Question Good first rebreather for non-cave diving?

[stolfyadventures]

Are you 'cashed up', do you have the means to pay for this as a student?
The cost of training alone is scary.
As an example : Closed Circuit Rebreather Technical Course

CCR MOD 1 This is the entry level user certification.

Yep, I have been saving up for a rebreather for a few years now and should have enough for the course by late this year

 

[stolfyadventures]

Hey, being in marine science as well, I can sympathize. Yes indeed, exploration diving is different from the work done in research or filmmaking in open water at "recreational depths".

My best advice is to find a good instructor first and foremost. And plan to do ca. 100 CCR dives before doing any work while on CCR. The rest is secondary.

I am sure others will chime in with lots of helpful points on availability, reliability, practicability etc. One point that is often overlooked is buoyancy of the unit. Some really nice CCRs I would like to have are just impossible for me to use while in a wetsuit, as I consider it a no-no to be negatively buoyant at the surface without weights and with the BC empty. I doubt I could dive the JJ without a drysuit, nor probably a steel rEvo (but titanium perhaps). CHoptima should be good in this respect, perhaps Prism2 as well, but again, good instruction is the key to doing this safely.

Another point folks outside of occupational diving often miss is that we are required to provide documentation of annual maintenance for our life support gear, which means sending the entire unit to a qualified technician. That will probably favour local support.

How do I find a good rebreather instructor? Unfortunately due to being in Sydney all the rebreather instructors are down in Melbourne, so I havent had the opportunity to dive with them or see what they're like as a person.

 

[stolfyadventures]

You will be well supported with a rEvo on the east coast of Australia.

The Asia pacific service center is All About Scuba, near the airport in Melbourne. Rubens Monaco at Deep Blue Ventures can train you up to MOD 3, he is based in the Portsea region. In addition you have instructors in North Stradbroke Island (Qld) and Brad Turner - Tassie (see the post here about the hand fish) Out West (where I am) is Dive Addiction which runs mean Nullabor trips (I'm told, yet to experience) if you graduate to cave later.

That sounds great! Do you know if there is any technician support along the east coast as well?

 

[Geo7]

How do I find a good rebreather instructor? Unfortunately due to being in Sydney all the rebreather instructors are down in Melbourne, so I havent had the opportunity to dive with them or see what they're like as a person.

I hope some fellow Scubaboarders can point to instructors in one of your areas. Hard to describe the criteria: Experience is obvious. I am thinking of a serious attitude of hammering safe habits into their students. It's an attitude/culture thing, on top of skills. If you could join an experienced group of CCR divers to dive regularly and gain experience, that would be great. A local instructor and buddies might sway you towards a articular brand/model as well.

Alternatively, if you identify a best fit of a CCR model, you may consider sending it away for maintainence, but shipping is expensive and risky, and you'd be without a CCR for weeks.

Also, doing the course before commiting to buy a particular model is a probably a good idea, but if you are sure and can save money by a bundle deal that's ok too. What's not so great is doing the course and buying the unit a year later, plus having no CCR buddies.

Oh, or training in the US and taking advantage of buying a second hand unit (perhaps through an instructor) and having it serviced before the course. But finding experienced buddies at home will be so useful.

 

[buggeriamold]

Give Rubens a call he is qualified for about every ccr there is. He is constantly teaching and really knows his stuff. I’ve done all my revo courses to mod 3 + cave with him.
Just expect to travel but for the experience he has it’s well worth it, not to say that there aren’t other good instructors but they tend to be single brand only.

 

[Heat Miser]

That sounds great! Do you know if there is any technician support along the east coast as well?

Speak to Ronald Shop - All About Scuba

 

[DiveLikeAMuppet]

Yep, I have been saving up for a rebreather for a few years now and should have enough for the course by late this year

Don't underestimate the running costs too - you need to buy spares, cells every year, pay for service, buy bailout stage(s) + reg(s) and keep additional cylinders O2 clean and in test. It adds up.

 

[Pressurehead]

additional cylinders O2 clean and in test

This is a real cost on top of everything else in Australia, our over testing of cylinders EVERY YEAR.
If you can afford it, well and good.

 

[BoltSnap]

testing of cylinders EVERY YEAR.

Do you mean hydro testing is required every year in Australia?

 

[Pressurehead]

Do you mean hydro testing is required every year in Australia?

Yes.