H2Andy:
hiya.. yes, your best bet is to go down to a reputable shop and talk to them; they'll take care of you.
another option is to rent for a little bit, until you get a better sense of what's what (it will happen quickly), and then buy some equipment. this is the route
i took.
i then ordered my stuff from
leisurepro.com, which i would reccomend as you can save quite a bit of money (a bunch of people will tell you to support your local dive shop but they probably own dive shops). not sure if they deliver to Barbados, but don't see why not.
On the other hand, if you're contemplating getting into diving seriously, then establishing a relationship with a good dive shop can have tremendous benefits. That can include such things as free air fills, discounts on gear purchases, and discounts on continued education. Many shops tend to favor repeat customers over those they know will spend their time trying on gear only to go purchase it from an online discounter.
Your call ... I'd say it depends on whether you plan to dive in that area regularly or casually. If regularly, establishing a relationship with a local dive shop can be a good investment. Depends, of course, on the shop ... so you may have to look around and try a few before you find one that'll treat you right.
as for the lifting capacity, you won't need anything more than 40-50 lbs
to start with, so any open water rig will suit you well. don't worry about this too much. basically, as you do more advanced forms of diving, like cavern or technical diving, you need to carry a lot more equipment, which means you need more lifting capacity. but like i said, to start with, you'll be fine with just about any open water rig.
If you're diving in warm water with a 3-mil or less exposure suit, then 40-50 pounds of lift capacity is probably excessive (unless you're HUGE). I dive cold water, with a drysuit, backplate, 119 CF steel tanks, and 22 lbs weightbelt ... and I weigh 245. My wing has 51 lb capacity, and that's probably more than I need.
The amount of lift you need will depend on the type of exposure suit you're wearing, the type of tanks you're using, your body build, and the amount of weight you need to dive. I'd say follow the advice of the folks above who are steering you toward a good local dealer.
i decided to buy cheap, and got a Dacor Sporter BC (which I still own)
and a Dacor Fury regulator (which I still own). They are simple, straightfoward, and more than I need. I also got a Sherwood Logic
computer, which, again, was cheap, simple, and I still have it.
As someone who works with new divers on a regular basis, I'd disagree. I went that route myself when I was a new diver ... and ended up replacing a lot of gear as I progressed toward becoming a more proficient diver. What will be serviceable gear to the casual diver, or the new diver, will almost always start showing it's limitations to the person who's enamoured of the sport and wants to work toward developing excellent skills. In the long run, buying cheap for someone who's contemplating becoming a diving "regular" will only end up costing you more. Buy good stuff first ... it'll hold up longer and perform better ... and you won't be selling it on eBay a year from now when you realize it no longer serves your needs.
I agree with the previous poster who said purchase the BCD next. As he (or she?) pointed out, good buoyancy is the toughest skill to master, and having your own BCD and exposure suit that you can use all the time is a huge step toward learning this skill.
The most important thing in a BCD is that it fits you well. That's more important than style or brand ... and if you look around in this forum you'll find lots of excellent advice on how to make sure you are purchasing a BCD that fits you properly.
Regulators are not all the same. Look for a regulator that comes with a balanced first stage ... that means it'll breathe the same regardless of how much air you've got in your cylinder. Unbalanced regs are cheaper, but they make you work harder as the dive progresses (and your cylinder gets lower pressure), and that's not conducive to an enjoyable dive. Piston or diaphragm is really a matter of choice. Most of the better performing regs are diaphragm, but there are some quality piston regs out there. Don't chintz out on the second stage either. Cheaper second stages will tend to breathe harder as you go deeper ... and some will breathe "wet" (meaning that you'll get small amounts of water with each breath) when you're not in an upright position. There are some reasonably good, modestly priced regulators out there that are very serviceable. If you're planning to stay within recreational limits, one of these may be all you need. Dacor, Sherwood, and TUSA are three examples of manufacturers of good-quality, modestly priced (and modestly performance) regulators. However, if you're planning to eventually go into technical diving, then don't make it necessary to upgrade later ... go for a high-quality reg now. Apeks, ScubaPro, and Poseiden are the most popular brands of high-performance regs ... although there are other quality brands out there as well.
look around, shop around, and HAVE FUN! =P
Absolutely ... and the only thing I'll add is take your time, and don't believe everything you read on the Internet ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
