First Reg - overwhelmed

[Lopez116]

I'm looking to purchase my first reg seg. I have about 35 dives or so under my belt and am planning to try to dive more frequently. I'm mostly a warm water vacation diver, but I shore dive locally on SoCal as well.

I have no plans to go beyond recreational diving and no intentions of going below about 80' (most dives in the 30'- 60' range).

I want to buy my first setup (reg/octo/guages) and frankly am overwhelmed my the number of options out there. I would like to buy used if possible and not spend too much money. I've only ever dove with rentals so am not sure what to expect in terms of performance of my own reg.

I saw a few Edge Epic sets going for about $140 on eBay (no guages), an Oceanic Alpha 8 set for about 125, and then some Aqualung Titan (older models) going for about 200 ish (with guages).


Any advice/suggestions on where to start would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Scared Silly]

You will get lots of opinions. I personally like Atomic Aquatic regs. They are a bit more but they are excellent performing regs. Easy to maintain and up date. They are local to you as their headquarters are in Huntington Beach. Used sets can be found at good prices.

 

[Divealpha]

Buy used if thats your budget, but remember you ought to service it anyway(add.cost). If you dont need a coldwater reg, just choose any known brand, because all regs are good today... Personally, I do some cold water diving,and havecan Aqualung Legend LX Supreme. Expensive, but it breathes dry, upside down,and in ice.... Buy local where you can get it serviced easily. What I can see on SB, HOG are ok,or choose Mares,Scubapro, Apex, Aqualung, or whatever. All are great regs!

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Tapatalk 2

 

[IamScubaDog]

When I first started scuba diving I bought the most economical setup. I am on my second set of gear now that I know what I want. You can certainly get good prices from ebay but you will want to get the equipment serviced before you dive. My local dive shop (LDS) charges $50.

I go to Scuba Gear & Diving Equipment | Scuba Diving Magazine to do research on new gear.

 

[Sherrodmustang]

I agree with overwhelming choices out there for regulators. Just picked up a new Aqualung Legend Supreme off EBay for great deal. Can't wait to get it here and try it out. Love the deals to be had on the internet.

 

[spectrum]

Almost anything will be perfectly suitable. You need to be looking at servcability and price. If your LDS is in the middle of updating the training/ental collection there may be a good deal there. The seling price of those is usallly freshely serviced.

If you buy used on the open market you need to facfor in a baseline servicing. If there are issues your savings could be gone, pooof. $25/ stage with a parts waranty is common bjut you will be on your own for parts.

Since service is such a wild card a used regulator is often a bad idea for a new diver. Latter on trhen you understand more and perhaps want to add regulator repair to the activity it can be a better way to go.

Pete

 

[beaverdivers]

If you are only going to dive depths of 30' - 60', then I would recommend the Scubapro MK2 plus standard piston w/ a R295.

 

[Sherrodmustang]

I will agree that used equipment not from a authorized dealer runs the risks of no warranty on future repairs. I guess, what sold me is how long will I keep the regulator until I buy something new and does the cost savings out weight the repair cost for parts over the time I have it.

 

[Splatterific]

I bought my reg. apeks xtx200 status which was new opened for $300 on eBay. Besides the warranty which hasn't been a problem for nearly 5 years. Regular service and been fine. Gotta say the reg. is awesome. It makes a huge difference. Been to 60-140 and its breathing you couldn't tell. Added a braided line to help with tugging. It dies help.

 

[elan]

I would stick to some major brands, Aqualung, Scubapro. Apeks. There are a bunch of options. For your requirements you do not need anything fancier than a AL Titan or SP MK2, Both I think can be serviced almost anywhere. I believe Aqualung also has a free parts for life policy.

I'm looking to purchase my first reg seg. I have about 35 dives or so under my belt and am planning to try to dive more frequently. I'm mostly a warm water vacation diver, but I shore dive locally on SoCal as well.

I have no plans to go beyond recreational diving and no intentions of going below about 80' (most dives in the 30'- 60' range).

I want to buy my first setup (reg/octo/guages) and frankly am overwhelmed my the number of options out there. I would like to buy used if possible and not spend too much money. I've only ever dove with rentals so am not sure what to expect in terms of performance of my own reg.

I saw a few Edge Epic sets going for about $140 on eBay (no guages), an Oceanic Alpha 8 set for about 125, and then some Aqualung Titan (older models) going for about 200 ish (with guages).


Any advice/suggestions on where to start would be appreciated.

Thanks