Rookie diver, just bought some gear... Worth It?

[madscientist24]

Hello folks. First post here, alright! So I'm a rookie at diving, just got started about a year ago and have only done a few dives in which I rented gear (warm water diving).

Well, I'm thinking this is going to be an ongoing hobby, so I went to a flea market recently to see if I could buy some gear. I figure if I keep renting I'll just be wasting money which I could have put towards buying my own gear.

I ended up buying the following for about $700 (all new). I'm thinking I overpaid... It was an on the spot thing so I didn't have time to research, which I almost always do

Oceanic Islander 2 BCD
Oceanic GT3 2nd Stage Regulator
Oceanic SP5 Yoke 1st Stage (I thought the GT3 came with CDX5 1st stage)
Oceanic Oil Filled Combo Gage
Hollis 321 Braided Octopus
Tusa Imprex Tri-Ex Open Heeled Fins
Mares Equator 2mm Dive Boots

Considering I'm new to diving, I am certain (hoping) this will be sufficient for some time. But I just want to know how I fared. What do you all think, was it worth it?

 

[2airishuman]

Leisurepro.com usually has good prices on these brands, so you can check their web site and decide for yourself. I think you'll find that the price you paid was fair for the items you purchased. I don't think there's anything wrong with that gear for tropical reef diving, so you're all set if that's what you have in mind. There are tradeoffs with various brands and configurations of gear, and I would be imagine that several people will be along shortly to point out the benefits of their chosen rig, even though that's not what you asked for.

 

[rhwestfall]

you have bought it, what good is critiquing it now?

 

[diversteve]

That BC is discontinued but when they were sold it was around $350 new - I've seen recommendations here for it as a travel BC but no personal experience.

Similar story with the reg - the SP5 is discontinued also. Sold right at $200 new since it's a basic model. it's a non-balanced piston model pretty common in rental fleets due to reliability and ease of maintenance. The GT3 is also a basic model - I just googled one new for $80 - list was $139. Gauges are probably $120-180 new - the Hollis Octo is $100 and the fins are $45 since they're still sold.

You do the math. Personally it's more than I would've paid but at least it can all be serviced at the same dealer. You should get some years out of all of it before the inevitable upgrade which we've all gone thru. Mine all sells on eBay for a fraction of what i paid new.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

It is worth it if you dive a lot. Please, go jump in the ocean, a lake, quarry, anything!

 

[tbone1004]

what Bob said. You bought it, unless you can return it, I wouldn't worry about it. Can you buy better gear for the same money? Probably not, but you can buy a lot better gear for not a lot more money, but it's not "bad".

Here is the real question. You make no mention of your ultimate diving goals. The gear you have will not be able to grow a whole lot with you depending on your diving goals. Tell us what you want to do, and then you can determine if it is worth returning or not

 

[madscientist24]

Thanks for all the replies folks.

you have bought it, what good is critiquing it now?

Peace of mind really. Just looking to see where I stand.

It is worth it if you dive a lot. Please, go jump in the ocean, a lake, quarry, anything!

Of course, this is exactly what I had in mind! Either way, I'll get my value out of the gear as long as I use it a lot. I was just trying to get a feel for the equipment since I didn't get to research it before hand.

what Bob said. You bought it, unless you can return it, I wouldn't worry about it. Can you buy better gear for the same money? Probably not, but you can buy a lot better gear for not a lot more money, but it's not "bad".

Here is the real question. You make no mention of your ultimate diving goals. The gear you have will not be able to grow a whole lot with you depending on your diving goals. Tell us what you want to do, and then you can determine if it is worth returning or not

Since I'm new to this, I've only done basic dives. Nothing too deep or crazy, and only warm water dives. And I don't dive often. Hopefully I'll get to dive 3-4 times a year. Which leads me to believe that, like most of you have already noted, I'll be fine with the lower tier gear. Hopefully it'll be like 2airishuman and diversteve said.

 

[Bratface]

As others have said, you already own the gear, so go diving. There is nothing wrong with discontinued gear. My regulator is a Scubapro MK 18 and was a discontinued model when I bought it new. It is the same model as the MK 17 without the swivel. I've been diving with it for almost 13 years. I get it serviced regularly and it has never failed me. I make over 100 dives per year.

 

[diversteve]

With your planned dive count you'll probably get decades worth of use out of most of it. Until there's some physical deterioration of the rubber parts or something. Really clean it well between uses as the salt crystals probably do more damage than anything else when hardened - they either abrade softer fabrics/rubber or even prevent mechanisms from functioning.

I once had an inflator free-flow - when I pried off the mouthpiece I could see the salt crystals near the valve. Called the dive and spent 10mins. in the rinse tank flushing/banging it hard against the side. No other problems that week or the rest of that year.

An inexpensive future investment might be an IP gauge - as long as the readings are consistent within the range you could go a long time between regulator services also. Dive Rite intermediate Pressure Gauge

I still occasionally dive a regulator bought new in 1983. It even has the original hose but it's been serviced every couple of years - probably closer to 4-5 lately. I would have no hesitation about diving it tomorrow.
.

 

[madscientist24]

Well, the idea is to dive at least once a month, or so I've been told. But, unfortunately, I don't expect to have that amount of time.

Pretty impressive how long some of you folks' gear has lasted with good care. I'll look into the IP gauge, thanks.