Doing it Right

[Scott T C]

It's fun trying to make sense of all the tangents going on here.

For a bullet proof reg I would suggest the USD Mistral. Easy to service in the field and won't freeze up.

Thank you!

I will deffinitly look into it. Much appreciated.

The MK17 is great, and so is the A700, but the A700 is overpriced, and generally breathes no better than the S600 or the G250. Both those regs are substantially cheaper. In my opinion the G250 is a phenomenal 2nd stage. I do not know much about DIR and what is compatible with their equipment philosophies, but now that you already own an A700, I would go for an R295 or something robust and affordable like that.
Do not buy a titanium 1st stage. I am not sure what the advantage of titanium is (weight ??) but they are not compatible with high O2 percentages in deco mixes. There is a chance of ignition (the titanium catching fire) and subsequent explosion.

These are my opinions, and I am sure there are others who are better informed who can make other suggestions.

Thanks SD! I got the "kit" at the lowest price I could hunt down between cost + shipping. I think the setup was around $520-ish (can't find my reciept) with shipping included. I do like that the other regs you suggest are close in comparison to the A700 so I will deffinitly look through their information. ANY money saved...is money earned! Greatly appreacted as always mate.

Scott

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And to all, I am not trying to be a jerk...I just always came from a backgroud of your friends/family come first. So that's why I got on the defensive when yall started making fun of me and SeaJay. Just because some of yall don't like him...doesn't mean you have to make me look like a moron for liking him.

Example...I don't like O'bama because as a President, I don't feel he is good as one...his color and race mean nothing to me. Honestly, I'd love to see a woman in there to give it a shot. However, this doesn't mean I am going to belittle you for liking him. Get my points?

Yes, I should just blow those comments off and ignore them...it's just hard for an agressive type A personality with Northeast & Southern tendancies to remember to just smile and move on sometimes. At least I can admit these things/problems.

 

[Cave Diver]

Now, how is that helpful?

I'm glad you haven't posted much lately, or I wouldn't be able to afford the keyboards.

 

[Cave Diver]

Humm...Lets see....go online read thousands of posts about regs, read manufacturers telling me why their's is the best...or actually ask OTHER DIVERS for their opinions....

Yea...why on earth should I do the later?!

Go with some of the top names like Apeks, Scubapro and a few others and it's hard to go wrong. That's not to say other brands aren't decent gear, just those tend to be among the preferred. While DIR doesn't name specific gear, it does set forth guidelines that each piece of gear should meet. Use those guidelines as a starting point to narrow the field and then choose one that fits your personal preference.

 

[Scott T C]

Well... I would love someone to come back in a couple of years and let us all know how our little mud puppy gets on in the commercial diving world. I've never done commercial diving, but I spent a hell of a lot of time enlisted on submarines. We eat our own, and if my Navy hard hat divers are anything to go buy I suspect commercial divers eat their own as well.

Your original post was about the wonders of DIR/GUE training -- training you have never attempted, let alone completed. In addition it's not entirely clear from your profile that you are a certified diver.

Lynne is a very nice person, I am not. What she was politely trying to tell you that was to call yourself a DIR diver and stay within the accepted definition of the term as used by GUE you need to buy in to the whole philosophyNOTjust the parts you like. You are welcome to adapt and disregard the parts you don't like, most of us on the board do, but you can't not follow the system and still be DIR compliant.

As far as your gear -- read what GUE says about gear. Compare what you own or are trying to buy with what GUE says about gear and its thoughtful use in team diving.

You also are whining that people here aren't nice. Trust me when I tell you that in dangerous blue collar jobs that have a high turnover rate you will have to prove yourself daily for years to people who are "not nice."

Grow up, learn from your mistakes and move on if you want to be successful. If you can't, or won't, please at least remember that the internet isn't real life and it's truly not worth getting upset about what anyone writes in response to you.

Michael

On a message board, you can be a smart ass and have no repercussions. Face to face and people become less of a smart ass. I don't take smart ass comments from my friends, family or kids...I sure as hell won't sit idly by and just bend over and take them here. Guess you could say I have a Northeast mindset with a Southern attitude when annoyed. (Trust me…trying to change is not easy!)

As for industries, I am fully aware my friend about the industry as a whole and that they piss on/beat down new divers to see if they can hack the pressures. I was 40 hours from completing my professional pilot degree (flying time) when I went to college (ran out of money to complete it) and my BEST performances were when my instructors pulled all kinds of crap to get myself in a bind. Guess what...the harder they pushed to make me fail...the better I excelled at every task. Landings for example...they were softer and better carried out when I was pushed to the limits of my experience as PIC (Pilot In Command) of the training plane.

Anyway...enough of my rambling on...bottom line it is easy for someone to be a smart ass on here...not as easy in person.

I respect those who respect me. Anyone whom "spat" on me with smart ass comments because of whom I like, dislike, know, dive with, follow after, my choices...THEY are the immature ones that need to grow up.

Also to answer another question of yours, I am OW Certified through NAUI. I dove to enjoy a great vacation when I was on one...which was rare. I was "re-introduced" back into the world and fell completely in love with the fact that I could make diving my living. So, I will snap back at anyone who says I can't, shouldn't, won't make it, etc.

Let me put it this way...I am NOT spending the money to just go "oh well...I tried"...

Sorry for the rant again....just annoyed overall and yes, you are right I shouldn't blame the whole forum for a couple of pricks here. (It's always the couple of bad apples which spoil the whole damn bunch these days.)

When I get tired and pissed off, I don't say the best things...I will completely admit that. Especially when I can't express them verbally and have to put my emotions in text.

 

[Scott T C]

Go with some of the top names like Apeks, Scubapro and a few others and it's hard to go wrong. That's not to say other brands aren't decent gear, just those tend to be among the preferred. While DIR doesn't name specific gear, it does set forth guidelines that each piece of gear should meet. Use those guidelines as a starting point to narrow the field and then choose one that fits your personal preference.

Thank you!

See, some people get it that I am not some DIR superman beliver. I just liked some of their choices and such...henceforth thought that some of it would be usefull.

I tried to get ahold of an Apex rig, but could only find it at a good price internationally...Visa didn't like me making an international purchase and my debit card got locked every time I tried to make it.

Ah, if you think I'm bashing CJ then you misunderstand me ... I like CJ ... he's on my "Friends" list here.

Yup, he's controversial ... so are lots of people on this board I like. They're what make this place worth coming back to. If everybody saw things the same way, there'd be precious little to talk about ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I am sorry for the misunderstanding.

You do make a valuable point...thank you!

 

[Blackwood]

See, some people get it that I am not some DIR superman beliver.

Some? Everyone who has read this thread knows that for certain.

DIR isn't a gear configuration, but a gear configuration is part of DIR. A key part of that configuration facilitates expeditious, passive gas sharing, hence two second stages (neither being an in-line system like the Air2) are employed.

One can certainly dive a H backplate and H rebranded scubapro regs, but that shouldn't be confused with DIR. And DIR or not doesn't matter to anyone beyond you and your dive buddies.

 

[Superlyte27]

Halcyon was the ONLY manufacturer to create gear needed by the technical community, and CAVE COMMUNITY, that was built to do what these communituies needed it to do.

When the Halcyon Bp/wing first came out, it was after years of pleading by the WKPP, to all the OTHER mfg's to produce something like this, and the big mfg's of the time refused to do anything other than come up with NEW Hot colors, or bigger pockets on BC's, or more d-rings, etc.

The other mfg's did not care about best function, they cared about best focus group response from a general population of non or new divers.

Halcyon was and IS, the manufacturer that puts the thinking into " what do divers need, to make them better and safer, and to help them have bigger adventures! "

When the "other manufacturers" saw the fantastic response Halcyon got at the first DEMA show ( in Halcyon's first year of operation)--litterally a huge line at the tiny halcyon booth....while the small town sized spaces for Mares, and Scubapro, and all the other big guys were pretty much empty---they all realized the dive world had just changed, and that they had been dangerously out of tune with it....Rather than loosing the focus groups of non-divers though, as the main impetus for new advertising and marketing, they just begain watching what Halcyon did, and making knock-offs whenever they thought Halcyon had hit on an area that could be profitable.

Dive Rite was around long before Halcyon -- Made by cave divers for cave divers... Lamar built the company out of necessity to get good gear.

I was at that DEMA show, and funny, I don't remember the the scenario the way you write about it.

 

[Superlyte27]

I'm looking at my paper catalogue of Dive Rite products from 2003, there's the Transpak only, and the 2004, 20th anniversary edition of the catalogue has the Transplate.

I knew there'd be a reason for hanging on to this stuff

I have both an Alumbium BP and a Composite BP from 1996 from Dive Rite. One has a delux harness the other has a basic harness.

 

[ndemeis]

This is one epic thread.

Shameless plug, if you are looking at apeks.regs I have some new ones I can make a deal for you on.

 

[Scott T C]

I know this isn't a streamlined aproach, but what are thoughts on a small pony bottle and secondary reg attached to it? If there is a system failure on your main rig...would having a completely self contained bailout be better?

Oh, and yes...I have asked questions outside my OP ideas...but it is my thread and things cross my mind.