Choosing dive gear as a new diver

[STATDIVER]

It's done. Just ordered a puck. Said it was from leisure pro earlier, but that was a mistake...actually ordered from scuba.com. Got a good deal on it, and since I'm already familiar with it, and especially for my purposes, I'm sure it will work out just fine.

 

[drrich2]

Enjoy it. I dive both wrist unit (VT3) and console (Cobalt). I tend to pull my Cobalt across my chest from the left & nestle it in the crook of my right elbow at times. Having both, I tend to look at the Cobalt more. That said, having 2 computers, if one craps out, I'm still covered on a trip. So having the one now doesn't mean you can't add the other later.

Richard.

 

[dmaziuk]

I don't know the measurements of my Wisdom but it's actually pretty small as I don't have a compass attached anyway as I don't use a compass when diving. But to me, it's compact and the numbers are very large and easy to read which is a good thing as the eyes aren't quite as sharp as they once were.

---------- Post added January 5th, 2016 at 03:00 PM ----------



You just described me to a T.

That works. Especially when you're in a group and you know you're not the first to run out of gas: you rarely look at it, it just sits there clipped off.

 

[archer1960]

From my anecdotal experience, rental gear does not come with short hose, retractable bolt snap consoles. It may come with a plastic "hose keeper" clip on the left D-ring that's worn out and doesn't hold the console very well. Or it may not and you can stick your console under the belt of your BCD. At least that way you'll feel it when (not if) it falls out and starts ploughing.

As a new diver, about the only time you will use a compass is the certification dives. People who do use them for real tend to prefer slate-mounted ones, followed by wrist-mounted. Console-mounted ones are commonly referred to as "pain to use". So, you don't need the compass in the console.

As a "recreational" diver you don't really need a backup depth gauge: you have a buddy for that. Your primary is in your computer, of course. So, you don't need the depth gauge in your console.

So the next time you're holding the two by four by six (if not larger) console, consider that the only part of it you actually need is the 2"-wide and 1"-thick tank pressure gauge.

In the crappy summer and fall vis here in New England, I usually use a compass on every single dive, including the first post-cert dive I ever did in the area. Now that the water is cold, the vis is much better, so a compass isn't as needed, but in the spring it will be needed again. I have a backup depth gauge and compass, but didn't actually plan it that way. My reg came with a console that included a compass, along with the spg and analog depth gauge (no computer, though). I quickly discovered that I hated the console-mounted compass, and bought a wrist-mounted one, that sits next to my wrist-mounted DC. Sometimes I wear a separate dive watch on my right wrist for a backup timer, but not always.

 

[boulderjohn]

The degree to which you need a compass depends upon the conditions in which you dive more than the degree of your experience. If you are following a DM in a tropical resort, especially on drift dives, you really won't have much use for one. A lot of people dive that way exclusively, and after a while, they will have little memory of how to use it.

On the other hand, if you are diving Molasses Reef in Key Largo, a very popular site for both students and brand new divers, a computer can be a very useful tool for even the most beginning of divers. Assuming most of their customers have no idea how to use a computer to navigate an area like that, most dive operators tell them to ascend occasionally and spot the boat so they know where they are and can get back at the end of the dive. Even with the little bit of training you get in the OW class, however, you should have no trouble exploring the area and then getting back to the boat without ascending once.

There are other uses for a compass that are dependent on site conditions. I use one frequently myself because I dive some local sites where having one is useful.

 

[dmaziuk]

On the other hand, if you are diving Molasses Reef in Key Largo, a very popular site for both students and brand new divers, a computer can be a very useful tool for even the most beginning of divers. Assuming most of their customers have no idea how to use a computer to navigate an area like that, most dive operators tell them to ascend occasionally and spot the boat so they know where they are and can get back at the end of the dive. Even with the little bit of training you get in the OW class, however, you should have no trouble exploring the area and then getting back to the boat without ascending once.

There are other uses for a compass that are dependent on site conditions. I use one frequently myself because I dive some local sites where having one is useful.

Fair enough, but wouldn't you rather have a map of the reef on a slate and a slate-mounted compass then?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba.]

Yes, some folks have made reasonable comments about why they prefer one type of computer over another. But some comments are like the following, "dragging a furrow through the coral" and "you have to pull the console up to your face regularly, a movement so inconvenient that it is tempting to do it too rarely." Really? Seriously, is it truly that inconvenient. And the same person who made that comment also said they don't really have to look at their gauges all that much.

That's what is called mumbo jumbo.

Since you are talking about me, I will explain the mumbo jumbo step by step. I will number each step so that you can more easily point out the parts with which you disagree.

1. I said that I preferred to have the information I need during a dive readily available to me, and since I dive in a posture that puts the instruments on my wrist almost continually in a position where I only have to take a glance to see what I need to see. This includes especially depth and time, which in the kind of diving I do is most critical.

2. I said that if I were to dive with an air integrated computer (and I don't), I would have all information readily available to me that way.

3. I contrasted that with the fact that a console requires effort to raise up to see it, which can mean that you don't do it as often as you should. As an example, I do a lot of diving in which the dive plan calls for maintaining specific depth limits in environments in which it is easy to exceed those limits. Having that depth reading a glance away at nearly all times is very helpful.

4. In my dive planning, I calculate gas needs and gas reserves to the degree that I know I will have more than enough gas to complete the dive and deal with most emergencies. Consequently, it would be very unusual for me to run into a problem with gas volume. I therefore only need to check my gas from time to time to ensure that nothing unusual is happening. Thus, having the spg on my hip is not a major problem, as I do not need to check it as often as other data. This concept was part of the course materials in my TDI trimix training. It was on one of the exams, IIRC.

5. I clearly said that #4 would be different for newer divers. In fact, when working with OW students, I teach them to check their spg's frequently, much more than I do in my practice.

So that is how I dive. If you are not diving the dives I do, then it will make sense for you to do it differently.

 

[mobeachlovers]

Veterans of ScubaBoard have seen the threads many times. A new diver starts a thread asking questions about some dive package being offered or just asking questions in general about what gear to purchase. I thought I would just offer a few of my own opinions and leave it for others to add theirs in the hope that we can do some good.

1. In most cases, there is no benefit to buying what some people consider to be "beginner gear." The kind of gear worn by more advanced divers is no harder to use than gear associated with beginning divers and, in many cases, it is easier to use. (That is especially true of buoyancy control devices.) With few exceptions, the "advanced" gear does not cost any more. Scuba gear does not wear out easily, so you will not replace your "beginner gear" with more advanced stuff when it wears out. Be very wary of a sales person telling you that some equipment is for advanced divers only; that is true in only a few cases.

2. With few exceptions, the gear from all the major brands are of good quality. Some are made in the same factory on the same equipment as another brand. Look more at design and features than brand. Pick the designs and features you want both now and in the future. As I said before, the gear will last a long time, so try to think about the kind of diving you will do in the future. As a new diver, that may be difficult, but you can make good choices if you get good advice and read a lot. ScubaBoard forums like this are good for getting an idea of where you want to go with your diving. Read the threads started by others and start your own when you can't find what you want to know.

3. Following up on #2, you can be fooled into thinking that some of what seem to be more advanced features on some gear, especially computers, will be useful in the future. When you see a feature you don't understand, ask when that would ever be useful and then wonder when you would ever use it in your own diving. Don't pay for bells and whistles you will never need.

4. Some gear choices are controversial, and when you read online discussions about them, you will encounter people with strongly held opinions. Hot button topics include split fins, integrated alternate air sources, air integrated computers, etc. Having a strong opinion does not make someone a real expert. Read carefully and make good judgments. What one person hates might be something you will love.

4. Be wary of a salesperson pushing specific models as being "the best." It is a tactic often used to steer customers to models with the highest profit margin. A similar model sitting a few feet away might fit your needs better and be every bit as good as the one you are being steered to buy.

 

[mobeachlovers]

Sooo...any specific things you can recommend? We are pretty limited to dive shops in our area that tend to push the very limited amount of gear they happen to have in stock... Basically we are newbies that have done discover scuba course and plan on getting OW very soon. The plan is only warm water diving, i.e. mexico, south florida, ect. and for 1-2 weeks a year with probably max 10 dives a year and no plan for advanced or cave diving, ect. Already have mask and snorkel, so looking for fins, bcd, regulator, and computer-if that is needed? Not looking for top of the line but want good reliable equipment. Thanks for any advice

 

[KevinNM]

Sooo...any specific things you can recommend? We are pretty limited to dive shops in our area that tend to push the very limited amount of gear they happen to have in stock... Basically we are newbies that have done discover scuba course and plan on getting OW very soon. The plan is only warm water diving, i.e. mexico, south florida, ect. and for 1-2 weeks a year with probably max 10 dives a year and no plan for advanced or cave diving, ect. Already have mask and snorkel, so looking for fins, bcd, regulator, and computer-if that is needed? Not looking for top of the line but want good reliable equipment. Thanks for any advice

I'd plan on renting for at least the first trip. You might want to buy your own fins, a lot of shops want that for OW classes and good fins that fit are important. You might also get your own warm water exposure suit, rentals can be kind of nasty and skins or 3mm shorties are cheap and the one you own will fit you. But I think it's about $30 bucks a day to rent (BCD, Reg, computer), so for $150/year you can dive 5 days of 2 tank dives/day. Just choose well rated dive operators to avoid poorly maintained gear. In my last trip (to Hawaii) I'd guess least 80% of the divers were renting most or all their gear for $30-50/day depending on what they got.