LDS VS Internet Sale!!!

[Splitlip]

Look like water heaters .

 

[garyfotodiver]

Yesterday I brought my two steel Worthington LP 77 tanks in to a LDS here in Chicago for their annual VIPs. The shop owner looked at them and asked, "They're steel?"

Yes, they are steel. They let me carry about 5# less weight in my BC than with an AL 80.

 

[RJP]

LDS should not treat people like they don't know what they want.

Lots of people know what they WANT, they just don't know what they NEED. The smart retailer can tell the difference, and will help customers understand the difference as well.

For instance, the first LDS I ever dealt with "allowed" me to buy what I WANTED when I was getting started. Didn't take long for me to realize that I bought all the wrong stuff because I didn't know what I NEEDED. The LDS I moved on to helped me understand what I NEEDED for the diving I do, and (after taking a bath on e-bay selling the first round of gear) I was able to buy THAT stuff from the second shop.

So in the end I bought about $1,000 worth of gear from the shop that elected to sell me what I wanted, and since then have spent nearly $10,000 on gear, training, and travel at the shop that was smart enough to sell me what I needed.

Which one made the smarter move?

 

[ReefHound]

Like I said before, the LDS was right to give their opinion of steel versus aluminum. They would be wrong if you said at the end of all that that you wanted the aluminum anyway and they refused to sell it to you despite having it on hand. Is that really what happened? Did they actually refuse to sell it? Hard to believe. A really good LDS would have put you in the pool with an AL100 and a HP100 and demonstrated the difference to you.

You said the LDS owners were friends, are they actually "friends" or just acquaintances with whom you are friendly? Do they know how their actions are affecting your feelings for them?

One of the advantages to social diving and having lots of dive buddies is you can try out other kinds of gear before purchasing.

 

[PhillyDave]

I love all 5 LDS in my area. I have purchased online because I got gift certs from friends who didn't know better($50). Internet sales are about $$$. How can they sell rebreathers, drysuits or any equipment for that matter without checking your training? What happens when someone gets hurt or dies. I hope a USB cable can fix that situation.

 

[psychocabbage]

You said the LDS owners were friends, are they actually "friends" or just acquaintances with whom you are friendly? Do they know how their actions are affecting your feelings for them?

I would venture to say friendly enough to go out to eat and hang out at their home.
I dont think they have a clue and we are leaning towards just pulling our kids out of their classes.

One of the advantages to social diving and having lots of dive buddies is you can try out other kinds of gear before purchasing.

There isnt much that I have not already researched.
I approach everything the same way I did my BMX Racing. When I wanted something, odds are I was the only one at the track with it because I knew the part was what I wanted not what was popular. End effect I had the lightest pro bike at virtually all races.

My gear is what I like and what I want.. Its a pretty easy concept.
Currently I run a BCJ-5960 IMPREX PRO CUBIC

with an XS RG200 - SeaAir Regulator.
I have a monster reel with a yellow sausage(6ft).
I run a console mounted Tusa IQ700 computer.
I have Tusa XpertZoom split fins (and regardless of the people that say you dont need them for scuba, I love to move quickly and do need them for when I goof off as I dive..)
The rest are just the items that keep me looking like a super sized fishing lure..

 

[hlsooner]

What? You haven't started getting your tanks filled via USB? Get with the times man, you are really missing out.

I love all 5 LDS in my area. I have purchased online because I got gift certs from friends who didn't know better($50). Internet sales are about $$$. How can they sell rebreathers, drysuits or any equipment for that matter without checking your training? What happens when someone gets hurt or dies. I hope a USB cable can fix that situation.

 

[eandiver]

FWIW now you can get nitrox fills ( AL 80's only ) via USB ports at a 10% reduction in cost over having to actually go to your LDS. Steel tanks are slightly higher due to the increased internet pressures required to fill them.

 

[24940]

I approach everything the same way I did my BMX Racing. When I wanted something, odds are I was the only one at the track with it because I knew the part was what I wanted not what was popular. End effect I had the lightest pro bike at virtually all races...

Hey, there's really nothing wrong with being a dork, as long as you know you're a dork and don't try to convince people who know better any different. The reality is new divers don't know what they don't know. You may be the **** on BMX, but your monster reel and 6' SMB can get you into a buttload of trouble, if you know what I mean. You do know what I mean, right?

 

[RJP]

End effect I had the lightest pro bike at virtually all races.

And you're not a widely-known pro BMX racer because...?

You may be the **** on BMX, but your monster reel and 6' SMB can get you into a buttload of trouble, if you know what I mean.

I'm thinking we can move this thread to "Incidents and Accidents" now...