freewillie
Contributor
There are two issues IMO. The first is, how often do you think you will dive? How much can you afford to buy, and is it worth the $$ to have gear that you may use only few times a year? I've found that rentals can range from top line gear to passable and not very good. For that reason alone I don't want my scuba trip ruined by crappy rentals. Why shell out thousands of bucks for that scuba vacation only to have it ruined by crappy gear?
Recently I took my 13 year old daughter to Catalina Island to kelp dive off of Avalon beach. I checked out a number dive shops online, checked out a few threads here on SB. I picked out a dive shop, they were really nice but I had called several times to asked about renting gear from them. I even confirmed that they had cold water gear for kids. They said that they had lots of gear for kids and that it wouldn't be a problem. The wetsuit and BC fit her well, but that was about all. They didn't have a hood, gloves or booties small enough for her and wound up putting her in full foot fins that didn't fit well to begin with and she dove in 53 degree water with no hood or gloves. What was supposed to be a two tank dive became a single tank dive and we called the second dive because she was uncomfortable, cold, and miserable. She may have tried a second time if I had pushed her but diving is supposed to be fun, not miserable.
After that I came home, went online and she now has hood, wetsuit, fins and booties. By the time we go diving again she'll complete the ensemble with mask and gloves. For now we'll rent her BC and regs but I may buy her a good set of regs that she can have for years.
As others have said, you don't really have to buy all the gear at once. But my $0.02 is start with personal fit items especially if you are hard to fit.
In order I personally recommend starting with:
1) Wetsuit. Nothing will ruin your dive quicker than being cold and miserable. Keep in mind you can get hypothermia even in warm water if you have multiple dives over multiple days. Proper exposure to elements is a must.
2) BC. Personal fit item but also is the foundation for all your other gear. I personally feel more comfortable diving when I know with my eyes closed where I've placed my octo, console gauge, etc. It's like rental cars v. your own car. You might have to look for little bit to find where the light switch is for the headlights in a rental. Same for your BC.
3) Computer v. Regs. At this point I'd say get either next depending on cost, or both if you can afford. I'd vote for computer since I had two instances where the rental computer on the console malfunctioned. After the second incident I went online and found a entry level dive computer as open box demo for $125, well over half off the price if brand new. My LDS rents Atomic Z2 regs and since I'm a regular I always get dibs so I've not felt a strong need to purchase my regs right away.
Sorry if it's a little long. As posters have already mentioned accumulating scuba gear never stops. I must confess I've been inflicted with this incurable illness as GrumpyOldGuy has put it. And, not only do I have it for myself I can now add my illness with need to purchase gear for my daughter too!!
Recently I took my 13 year old daughter to Catalina Island to kelp dive off of Avalon beach. I checked out a number dive shops online, checked out a few threads here on SB. I picked out a dive shop, they were really nice but I had called several times to asked about renting gear from them. I even confirmed that they had cold water gear for kids. They said that they had lots of gear for kids and that it wouldn't be a problem. The wetsuit and BC fit her well, but that was about all. They didn't have a hood, gloves or booties small enough for her and wound up putting her in full foot fins that didn't fit well to begin with and she dove in 53 degree water with no hood or gloves. What was supposed to be a two tank dive became a single tank dive and we called the second dive because she was uncomfortable, cold, and miserable. She may have tried a second time if I had pushed her but diving is supposed to be fun, not miserable.
After that I came home, went online and she now has hood, wetsuit, fins and booties. By the time we go diving again she'll complete the ensemble with mask and gloves. For now we'll rent her BC and regs but I may buy her a good set of regs that she can have for years.
As others have said, you don't really have to buy all the gear at once. But my $0.02 is start with personal fit items especially if you are hard to fit.
In order I personally recommend starting with:
1) Wetsuit. Nothing will ruin your dive quicker than being cold and miserable. Keep in mind you can get hypothermia even in warm water if you have multiple dives over multiple days. Proper exposure to elements is a must.
2) BC. Personal fit item but also is the foundation for all your other gear. I personally feel more comfortable diving when I know with my eyes closed where I've placed my octo, console gauge, etc. It's like rental cars v. your own car. You might have to look for little bit to find where the light switch is for the headlights in a rental. Same for your BC.
3) Computer v. Regs. At this point I'd say get either next depending on cost, or both if you can afford. I'd vote for computer since I had two instances where the rental computer on the console malfunctioned. After the second incident I went online and found a entry level dive computer as open box demo for $125, well over half off the price if brand new. My LDS rents Atomic Z2 regs and since I'm a regular I always get dibs so I've not felt a strong need to purchase my regs right away.
Sorry if it's a little long. As posters have already mentioned accumulating scuba gear never stops. I must confess I've been inflicted with this incurable illness as GrumpyOldGuy has put it. And, not only do I have it for myself I can now add my illness with need to purchase gear for my daughter too!!
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