Equipment Questions/Rankings for Newbie

[Outlaw14]

Greetings,

Being very new to the sport, and newly OW certified, I want to proceed with buying equipment slowly so that I don't a) inadvertently buy something with a poor rep b) cheap manufacturing c) something I would outgrow relatively quickly (no not the wet suit size!). There are so many brands for BCs/regs/wet suits that I am not sure where to begin. BTW am a 43 year old female.

I guess I am looking for a consumer reports type article on gear. Do any of the dive magazines do this annually? I am so new I am not sure what features are most important say on a regulator or BC. Any advice is welcome. And yes I will talk to my LDS and keep reading the boards However, I was just wondering if there was sort of a comprehensive discussion I could latch on to somewhere. I generally like to do my own research and not just rely on sales people at a dive shop (or any store where I am debating a costly and in this case life dependent purchase).

In general are their certain brands of say regulators which would be considered low end, middle of the road or high end? Could someone supply a general ranking? same for BCs and wet suits. Thanks in advance for any advice or pointing me to other articles, etc.

Lauren

 

[scubatoys]

Unfortunately, there is no good resource for what you're looking for... all the rating magazines and sites seem to be extremely biased... So I'd tell you the best thing to do is talk to someone that you feel you can trust - get their opinions - research then based on suggestions you get. Of course trying stuff out always helps too..

Even when talking to shops - either local, or not - you should be able to get a pretty good feel for "is this guy educating me?? or Selling me??" If you don't get a warm fuzzy... go somewhere else!

 

[crpntr133]

Don't feel bad, I was in the same boat (with no gear). I really don't think that there is any "bad" gear, just better. Lets face it, why would someone sell something that is "bad" that might get you killed and then they have a law suit? From what I have seen so far "you get what you paid for" is true here. Sometimes what you buy and with what features is going to depend heavily upon where you are going to dive and under what conditions.
I started out reading every magazine that I could get my hands one. Dive Training has a card inside that has a list of manufacturers, which most have a web site. Do some time on the internet and visit them and then ask questions either here or to the manufacturer. For some one to tell you that brand X is the way for you is totally wrong.
I am sure that others will have more information and it will differ from mine.

 

[JRO]

"Undercurrent" magazine (they're online also) seems to be an unbiased resource. Although some of the articles are dated.

 

[ChrisA]

Greetings,

Being very new to the sport, and newly OW certified, I want to proceed with buying equipment slowly so that I don't a) inadvertently buy something with a poor rep b) cheap manufacturing c) something I would outgrow relatively quickly (no not the wet suit size!). There are so many brands for BCs/regs/wet suits that I am not sure where to begin. BTW am a 43 year old female.

I guess I am looking for a consumer reports type article on gear. Do any of the dive magazines do this annually? I am so new I am not sure what features are most important say on a regulator or BC. Any advice is welcome. And yes I will talk to my LDS and keep reading the boards However, I was just wondering if there was sort of a comprehensive discussion I could latch on to somewhere. I generally like to do my own research and not just rely on sales people at a dive shop (or any store where I am debating a costly and in this case life dependent purchase).

In general are their certain brands of say regulators which would be considered low end, middle of the road or high end? Could someone supply a general ranking? same for BCs and wet suits. Thanks in advance for any advice or pointing me to other articles, etc.

Lauren

I think the first thing is to think about what general features you want. For example with a BC. Do you want Back inflate, or jacket? weight integrated? and then with a reg. What is important to you.
Do you really care how it breathes at 250 ft of depth?. Just think features and not brand.

Next find a dive shop or two. What brands can they service and stock parts for. Likey only a few brands will stand out as being servicable by multiple local shops.

The intersection of the features and serviceable brands will conciderably reduce your selection. In my case I want a diaphram reg with ballanced 2nd stange that is mid range priced. I find there are three brands I can get service on. So this means only a half dozen regs to select from.

 

[ElectricZombie]

Greetings,
I guess I am looking for a consumer reports type article on gear. Do any of the dive magazines do this annually? I am so new I am not sure what features are most important say on a regulator or BC. Any advice is welcome. And yes I will talk to my LDS and keep reading the boards However, I was just wondering if there was sort of a comprehensive discussion I could latch on to somewhere. I generally like to do my own research and not just rely on sales people at a dive shop (or any store where I am debating a costly and in this case life dependent purchase).

There are SCUBA magazines that review gear regularly, but the magazines in question are written with advertising revenue in mind. Whatever company does the most advertising with a particular magazine usually gets the highest review. Also, the people writing such reviews are not exactly qualified to do so. Most of the gear reviewed is junk that you wouldn't want anyway even if it were free.

Your best bet is to talk to people who own the gear you are interested in. Post questions here related to whatever piece of gear you are considering. The LDS will be biased, so I wouldn't take anything they said seriously.

Good luck and dive safe.

 

[ams511]

Gear choices are a personal thing. Some people love a particular brand and other people hate it. There is not alot of poor quality equipment out there from major manufacturers, as pointed out previously probably due to the litigation issue. Some people claim Rodales is the least biased of all the dive magazines, this I cannot attest to. Your best bet it to try it on and dive with it, especially BC's and exposure suits because fit is a major issue.