Padi Master scuba diver

[robertarak]

Well seems obvious but if u take those classes to achieve master diver then it means something.

No. Taking those classes may mean something. Each has it's own certification and the ones you mentioned are great. One could easily take; Fish ID, Boat, Photo, Drift and Natural Geographic to qualify for a MSD Rating. Although your comment is accurate, it has nothing to do with this thread.

 

[Tortuga68]

MSD does mean something. You're $50 poorer & PADI is $50 richer

 

[spc751]

I thought it was worth the little $$$ to get the Padi MSD card as it was something I initially looked forward to getting and such it motivated me to take more classes. Would I have taken the same classes? Likely but just maybe not as fast. As someone who almost always dives solo (except in classes) I think taking the extra classes was a good way to gain experience and learn a few tricks I might not have thought of on my own. I'm not interested in getting a DM certification but have a couple of the books that I am reading on my own. Sounds like the SSI or NAUI MSD classes might be a good fit for me. Too bad nobody seems to offer those anywhere around here.

Edit: I looked at the SSI MD requirements on the SSI website. I'm not sure if you have to pay for the SSI MD card but it looks like you have to take 4 SSI specialties plus rescue. For PADI you have to pay for the card but you have to take 5 specialties and Rescue. Assuming one took specialites like Nitrox, Night, Deep, Wreck, Navigation, and Rescue via PADI, what is the difference? Are the classes more in depth for SSI? Seems like you take less for SSI otherwise? How is the SSI MD comparable to PADI DM without the teaching aspect?

Both the SSI shop and the PADI shop I deal with tell me the MD card is $40.

I took deep diver from the PADI shop and did four dives with the instructor, friends that took the deep course from the SSI shop only did two dives with their instructor. I have compaired other courses with both shops and the PADI course usually require 3 to 4 dives each and the SSI shop requires up to 2 dives. I took SSI drysuit and did zero dives with an instructor.

Based on the training I have received and seen I think the PADI shop I deal with has the better MD. However, I would not call myself a master diver.

It still depends on the shop and the instructor. The PADI shop I deal with also does DSAT RecTec diving and holds itself to a high standard.

I know a SSI shop that does their AOW in only 5 dives ( 4 specialites ). Add rescue and you have SSI MD. Both SSI and PADI require a total of 50 dives before applying for MD card.

 

[Peter69_56]

About a year and a half ago a dive shop owner with thousands of dives, a DM in her employ with thousands of dives, and another guy with hundreds of dives went out diving. As I understand it, all those dives had been essentially the same dive done repeatedly in their tropical environment. They were at the top of their diving games. I suspect they did not know a single diver better than they at the dives they had been doing for all those years. They decided that, without any further training, they would do a dive together to 300 feet.

The dive shop owner took a few weeks before she passed away. The DM will likely never walk again. The other guy, who did not follow them all the way down, will be OK.

About a year after that, I joined 3 others in a dive beyond 300 feet at almost the same place they did their dive. We were trained for that kind of diving. We were prepared for the difficulties that caused their disaster, so we did not encounter them. We were never remotely in danger. It was a routine dive for us.

Different strokes for different folks.

I have a few sayings that seem appropriate here;
When I see the same mistakes repeated over and over by organisations or people who should know better. "The one thing we learn is that we never learn".

I also believe in the saying, "You don't know what you don't know until you get there", hence get some training to show you what you don't know or are not aware of.

“Doing the same thing over and over gets the same results”, funny about that !

Yes I read the posts and article on that dive and such a waste of life. Diving is a great sport but not without its risks. The deeper you go and the greater task loading the greater the risks. Learn it properly, practice it and then enjoy the experience.

 

[Centrals]

PADI's MSD card was FREE back in 1998/99.
Enjoyed the multi-level course because I was diving without a computer then(just a Swatch). Planning a dive with the "wheel" was interesting. Nowadays nearly everyone is diving with a computer so I think the "wheel" is being replaced.

 

[DevonDiver]

PADI's MSD card was FREE back in 1998/99.

It still is - as mentioned earlier in the thread - but just in Asia-Pacific region.

 

[fnfalman]

Sport Chalet; a chain sporting goods/scuba store in California and now in some parts of Arizona, usually offers a "free" PADI MSD card if you were to take five specialty classes from them. Or is it a free AOW card?

Next time I see one of their advertisements in California Diving News, I'll have to take a photo or scan it in for posterity.

 

[Tortuga68]

PADI's MSD card was FREE back in 1998/99

TBH I would probably still assume you were a wanker if you got one, at least until proven otherwise; much like someone who got their OW certification date tattooed on them, or sewed a "rescue diver" chevron on their wetsuit

 

[James R]

TBH I would probably still assume you were a wanker if you got one, at least until proven otherwise; much like someone who got their OW certification date tattooed on them, or sewed a "rescue diver" chevron on their wetsuit

Judging people you don't even know based on some assumption you've made says more about you than them...

Not that I would sew any patches on my wetsuit

 

[Pullmyfinger]

TBH I would probably still assume you were a wanker if you got one, at least until proven otherwise; much like someone who got their OW certification date tattooed on them, or sewed a "rescue diver" chevron on their wetsuit

But it would look sooooo cool when sewn under the PADI "Master Diver". Then people would think you were a real Master Diver...like the ones in the Navy.

You could even go to to a civilian skydiving place, do a tandem jump, and then sew an Airborne tab on.

Imagine...all that awesomeness!

I would prefer to save the titles for the guys that have actually earned them.

"Advanced" doesn't even mean that in the PADI world. The skill level is so much lower that the title infers.
Same for "Master Diver". They co-opted a title from a place where it actually has some meaning, where the title "Master Diver" actually means something was mastered.

PADI "Master Diver", is no different than a Subway punch card. It demonstrates that you showed up 5 times, and nothing more.

It makes no difference whether you paid for it, or got it for free. It signifies nothing.

I have actually heard guys in dive shops when asked to leave a cert card for a tank rental, proudly stating..."I'm a Master Diver", as if it meant something.

It's a card that appeals to poseurs.......Welcome to Subway!
Spin it anyway you want, but it is a joke outside of the PADI vacuum.

Cheers,
Mitch