What equipments should I buy first?

[Tacticaltj]

Patrick,
Snorkel-Get something without the floats, valves and BS attached to the top. It should cost about $15-. A valve at the bottom for venting water is ok, but, thats about it. I like a snorkel with a flexible hose between the mouthpiece and the tube, which allows the mouthpiece to flop outta the way. Others like a mouthpiece that has a fixed bend (not a flexible tube) that swing outta the way. Either way your good to go. Either way Keep It Simple.

Fins- I named three above. Go online after you get the proper fit. Check out Ebay. 3X is nuts!! Split fin IS the way to go. Any one of the above and your good to go.

M

 

[scubamickey]

I really love this board! Many experienced divers help answering newbie's questions. :-D Thank you everyone for detail answers. For now I'll be buying only goggle, fins, bootie, glove, wet suit, and snorkel (I didn't even know there is a snorkeling snorkel and scuba snorkel, thanks TacticalTJ) and wait until... maybe next year to buy BC and regulator.


Thanks again,
Patrick

To HarryWhisman, thanks for welcome me the club. Yup I think I'm gonna love it :->

Patrick, goggles are the things you use to swim laps in a pool. For diving you use a mask. Totally different. You need to stop calling it goggles or people will laugh at you

 

[H20Bubbles]

Patrick,

Who are you doing your certification with in Chicago? We are out in the Western suburbs and have been going through Underseas (www.underseas.com).

As everyone said, you should buy mask, snokel, fins, booties. Everything else (wetsuit, BC, regs, tanks, etc.), you can typically rent from your LDS for your certification and future dives.

Spend some time here on the forums reading about fins (split vs. normal - most people recommend normal). Read about BC's and regulators. Read about computers.

That way when it does come time to buy your gear, you will be better informed.

As for LDS's... I do recommend Underseas. So far our experiences with them have been fantastic. They are very knowledgable, and have worked some good gear deals for us.

If you have any other questions, feel free to PM us.

 

[Captain CaveMan]

Hello pat. what part of chicago are you from? I near Joilet area and went to just about every dive shop in chicago. all the shops ae realy nice and will help you with what you need. as far a the wet suit goes. a 7mm with a hood will be nice be save up for a dry suit. for diving in all difrent types of weather. i have a 2 pice 7mm and i only use it in the middle of summer other than that its all most to cold...

 

[Diver Dave 69]

Pat,
I dive on Long Island and use a 7mm one piece from about the end of June to about October then any other time I go Dry (I like to be very toasty when I dive). I bought my set up before I got my C-Card and I don't regret any of it. With almost 40 dives I have already paid it of with the amount I would have spent in renting gear (about $75 for all the gear for a day). Yes I want to upgrade my BC to BP/W but hey it never hurts to have back up equipment either. If you love this sport some how money becomes no object. As for fins I have a pair of both regular and splits. I love them both for different types of diving. When I'm in a dry suit I prefer regular fins. As for snorkels, masks, gloves, boots, etc its all bells and whistles that you will eventually want such as hard soled boots (I love those for beach dives, sooths the painfull rocks). Its all opinion and you will end up changing stuff any way, so hop in and enjoy the diving its all well worth it.

 

[StSomewhere]

So-called "dry" snorkels are only good for snorkeling. They are a waste of money for diving. It won't stay "dry" while you are diving, I can assure you of that. Actually, no snorkel is very good for diving, which is why you shouldn't spend much $$$ on one.

 

[ppatrick]

UWSojourner and TacticalTJ, thanks for your advice. Ok, 3X is nuts, I’ll find a split one that cost a bit more than the normal fin.

Peter_C, your view is reasonable (about doing the math). Honestly, I have no clue how much does it cost to rent BC, regulator, and a tank in my area. I’ll have to do a lot of research and dive for a while before buying those expensive equipment.

ScubaMickey, thanks for the correct term. You’ll be the last one who laugh at me for that. :-D

H20Bubbles. I’m going to COD, College Of DuPage, in Glen Ellen. The instructors in the class (lecture and pool) come from IID, Illinois Institute of Diving, dive shop in Wheaton. What do you think about their shop? How was the class provided by Underseas? Do you belong to any diving club in the western suburb?

Captain CaveMan, I live in south Downers Grove (pretty close to I-55). We are not far from each other. … You have a 7mm wet suit. Is that too hot for summer dive (say if the day temperature is about 90)? Do you belong to any diving club in the south western suburb?

Diver Dave 69, thanks for sharing your experience. Since I really enjoy having aquariums and watching marine life on TV, I think I’m gonna like scuba diving a lot. I hope that money will become no object like you mentioned.

StSomewhere, thanks for your opinion about the dry snorkel.

 

[ProfessorAronnax]

You can easily spend a fortune on gear. It really isn't neccessary. For starters, a regular snorkel, a mask that fits, and some decent boots/fins will be more than adequate(should be able to get perfectly good fins for under $100.) When you decide to make some purchases, the reviews at Scuba Diving Mag are very helpful, as well as asking around.

Rap

 

[scubapro50]

There are a lot discussion on what a "newbie" should buy first. Just about everybody will agree that a good mask and fins are numbers 1 and 2 at the top of your list. What most new divers don't know is that the 1st night of class your instructer should go over all your basic equipment needs and you and the rest of the class can discuss the importance of owning your own equipment vs renting the stuff. Depending on where you are and how much diving you plan will determine your choices. I purchased a good regulator and gauges next ...... followed by my BC. Later I bought a wetsuit and purchased my tanks last. That's how I did it and it worked great for me.

 

[Scuba Jerm]

I went to the LDS today and did some browsing. The shop owner recommended me a dry snorkel that has some mechanism to prevent water from coming in. So inside of the snorkel will always dry. Is this what you called dive snorkel? He also convinced me to get a split fin instead of a normal fin. He said that it would take much less effort to kick. Is it true? The price of the split fin is almost 3 times of the normal fin! Is it really worthy? Should I stick with the traditional fin or the split fin?


Thanks,
Patrick

I have a pair of Spit fins made by Aeris (Velocity Duo open heel) They are great, but you'll need some booties too, which I think is the best setup unless you live in Hawaii or Fiji The split fin does make it easier on the legs without compromising power.... check them out online, that is the best.... but beware if the price is too good to be true, it usually is. You get what you pay for. Have fun