Hello /need your helpful experienced advise

[Rick&Lori]

Hello,
My wife and I are just about to begin our confined water next week and are hours away from any diveshops for the proper gear required (mask, fins, snorkel) We are trying to buy online but need some experienced divers advise on proper brands and sizing of equipment. The dive shop where we are going to get certified wants over $400 ea.for the stuff and that seems quite high for mask,fins and snorkel.
I am 5'10, 180, shoe size: 10-1/2 dd
my wife is 5'6" 116, shoe: size 8-1/2
Thanks!
Rick

 

[TSandM]

$400 for mask, fins and snorkel? That is indeed quite high.

The problem with masks is that they have to fit. You can order on line, but you take the chance of having to return several before you find one that really works, and faces are so idiosyncratic that no one can really recommend a mask with any certainty that it will fit.

My recommendation would be to buy a simple snorkel, the cheaper the better -- although, if you intend to do a great deal of snorkeling, a purge valve is, albeit perhaps a bit wussy, rather nice The fancy dry snorkels, in my experience, are too big and bulky, and really tend to twist on the mask strap and make masks flood more often. And you don't use a snorkel very much when you are diving.

I would also recommend a pair of simple paddle fins to begin with. There is a bewildering spectrum of fins out there, and there are people who will swear by almost anything. You can spend from $40 to $700 on a set of fins, and there is no need to start out at the high end. For example, the Deep Sea Pulse fins are inexpensive. The Dive Rite EXP fins are a little more, but come with spring straps, which are one of the nicest things you can do for yourself as a diver.

I would think you should be able to equip both of you with adequate gear for your OW class for the $400 you mentioned.

 

[Vanellus]

Hi,
Yes that does seem to be a lot of money. You could do what my wife and I did when we started and that is to buy second hand kit at first. In British money I paid £5 for my fins, the rubber bootees were also £5. I
bought a knife for £6. The mask I bought brand new for £35 as you need one that can mould to your face and a second hand one is no use. I bought a drysuit for £150 and a BCD for £80. The weight belt was £20
and the regulators were £150. I had them serviced properly before using them. The hood was also £5. I
make that £451! I think that is $739 Yes I did buy a few extras and now I have replaced nearly everything, but it makes no sense to commit yourself to a big expense straight away. I have met many people who
have spent a fortune on dive gear and then six months later want to give up and sell their kit.
Real divers love picking over the kit for bargains! I hope this advice helps
Vanellus

 

[herman]

Look around and you can likely find good used dive fins for a reasonable price, same goes for the snorkle. Don't go with cheap Kmart or snorkle fins but older dive fins are usually OK.

The one place you do not want to go cheap and buying on line is almost impossible unless you known the exact model that fits you is your mask....maybe cheap is not what I want to say....more like forget money all together and find a mask that FITS. A very expensive mask that does not fit is worthless and a cheap mask that fits prefectly is priceless. It often takes a lot of fitting to find the right one. This is impossible on line because you must try on mask to find the righ one for you. I usually go through every mask at every dive shop I can find if I need a new mask. Some brands do not have a single model that fits me.