Gear for Sport and Tech Diving

[walke121]

You sound like you are pretty new to diving. I've seen what seems like 90% of new divers talk about going tec before they finish there OW class and about 0.1% actually ever do. I would say don't buy your equipment right now for tec diving. I don't consider myself a technical diver but I have a few technical certs. I do use different equipment for leisure diving than when I am spearfishing in 170+ fsw. Find out what tec diving requires and then consider it. Until then work on getting some more dives under your belt.

 

[Captain12Pk]

Or like 100 bucks for a used digital bottom timer.

I must agree with Marc. You do not need a Tx computer for technical diving. Proper instruction and a good bottom timer should do nicely.

 

[rustyshakelford]

i agree with all the posters that are saying to get a computer that works in gauge mode. I have a shearwater pursuit and use it as a bottom timer with tables. In my opinion, it was a waste of money for my needs. I could use it to it potential, but like tables more.

As far as a BP/W go, I would check out caveadventurers.com and see what kind of deals they have going on right now. I personally dive a ss plate with hog harness for my heavy doubles (LP108s) and an al transplate for my AL80 doubles. The BP/W is very versitile. I have also used mine with out a single tank adapter and it dove fine.

I would buy a singles wing for now and then later on buy a doubles wing if you want to go that route. I have the rec wing which is for singles and doubles, but it can be a pain to get used to.

as far as regs, I would buy those if it was between them and a computer. Keep and eye out on here for the classifeds and at places like decostop and even craigslist. if you buy used, be sure to get it checked out by a reputable business.

if you want to go the tech route in the future, be ready to spend alot of money! more people seem happy diving rec profiles tho

brett

 

[utediver]

Thanks for the input so far. Very informative. I am a really new diver. I only have two dives outside of my OW cert dives. Maybe I should not worry about tech gear right now. I probably have a couple years before I am ready to explore those possibilities. However I may still go with a BP/W with a single tank adapter. The rest of my gear I may just rent for awhile. Can I still dive some wrecks without being a tech diver?

Someone mentioned tech diving being really expensive. Are we talking more than $3-$4k?

 

[Rainer]

Are we talking more than $3-$4k?

LOL. Now multiply by 5-10.

Seriously, for now, just worry about going out and diving, not what kinds of dives you might some day do.

And sure, a BP/W now isn't a bad idea, but not because it has anything to do with "tech" diving.

 

[TSandM]

Sure, you can dive wrecks without being a tech diver! I don't know where you are planning on doing most of your diving, but for example, there's a wreck in the Catalina Dive Park off LA, the Sue Jac, that sits in about 70 feet of water or so. Here in Puget Sound, there are a bunch of wrecks shallower than 100 feet, and some of them are just wonderful dives. As long as you don't go inside the ships, they're pure recreational dives.

A very good instructor once told me, "Do all the dives you are allowed to do with the certification you have, and when you are bored with all of them, THEN get the next certification." He was a very wise man. There is a lot of fun diving you can do with your OW cert, and if someday you think about wanting to go deeper or inside of things, you can always buy more gear

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'm still trying to decide what I want to buy for my first scuba setup. I would eventually like to try some tech diving but that might be a year or two away. Probably wrecks and deep dives. Not so sure about cave. I was thinking about getting a BP/W system and using a single tank adapter. This way I could use it for sport diving and not have to buy another BC someday when I try tech. Is it possible to get a regulator and computer that would work for sport and tech diving? From what I have read that would mean buying a regulator with a DIN valve, balanced first and second stage and sealed. I may just get the BC/W setup and a computer and rent the rest of the gear for awhile.

I would recommend buying the BP/W first ... because it will benefit you right away and for all intents and purposes they are less expensive than a good recreational BCD anyway. Purchase a good, dedicated singles wing ... resist the temptation to purchase a wing that's marketed as "multipurpose" for both singles and doubles diving, because such wings are not optimal for either singles or doubles (too many differences in how a good singles and doubles wing are designed). Some wings will require you to purchase a single-tank adapter, others won't. There are pros and cons both ways ... and only you can decide which works best for you.

As others have indicated, a dive computer that you can later use in gauge mode can serve you now as a computer for recreational diving, and later as a bottom timer/depth gauge for technical diving. I personally like the Aladdin Tec2G as a good rec/tech computer ... because in gauge mode it offers several features that a new tech diver will find very handy (seconds display, resettable countdown timer, etc). At first glance it may seem expensive ... but in reality it's no more expensive than a lot of popular recreational dive computers. I would avoid air integration at this point ... not only is it a lot less expensive, but if your goal is to eventually go tech it would be better to get used to monitoring your air supply using a standard SPG.

Regulators ... when you get to the point where tech is in your future you're probably going to want a dedicated singles reg and dedicated doubles regs anyway. So at this point, focus on what will serve your needs as a recreational diver.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Someone mentioned tech diving being really expensive. Are we talking more than $3-$4k?

Unfortunately, yes. It would be very difficult to get into tech diving for only $3-$4K ... much less participate at any level on a regular basis. And it's also difficult to maintain your skills unless you do dive regularly.

Once you start diving trimix (for deep diving), you can easily spend over $100 just on gas fills for a single tech dive. Add boat costs (I'm paying about $150 for a deep wreck dive on Saturday ... just the one dive) ... equipment maintenance (you'll have more tanks to VIP and hydro, more regs to service) ... and it starts to add up quickly.

It's a good goal ... but not something you want to jump into without really putting some thought into what it's going to cost.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[utediver]

LOL. Now multiply by 5-10.

Ouch!!:shocked2: I had no idea. I may never afford to tech dive.

 

[walke121]

Not to mention some CCR's alone are $10k and the classes are expensive also. But like I've said before this is like any other hobby. You can spend as little or as much as you want and still have a great time doing it.