Using your octo as your primary

[ridingandiving]

I have been lurking on the board here for a little while. Just started diving back in March. Have my OW and working on my AOW. Been learning and awful lot just reading the forums. But now I have an opportunity to contrubute for once. Having just been certified I am new to all the equipment and have been doing a lot of research. The dive shop I went through offered an Aqua Lung package to the students of the class. I checked online and found the price the shop was offering was about $100 more than LeasurePro. Wanting to support my local shop so I made my purchase from them. Good thing I did. I am sitting here looking at the back of the Auqa Lung/Sea Quest/Apeks/Suunto warrenty card and it says "beware of any retailer that offers to sell and ship our life supporting products by mail, or orders placed by phone or the Internet. These retailers are NOT authorized Aqua Lung Dealers. All authorized Aqua Lung Dealers must execute a Dealer Agreement that does not allow the sale of Aqua Lung products except "in-store." Many Aqua Lung dealers advertise on the Internet, but are not allowed to deliver our products other than "over the counter." This is our assurance that you will recieve the proper pre-sale, point-of-sale, and post sale assistance, and that only tarined and certified divers use our products. If you obtain our product from one of these retailers, your warranty is therefore not valid and we cannot offer you the assurances of quality and satisfaction afforded by the Aqua Lung Warranty Program. If you would like to verify whether or not a reatiler is an authorized Aqua Lung Dealer, please call (760) 597-5000"

Just wanted to point out that even though you can purchase cheaper online it may not be the best thing to do in the long run.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I have been lurking on the board here for a little while. Just started diving back in March. Have my OW and working on my AOW. Been learning and awful lot just reading the forums. But now I have an opportunity to contrubute for once. Having just been certified I am new to all the equipment and have been doing a lot of research. The dive shop I went through offered an Aqua Lung package to the students of the class. I checked online and found the price the shop was offering was about $100 more than LeasurePro. Wanting to support my local shop so I made my purchase from them. Good thing I did. I am sitting here looking at the back of the Auqa Lung/Sea Quest/Apeks/Suunto warrenty card and it says "beware of any retailer that offers to sell and ship our life supporting products by mail, or orders placed by phone or the Internet. These retailers are NOT authorized Aqua Lung Dealers. All authorized Aqua Lung Dealers must execute a Dealer Agreement that does not allow the sale of Aqua Lung products except "in-store." Many Aqua Lung dealers advertise on the Internet, but are not allowed to deliver our products other than "over the counter." This is our assurance that you will recieve the proper pre-sale, point-of-sale, and post sale assistance, and that only tarined and certified divers use our products. If you obtain our product from one of these retailers, your warranty is therefore not valid and we cannot offer you the assurances of quality and satisfaction afforded by the Aqua Lung Warranty Program. If you would like to verify whether or not a reatiler is an authorized Aqua Lung Dealer, please call (760) 597-5000"

Just wanted to point out that even though you can purchase cheaper online it may not be the best thing to do in the long run.

Although Leisurepro is not an authorized Aqualung dealer, the store does offer its own in-house warranty which is supposed to be "as good as" the manufacturer's warranty. This is clearly stated on the LP website. FYI, LP also does reg servicing, so if you like to stick with the Aqualung every-other-year overhaul schedule, I don't think there would be any significant long-term price difference. You would have to send your reg into LP, though, to get it serviced. That would incur extra shipping costs and added inconvenience if you needed reg tuning to be tweaked a little.

There are pros and cons to paying extra for the official manufacturer's warranty. This has been discussed on numerous past threads, so I won't reiterate them here.

One of my buddies bought a Scubapro reg setup from LP several years ago. He has been very happy with the purchase. Rather than getting it serviced annually (as stipulated by Scubapro to maintain the warranty and free-overhaul-parts-for-life policy), he monitors the health of his reg periodically (with a separate i.p. gauge) and arranges servicing as necessary. With proper maintenance and perhaps a little luck, he went approx. 6 years between overhauls. He has had far fewer issues with his reg than my other friends who have been adhering to an annual service schedule with their Scubapro regs. Something to think about...

Addendum: Recently (in the last year?) Aqualung has begun to allow authorized Aqualung dealers to sell merchandise online. If you visit the Aqualung website, you'll be presented with the option of purchasing scuba gear shipped to you directly from the manufacturer or to be held for you (and picked up) at a local Aqualung dealer. I believe that in the latter option the local dealer might earn a "referral" commission.

 

[jlevine]

I have a couple of comments in addition to the great input thus far. Octo's are usually colored yellow to make them easy to identify.

While there is certainly no "law" about it, it is a convention that is quite useful underwater when other color hoses may look different. If you choose to have another regulator be your spare/emergency reg, it would be important to make sure that the hose is long enough to pass to someone else. Or, if you are using your Octo with the long hose and the other reg has a shorter hose, be prepared to switch them if the need arises.

I used to have a Scubapro Knighthawk (great BCD) and the dive shop added an Air 2 onto the inflator. The Air 2 has the ability to function as an emergency reg. After a while, I didn't feel comfortable not having a regular Octo so I bought one. I'd rather follow the same convention my dive buddies use. I don't think I would ever buy an Air 2 type of inflator/reg again (but that's for another thread).

Whatever works for you as long as you know what to do in an emergency situation.

jsl

Hello, I have a question about diving that I cant seem to find an answer to by just browsing online. That is: If buying an Octo is cheaper than buying a normal/primary regulator, then why cant you use the octo as your primary if this would enable you to buy a better reg? Could you buy two octos and use one as back up and the other as primary?

Thanks for the help!

 

[cscoble]

When I finally set up my own gear I bought both the primary and octo regs the same - that is both are Apollo Prestige fully balanced and flow adjustable. The very simple reason was that on the Deep dive of my Advanced Plus course my buddy had a major freak out because his dive school reg was breathing hard at depth (there was absolutely nothing wrong with it, it was working exactly the same as mine), so when he looked around fro an alternative source of air he grabbed the one that was clearly working.....mine! The very next day (18 years ago) I ordered my own gear and put no price on my own life. 2000 odd dives later, I've had to use my Octo a dozen or more times. Please remember you only get what you pay for....and your more likely to be the one needing the insurance of a high quality reg.You don't need to spend a fortune, but consider a matching pair....you wont get any surprises that way.

Oh, and one more thing.....Get your Regs serviced annually, even when I wasn't diving for a 2 year period I had the regs serviced......a small price to pay when your life depends on your gear.

Now out you go and get wet!

 

[scubadiveilat]

An Octopus is designed to be as a backup or for emergencies. The structure of an Octopus is not built tough in most cases. A regulator is built to have durability and to with stand every day use. same as Octopus with the exception that a Regulator is build with stronger materials rather than just plastic(in some cases.)

Also when diving with others! consider them. Underwater if a diver needs air and is looking for your "octopus" and you have two of them in the same color? they may grab the one your using instead of the intended octopus.

Thus, the system setup of a Regulator being a black or dark color, distinguishes it from an Octopus being a brighter color yellow or green. So divers know which is which. Especially new and novas.

Today you can get reg's at a really reasonable price. and octopuses too. By once a good one and dive safely without any concerns.

Have fun diving and enjoy!!!!

 

[Seraphimx]

Reading through all these post I couldn't help but notice that there wasn't any mention of an exposure suit.

If I could buy my stuff all over again I would do it this way.

1- Basic fin, mask, boot, get this first 100%, shop those thought, some dive shop really sell those way too expensive, sometimes over 200% of what you can find online or at some other shops. Don't buy the special package, try one mask and if you like it buy it, not because it's in the DEAL but because IT FITS.
2- Exposure suit, it's fit for you and you only, having rented regs is better than rented wetsuit IMO.
3- BCD, get a used BCD, IMO it is the most OVERPRICED piece of equipement, I bought a used Oceanic BackInflated Vest almost new at 200$ on scubaboard when I started. I loved it so much I went to a BP and WING setup right afterwards.
4- Computer, getting a dive watch or a sports watch is 100$ getting a computer nowadays is 150$-250$
5- Regulator setup, getting the right reg setup is hard, check out used or on sale regs is good too. My LDS had overstock Hollis selling at 50%-250$, sometime it's just waiting the right moment to buy it. You also need to check the "yearly service RATE".
6- Tanks, I'd wait till you have enough dives 100+ to buy tanks, when you start you use lots of air, getting a bigger tanks isn't really a solution, just rent AL80's and wait till you get better on your SAC rate and get Steel afterwards.

 

[Seraphimx]

To the original question, once again, OCTO=REGS, check Scubapro, their octos have the same Number as the Regulator R290 - R290 Octo, it's just the coloring and longer hose.


Just to give more info here's what I did WRONG with my gear:

1- Fin Mask Package:
Bought it at some LDS I've always went to check out their gear. Bought a PACKAGE because it was a DEAL. It was almost as expensive as buying seperate.
The snorkel was a crappy it fell apart after a few uses (I rinse my stuff after every dive or snorkel)
The Fins were good
The Mask didn't fit, it hurt to wear it.
I had to buy once again a Mask and a tuba later on
2- Exposure Suit:
I bought it later in the game, nothing wrong with it. Would have been better to keep $ and buy it at first.
3- BCD:
Hopped around and swapped BCD's. Until I found what I liked, at 500-700$ a BCD, I wouldn't have done it if I had bought new ones. So I bought used ones at 200$ each.
4- Computer:
Didn't buy a computer, at first not to spend $ I bought a 100$ watch, later I bought a 800$ computer, sold everything and finally bought a basic computer at 250$. Buy a computer it's a good tool to have.
5- Regulator:
Bought an Apeks Regulator set with Warranty. The LDS charged me 120$ with "FREE" parts. Sold it, bought new ScubaPro's, I pay 60$ a year for a "checkup". Some used regulators I bought so cheap it's cheaper to buy it used and pay the parts. Renting is easier sometimes IMO.
6- Tanks:
RENT, I bought 2x AL80 and I use them, but the $/use is as much as renting, and you don't have to take care of the Hydro, VIZ and whatnot.

I repeated myself on some points but what I meant to say is this:

Buy some good gear with the 1200$ that you CAN'T RENT. Computer, Suit, Knife, Reel etc. etc.
Rent the rest until your sure about what you want.

A reg setup is somewhere around 500+ range. it's around 15-18$/2 dives to rent reg.
- A reg setup becomes profitable after +30x 2dives = 60dives

A computer is 250$ it's 20$ to rent
- A computer becomes desirable after 12.5x 2dives = 25dives

The vest is the most overpriced piece of equipment, seriously 500$-700$ for some Cordura stitched in China at 100$ a piece? 50$? You can find a good used BCD for 200-300$ and get it checked for 25$.

Continue doing the maths and you'll see that you're better off renting until you have 20ish + dives, by that time, you'll know what Brand etc. you'll want.

 

[Mndiv]

Wow, thanks for all the help, I just finished reading all the posts!! I finished my pool training yesterday and am doing my open water dives on July 16-17th weekend. During the pool sessions I used a Back-inflate BCD, and although I haven't tried a jacket-style BCD, (I plan to) I have to say that I am definitely reconsidering getting a back-inflate (goes to show how much trying equipment can change your opinion). I am considering getting the EDGE Stelth 2, EDGE Epic octo, EDGE Epic octo, and EDGE Epic Cold Water sealed first stage after I have a few more dives under my belt. I see the the advantage to buying at the LDS, but with my budget I have and the prices they sell, I don't think I can (I can get a primary + first stage for abour $450.00 and thats lower end). I have heard from many that EDGE regs are just as good as Oceanics or other top brands, so it seems a good fit, that I can afford while not cutting corners on quality. The price analysis is a good idea, I will certainly do that for all the equipment I am considering before I buy it. I know that there is a big advantage to getting a computer, as it gives you more bottom time, etc. and one that appeals to me is Aeris XR-1 for $250.00 including a compass. It is not nitrox capable but if I decide I need a nitrox one I won't be able to afford a computer at all.

I also see how a wetsuit needs to fit snuggly, and I won't take it out of my sights to get one, but since I am 15 and still growing, I can almost expect to get a new one next year, and then the question is is it even worth it?

One question I have, is my instructor was explaining the difference between Yoke and DIN system, and since you can always switch from DIN to Yoke with a simple converter, but not from Yoke to DIN. I am from Germany where DIN was invented, and in general Europe uses pretty much all DIN, and although in the US Yoke is what practically everything is, doesn't it naturally make sense to get a DIN regulator, even if you are not a tech diver, so you have the option of using both tanks? Correct if I'm wrong or the solution is more complex, but if that is the truth, I would settle with a DIN first stage for sure.

Thanks for all your time - Nils

 

[Seraphimx]

Regs:
1) Check first how much the LDS will charge you to fix those regs.
2) If they can get the parts.
3) Will they let you buy the parts and they provide labour.
I happened once to be charge 120$ to repair a reg that had FREE parts, sold it and went to another LDS that charges me 60$. See the difference? Be careful.

BCD:
-That looks like a sweet BCD. Good luck

Wetsuit:
-Good call, I can't fit into my wetsuit that I bought in college 4-5 years ago, so yeah. Good Call.

Computer:
-I bought the SubGear XP10, rebrande Uwatec Aladin. Does nitrox and sells at 250$ MSRP. Find a ScubaPro dealer and if he charges more than 250$ tell him he's higher than MSRP. It's on ScubaLab. (Also the connection to PC is Infrared so a 20$ adapter works, not a 150$ cable)
SUBGEAR
60:Second ScubaLab: SubGear XP-10 Computer | Scuba Diving Magazine

Din to Yoke:
I have thought the same thing. I have bought DIN and use the adapter, it's bulky.
I'd say buy the yoke one and keep it like that since you'll be renting tanks with YOKE on it for a year or more
But that's just a preference.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

5- Regulator:
Bought an Apeks Regulator set with Warranty. The LDS charged me 120$ with "FREE" parts. Sold it, bought new ScubaPro's, I pay 60$ a year for a "checkup".

@Seraphimx: In order to keep the free-overhaul-parts-for-life policy in effect, Apeks regs need to be overhauled every 2 years. The in-between years only require an "inspection" which takes a couple of minutes to do. (I do a similar reg "inspection" before every dive.) My LDS often does such "inspections" at no charge. This servicing schedule assumes that the reg is functioning well.

On the other hand, Scubapro regs need to be overhauled annually in order to keep the free-overhaul-parts-for-life policy in effect. This is not just a "checkup" or "inspection."

Essentially, it sounds like with either reg setup, you would be paying about $120 every 2 years for servicing. Or am I missing something?

This may have already occurred to you, but it probably would have made sense to keep your Apeks regs and get them serviced at the second dive shop for $60 every 2 years. Assuming that you wanted to maintain the free-overhaul-parts-for-life policy, that would have cut your reg servicing costs in half.