MoxisPilot
Guest
Hey. I was in the same boat as you are; my husband and I just finished our OW certifications, and, since we live in FL, will probably be doing a lot of diving. It's much better to own your own gear, because the rental stuff is really a gamble, IMO. The BC I trained with had a leaking inflater, so it kept filling itself up with air. My diving experience was a lot better with new gear, fitted to my body type.
I would say to check out Xcel wetsuits - I haven't heard anything negative about them, and they have a pretty good wear and tear reputation. The one that I'm ordering will be tailor-made, will run me about $160, and will have a lifetime warranty (any tears along seams and such, the manufacturer will fix them.)
The BC I decided to use was the Aeris Contour - it's made for women, so the buckles are placed strategically AWAY from the chest area, and the vest itself is more fitted for a woman's body. My husband uses the male counterpart of this vest, which I believe is called the Aeris LX. He says it works great.
I would suggest waiting for end-of-summer sales; we purchased full gear for about $1,400 each. That included the BC, wetsuit, fins, first stage/regs, dive computer, mask, snorkel, gear bag, and a bottle of defog. Not too bad. My only complaint, after using the gear on a dive yesterday, was that my mask leaked a bit (but then, it was a deep dive, and pressure had a hand in it).
Like other replies have mentioned, some dive shops will let you try out the equipment.
As for drysuits...can't help you there! You'll have to let me know what *you* think about them! Haha!
I would say to check out Xcel wetsuits - I haven't heard anything negative about them, and they have a pretty good wear and tear reputation. The one that I'm ordering will be tailor-made, will run me about $160, and will have a lifetime warranty (any tears along seams and such, the manufacturer will fix them.)
The BC I decided to use was the Aeris Contour - it's made for women, so the buckles are placed strategically AWAY from the chest area, and the vest itself is more fitted for a woman's body. My husband uses the male counterpart of this vest, which I believe is called the Aeris LX. He says it works great.
I would suggest waiting for end-of-summer sales; we purchased full gear for about $1,400 each. That included the BC, wetsuit, fins, first stage/regs, dive computer, mask, snorkel, gear bag, and a bottle of defog. Not too bad. My only complaint, after using the gear on a dive yesterday, was that my mask leaked a bit (but then, it was a deep dive, and pressure had a hand in it).
Like other replies have mentioned, some dive shops will let you try out the equipment.
As for drysuits...can't help you there! You'll have to let me know what *you* think about them! Haha!
