How much that the LDS tells me can I believe?

[AbyssalPlains]

The real issue I see with this particular case is that they appear to carry ONLY ScubaPro and Aqualung. I claim (and I won't give a @#$% if I get flamed for this) that, while ScubaPro is definitely well-made stuff, no other manufacturer is as overpriced as SP. You say $1,000 for a regulator? That's nuts. Decent AND cheaper scuba equipment DOES exist, not only from LeisurePro or other online dealers. The LDS you mention should be able to order you gear from other manufacturers, like Sherwood, for example. Much cheaper. If the store refuses to do this, they choose to dig their own grave and you should not feel bad about ordering everything online (I would, and I'm one who is all for supporting local business).

 

[BDSC]

Might as well throw in my opinion on this.

Whenever possible, I buy from my LDS and encourage others to do the same. They have always been there to answer any questions, take care of any problems I may have with gear, and it's great to be able to try on stuff and check for proper fit before you buy. I just believe in helping them out because they will always help me out when/if I need it.

But I will also say price has to be considered as well. Will I pay double for something at my LDS if I can get it for half the price on-line? No way. But I have yet to buy any dive gear from my LDS that was way out of line with internet pricing. For example, I was looking to purchase the Mares Avanti Superchannel Fin (fullfoot) from my LDS. I think the retail on this fin is $70. My dive shop sells them for $60 and I think you can get them online for $49. My dive shop also gives a 10% discount to members of the dive club that is affiliated with them. So I end up paying $54 plus tax. But even if I had to pay $60, it is worth it to me to buy local and be able to try it on first, etc. I also bought from them last week a Sherwood Wisdom Computer. Sherwood has come out with the Wisdom II so many places online are selling the original Wisdom for $469. I went to this same LDS and told them what was going on so they said they would sell it to me for $500. Was it worth the extra $31 to know I had a full two year manufacturers warranty....you bet!

I guess I just haven't found where buying over the internet really saves a big amount of money on new dive gear. Some cheaper.....yes......but not enough to give up the extra perks you get from the LDS. But I have a really good LDS.

BDSC

 

[ReefHound]

ITs not up to the store to offer everything for a consumer....its up to the consumer to find different choices. Not all shops have a wide variety, Im not saying they shouldnt...but you cant go to a High End TV Shop and be mad that you overpaid on a Samsung TV...when you could have gone to CIrcuit City and got a Sony Cheaper.....Would I then get mad at the High End shop for not offering different choices? We sometimes think that the Scuba Industry is different than others.....its not

Again, Im not in favor of the shop, it seems they did charge more than they should have and they are out of line FORCING equip on the students....but some of the points made against LDSs are just rediculous

You cannot disassociate your second paragraph from your first. If a shop chooses to carry a limited product line whose manufacturers basically price fix their market (and we could debate the reasons an owner chooses these product lines but not now), and not offer students more economic alternatives, that's their choice. But your analogy would only be relevant if the high end TV shop corralled first time TV buyers and used their ignorance to dish out BS like Circuit City's TVs emit radiation that will damage your eyes and Circuit City's TVs are unreliable and come without a warranty.

Dive shop owners and their loyalists can defend the dive shop industry and insist their LDS is not like this one but this LDS in question is not unique. We've heard this same story from countless new divers over and over again from all parts of the country. Although not so much from places with strong competition like Florida or Socal. It's these kinds of shops - whether they make up 80% or 20% of the shops - that give *all* local dive shops a bad name.

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

My experience is that shoppng on-line saves me substantial $$$ (about 50%) with minimum hassels. I have 3 full sets of gear, plus a substantial number of extra suites and odd parts, purchased from several on-line sources. I have dealt with a few wrong sizes and warrenty repair / replacements. In all cases, the on-line shops supported me. I did have a few shipping charges to pay (less than the cost of gas to the LDS) and I did have 2 weeks of down time waiting for one part one time. Not a big deal for me in the middle of winter. The constant BS about warrenty / size / support issues with on-line vendors is noise.

If you have a good LDS with reasonable prices (lets say same or +15%), by all means support them, they deserve it and it is nice to deal with the local guy/gal. If you LDS is priced way high, you have the option of on-line and it is a completely viable alternative for everything except perhaps lead.

 

[aaron9876]

On the subject of AquaLung and Scubapro, has anyone noticed that the LeisurePro markdown on these brands is usually at least twice as much as other brands. On most of the brands saving $100 on LeisurePro is a big discount, but AL/SP stuff is routinly marked down more than $100 and often more than $200. I've been looking into purchasing a reg and this really doesn't sit well with me; it makes me think those brands are making dive shops mark them up even more than other brands are.

 

[Thalassamania]

... it makes me think those brands are making dive shops mark them up even more than other brands are.

You think?

 

[Nemrod]

I 2nd that.

I never said they were robbed--ok--now that you mention it, they were beaten and robbed. Just about whatever they got can be gotten on line much cheaper. I am not sure without refreshing my memory exactly what they got but I betcha I could find whatever it is they got on line for less. THEN--I suggested Jets, J tube and 30 dollars mask from LP.

You like Twin Jets, good, I would not bother with them, feel like noodles on my feet, wet noodles but I tell you this and tell you twice (Sat. Night Live skit) there are a variety of fins running less than 200 dollars out there. I ain't gonna pay 200 dollars for a piece of rubber. Your mask is the only mask in the world that will fit you, OK, but I bet the OP could have gotten any numbers of masks from LP or ScubaToys that would work just fine for 30 dollars and certainly less than 60 and like I said, ALs newest fit everybody super mask--the Micro Mask fromTechnisub-- which runs over 115 dollars in most every full retail sock it to'em LDS is -------------65 dollars at LP. By my math that is 50 dollars less for a top end mask alone and it is completely typical. Check LPs price on a Titan LX and then go to your LDS, it was again under 60% of what the LDS has it and I got mine new on ebay for under 200. You just have to shop around and not get in a hurry--or--pay for your hurry with worry that you got used and abused and start another wwaaaahhhhhaaaa, my LDS ripped me thread. Research up front is wise money spent later and later is the operative word.


OK, let's sing a little Kenny Rogers, "gotta know when to hold'em (your money), know when to fold'em (your dollar bills), and ya gotta know when to lay'em down (your cash for what you REALLY want and need)"
N

 

[fisherdvm]

I think it is sad to see folks buy brand new, very expensive gears, and never use it at all, or use it only 2 or 3 dives. Then coming back 7 or 8 years later, and having them serviced, or selling them cheap on ebay. I can understand that folks who own their own gears will dive more. But so will folks who have more money!

 

[violakat03]

They were "robbed" in that they were never offered an opportunity to see or try a $125 package. They were systematically guided towards the high end models in a store that only carries high end products. I'm not saying they were overcharged, I'm saying they were oversold.

You pretty much summed up how I feel. I was not even aware, until I found this board, that there were options that were only half the cost of the package we got. We both have very top-of-the-line equipment as that was the only option we were shown. They only had three fin styles to choose from in-store, all of them at or above $200 a pair, so we assumed that was a normal price. All their masks ranged from $70 to $100, again, we assumed normal price. All their snorkels were the same price, so it was a matter of color preference. There there is also the fact he pushed that we shouldn't look online and that we needed the high cost equipment because that was the only thing acceptable to buy. Had I looked online first (which I admit, I didn't even think to do until this week!) my husband and I both would have full dive gear sets for the price we have paid for the minimal gear we've gotten so far.

To clear up the thing about the BC - it IS a $500 BC, but the integrated Air II (alternate air source on the inflator) was around $200 extra. I like the feature so I got it.

 

[jpsexton]

On the subject of AquaLung and Scubapro, has anyone noticed that the LeisurePro markdown on these brands is usually at least twice as much as other brands. On most of the brands saving $100 on LeisurePro is a big discount, but AL/SP stuff is routinly marked down more than $100 and often more than $200. I've been looking into purchasing a reg and this really doesn't sit well with me; it makes me think those brands are making dive shops mark them up even more than other brands are.

Thats because other brands have recognized that the internet does indeed exist and have made their products available to all retailers on an even playing field. The market has taken care of the rest.

AquaLung and Scubapro on the other hand continue to play a shell game with all of their retailers telling them the internet is not a good place to sell equipment and they will not allow it. All the while shipping to LP and pretending they don't know where it came from. It's a win win situation for them because they get to move high volumes of gear without any warranty liability. If they played on the same field as everyone else their prices would be more in line.