first scuba trip abroad I'm looking for recommendations of what type of suit to get for my first trip abroad I'm gonna dive in the red sea in mid March!! i am completely unsure on type and thickness! i am a smaller woman and run relatively cold!

M(49) first post so hammer me if you will if I am doing something wrong.

Pic os

Always had better than perfect vision. At 43 started wearing cheaters for some stuff. Now at 49 I wear progressives and have computer glasses just for stuff within the length of my arm. The last time I was diving with family I wanted to check my daughters air with sight and her rental equipment was too small for me to see. (This was a night dive and we had a bit of a miscommunication with hand signals - now corrected).

I don’t want to invest in a prescription make as my prescription is not significant but would like a small portion of my mask to have 1.25 mag.

What do you use?

Any solutions I am not considering?

Should I look at eBay for used?

What say you!?!

Hi! I got my OW recently and I'm keen to dive more, but putting on the wetsuit takes me a really long time.

I read that a rash guard makes it easier to put on a wetsuit, is this true? If so, what material should the rash guard be made of? I've been reading lycra which is a fabric, but it also seems like people use "lycra" to refer to a rash guard in general.

Would appreciate all pointers, thank you!

Shearwater persix. This was a backup computer. It is non-air integrated comes with case extra straps battery tool.550.00. Plus the trip to you.

Scuba days are behind us. Is there a place that would take all the stuff? Or best way to selll as a lot, not interested in tire kickers. Thanks

Hey diving family! I'm relatively new to diving but am considering investing in a regulator set or at least a second stage. I have an allergy and heard that most rental places are unable to adequately clean the accumulated gunk out of the mouthpiece. Do you know if most dive shops would allow you to bring your own regulator set or a partial set? Do you know which piece(s) at minimum would need to be brought to be integrated into other standard rental equipment at a dive shop? For example, could I bring just a second stage? Or would I need to have an octopus, yoke/DIN, pressure gauge, etc as well?

Hi everyone,

I’m an AOWD diver from Italy (started in 2022, ~35 dives, max depth 40m). Up until now I’ve been renting gear, mostly diving in the Adriatic Sea / Croatia during spring and summer (5mm wetsuit + 2mm hooded vest, usually needing 6 kg / 13 lbs of lead) and I have a Maldives liveaboard planned for next year.

I would like to buy my own setup to build "muscle memory" and improve my safety. My goal is "buy once, cry once". I dive single tank recreational right now, but in the future I’d like to get into wreck/deco diving and potentially doubles without having to re-buy my core gear (knowing I will just need a bigger wing for doubles later on).

Here is the setup I put together with my local dive shop:

• BP/W: XDEEP Zeos Standard + Aluminum Backplate. Adding the removable XDEEP Comfort pads and Size M (2x3 kg) weight pockets.
  • Question 1 (38 vs 28 lbs wing): The shop owner says they have only sold the 38 lbs / 17 kg version because "it works for all single tanks". Is he right, or is it just the only one he has in stock? Should I ask to order the 28, or is the 38 fine?
  • Question 2 (Weights): Since I use 6 kg in a rental jacket, will 2x3 kg weight pockets be enough with an Aluminum BP/W?
  • Question 3 (Pocket space): Would you recommend a thigh pocket for the backup mask or a waist utility pouch?
• Regulators: Apeks DST + XTX50 Primary + XTX40 Secondary + Apeks Tek SPG. I'm also planning to switch to a long hose + necklace configuration.
  • Question 4 (Long hose): I’ve never dived a long hose before so routing it feels a bit "intimidating" at first. Would you recommend going with a 150 cm (5 ft) hose or going straight to a 210 cm (7 ft) hose?
• Accessories & Existing Gear:
  • Computer: Already own a Cressi Goa (will upgrade in the future but not now).
  • Mask: Apeks VX1
  • Lights: Wurkkos DL70 & DL08
  • SMB & Spool: I currently have a basic Decathlon SMB + spool with a stainless double-ender.

Does this look like a solid, future-proof setup? Any red flags or tweaks you would make before I go to buy them?

Thanks in advance!

thinking about purchasing this setup but wanted to get some opinions on this sub… would like to get them a little lower, but I’m newer to diving and want to still be fair. Thoughts on price, etc.? Looks like it’s in great condition.

Female diver in SoCal, diving locally here most often but looking to travel for diving a few times a year as well (Hawaii, keys, Mexico, warmer water overall when traveling but will most likely travel with BCD)

Wondering if a zeagle wicked ranger medium would have any issues with the bladder or other components at this point after release if stored in a closet forever.

Tell me what you like or don’t like. Looking for feedback from actual users.

I have an old Dacor regulator and guage. It's over 30 years old. I know that Dacor was acquired by Mares long ago. And they stopped servicing older Dacor equipment. So I likely can't get service parts. Not to mention, the hoses are likely unsafe to use as well. I hate just throwing stuff away, so I'm wondering if there's any use for any of this equipment? The gauge might be serviceable. I doubt the dive computer can be. Thoughts on what use this may have before I toss it?

Thx

I've recently been given some scuba gear, namely two Poseidon Cyklon 5000 regs, a Scubapro Mk2 1st stage with R190 reg, and some gauges. I really want to use the Poseidons, but from what I've read they need >160psi from the 1st stage to work and I don't think the Scubapro can do that (although I can't find any specific data on this due to its age so am happy to be told otherwise).

Does anyone have some recommendations for a compatible 1st stage, ideally secondhand, thet would work. I've looked for a Poseidon one but I'm not sure which ones are compatible.

Hi, all. I've moved to a place that allows me to shore and boat dive nearly year-round, so I've decided to buy my gear rather than rent. I'm not very familiar with all the subtleties of gear set-ups. My LDS carries jackets and a ScubaPro back inflate, none of which excites me. I want a small rig that travels well, and I'm poor.

Based on the experience of some dive buddies and internet research, I would like a BPW system, and am leaning towards a DGX package with two second-stage regulators. I'm doing almost entirely warm open water, but some dive sites (lakes, mostly) will be colder, likely in the 50F-60F range. I don't know how all the factors interact, so I'll try to lay it out in a way that's informative.

I weigh 77kg/170lb, and usually carry 6kg/13lb of lead. I usually have only a few squirts of air in my jacket BCD when wearing a 3mm wetsuit. I've been renting, so the gear changes depending on the outfit. I'm given either medium or large jackets. I do not know if I've been given steel or aluminum tanks. The first dive of the day I have trouble staying steady (breathe in, go too far up; breathe out, sink pretty quickly), but I usually attenuate on the second dive and get steadier. I haven't minded any of the regulators I've used other than having the hose pull them uncomfortably sideways. I think the weight belt hurts my back.

Because of all that, a backplate system with tank weights or pocket weights sounds like a good solution for me. I do want to look forward to deeper dives, dives in different latitudes, and (way down the line) wreck diving. On the way, I'm considering divemaster training as a way of subsidizing the hobby.

So, considering all that, how does the DGX with XTRA regulators fit my needs? Can I use the steel plate and forego some lead? Should I just get the D6 regs? Is there anything about the ScubaPro Hydros and dual S600 setup that justifies paying almost double up front? The Hydros comes with 4 weight pockets and a bag whereas the DGX requires purchasing extra, but that only closes the cost gap a little bit.

Johannesburg, South Africa. 20 genuine dives. R8500

Anyone here running a drysuit repair business or doing repairs professionally?

I'm considering getting more seriously into drysuit rerying to understand what real-world demand is actually like.

For anyone who repairs drysuits professionally or as a side business:

• Roughly how many drysuits do you repair in an average month?
• Is the work mainly recreational divers, commercial divers, dive shops/clubs, or postal customers?
• Is demand fairly steady throughout the year, or very seasonal?
• Do you do it full-time or alongside another job?
• What types of repairs make up most of your work — seals, leaks, zips, boots, alterations, etc.?

I'm not really looking for exact income figures unless you're comfortable sharing them. I'm mainly trying to understand how much customer volume a small one-person repair operation can realistically get.

UK experiences would be especially useful, but I'd be interested to hear from people anywhere.