Equipment advice

[kyleterry]

Thank you all for your comments. My lds did recommend all this equitment. In addition to Decor and Genesis, he also has Sherwood and Cressi. I live in Columbus, Ohio, and there are a few other lds that I can talk to. This just happens to be the one that I got my c-card through.

I did speak to one other lds. He had products I hear mentioned more often, such as Scubapro and Mares, but he just keep pushing his most expensive products.

I have no problem paying whatever I need to pay, and can afford whatever I need to do. I just simply do not want to pay for more than I need.

I do want something that will last and has few problems. My sons are now certified, and we take some trips each year to the Islands to dive.

As far as the cave dive mentioned above, I do not think I was as clear as I should have been. I took a few trips into the cenotes in Mexico in the Yucatan. It was fantastic. I am looking to get my advanced cert. and my cave cert.

Bottom line- I am happy to pay whatever I need to get the best setup for my situation. I am just having a hard time getting advice from the lds that I have confidence in.

On a side note--I found this board while looking for advice on dive locations before some of my trips. All of the recommendations have been fantastic. I have had great trips to Belize, Bahamas, Cancun and Cozemel all thanks to the recommendations from all of you. Thank you for all your help.

Great board.

 

[ElectricZombie]

kyleterry once bubbled...

I do want something that will last and has few problems. .

A Halcyon Pioneer Backplate setup fits your description perfectly. As for the regs, ScubaPro is really outstanding. (I my opinion, probably the best breathing.) Someone will eventually recommend Apex too. They seem to be pretty popular.

 

[Cherry]

On the Regulator issue I would suggest you check out Rodales November Issue. they did what they call " The mother of all reg reviews" It may be very interesting from your perspective. Dacor didnt do real well in that review but then neither did Apeks and I love my ATX200. Have a look at the two IST regs very cheap but finished the best of all entry level regs. Aqualung titan did very very well and is real good price getting almost perfect scores in the simulation. Scuba pro R190 or R380 would be good and did very well in the survey so you would probably not go wrong there. But unless you are as self delusional as I am when it comes to justifying a new purchase based on desire you probably don't need to shell out the major dinero for a top of the line reg like the scuba pro M25 550/600. the December issue has a BCD review with their Testers choice and the Genisis Phantom made the grade. Actually it is the second cheapest with the Aqualung Maverick at 75 bucks cheaper.

Good luck

 

[GreenDiverDown]

Backplates are poor choice for warm water recreational divers with a single 80. The straps on a BP are made from stiff weightbelt webbing and they chafe around the armpits when wearing no or light exposure protection. Backplates are hard to adjust and do not work right without a crotch strap. A single tank is mounted a couple of inches away from the back and results in a tippy feeling when the tank is full and increases the pushing forward on the surface when empty.

There are many on this board who would disagree with Leadweight's comments... including myself. While the above might be true for some, many of us here are more comfortable in a BP/wing than in a traditional BC...even when wearing only light exposure protection. No chaffing here. No tippy feeling or forward pushing on the surface either. I will agree that adjusting a BP/wing can be quite trying and is much more difficult than adjusting a BC. But, once adjusted for a particular exposure suit, it is extremely easy to don and requires no further adjusting. I'm not sure that it is easier than donning a BC, but it really is effortless. To be fair, however, if you change from one exposure protection to another - say, change from a 2mil shortie to a drysuit, you will have to re-adjust the harness. Perhaps that is a point in favor of a BC and an advantage to something like the TPII. As far as the crotch strap is concerned...I like it. Though some might find a crotch strap uncomfortable, it doesn't bother me one bit and the additional stability it provides is a major advantage over 'crotch-strapless' BCs. (That's one of the cool things about a BP - there is next to no shifting of gear that can be so noticable in a BC.)

Despite the drawback of adjustment difficulty, I find that the many other advantages of a BP/wing make it great for all types of diving. I had to use a BC recently and even though it got the job done, I missed my BP/wing somethin' fierce.

SA

 

[roakey]

leadweight once bubbled...
Backplates are poor choice for warm water recreational divers with a single 80.

I dive Cozumel with a backplate and an AL80 and all I can say is that leadweight is absolutely and completely wrong.

The only two problems with backplates is they don't look sexy enough for the "color-is-your-most-important-equipment-consideration" crowd and they aren't that comfortable in the showroom.

So, if you're interested in doing all your diving on the showroom floor, by all means disregard the backplate. But once a BP hits the water, boy are they comfortable!

Roak

 

[sheck33]

roakey once bubbled...

I dive Cozumel with a backplate and an AL80 and all I can say is that leadweight is absolutely and completely wrong.

The only two problems with backplates is they don't look sexy enough for the "color-is-your-most-important-equipment-consideration" crowd and they aren't that comfortable in the showroom.

So, if you're interested in doing all your diving on the showroom floor, by all means disregard the backplate. But once a BP hits the water, boy are they comfortable!

Roak

You've taken the words out of my mouth! So true.

 

[ElectricZombie]

As far as I'm concerned, backplates are never a poor choice!

 

[Scubaroo]

kyleterry,

Cries of "buy a backplate" aside (I use one exclusively), the most important thing is buying something that you find comfortable in the water. A backplate can take some time to set up correctly, especially if you haven't seen one before. But definitely have a look at some back-inflation BCs - they are going to have some of the same in-water benefits of a backplate, such as horizontal trim, something no-one has mentioned yet. I'm guessing you just want something that's going to allow you to do some no-hassles vacation diving - if you're only averaging a little over a dozen dives a year, sticking to a regular BC isn't such a bad option as some would make out - it took me that many dives just to sort out my backplate webbing and tank mounting options. They're very modular. But now it's adjusted, I don't have to touch it. I'm guessing (again) you don't want to spend your next 2 or 3 dive vacations just getting your BC adjusted! But definitely take a look at back-inflation BCs (you'll hear that they push you face-forward at the surface but that's bunk). If after a couple of years you start diving on a more regular basis, take a look at backplates then. But for now, see if you can try-dive the gear you're looking at in a pool somewhere - the LDS will probably let you do this to make a sale. If the local selection is limited to Genesis, they make 2 different back-inflate BCs for you to try.

Seriously guys, you recommend a backplate to a vacation diver? It's not a "plug and play" piece of dive gear! Certainly no reason new divers can't use one (I started using mine on dive #10 or so), and there's no reason why students couldn't be certified in them, but recommending them to someone who dives irregularly, who probably isn't going to have the support or benefit of a diver familiar with them to help them set it up, makes no sense.

Ben

 

[kavka]

I would sugest Scuba pro MK 25 or MK18 (dirty water) and S600.
I own S550 and MK 25, but when swiming head down 550 free flows, so I think 600 i better.

 

[Welshman]

If you're looking for a good reg for recreational diving have a look at the Oceanic CDX Alpha 7.