But I too amd putting my gear toghether and have a couple thoughts.
My choice was to try and buy used and online as much as possible. the good side of this method is it is cheaper the bad side is it is a royal pain in the *** and if you are as much a greenhorn as I am I have made mistakes and had to return...which is always expensive. How much have saved in $$ all said and done...prolly 25 - 35 %. Is it worth it...well for me yes but for many no. I am a tinkerer and love gear of all sorts and will buy all of the parts to a pc and put it toghether rather than buy the same thing pre-built for the same price so its a personality thing as well.
I checked out about 3 LDS and no one place had everything I needed in one spot. Personally I got tired of shopping in person. I am working on a harness/wing/plate setup so the places I checked jsut did not have much to offer.
I wanted to support the local shops but jsut did not find a one stop shopping place and did find one who advertised...well had icons on their website for the type of gear i was looking for (scubapro as one example) and when I drove out there did not carry it. "We don't carry scubapro" And did not have the regs i was looking for in stock despite being pretty common in the harness/backplate crowd. That is not to bag on them but for me I was ready to knock out the rest of my setup right there (tired of waiting for deals) but ended up heading back to the interenet.
In any case, if $$ is not an object and you want it right the first time then LDS is the way to go. The experience and comfort of having an expert help you out is really nice.
If $$ is significant concern then I would suggest doing heaps of research and determine how you will be diving, figure out what type of setup you want and then peice it together from the "for sale" boards here and on decostop. Again this is a pain in the *** and takes a long time but folks put some really good deals out there. PM me if I can help I almost have my setup all together.
One last thing, for me without the expertise and help I looked to the DIR configuration for guidance. Now I know DIR is not about the gear but it does have standards which are helpful to a rank amatuer when faced with all the choices. That setup is not cheap but seemed to have the best longevity in that I am hoping I will avoid the "re-buy" which seems common in this sport.
The other thing I will say is that by not going with a LDS I am increasing my risks as dont have warantees and such...and people will say that they dont buy life suport online that their life is worth more than that...well...for me if I did not do it this way I could not play so for me it seems like a good choice. Then agian if I turn up fins up then take this as a testament to stupidy on my part.
I have found people to be extremely helpful. I bought some gear from MASS-Diver and he was kind enough to share some of his insight and experience and has helped a newbie along...I am sure there are tons of folks that are of the same ilk around.
heheh So I am not sure if I have helped or not but jsut sharing a different option. I will say I do feel a little bad about not supporting the scene as the without the LDS's it would be tough to enjoy the sport and a purchase online is $$ out of their pocket.
One thread I have enjyed reading is the following one where folks discuss the "junk" they wish they had never purchased.
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=14024&page=1&pp=10
Hope this helps a bit.
If you do consider online I have found the following retailers really really helpful.
leisurepro.com (good prices fast shipping)
FredT (backplate harness etc) Fred has been very patient with my inane questions and sell good gear at a fair price
Covci.com (Wing) - Chris is a great guy as well. He talked to me for some time and helped me with my choice and will look at his shop agian as I need more.
