How to Get Discounts on Drysuits and Undergarments

[Vegan Shark]

I often see posts about how people got great deals on their suits or undergarments, and am wondering what the tricks of the trade are. Am I just a fool for always paying MSRP, and not trying to negotiate a lower price?

Some sites offer store credit in the form of points rewarded per purchase, and the drysuit I'm thinking of ordering from Dive Right in Scuba offers pretty good credit, so I can't really complain there. But undergarment prices seem to be painful everywhere I look. $577 for Fourth Element's Halo 3D, and another $250 for Xerotherm base layer.

Is the best strategy to get a good deal just to call a bunch of stores and see who is willing to offer a discount? From friends working at LDS I know the markup on scuba gear is huge, since they get all theirs for 50% off, so seems like stores would be willing to drop the price since they'll be making a nice cut regardless, but who knows.

Teach me how it's done, bargaining masters

 

[JohnN]

I often see posts about how people got great deals on their suits or undergarments, and am wondering what the tricks of the trade are. Am I just a fool for always paying MSRP, and not trying to negotiate a lower price?

Some sites offer store credit in the form of points rewarded per purchase, and the drysuit I'm thinking of ordering from Dive Right in Scuba offers pretty good credit, so I can't really complain there. But undergarment prices seem to be painful everywhere I look. $577 for Fourth Element's Halo 3D, and another $250 for Xerotherm base layer.

Is the best strategy to get a good deal just to call a bunch of stores and see who is willing to offer a discount? From friends working at LDS I know the markup on scuba gear is huge, since they get all theirs for 50% off, so seems like stores would be willing to drop the price since they'll be making a nice cut regardless, but who knows.

Teach me how it's done, bargaining masters

Craigslist is your friend. . .

 

[TSandM]

I've done reasonably well by shopping on line and asking people what the best deal they will make me is. If you do that, you rarely pay retail.

 

[buddhasummer]

Contact a retailer that sells it all and ask what deal they can do. When I was in the market for a DS Mike at DRIS offered me a wicked deal on a package. I ended up going with a local dealer, I'm not in the US. I'd certainly recommend giving DRIS a call if you're serious about a purchase. I'm sure there are others but I only have experience with DRIS.

 

[Vegan Shark]

What % discount can you generally expect from doing that?

 

[buddhasummer]

What % discount can you generally expect from doing that?

Depends on the shop I would think. Best bet is to get on the phone and ask around.

 

[eelnoraa]

What % discount can you generally expect from doing that?

It really depends on the shop and how good of a relationship you have with them. Although I am pretty sure you won't need to pay MSRP, the discount is not huge if you are not dive professional.

Keep your eyes on ebay, craigslist or classified here. I have had good luck with ebay and classified here. Also, I think it is OK to skip the scuba brand base layer. You can get same quality/warm merino wolfe based layers for much less from outdoor equitment place like REI or even Costco sometime has them

 

[Dive-aholic]

Forming relationships with shops is always good. I extend deals to my students. I also extend a 10% discount to all Scubaboard members. As for a dry suit you might want to consider a neoprene suit. With neoprene you won't have that $500 undergarment price tag because you won't need that warm of an undergarment.

 

[milbournosphere]

Pre-Loved DUI Equipment | DUI Online

I got a good deal on mine off of DUI's pre-loved list. Mine was a mis-cut that happened to fit me like a glove.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

The phone never hurts My ear is great at listening! Don't forget right now we are also giving away our Premium Drysuit warranty which gives you Free Seal Replacement and Patches for the life of the suit. Might help make that undergarment purchase a little easier as well as piece of mind know your suit won't cost you money in maintenance