New Diver BC/Reg Buying Advice

[Chris Cheatwood]

I am a newly certified diver and I am considering purchasing my own BC and Regulator soon (probably in the next few months). I would rather own my own equipment than rent some each time I want to dive. I am looking for suggestions for brands/models to look at. I used an Aeris BC and Reg in my open water training. Is that a good brand to go with or what should I be looking for.

 

[masizemore]

Don't have any experience with Aeris, I have tried oceanic and aqualung, looked at scubapro. I think all three have good offerings depending on what you are looking for and budget. I ended up going with the Aqualung I3 Dimension BC and Legacy Reg, but by the same token my son liked the Dimension but preferred the Kronos reg.

Best advise is decide what kind of diving you are looking at doing, what features are important then try as many as you can from the different manufacturers/lines to see what is most comfortable to you. We also asked several instructors/experienced divers what they used and why. Again, while their selections may not be best for you, it may give you ideas of things that you would or wouldn't like.

 

[Paladin]

I recently bought an Aeris EX 100 and I love it. It's weight integrated with QLR weight pocket fasteners. It's light and comfortable with plenty of lift capacity. As for a new reg, have you looked at the Edge Epic?

 

[RTee]

Chris...welcome to the diving world.

+1 for asking experienced folks about what they use and why. I think the first question you should ask yourself is...what are your ambitions when it comes to diving? TSandM started a thread quite sometime ago about things that you bought and you regretted. If you do a search on this board you should be able to find it. I think this should be your starting point. What somebody else bought for equipment may not be what will best support the type of diving you may have in mind. You might buy a yoke configured reg and realized in a not so far future that what you really want to pursue should be better supported by a DIN configured assembly. Cold water vs warm water? BCD vs BP/W with harness? Whatever you may have in mind...is it supported by your LDS or should you be looking elsewhere.

 

[Chris Cheatwood]

This seems to not be an easy question to answer. The only experience with this type of equipment is what I used in my class. We used the exact same setup (Aeris vest style BCD and Aeris regs). I never had any issues with the gear. It seemed comfortable to me. I have done some reading on back inflate vs vest-style inflate BCDs. It seems I would probably prefer a vest inflate style because I read where the back inflate tends to want to keep your head in the water at the surface. My instructor said I didn't have a problem swimming horizontal once I achieved neutral buoyancy. I like the idea of weights integrated into the BCD with a quick release. I just started looking online the other night and was overwhelmed by the selection. I just would rather purchase something sooner rather than later because of the expense of continually have to rent gear. I want to try to dive at least once a month. There are several quarries a short drive from my house (I live in Central Alabama)and I plan on taking trips to the gulf and doing dives there as well.

 

[Chris Cheatwood]

I already own my own mask, snorkel, fins, boots, gloves, and 5 mil wetsuit. I plan on purchasing a 3 mil wetsuit soon and then going with a reg and bcd next, then a computer. Does that seem to be the logical order of purchasing gear. I don't have the money to buy everything at once. Want to save up and buy the next item, then save up again for the next and so on.

 

[g1138]

General consensus is the buy your skin gear first followed by your exposure protection. When it comes time to buying BC, regs, and computers, you'll have to take into account your situation and what would work best for you.

If you can wearing rental BC and regs then a buying wrist computer first would do you a lot of good, since some places overseas only rent gauges with their regs.
On the other hand if you can't stand rental BCs/regs then the two go relatively hand in hand as purchases. Although you can get by with owning just a BC or reg setup alone for the time being.

 

[Agility]

Even if you felt comfortable with an aeris BC I think you should try some others before buying one, just to compare the feeling in the water.
As for regulators, you might want to inquire at your lcal shops which brands are serviced there at which cost.
Do you want knobs to fiddle with (venturi assist and cracking control) or do you want to keep it as simple as possible?
The choice of regulator largeley depends on under which circumstances you intend to use them. Frequent flights to warm destinations might bring another regulator to the top of the list than cold water <10°C diving or ice-diving. Once you have specified the criteria you should breathe any you consider to buy under water.

You might try renting some gear from different shops for dives just to feel the difference.

 

[p1p]

I'm kind of a minimalist when it comes to equipment, but the Zeagle Express tech has caught my eye.

 

[Crush]

Welcome!

WRT BCs I firmly believe that less is more. Large zipper pockets and integrated weights seem cool, but the bulk that they introduce makes the BC a PITA to travel with. I'd recommend a weight belt and/or trim pockets for weights (plus you can use them to achieve better trim in the water). Finally, I find rear-inflate BCDs (including but not limited to backplate and wing) to be much more stable and comfortable, both in the water and at the surface.