I am at the beginning

[tile diver]

Apex kit comes up again and again it must be good stuff

[Garf]

they seem to be very popular with members of this board, that's for sure. I have scubapro Mk16s on my twinset, scubapro regs on my deco stage, and have never had any bother at all with them, even in the lovely waters of stoney in jan/feb.

[nigelH]

Originally Posted by tile diver

Apex kit comes up again and again it must be good stuff

I have Apeks and Scubapro. I can't fault them as regs but the moment I find a company who do a reasonable reg and their policy is that they do sell spares to me these are on Ebay.

nigelH

[Mark Chase]

Apex regulators starting with the TX40 and through to the ATX 50 depending on your budget and you will be a happy diver. All APEX above the ATX 50 are showing off and no real improvement on what is basically a solid gold product. Oceanic Alpha 7s are cheaper and very nearly as good.

Mares Avanti Quatro fins cheep (£50 is a good deal £70 is normal) A benchmark fin that takes some beating

Every thing else is controversial but most agree that Buddy BCD's and Wings are bullet proof. I had a Seaman Sub Black Jack and it was superb apart from the fact you couldn’t reach the pockets. Had I known then what I know now I would have gone straight for a small wing and back plate.

Computers: Vytec is a great investment if not get a Vyper

Mask Cressi Big Eye or similar do not get a clear one they dont seal as well as the black silicon and turn yellow any way.

Dry suits: Otter or 03

Torch: get the best you can afford £340 for a Halcyon 10W HID if not get a Light Canon

ATB

Mark Chase

[tile diver]

Hello man,

There are deals in the diver mag for ATX 50 reg, ATX40 octopus and a triple console all for £349 is this a sound deal? and will it come with hoses?

[Druid]

Originally Posted by tile diver

Hello man,

There are deals in the diver mag for ATX 50 reg, ATX40 octopus and a triple console all for £349 is this a sound deal?

Yes, it's a good deal. Or you could save £30 and buy ATX40 primary instead of ATX50. You lose the "fine tuning" knob, which you probably won't ever touch once it's set up anyway.

Originally Posted by tile diver

and will it come with hoses?

Yes, but you will probably have to assemble them yourself. It's just a matter of removing the blanking plugs from the 1st stage and screwing the hoses into the appropriate holes.

Oh yes - buy regs with a DIN fitting, rather than an A clamp.

[Mdemon]

Buy kit for where you want to be in a year or so's time. Unless you have shedloads of cash. Otherwise you will end up selling and buying when you could just be getting used to the same gear config.

Apeks are recommended - I also use them.

What you REALLY want is a mate who is an experienced diver who dives with other experienced divers. Look at what they use and ask them why - they'll be happy to tell you, it's a personal thing. You'll probably get lent a load of gear if you're lucky. Just don't become the recipient of any crap they want to get rid of!

Enjoy.

And don't forget eBay for things like fins...

[Noel Johnson]

Din regs are a must, Apeks are good and have a great reputation but we use Dacor and Aqualung - The aqualung regs are simply superb.

BCD wise 200 squids will get you a very good bcd and even a wing, The team bunny vote goes to either the seac sub pro2000 or the seaquest pro. Don't get the integrated weights though as they are a pain in the seac jacket for UK diving and interfere with the side bladders. I also have a diverite wing which I put together for the twinset...

Fins. I personally think that the pair of Mares avanti quattros are the best I've ever used. These are the only pair I use now for everything, which of course leaves 2 pairs of redundant fins out of the 3 pairs I own.

HTH, Have fun and enjoy...

N.

[Brass Monkey]

I'm with Chasey on this one, down to the last word. I have to say though if you want value for money try looking for your kit on the internet. You may get a better deal than your LDS would give you. Or you could print out the internet page and use that as further bargaining power at your LDS.

Dave.

[chrisch]

Ahhh.... PADI Open Wallet... that brings back memories....

Some mistakes I made.

1. Buying A clamp regs and having to convert to DIN later.
2. Buying a 2nd 12L tank instead or renting for two-tank trips.
3. Listening to the bloke in the dive shop....

As above Scubapro or Apeks regs are top bananna.

Priority 1 is a drysuit. A computer is high on the list too.

If you have a drysuit don't waste much money on a BCD. Most of them are designed to make money. Ebay can be OK but also can be very pricey. The Buddy range are good (BSAC OWI Uniform) and readily re-sell secondhand.

I wish I had discovered wings as a BC years ago, but its out your budget so give it time...

If it is just BC and regs you want now spend next to nothing (40-50 quid) on the stab and as much as you have left on the regs. Looked after they will last you forever....

Enjoy.
Chris.