How to dive on the cheap.
Start by buying a very simple back plate and wing for a BC which can be had for under $400 brand new and will outlast anything else.
Buy high quality regs with a proven track record to make sure they are durable, will be around for the long run, and parts will still be available for a long time. This doesn’t always mean they are cheap but in the long run you will save money by not having to repurchase another set because your budget regs got discontinued and are no longer supported.
Educate yourself very well about the sport, the gear, the training, the structure behind the sport with how dive shops operate, etc. there is no substitute for knowledge when it comes to saving money and making smart choices.
Learn to become self reliant.
Learn to work on your own gear.
Know how to buy quality used gear and know what to look for.
This is all part of a divers IQ, to know all this stuff.
Diving is an activity that has been set up to be a convenience type adventure, which has a price point built in - not always in your favor.
Get your own tanks.
Shore dive as much as possible. If you live somewhere where there really is no shore diving then move to where there is shore diving. This may sound short but how much are you into the sport? Do you have the freedom to uplift yourself and start a new life somewhere else? Many people do that for their way of life if they can.
Used gear:
There is a ton of very lightly used gear out there stuffed away in storage units by people who got into diving then drifted away from it for one reason or another. After you develop your scuba smarts PhD, you will know what to look for on Craigslist and eBay and other places. You can buy gear for pennies on the dollar that is is remarkably good shape, in many cases like brand new. It may not be the new “in” gear that is touted here on Scubaboard, but it is gear, it works, and it’s cheap. When it’s used up and worn out you go out and buy something else for pennies on the dollar and use that up. That is another way of doing it, but you have to know what you’re doing.
