How long before it's all really dialed in?

[rjack321]

150+ for me I'd guess. The one here, one there dives were not as valuable as the 6 days on a liveaboard 4 dives a day intensity

 

[TMHeimer]

Regarding buoyancy, I can honestly say I think it came together for me somewhere between dive nos. 5 and 10 after OW certification. I found myself one time on a dive stopping to look at something and was hovering without effort. As far as everything else, I'm not so sure, but it took a fair bit more experience before I had the whole routine engrained. Several times forgetting this or that piece of equipment or forgetting to turn on air (not when boat diving thank goodness).

 

[Nemrod]

About 56 years but still working on it, getting close. A few more years and I should be good and dialed in.

 

[DiveLikeAMuppet]

I was lucky to go through a couple days of buoyancy coaching (essentially sidemount Fundies) with a cave instructor around dive #35 which basically fast-tracked a lot of the learning. I thought I was comfortable before but transformed from a kneeling seahorse to a weightless, stable warm water diver in about 10 dives. Got addicted to the feeling of being completely weightless, motionless.

So warm water - about 50 dives for me.

Switching to low visibility, cold water, drysuit, single tank backplate and wing - about 30 dives to get sorted. Drysuit is the big change.

Twinset - 10 dives to be happy in the gear but perhaps 50 dives when I started doing deco, stage and had to change the mindset from rec to rec.

Rebreather - 100 hours / 70 dives but the problem with CCR is that whenever you start feeling that you have it sorted out, it will teach you a lesson. Actually, that’s diving in general.

Oh at some point you start thinking that you are cool and sorted… and then you see yourself in a video or do something stupid So there is always something to learn or improve.

 

[lowwall]

I was pretty comfortable 5 minutes into my discovery dive and was happy with trim and buoyancy by the end of my OW course. That doesn't mean I couldn't get better, but it's good enough for the dives I do and on a few occasions instructors have mistakenly assumed I was a DM.

I think a lot of it has to do with how comfortable you are in the water before you start diving. I had years of swimming, water polo, snorkeling, lifeguarding and just playing around in and under the water. Including stuff like using my breath to adjust buoyancy or using the currents or wash of the waves to maneuver around in rivers and the ocean.

If you don't have the swimming background, it's just going to take longer. For example my wife had a lot of trouble with buoyancy at first and of course refused to listen to my tips . After an uncontrolled ascent, she took some time to work with an instructor for a couple of dives and something clicked. Or rather not clicked as she learned to relax and keep her hands off the inflator.

 

[TMHeimer]

I was pretty comfortable 5 minutes into my discovery dive and was happy with trim and buoyancy by the end of my OW course. That doesn't mean I couldn't get better, but it's good enough for the dives I do and on a few occasions instructors have mistakenly assumed I was a DM.

I think a lot of it has to do with how comfortable you are in the water before you start diving. I had years of swimming, water polo, snorkeling, lifeguarding and just playing around in and under the water. Including stuff like using my breath to adjust buoyancy or using the currents or wash of the waves to maneuver around in rivers and the ocean.

If you don't have the swimming background, it's just going to take longer. For example my wife had a lot of trouble with buoyancy at first and of course refused to listen to my tips . After an uncontrolled ascent, she took some time to work with an instructor for a couple of dives and something clicked. Or rather not clicked as she learned to relax and keep her hands off the inflator.

Dredging up old stuff, but I have often commented on the amount of in-water experience people have before signing up for scuba. In my 4 summers of assisting I saw quite a few who were very lacking. I always wondered why someone who has such limited water experience would even consider scuba. That's just me I guess. I have had a ton of water experience since childhood, yet declined to take a Discover Scuba experience when on a cruise ship a few years before I was certified. I didn't figure it was a good idea to get basically an hour of training then right into scuba. Yet I suppose some will be on vacation and just jump into that regardless of their experience-- like it's just something to try.

 

[lowwall]

Dredging up old stuff, but I have often commented on the amount of in-water experience people have before signing up for scuba. In my 4 summers of assisting I saw quite a few who were very lacking. I always wondered why someone who has such limited water experience would even consider scuba. That's just me I guess. I have had a ton of water experience since childhood, yet declined to take a Discover Scuba experience when on a cruise ship a few years before I was certified. I didn't figure it was a good idea to get basically an hour of training then right into scuba. Yet I suppose some will be on vacation and just jump into that regardless of their experience-- like it's just something to try.

My brother, who has the same swimming background as me, and I did the DSD as young adults on a family vacation in Hawaii. I can't remember the details, but I think our parents paid for it. The instructor quickly figured out we were OK during the pool session and concentrated on other students, leaving us to chase each other around underwater and breathe off each other's octos. I remember that more than the actual dive.

I have a friend who can't really swim. She uses a snorkel vest if she goes in anything except a pool. Imagine my surprise when she pulled out her phone and showed me a video of a DSD she had taken on a vacation. It was so tough to keep from laughing. She was almost horizontal and kicking like crazy while her instructor was holding her hand and literally pulling her through the dive. I don't think they went deeper than 10 feet.

 

[Wibble]

If you think your skill are OK, swim close to a loose sandy bottom for a while then stop, turn around and see how much sand you kicked up. None is what you’re looking for.

The core skills of trim (flat), finning (not just forward but turning, and reversing) and buoyancy (especially when motionless) all takes time. Sandy and silty bottoms are your witness. Being motionless is your aim. Being self critical is vital.

 

[Edward3c]

It’s not the number of dives. It’s where you dive and the regularity.

With over 2k, I still have to remember things for the first few dives in warm waters, then again when back in Scottish waters.

The day you forget you’re wearing a drysuit if the day you get a issue.

 

[34109411]

more proficient after 150 dives

i will also add that after 50 solo dive and completing my sdi solo training this was a game changer in all aspects of the sports. I am a true believer that training is a key ingredient in the success of this activity.