Does scuba gear often seem severely overpriced ?

[kmarks]

As others have said, yes, dive gear is expensive, but so is the equipment for many other hobbies.

I just bought a Sony A7iii camera and kit lens. After taxes, it came in at just over $3100 Cdn. For that much money, I could have replaced all of my dive gear (3mm wetsuit, BP/W reg mask & fins). I am a recreational diver, so I don't need specific gear. I would likely have some money left over to put towards a trip. And that was just for a camera body and a kit lens.

If we take into account that this spring, I switched from Canon to Sony and I have replaced all of my lenses too, dive gear no longer seems outrageous. This spring, I have bought a 70-300mm lens, a 16-35mm lens (each in the neighbourhood of $1600 Cdn). In total, I have bought a little over $6k in camera gear and I have a camera body and 3 lenses, one of which is a kit lens.

For $6k, I could have replaced all of my dive gear and spent a week on a LOB.

So, IMHO, dive gear is expensive, but it is not unlike other hobbies.

My biggest expense is definitely photography.
Cameras: Canon 70D, T1i, and Powershot S110 - The S110 is my diver camera in a Polaroid housing (because there is no way I'm spending thousands on a DSLR housing)
Lenses: Canon EF-S 17-55/2.8, EF 100/2.8L Macro, EF-S 10-18/4.5-5.6, EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6 (kit lens), EF-S 55-250/4-5.6, EF 50/1.8, EF-S 24/2.8, and Sigma 100-400/4.5-6.3 C
Two flashes, two studio umbrellas, light stands, three seamless back drops, backdrop holder, SD cards of all sizes, 2 batteries for the 70D and S110, 3 batteries for the T1i, ND, polarizing, and graduated ND filters of all sizes...

For the sake of my very healthy heart, I'm not going to add all that up. I want to keep it healthy.

Photography wins partly because my scuba equipment doesn't include anything other than my mask, fins, snorkel, wetsuit, sharkskin, Vyper Air, and a few odds and ends like DSMBs and reels, small lights. Once I add in a set of regs and BCD, it might start to get close. Oh, and then there's my kayaks (yes, with an s), skis, bicycles, wood shop... you know what? I'm just going to stop now.

 

[scubafanatic]

Hey Guys,
As most of you know, I have a much different business model. I use the exact same factories as the expensive foreign brands, however, I only sell direct to divers, instead of through dive shops. So, my prices are much lower (no dive shop mark up).

However, I only sell freediving equipment. No tanks, BCs or regs. When buying the more technical gear, nothing beats the personal service, knowledge and selection you get from your local dive shop. They certainly deserve to make a few dollars for the valuable services they provide. Just my 2C.
View attachment 460424
dive safe,
dano

Have you considered branching into scuba gear sales ?

 

[woodcarver]

Years ago when I asked my Mom why Dad was still working and not just enjoying retirement, she reminded me of what his hobby was. He flew several days a week. Owned 2 planes and shares of at least 3 others that I knew of. Aviation has a LOT higher cost of participation than scuba.

 

[woodcarver]

Having started this hobby much later than others, I doubt scuba will ever come close to what hunting and shooting have sucked out of the bank. It just added something else to compete for my time and money.

 

[RockiesFan]

Hunting never killed my budget but then again I never got into reloading or customizing.

 

[woodcarver]

Hunting never killed my budget but then again I never got into reloading or customizing.

I did. I think I'm reloading 20+ calibers these days. Haven't really gotten into the AR craze. My preference is highly figured or carved wood stocks. Fortunately, I don't have to spend a lot of money to indulge myself, just a lot of time.

 

[RockiesFan]

Any hobby worth doing is worth overdoing!

 

[clownfishsydney]

For the majority of divers, a regulator should last a lifetime with good cleaning and regular servicing. My fins have lasted about 3,500 dives, my mask only replaced every five years (750 dives), booties more often as well as gloves and hood. Wetsuit should last close to 1,000 dives.

Yes, expensive to purchase, but should last a long time. Per dive cost is low. Compare to my rbothers who play golf. Their clubs are replaced totally every four or so years. Very expensive shoes, buggies and bags. Let alone the cost of their club membership and cost per round of golf and the inevitable beers after the game, I reckon my hobbie is cheaper!

 

[Littlerayray]

My link seems to disagree.
Markup Percentage Calculation | Markup Percentage Definition



Gotta love that "top of the line logic"

I would love to see this $1,000 "top of the line" BC. ..and $1k for a wetsuit? Come on man!? You can get a damn fine 5m suit for half that. Less if you look around.

"Top of the line" really means: the brand this LDS sells and has signed their life away to be a dealer for.

Surely there are low end budget lines for several brands. But nearly all major brands perform so well that your average human cannot tell the difference.

This attitude really irritates me and will be the death of the LDS as we know it today. That diver you suckered into buying a "top of the line BC and wetsuit" will eventually be diving near someone like me. And will find out that peopl regularly spend less than half of that to buy nice gear. And then you have destroyed your customers trust.

Sure .."you can't buy gas fills online", but people will adapt. Dive boats offer fills. Many here have set up their own fill station. If I was running a LDS, I would not hang all my hopes on being the only source for gas fills.

I have regs that I trust to take me over well over 1,000 ft back into caves. I am not bothered one bit if you don't think they are "top of the line".

My bare 7mm farmer John was 850 my cold water hood was 80 my 5mm Kevlar coated dive gloves were 85 my 5mm cold water booties were about 100
And that's bare there a 1k right there and that's not even custom
And you think that's expensive try replacing the brass rear entry supper on a dry suit
I my reg setup cost me about 1k I bought it new am I going to replace it not for a while
This winter I spent about 500 and that was visualizing 3 tanks and servicing my regs I also had to order a new body for my one first stage it was cracked cost 25 bucks
I don't have the patience to service my gear and that's what keeps the lights on at my lds over the cold winter

 

[hammet]

this one sail on my boat cost about 9k.
scuba=cheap