Where to buy my gear (and/or what brand to get)?

[Jim Lapenta]

Don't know why it didn't divide my post and his. read between the lines starting with you,333 and you're

 

[Poseidon8118]

Top Dogs:

Mares Abyss
Aqua-Lung Legend
Scubapro S600, X650 or G250hp Mk/25
Apex ATX 200 or ATX100
Poseidon Xstream Deep
Atomic from Z1 to T1
Tusa X-pert RS-460 (just like Scubapro)
Zeagle 50D ZX Flathead

And if you want to dive the polar ice caps:

Sherwood Maximus
Mares Proton Ice
Aqua-Lung Legend Supreme
Zeagle VI/ZX Flathead

No one company is best…your trying to compare GM to Ford to Daimler…at the top end all companies have excellent products. Hope this helps? Maybe some others on the board can add more to this list…

 

[hex92]

To paraphrase what someone else said. If Scubatoys was within 30 miles of my house, thats where I would buy 90% of my gear. You want the best reg. Buy a Scubapro. We can all argue till we are blue in the face, but in the end Scubapro will always be rated in the top 3 or 4. They carry Scubapro there (but they can't sell them online or over the phone).

Of course I live in Virginia so I am nowhere close to Dallas. Therefore I shop online. I bought a reg off Leisurepro's site last Monday night while watching football. I had it in my hand on Wednesday. You can't beat that.

 

[TSandM]

This is probably going to sound naive to more "savvy" people . . . but my husband and I bought the Aqualung Titan regulator and second stage, and we have gone a number of places and had people tell us that it was a very good value-for-the-money decision. I have asked our LDS in what way we could have "improved" upon it, and what they have said is that the design may be more prone to freezing if the water temperatures get into the 30s. If someone is only diving warm water, does this matter? Why spend the money for the top of the line, if something else is going to be every bit as good in the conditions where you are going to use it? I, for one, am not going to get INTO the water if it's in the 30's . . .

 

[ZzzKing]

They very well may stock aqualung regs, but can't advertise them on their site. Same with scubapro; I know they sell those, but not online.

Scubatoys doesn't sell Aqualung or Apeks in the shop either. They do sell Atomic Aquatics, Scubapro, Mares/Dacor, Oceanic, CressiSub, Sherwood, Tusa and a few others that I forget right now. I know of one shop in Richardson (Central @ Arapaho) and one in Dallas (Greenville @ Southwestern) that sell Aqualung regs. Also, there is a shop in Hillsboro if you REALLY want to drive. You might try those places if you really want the Legend. There are probably other places as well. The shop in Richardson is about 20 miles closer to you than Scubatoys, also.

I agree with you about buying online seeming like a good deal. I found an Aqualung Titan LX for $216. One local shop wanted $395. That's quite a gouge! I ended up buying an Atomic Aquatics over the counter at Scubatoys.

 

[theskull]

This is probably going to sound naive to more "savvy" people . . . but my husband and I bought the Aqualung Titan regulator and second stage, and we have gone a number of places and had people tell us that it was a very good value-for-the-money decision. I have asked our LDS in what way we could have "improved" upon it, and what they have said is that the design may be more prone to freezing if the water temperatures get into the 30s. If someone is only diving warm water, does this matter? Why spend the money for the top of the line, if something else is going to be every bit as good in the conditions where you are going to use it? I, for one, am not going to get INTO the water if it's in the 30's . . .

Good advice, TSandM! The AL Titan is an excellent reg at a great price. Breathes smooth and really takes a beating. A good long-term value.

theskull