His and Hers Complete Builds

[mathauck0814]

There can be a false economy in going with a tool that has two different functions. That being said, combo octo/inflaters can be used safely, but it takes practice. Unfortunately, very few recreational divers ever practice air-sharing or air-sharing ascent drills regularly. Regardless of what gear you end up with make sure you practice with it.

I think more so than the practicing issue is that the octo/inflators generally breathe like crap. Not what you want in a stressful situation.

 

[dewayne405]

Mr. Jeff,

I've been in your shoes when it comes to buying 2 of everything... I shopped around all of our local shops, tried various brands on, eventually settling on buying SCUBAPRO gear from our local shop. We have since made some awesome friends at SCUBATOYs and spend our hard earned cash there getting much more bang for our buck...

One word of advice: check Scubapro's new policy regarding parts for service. And let me just say they aren't cheap... We "lost" our warranty replacement parts for free due to being out of the country diving when they were "due". So now we pay for parts instead.
I have to agree with the wisdom of TS&M: Name brand, doesn't always mean the best, but will always be one of the most expensive...

Last: Give Scubatoys or any number of the online shops a call, explain the situation, and let them "build" you a great set of gear...

 

[lmorin]

My wife and I were in your fins when we first started. Two sets of everything necessary. We rented everything to start, then bought wetsuits because we didn't find other folks urine, however sterile it might have been on delivery, to be a great idea after a few days out of the already polluted rinse bath. After renting the remaining gear until dive 22-25 or so, we bought BCDs, regs and computers all from one shop. I went with well known manufacturers. The major investigation on my part was looking into the regs. I found literature describing the force patterns necessary for inhaling/exhaling and picked a low end reg that breathed as well as the high end regs by the same company but at a much lower cost. For warm water diving only. I asked for competitive pricing for 2 sets of those 3 items from one LDS and carried it to my neighboring LDS for the same items. Got the same pricing, about 1/3 off. That 1/3 has long since been returned to the LDS via other purchases and the annual reg overhauls. My advice -- buy what you like and what suits your budget, then use it until you don't like it anymore. My wife and I still like everything that we originally bought and I don't see that changing any time soon. And, by the way, my wife likes her full jacket style Seaquest BCD cut for women (model no longer made), too, while I prefer my Seaquest Balance "rear inflate" (to you their term) BCD.

 

[Absolutbill]

My wife and I recently got our c-cards and finished off buying our own equipment.
We went scubapro Nd have not regretted it.
She got the lady hawk, and I got the night hawk, we both love our Galileo Lunas & sawing novas too!

We will be staying tropical and not too deep so our set up works for us.


Sent from my IPad using Tapatalk

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I think more so than the practicing issue is that the octo/inflators generally breathe like crap. Not what you want in a stressful situation.

I used to think that, too, based on test-breaths I took off of a couple different models (older, first-generation?; Tusa, Aeris brands) I encountered in the field.
Then, I tried out the Atomic Aquatics SS1, which performed quite nicely. I was pretty shocked by how well the SS1 breathed.

 

[Mr.Jeff]

Update:
So we ordered her stuff on Saturday. She really liked the way the Aqualung Zuma fit. She was really disappointed the ML/L size didn't come in pink. She also got an Aqualung Micron, Airsource 3, and we ordered a couple Suunto Zoop 2 gauge consoles with compass.
I'm still looking at Dive Rite stuff. Other branded BP/W are much more expensive. I think I might go with an XTX200...

 

[dreamwrx]

For cost you might want to take a look at SubGear regulators (Scubapro's budget line). They are very good regs.

As for bp/w.. here are two really good deals:

buy Dive Rite Travel EXP Package at northeastscubasupply.com - Northeast Scuba Supply

TECHNICAL SCUBA BCD PACKAGE @ Divers-Supply.com


Some people have gotten the DRIS 28lb BW/P system for $300.

 

[cbrich]

Update:
So we ordered her stuff on Saturday. She really liked the way the Aqualung Zuma fit. She was really disappointed the ML/L size didn't come in pink. She also got an Aqualung Micron, Airsource 3, and we ordered a couple Suunto Zoop 2 gauge consoles with compass.
I'm still looking at Dive Rite stuff. Other branded BP/W are much more expensive. I think I might go with an XTX200...

You can't go wrong with Aqualung, Suunto, Apex, or any brand, it comes down to what you want and like. She will be happy with her gear.

I used to have a jacket BCD, then a Zeagle Escape, followed by a Zeagle Ranger, and now I have 2 bp/w (Aluminum and SS, these are mixture of many different brands). Someday I am going to upgrade to a Halcyon backplate with Cinch Harness, just because I like it. My first dive computer was a Suunto Vyper; that thing lasted me 10 years, and who knows how many hundreds of hours, or maybe a thousand of hours of actual dive time it had on it. I started off with the Vyper in the console, and after 8 years made a switch to wrist mount, just because I wanted too.

I like the Dive Rite gear, can't go wrong with them. My 2 tec wings, harness, can light are Dive Rite, and my recreational wing is Oxycheq with a Zeagle octo/inflator :shocked2:. I would have gotten a Dive Rite Travel EXP wing, if I did not get a good deal on the Oxycheq. If I did it over again, I would not change a thing about my selection of wings and bp setup.

I know folks that spent some money and got the Scubapro bp/w, it looks good, buy as you said it does cost more than the Dive Rite.

I personal could care less of what people buy, but I do care about how they are in the water, whether it's in low viz, or on a coral reef with 100+' of viz. These folks that dropped some coin on the Scubapo bp/w, did not become better divers after their purchase, they were terrible divers but looked good being terrible . Terrible means they were plowing up the bottom like they were a John Deere plow , or they are pulling off some kamikaze dive bombing on the bottom, and also because I am arrogant SOB, that thinks I am the BEST . (waiting for someone to make remark on an Internet Forum about my opinion).

So buy what you like, and like what you buy.

 

[Mr.Jeff]

Don't let them talk you into any other wing then the Travel Wing though for your chosen temp range.

I've seen that recommended before, but from what I can tell most people are using 30lb wings. Using the ultimate wing calc in the BC section, I changed the tank to the HP80 numbers listed towards the bottom. It now says I need more than 25lbs of lift. What am I doing wrong?
I'm looking at getting the DR SS plate and either the travel or voyager wing. I will need a light for the river dive, but I'm not sure what to input for that. The shop recommended a 3mm wetsuit for diving summers here, and 5mm when it gets colder. I don't know how thick the rental was, but I had 10lbs of lead with that.

Has anyone heard or seen anything about the newer DR XT wings?

 

[Mr.Jeff]

Are those two DR wings bungeed?