So I’m a very new diver, just got OW cert a couple months ago. I am working on putting together my own gear; my local dive shop is hardcore Sherwood. However, I don’t see it talked about much on here compared to several other brands. It is the only gear I have experience with and seems to be well made, but I’m curious as to why it doesn’t seem to be as mainstream.
Opinions on Sherwood equipment? Don’t see it mentioned much
- Thread starter LMac8806
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runsongas
Contributor
just not a popular brand because they aren't cheap enough to compete on value against the rebranded taiwanese gear and aren't high enough quality to compete with the big name brands. no real good reason to pick them over other choices these days with gear readily available online.
Ayisha
Contributor
I have Sherwood Blizzard regulators and love them! They have never freeflowed even at nearly freezing temps and are well made. Sherwood was popular in this area until the mid-2000's or so. Apeks is more popular, but I would personally rather have a workhorse than more moving parts to potentially fail, just my personal opinion.
My wife and I dive Sherwood Oasis regulators, and love them. The first Oasis I bought was in 1985 when I first got certified. Gave it to my son when Sherwood upgraded the exhaust configuration of the Oasis, which was probably 20 years ago or so, and I bought one of the newer versions then. Have never had a problem with any of the three sets.
Depends where you are. If you cannot get your regulator serviced, it is worthless. In the USA, you can often ship your regulator relatively cheaply to get serviced . But if you are like Ayisha and I, there isn't a lot of places in Canada to ship your regulator. If you send it to the USA, it can sometimes get stuck in customs. Plus is can cost more to ship it to the USA (foreign country).
In the Toronto area, there are a lot of Sherwood shops. The Canadian market is a lot smaller than the USA market. So small shops can either stock all their equipment from one distributor (e.g. Sherwood) and get a volume discount or have a few different brands but their dealer cost is usually higher than online store retail pricing.
Bottom line, in my area a lot of people like Sherwood. They are competitively priced. There are MANY good shops to service them. They are workhorse regulators and parts are relatively cheap. My first regulator was a Sherwood Blizzard. The shop I bought it from got me a deal because I got all Sherwood/Genesis gear. When I lived in the USA, I mixed and matched equipment (bought what I liked in each category) and could buy things for a LOT less than I could have in Canada.
I know a few Sherwood shops in my area HATED when customers would go to Florida for a dive trip. The customers would figure out what they wanted, go shopping in Florida when there, use the gear while on vacation then bring it back (duty free) as used, personal equipment. The problem however is they sometimes had a hard time finding a shop which could service them here in Canada.
In the Toronto area, there are a lot of Sherwood shops. The Canadian market is a lot smaller than the USA market. So small shops can either stock all their equipment from one distributor (e.g. Sherwood) and get a volume discount or have a few different brands but their dealer cost is usually higher than online store retail pricing.
Bottom line, in my area a lot of people like Sherwood. They are competitively priced. There are MANY good shops to service them. They are workhorse regulators and parts are relatively cheap. My first regulator was a Sherwood Blizzard. The shop I bought it from got me a deal because I got all Sherwood/Genesis gear. When I lived in the USA, I mixed and matched equipment (bought what I liked in each category) and could buy things for a LOT less than I could have in Canada.
I know a few Sherwood shops in my area HATED when customers would go to Florida for a dive trip. The customers would figure out what they wanted, go shopping in Florida when there, use the gear while on vacation then bring it back (duty free) as used, personal equipment. The problem however is they sometimes had a hard time finding a shop which could service them here in Canada.
One of the biggest factors in choosing equipment is deciding where you can find reliable service. Tuning the regs for proper performance is a sensitive (albeit fairly simple) thing.
Sherwood has a good reputation, but is limited in its geographical reach. The Oasis and Blizzard noted above have been updated over the years and remain superb performers. I can't speak to the new Blizzard Pro second stage, but the sealed first stage is fantastic.
The SR2 is a fantastic performer after a minor design flaw was corrected from the SR1. Its sealed first stage makes it an excellent choice.
If you trust your shop (ask around) then Sherwood would make an excellent choice. Chevy, not Porsche, but solid as a rock.
Sherwood has a good reputation, but is limited in its geographical reach. The Oasis and Blizzard noted above have been updated over the years and remain superb performers. I can't speak to the new Blizzard Pro second stage, but the sealed first stage is fantastic.
The SR2 is a fantastic performer after a minor design flaw was corrected from the SR1. Its sealed first stage makes it an excellent choice.
If you trust your shop (ask around) then Sherwood would make an excellent choice. Chevy, not Porsche, but solid as a rock.
Thank you for that. My closest shop (about 45 minutes) is pretty much only Sherwood. That's where I learned, that's the only equipment I know. I'm certainly not looking for either glowing reviews to enforce my opinion or folks to talk me out of them. Thanks for the objective view on the brand.
CT-Rich
Contributor
places like SB tend to be echo chambers. You hear a lot of stuff about a particular philosophy or brand because there are some vocal proponents. An example would be the BP/W. A lot of people like them on SB, so you would think there is nothing else out there. The reality is that the majority of divers still use jacket BCDs of various flavors etc. I have my Sherwood Magnum I bought in 1980 and it works great. My daughter was pissed when she heard the dive shop was no longer going to service it.
My advice is if you've been using it and like it and can locally source it and service it, you aren't making a bad choice.
My advice is if you've been using it and like it and can locally source it and service it, you aren't making a bad choice.
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Hi @LMac8806
Several very useful comments regarding Sherwood regs, above
Sherwood computers are made by Pelagic Pressure Systems (Oceanic, Aqua Lung...) and run the liberal DSAT decompression algorithm. I have no personal experience, but, would imagine these are perfectly fine computers. As an example the Sherwood Amphos is the same as the Aqua Lung i200 (running PZ+ only) and the Oceanic Geo 2 (dual algorithm running both DSAT and PZ+). Currently, the Amphos can be had online for about $50 less than the other 2, don't know how your LDS would do.
Several very useful comments regarding Sherwood regs, above
Sherwood computers are made by Pelagic Pressure Systems (Oceanic, Aqua Lung...) and run the liberal DSAT decompression algorithm. I have no personal experience, but, would imagine these are perfectly fine computers. As an example the Sherwood Amphos is the same as the Aqua Lung i200 (running PZ+ only) and the Oceanic Geo 2 (dual algorithm running both DSAT and PZ+). Currently, the Amphos can be had online for about $50 less than the other 2, don't know how your LDS would do.
Sherwood regulators are very solid regulators, aren't the top of the line but very solid. If I were stuck on an Island and I can only have one or two regulators, they will be Atomic, as first choice, and Sherwood as second choice.
I would buy the top of the line Sherwood with the best performance model.
I would buy the top of the line Sherwood with the best performance model.
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