Mares gear in Thailand?

[Tiptopperoo]

Hi all just a quick question regarding Mares equipment and how prevalent it is in Thailand.

I am heading over to Thailand to do all the way from Advanced OW Diver to instructor in March next year. Currently I live in Melbourne.

I was going to get ScubaPro gear but have been informed that the gear I can get through the school I am going to train with mainly do Mares, and I can do a Mares equipment maintenance course. For this reason, I want to know what people think of Mares; BC's, Regs, computers, all of it.

Also what is the deal on getting them serviced? Easier,cheaper than Scupa-pro, less often?

Also should I buy before I head off online, or wait til I get to Thailand and put my bartering skills to work?

Thanks in advance

 

[naga]

Its all a matter of personal preference at the end of the day..

I have two Mares wetsuits and they are fine.

I hate Mares BCDs, too much gadgety crap and not streamlined enough for me; i have a Seaquest and it is the best piece of kit i own, apart from my new Tusa 'Visualator' Mask...

I have Mares Proton regulators and they are fine, other people think they are crap, but i have had no probs, again, it is personal preference, but generally Mares is considered top quality kit.

 

[stevenl]

My personal opinion: excellent fins, overpriced BCD's, and regarding the regulators: they have had a lot of problems with the HP seats, and were not willing to admit there was a problem, so it continued to exist. Finally it looks like it has been solved though.

 

[Arizona]

Mares is very common. I find it cheaper to buy outside of Thailand. I like the Abyss for 2nd stage and the icon is a good BCD. I would compare the icon with the Nighthawk IMO. Good luck!

AZ

 

[plonske]

You made a good choice, it s a very professional dive school with a lot of experienced instructors.

Ooh about the equipment, in French the say " Les gouts et Les coleurs on ne discute pas".
Means " the tastes and the colors, we don t discussed.


May be, I see you in March....

 

[h90]

The Mares guys in Bangkok are terrible people. I had problems with my Rebel octopus, and they wanted to rip me off even they told themself that it is a design problem and there is a retrofit to fix it (brand new Octopus). They didn't want to help because I didn't bought it in Thailand. Where I bought it, the Mares importer told even with the part number and an email from the Mares Asia Manager that this problems does not exist at all.
The only one who could help me was an old east German guy (not certified to repair anything) who learned in communist times how to repair parts and not only exchange them.
I am very happy with the Abyss (beside that it a bit heavy), but not with the support here.
In generell it seems Thailand is very expensive for SCUBA things, so maybe better buy at home.

 

[smartecosse]

mares is not really a "standard" equipment that is used by dive shops so although you will be able to maintain your own equipment its not gonna be that big an item on your cv

aqualung and scubapro do seem to be two of the more popular brands for schools though

 

[bcdannymalone]

Have to agree with Naga (though his photo is a bit disturbing!). Had a Mares BCD and it fell apart within a year of daily use. Seaquest is hands down the best BCD for longevity. Also pretty easy to repair.

I go with SP reg as well. Very easy to repair, parts- no problem, and I think they are the easiest to breathe on. They are used quite frequently in shops and probably will look better to have a SP or AL repair cert on a CV (as mentioned by smartecosse). But if you're not looking to make a career of it, just buy what you like. You'll never get a group of dive instructors to have the same opinion on anything- just follow some of the threads on this site and you'll see that!

 

[naga]

what's wrong with the photo man?

thats really me, albeit in the 70s.....