Regulator choice ?

"Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
news:u7XHj.4262$n8.549@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>
> "dechucka" <dechucka@vomithotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:47f03784$0$13278$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
>>
>> "Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
>> news:VrVHj.4218$n8.1588@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>>>I know i'm probably going to open a tin of worms here but :
>>>
>>> Im looking to purchase my first regulator set (1st stage, 2nd stage &
>>> occy), and I've narrowed it down to just few after lots of reading &
>>> researching etc...
>>>
>>> Tusa : RS-110 / SS-110
>>>
>>> Oceanic : Alpha 8 ( reg & occy)
>>>
>>> AquaLung : Calipso reg / ABS occy
>>>
>>> Opinions for final decision please ...?
>>>
>>> BTW, I'll probably do most of my diving in Victoria to max 30 meters..
>>
>> Hope you've got a nice thick wetsuit .
>>
>> I can't really comment on the sets. However when I bought quite a while
>> ago major consideration after getting down to a short list was ease of
>> getting them serviced ( does your local LDS do them or is there somewhere
>> close ), ease of getting spares ( if you have to ship away to the US for
>> a part it becomes expensive and you have to hire or get loan gear ) and
>> price ( are you willing to pay for the extra features that separate the
>> cheapest from the most expensive and do you need them)
>>
>
> yeah good points... well I have both Tusa and Oceanic dealers quite near
> by, though I think Oceanic is more localized ("Oceanic Australia")... so
> possibly leaning that way now... on the other hand, my BCD is a Tusa
> Platina...and some people say it's easier if everything is serviced at one
> place... but as I said...both dealers are near by..anyway..
>
> I must say, I do prefer the all yellow occy of the Tusa...just for safety
> reasons..

well that is a feature that you should consider than. It will help you find
it when a panicked diver sees the blowing bubbles and grabs it our of your
mouth ;-(

>
> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..

You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those sailing
in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet

>
> Got that down to :
> Pinnacle (aka Parragon) Elastiprene 7mm
> Bare 7mm Arctic
> AquaLung Aquaflex 7mm
> and a few others too..
>
> bc
>

"Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
news:u7XHj.4262$n8.549@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>
> "dechucka" <dechucka@vomithotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:47f03784$0$13278$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
>>
>> "Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
>> news:VrVHj.4218$n8.1588@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>>>I know i'm probably going to open a tin of worms here but :
>>>
>>> Im looking to purchase my first regulator set (1st stage, 2nd stage &
>>> occy), and I've narrowed it down to just few after lots of reading &
>>> researching etc...
>>>
>>> Tusa : RS-110 / SS-110
>>>
>>> Oceanic : Alpha 8 ( reg & occy)
>>>
>>> AquaLung : Calipso reg / ABS occy
>>>
>>> Opinions for final decision please ...?
>>>
>>> BTW, I'll probably do most of my diving in Victoria to max 30 meters..
>>
>> Hope you've got a nice thick wetsuit .
>>
>> I can't really comment on the sets. However when I bought quite a while
>> ago major consideration after getting down to a short list was ease of
>> getting them serviced ( does your local LDS do them or is there somewhere
>> close ), ease of getting spares ( if you have to ship away to the US for
>> a part it becomes expensive and you have to hire or get loan gear ) and
>> price ( are you willing to pay for the extra features that separate the
>> cheapest from the most expensive and do you need them)
>>
>
> yeah good points... well I have both Tusa and Oceanic dealers quite near
> by, though I think Oceanic is more localized ("Oceanic Australia")... so
> possibly leaning that way now... on the other hand, my BCD is a Tusa
> Platina...and some people say it's easier if everything is serviced at one
> place... but as I said...both dealers are near by..anyway..
>
> I must say, I do prefer the all yellow occy of the Tusa...just for safety
> reasons..

well that is a feature that you should consider than. It will help you find
it when a panicked diver sees the blowing bubbles and grabs it our of your
mouth ;-(

>
> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..

You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those sailing
in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet

>
> Got that down to :
> Pinnacle (aka Parragon) Elastiprene 7mm
> Bare 7mm Arctic
> AquaLung Aquaflex 7mm
> and a few others too..
>
> bc
>

"Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
news:u7XHj.4262$n8.549@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>
> "dechucka" <dechucka@vomithotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:47f03784$0$13278$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
>>
>> "Hi-Soft" <nospam@spam.com> wrote in message
>> news:VrVHj.4218$n8.1588@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>>>I know i'm probably going to open a tin of worms here but :
>>>
>>> Im looking to purchase my first regulator set (1st stage, 2nd stage &
>>> occy), and I've narrowed it down to just few after lots of reading &
>>> researching etc...
>>>
>>> Tusa : RS-110 / SS-110
>>>
>>> Oceanic : Alpha 8 ( reg & occy)
>>>
>>> AquaLung : Calipso reg / ABS occy
>>>
>>> Opinions for final decision please ...?
>>>
>>> BTW, I'll probably do most of my diving in Victoria to max 30 meters..
>>
>> Hope you've got a nice thick wetsuit .
>>
>> I can't really comment on the sets. However when I bought quite a while
>> ago major consideration after getting down to a short list was ease of
>> getting them serviced ( does your local LDS do them or is there somewhere
>> close ), ease of getting spares ( if you have to ship away to the US for
>> a part it becomes expensive and you have to hire or get loan gear ) and
>> price ( are you willing to pay for the extra features that separate the
>> cheapest from the most expensive and do you need them)
>>
>
> yeah good points... well I have both Tusa and Oceanic dealers quite near
> by, though I think Oceanic is more localized ("Oceanic Australia")... so
> possibly leaning that way now... on the other hand, my BCD is a Tusa
> Platina...and some people say it's easier if everything is serviced at one
> place... but as I said...both dealers are near by..anyway..
>
> I must say, I do prefer the all yellow occy of the Tusa...just for safety
> reasons..

well that is a feature that you should consider than. It will help you find
it when a panicked diver sees the blowing bubbles and grabs it our of your
mouth ;-(

>
> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..

You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those sailing
in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet

>
> Got that down to :
> Pinnacle (aka Parragon) Elastiprene 7mm
> Bare 7mm Arctic
> AquaLung Aquaflex 7mm
> and a few others too..
>
> bc
>

>
>>
>> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
>> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..
>
> You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those
> sailing in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet
>

unfortunately YES, though only snorkeling her in Melb....not bad in mid
summer, but tried it the other day...and it was chilly after about 5
mins...booh. But not...not planning to scuba in it..not here at least....it
was great in Thailand...bloody luxury diving over there in 29 degree
water...damn...now I'm back to a thick suit and a tone of weight ;(...ah
well that's diving in Vic....

bc

>
>>
>> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
>> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..
>
> You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those
> sailing in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet
>

unfortunately YES, though only snorkeling her in Melb....not bad in mid
summer, but tried it the other day...and it was chilly after about 5
mins...booh. But not...not planning to scuba in it..not here at least....it
was great in Thailand...bloody luxury diving over there in 29 degree
water...damn...now I'm back to a thick suit and a tone of weight ;(...ah
well that's diving in Vic....

bc

>
>>
>> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
>> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..
>
> You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those
> sailing in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet
>

unfortunately YES, though only snorkeling her in Melb....not bad in mid
summer, but tried it the other day...and it was chilly after about 5
mins...booh. But not...not planning to scuba in it..not here at least....it
was great in Thailand...bloody luxury diving over there in 29 degree
water...damn...now I'm back to a thick suit and a tone of weight ;(...ah
well that's diving in Vic....

bc

>
>>
>> And...yeah...also looking into a new wetsuit too..( currently just have a
>> 3mm Tusa steamer )... that's another sagga to sift through..
>
> You haven't dived Melbourne in that have you. We used to wear those
> sailing in Melbourne and still got cold and we tried to not get to wet
>

unfortunately YES, though only snorkeling her in Melb....not bad in mid
summer, but tried it the other day...and it was chilly after about 5
mins...booh. But not...not planning to scuba in it..not here at least....it
was great in Thailand...bloody luxury diving over there in 29 degree
water...damn...now I'm back to a thick suit and a tone of weight ;(...ah
well that's diving in Vic....

bc

Hi Brian,

You should perhaps consider the cost of servicing too. I recently had
my set (Spiro Arctic) serviced at a cost of just under $300 with
parts and labour. I know that some manufacturers are offering free
parts for life which would mean that you only pay the labour costs
($95) for a service.

Cheers,
Danny

"ScubaDan" <Daniel.Peaper@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:29bfe026-aa3e-478b-b4a0-f45c930a1480@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...
> Hi Brian,
>
> You should perhaps consider the cost of servicing too. I recently had
> my set (Spiro Arctic) serviced at a cost of just under $300 with
> parts and labour. I know that some manufacturers are offering free
> parts for life which would mean that you only pay the labour costs
> ($95) for a service.
>
> Cheers,
> Danny

Wow..I can't believe how expensive that is....but yeah...very valid point I
guess...

I was thinking of purchasing from LeisurePro in the US...usually about a
third of the local cost ( including postage )...but then got to weigh up the
warranty etc...

I'm also having to deal with the "spin" from local dealers telling me how
one brand is so much better than another ( obviously the one they carry is
the best ).... and how much for servicing etc....so it's hard to sift
through it all.

"ScubaDan" <Daniel.Peaper@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:29bfe026-aa3e-478b-b4a0-f45c930a1480@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...
> Hi Brian,
>
> You should perhaps consider the cost of servicing too. I recently had
> my set (Spiro Arctic) serviced at a cost of just under $300 with
> parts and labour. I know that some manufacturers are offering free
> parts for life which would mean that you only pay the labour costs
> ($95) for a service.

Oceanic has that sort of deal which leant me to getting their stuff.

Fraser