Supporting your local Dive Shop

[pilot fish]

Just answer the questions, please . . . yes or no.

Since I don't personally know, I have to rely on what I've learned here on this board. So, the answer is YES, you would be notified. They are divers, from what I hear, and know the value of safe diving. Again, that is what I hear from members here. I tend to believe what I hear here, about that. The guy is a diver. Say no more.

 

[Grol]

If there were no dive shop in your area where would you get services,(air fills, nitrox fills,regulator repair, visual inspection,...) first hand Informations,(travel, local dive sites,...) education (speciaties diving, first aid,...) In certain area the diving season is short (4 months) .And there is not much money to be made on all these services whitout the sales of equipment. EX: High quality air fills(hyperpure for example ) cost a lot of money, compressor maintenance , filter (3to 4 level of filtration) every 65 hours, oil change. Not to forget, the sense of belonging to a special group of people that make up your local dive shop. Please, ebay is fine if you want to save money, but it wont give you what your local dive shop can, support your local dive shop.

 

[The Kraken]

Please read my first question in its entirety.
I specified that the warranty had expired.
You assume a great deal in that the repair is going to cost the price of a new unit.
Secondly, how can you assume that every manufacturer is going to extend a warranty?
There are just so many assumptions here and no factual evidence.

 

[SteveDiver]

I care if they are reasonably priced. I do like to support them if at all possible. We have one shop here in Houston that is very expensive! If I drive down the road about 5 miles another shop offers the same equipment, brand name etc. at MUCH lower prices. I must admit that I do the majority of my ordering via the internet..

 

[pilot fish]

Please read my first question in its entirety.
I specified that the warranty had expired.
You assume a great deal in that the repair is going to cost the price of a new unit.
Secondly, how can you assume that every manufacturer is going to extend a warranty?
There are just so many assumptions here and no factual evidence.

You assume the gear is out of the warranty period .THAT is the first assumption everything that follows is based on. You assume that to bolster your point. I assume something a little different to illustrate my point. See? If you dont think you will pay extra for a repair on gear bought from an unauthrized dealer, you will be sadly surprised when you send it in. Your call to buy gear wherever you want, you now.

 

[parrottheaddiver]

I too am having the same issue. In the next few weeks I'm going to be buying 2 regs and the mgr at the LDS has been so helpful in answering questions and steering us in the right direction that I feel that based on the customer service aspect alone I should purchase it from him. Also, he helped out the wife w/ a mask problem she was having for no extra charge. Like I said, just a real good customer service experience.

With the regs he's been upfront in saying that we don't need the "top of the line", but rather that a good midrange one will do. I've confirmed this by doing some research on them and finding that price does not always = better quality.

His price seems fairly consistant w/ everyone else's that i've seen, although ST has the same reg for about $50 less than the shop. My wife liked the ST price (obviously), i'm thinking long term (local service, etc).

At any rate, i think the service and the relationship that our LDS has already provided warrants a larger purchase. Convicing the wife of that may take more...

 

[The Kraken]

I would like to find out everyones feeling on supporting their local dive shop. Do people not care or is it important?

I feel it is important to support local industry in any way one can unless it is in opposition to good and proper personal financial management.

 

[Grol]

Oceanic product for example extend their lifetime warranty if product is bought throught a recognize dealer/distributor (Alliance Dealer).Scubapro has the same policy, lifetime upgrade parts for the entire regulator. All you have to pay is the labour(at your local diveshop).If you buy a reg on the net, it is at the discretion of the local dive shop to cover your reg under the policy of the specific manufacturer.So you have more to gain on the long run from buying a reg at your local diveshop than from the net. Mares has a 2 year warranty on parts, USD Aqualung 5 Years.

 

[pilot fish]

I feel it is important to support local industry in any way one can unless it is in opposition to good and proper personal financial management.

Also, I think feeling safe about the gear you buy is very important. A financial decison on life support gear should be weighed against the safety factor. MHO

 

[pilot fish]

Oceanic product for example extend their lifetime warranty if product is bought throught a recognize dealer/distributor (Alliance Dealer).Scubapro has the same policy, lifetime upgrade parts for the entire regulator. All you have to pay is the labour(at your local diveshop).If you buy a reg on the net, it is at the discretion of the local dive shop to cover your reg under the policy of the specific manufacturer.So you have more to gain on the long run from buying a reg at your local diveshop than from the net. Mares has a 2 year warranty on parts, USD Aqualung 5 Years.

That has been my expereince with Oceanic too. Yes, you are correct, Grol, in the long run it's better to buy from a reputable, authorized dealer. Safety is an issue too