Regulator Choice

[Sbiriguda]

My 2 cents. Most new equipment sold in the EU and in the USA is good enough for recreational diving. If it is dangerous, it's impossible to sell it, the local authorities would not allow it... It's just a matter of personal preference, for example if you feel comfortable with the mouthpiece, or similar. Then there could be the weight in case you plan to fly and bring your own equipment. And of course the price. If you buy new regulators you have to consider both the price of the product and the price of spare parts and regulators service that must be made regularly, some people say every year let's say anyway preferably not less frequently than every 2 or 3 years.
If you are into technical diving, it's a different ballgame, but then you would not be asking here…
Another thing to remember in case you do recreational diving is that some regulators are not suitable for diving in cold waters, but when I say cold I mean VERY COLD, let's say if you plan to do ice diving or lake diving in very cold waters like the ones in the alpine lakes in Europe. If you plan to dive in cold waters you have to check that the regulators you purchase are good for that too

If you buy second hand you can get very good bargains, but you need to be cautious provided several pieces of gear and regulators most of all require some knowledge and experience to be bought second hand. Anyway, they should be used like new and very recent, or relatively older but recently serviced, otherwise they could be not worth it. If you buy second hand without previous experience it would be good to buy only from persons you know and you can meet in person in your group or association

 

[Alex Chernov]

Ok. Now I need a used bcd.

 

[James79]

What size? I have a ScubaPro classic, size XL gathering dust right now. If that interests you pm me for pictures and make me an offer!
Respectfully
James

 

[dmaziuk]

Ok. Now I need a used bcd.

I'll be the first to say it: BP&W.

And for the next question: Deep 6 Excursion.

 

[ljpm]

Ok. Now I need a used bcd.

First, I'd suggest a new thread.

Second, I'd also suggest a BP&W.

 

[1967Goat]

First, I'd suggest a new thread.

Second, I'd also suggest a BP&W.

The only thing I'd suggest is you don't need a new BP/W thread. Search through existing threads. I just picked up a BP/W from VDH. I did A TON of reading on them. There's plenty of material out there to read.

Go to the BC section on this board. The first topic is beginner's guide to BP/W.:
Buoyancy Compensators (BC's) and Weight Systems

 

[Sbiriguda]

Ok. Now I need a used bcd.

For the BCD it's just the same as the regulators: for recreational diving a new BCD is fine. It's just a matter of personal preference. You should try it and see if you find it comfortable on your body, if possible. Then just choose the cheapest one you get with a good discount… Then, again, it's a matter of weight, color, number and position of the D-Rings, pockets, type of weight release, etc. etc.

 

[Sbiriguda]

I'll be the first to say it: BP&W.

When I bought my gear I followed mostly the advice I got here on Scubaboard. With only one exception. I didn't buy BP&W, also because I was discouraged by one of my instructors, who told that for a beginner it's better to get a jacket type BCD and then to upgrade to BP&W later. Well, I am happy of my jacket BCD (Scubapro Xone) but I believe it would have been better to buy immediately a BP&W. That is probably my main regret about the gear I got

 

[dmaziuk]

When I bought my gear I followed mostly the advice I got here on Scubaboard. With only one exception. I didn't buy BP&W, also because I was discouraged by one of my instructors, who told that for a beginner it's better to get a jacket type BCD and then to upgrade to BP&W later. Well, I am happy of my jacket BCD (Scubapro Xone) but I believe it would have been better to buy immediately a BP&W. That is probably my main regret about the gear I got

You missed the invisible <sarcasm/> tags there. There's nothing wrong with jacket BCDs or Mares dive computers, but

 

[Sbiriguda]

You missed the invisible <sarcasm/> tags there. There's nothing wrong with jacket BCDs or Mares dive computers, but
View attachment 561648

Well, in my case I can say if I could go back I would take the advice of getting a BP&W since the beginning instead of a jacket BCD and then upgrade to BP&W. Anyway I am no "pasdaran" of any sort of gear. For recreational diving almost any average gear can do the job, and 90% of the problems come from lack of experience and/or training...