicians that sell recently serviced and inspected gear for much less than you'll pay at a brick and mortar shop.

 

[NAM001]

That might be true if you buy new from a local shop. I buy most of my gear online, and wait for really good deals or auctions that don't draw lots of bidding, I've hooked up several people with good sets of used dive gear that they can turn around and sell for at least what they paid for it and probably even make money on the resale.

Most everything you get onlineis cheaper. things i reference buying from a LDS is perhaps wet suits or at least trying them on before buying cause sending them back over and over again takes so long.

It's been my experience that a BPW is not for new divers, it's something that divers evolve into over time as they develop skills. It's also my understanding that a BPW is going to cost a heck of a lot more than a basic weight integrated BCD by the time you're done putting it altogether and adding the basics to it.

I cant argue with your understanding, and i agree to a point but by the time you put on 20# and you have to buy another jacket instead of a new 20$ web belt the costs truley show them selves. Other than that the cost for forst time buyers are relativly the same. I dont know what other things oy are refering to adding the basics to it..



My preferred order when hooking up a new diver is Mask/Fins/Snorkel. You can often find them used and cheap on Craiglist or other classified sites, and have the opportunity to try them on for fit. Then a computer if they plan to do dives deeper than say shallow 30 ft reefs, because the rental cost of a computer is typically $10 a day or more, and a good used computer can be found for under $100 and if you own it, you know how it works which can make a big difference in a new sport that can easily become "task overloaded". The dive computer I use is over 10 years old, it's two button and only 2 submenus and is very easy to navigate through. Newer computers are not necessarily better, but they're always more expensive.

Yes i willagree with you the emphasis on simple to use fo me is the important aspect. If you cant find it you dont have it to use.
I assume that anyone thqt has completed OW now has their own basic gear. Is that no longer a requirement prior to starting the class.

Next get yourself some exposure protection based on the sort of diving you plan to be doing, be it a dive skin for the tropics or a 7mm for coldwater diving, or both.

The expusure protection IMO is the first needed to have after basic gear. every thing has to be made to fit and work around it. including BCD weighting systems, fin buoyancy etc.

Finally get yourself a BCD and regulator set to finish off your list, you can buy locally but there are several qualified regulator technicians that sell recently serviced and inspected gear for much less than you'll pay at a brick and mortar shop.

Agree, You can often buy new and inexpensive at the same time. Look at a lot of cave reg sets they are not 1000$ regs and work just as well and if needed self repairable.