Noob entering room, Need to select equipment

[halocline]

Since our Florida keys house will be our retirement home I am comfortable with a tropical reef setup, Within reason there are local wrecks and stuff that will be deeper and obviously colder water...

I found out that at least the closest (there are seveal close) dive shop does rent both Din and Yoke tanks. In fact I have asked 2 shops, one in the south and one up north and they both offer din and yoke rentals.....

My wife and I tried on a Mares Hybred back inflate BCD and we both liked it.....

Highflier

A couple of quick corrections; deeper in the Fl ocean does not mean significantly colder, (diving depth anyhow) and "cold water" with regards to regulator function applies to sub 45F water. IOW, a non-issue for you. I would not pay a nickel extra for sealed regs in your situation.

If you are primarily using rental tanks in the U.S. and caribbean, you will regret having DIN regs. Trust me on this, I'm not selling you anything. The VAST majority of single tank rentals and charters for recreational diving in the U.S. are yoke valves.

If by "tried on" the BC you mean put it on in the shop, you have learned next to nothing about how it will perform in the water, while wearing a wetsuit, in a weightless environment, with a tank on your back. In fact, this is probably why people buy jacket BCs; they feel nice and comfy in the dive shop. Too bad it's the opposite in the water!

Are you really spending $7000 on recreational dive equipment for warm water? That's a little insane IMO, but I must be misunderstanding something. Here's a very quick and dirty rough budget that is somewhere near appropriate....again, entirely my opinion, it's your money.

2 regulators w/alternate 2nd stage $700
2 dive computers $400
2 BP/W $700
2 wetsuits $300

That leaves you $5000 to get a compressor and fleet of tanks!

But, to each his own.....

 

[Aqua-Andy]

One other note about the HOG regs is that you can currently change them over to "NATIVE" DIN. Mike at Dive Right In Scuba - Store Main Page - Plainfield, IL has said before that he had yoke kits that would work with the HOG regs. As servicing the regs locally I would not let that stop me from purchasing the HOG regs. You could send them USPS priority for around $10 and have them serviced by DRIS or Jim Lapenta and still get them back faster than most local shops will service them, just speaking from experience.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

One other thing is that HOG has decided to bring in "official" kits to convert the regs to Yoke if desired. Prelim date is March for them I believe. Once they are in I will offer them as an option.

 

[Fishpie]

I may be wrong but looking at the manufacturers site there's very little difference between the Edge and Hog regulators.
The 1st stages seem to be identical (except the HOG comes in DIN and the Edge is yoke).
The 2nd stages are very similar....the HOG seems based on the Apeks ATX and the Edge the Aqualung LX, the main practical difference is the soft purge cover on the Edge.

 

[Fishpie]

Are Edge's sold by the stage like the HOG's?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Yes you can buy components individually. Difference is that the edge seconds come with the braided hoses. HOGs come without. Also the Edge and HOG regs are different with respect to the D-1. The D-2 and Edge Epics are the same with different finishes. The D-1 has a rotating turrent and different HP seat design and as such the service kits are different.

The second stages are also different designs. Cases are different and barrel designs are not the same.

 

[Fishpie]

Can you put a HOG DIN fitting on a Epic 1st stage and vice versa?
Are the service parts for HOG and Epic 2nd the same?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

No they are not. The kits are different as I just stated. They use different HP seat designs.

And you do not need to put a HOG DIN on an Edge reg. The Edge 1sts come in yoke or DIN

 

[Fishpie]

So if I convert HOG and Epic into their origins what you get is........
Apeks DS4 and AquaLung LX = Epic
Apeks DS4 (D2) or Apeks DST (D1) and ATX 50 = HOG

 

[Jim Lapenta]

That may be what they look like but they are not the same. Outside and especially inside.