Should I get a package deal or not?

[tbone1004]

D3 has the 360* swivel turret, somewhat useful, but nothing significant. It looks cooler
Zenith, has some performance kicks but are really splitting hairs at this stage of the game, has the silicone cover which is less prone to grit making it stick.

If you have D1/Classic it isn't a meaningful enough improvement to warrant upgrading

Don't pay your shop more for the Dive Rite gear unless they are giving you something that Cave Adventurers, Dive Right in Scuba, DGX, etc can't give you. If they want your business, they will price match, or offer something useful to offset that cost. That could be a free air card, or something else, but don't pay more to support your LDS if they aren't giving you anything to deserve it.


Also Deep6 has announced new gear and may be worth waiting another 4-6 weeks to see what is going on with that.

 

[rhwestfall]

Zenith, has some performance kicks but are really splitting hairs at this stage of the game, has the silicone cover which is less prone to grit making it stick.

and for a few bucks (or swapped out by a vendor if new), the classic has an alternate one that does the same

 

[stuartv]

I talked to Jay at Cave Adventurers. We talked about both Hogs, the XTs and the Hollis DC1/212 setup.

He said he can tell a difference between breathing the Hog D1+Classic versus the D3+Zenith in the way they breathe. But, he admits the difference is VERY small. I wouldn't spend money to upgrade from one to the other. But, I think I would spend the extra $100 he quoted me for the D3/Zenith over the D1/Classic.

He seemed to feel like the D3/Zenith was pretty comparable to the XT setup. And he'd sell me either for the same price. I mentioned possibly learning to service them myself and he said that would definitely sway him to the Hogs. Otherwise, it kind of sounded like he might choose the XTs. But, maybe 6 of one, half a dozen of the other.

Then I asked him about the Hollis gear. From what Tom said, I was expecting him to really rag the Hollis stuff. Instead, he said the 212 breathes really nice. He said it in a way that implied he thinks they breathe the best of all the ones we talked about. But, I don't want to put words in his mouth, so all I can say for sure is that he did not mention any of the others as breathing any better than the Hollis. The only negative thing he said at all about the Hollis was that he often hears them honk under water and it annoys him. He attributed that to the DC1 first stage. I mentioned having the DC3+212 and that mine often honk on the surface but I've never heard them honk underwater. That's when he specifically attributed it to something with the D1. He made it sound like, if it wasn't for the honking, the Hollis setup would be his preferred rig. Of course, he doesn't dive in cold water, so the issue with the plastic barrel in the 212 was not even on his radar.

Thanks again for the help. Time for me to leave work and go stop by my two local shops to see what they can offer me.

 

[tbone1004]

Jay is good people, not the big diver of the lot, but he does dive, and the CA logo is actually of Jay IIRC. John and Edd are the two big ones that would really be able to tell you. None of them do any cold water diving though, but Edd and John are hard on their gear and the Hog's have held up for the last 5 ish years of their abuse

The breathing is really all down to the tuning, and there is nothing wrong with the Hollis as far as their ability to breathe well. All 3 come from the same manufacturer with a similar design. The R3, D1, and DC1 are all basically identical. Second stage designs are also basically identical aside from some cosmetic differences and the metal barrel....

Dive Rite's can be serviced yourself, they have never and from what I understand, will never lock their parts down. Hog has the class, that is their only advantage. Poseidon is also free with their parts now. The conflicting information is that DGX has Hollis, Atomic, and Zeagle parts and I wasn't aware that any of them allowed them to be sold freely to the public.

 

[RJP]

"I wake up every day, right here. Right here [-]in Punxsutawney[/-] on ScubaBoard, and it's always February 2nd.. And there's nothing I can do about it."

"What should I buy" threads are the lifeblood of online forums. Not a problem at all.

What seems to be a recent "Groundhog Day" dynamic is someone coming along, offering very specific advice with an air of authority (albeit not enough experience to back up the advice/authority) and quickly deraiing the thread.

[video=youtube;OyBSrBqogPY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyBSrBqogPY[/video]

 

[Leah Under the Sea]

I don't see much I don't like about this one if you want to buy a package from one source: Aqua Lung Women's Package - Packages & Combos - Scuba Gear

The reg is a Titan, serviceable anywhere in the last 3 decades, good to 50^o. It's one of the classic Aqualung designs of all time. I'll bet there's 30-40 year old Titans still in use - they were around in the 80's when I started diving.

Pearl is a good quality woman's hybrid design - it functions as a back-inflate but also provides stabler vertical lift at the surface with a wraparound air cell.

It's all good mid-range gear - not their best but not their lowest end either. Zoop's are easy to use, downloadable, just not air-integrated. But you have to buy the $85 cable.

I've been told the ABS breathes harder so maybe see if you can upgrade it.

The Apeks Egress is a similar style for $35 more so maybe they'd be willing to swap it for the difference. Apeks is distributed by Aqualung so their dealers can work on either.

I actually looked at this package online, and thought about trying some of the stuff on at my LDS if they have it. My instructor lent me his spare Aqua Lung reg one time and I loved it. Compared to the Mares rental regulator I had been using, it was a dream. And, I've seen tons of good reviews on Aqua Lung for cold water diving. IF I were to go with a package (which is looking more doubtful now), this would be a good contender as I'm also interested in the BCD. The only thing is, I keep hearing that I should go with a backplate setup, which I haven't had a chance to try yet and see which one I prefer. I will reread through some of the previous posts one more time and pick out some stuff to try...one of the guys at my shop said I could take some different things out to dive with and see what I like, even if it's not normally available as a rental. They are big advocates for buying used and not jumping on the newest/most expensive gear thinking that it will be the best, which is quite refreshing. I'm not worried about cost so much as just getting gear that I am really comfortable with, though, so I'm open to a lot of options. I definitely appreciate everyone's input!

 

[Nasser]

Leah,

I have found that I prefer to buy different items from different manufacturers. I like Scubapro's wetsuits and regulators, Halcyon's back plate, and wings from both Halcyon and Oxycheq. I really like Shearwater's Petrel dive computer, Light Monkey's reels and spools, and Mares' Fins, etc.. etc.. My choices were pretty much based on trial and personal preferences over a period of time... so I built my kit gradually and according to my needs.

Perhaps you could rent different items and try things out before you buy. This will help you make more informed purchases based on your personal preferences and the type of diving you're mostly doing.

 

[stuartv]

Dive Rite's can be serviced yourself, they have never and from what I understand, will never lock their parts down.

The shop owner of one of my go-to local shops told me last night that DR has quit making the parts for the RG3 regs. Is there any truth to that? If so, should I expect that they would quit making parts for the XT regs at some point in the future, when they come out with a replacement for those?

 

[tbone1004]

they may no longer be stocking "parts parts" i.e. if you botched something important, but the parts kits are still available. If you have a concern, call Dive Rite directly, they're very open.

Leah, be careful by going off of what you perceived as breathing great compared to rental regs etc as a reason to purchase that specific regulator. Almost all regulators can be tuned to breathe about the same. There are some minor differences, but if they are tuned properly, there is truly very little difference.

On the reg side you should look at the following when making a purchase
Service availability. Is the regulator from a brand that is easy to service worldwide? This could be two things, either going with a brand like Scubapro and/or Aqualung, or a brand that you can service yourself, Dive Rite, Hog, Poseidon, etc. The latter solution is preferred by almost all technical divers.
Hose routing. Does the design of the regulator lend itself to efficient hose routing for what I want to do? Certain designs are better than others, with IMHO the superior design for primary tanks being the 5 port swivel turret *Apeks DST, Scubapro MK25, Hog D1/3, Dive Rite XT, etc*.
Cold water performance. Does the design have to be sealed with silicone *Atomic*, is it already sealed via diaphragm *Apeks, Hog, Dive Rite*, can it provide cold protection without sealing *Scubapro MK25, Poseidon MK3*. Are the internals of the second stage metal to help prevent freezing?

You'll realize quickly that all of the regs that I listed are all about the same, it comes down to brand preference and features available that you think are worthwhile, as well as your perceived value. Used trumps new, these are just blocks of metal and plastic, can be 100% sterilized, and all the soft parts can be replaced easily.

As far as BP/W vs stab jacket, just get a plate, you'll end up getting one eventually if you're going into any sort of technical/ice diving, so either get one now, or have to get one later. Alternatively consider sidemount depending on your situation. The reason for this is stab jackets have lift determined by your size. If you're a small female, you may need a lot more lift than that rig is able to provide. A BP/W allows you to choose how much lift you have regardless of your size, and if you're short, there are "short" pattern plates available for those under about 5'6" or so

Best solution for all of this is to find the tech divers in your area, we tend to be very generous loaning gear out and is a good opportunity to try a bunch of things.

 

[stuartv]

the parts kits are still available

I understand that. The question is whether they will make more when the current stock runs out.