Picking the right rebreather (for me)

decoweenie

Not sure about the timing.

You might have to wait longer than 6 months or one year for the next sucker to come along...

PhilSiswick

It's not the done thing to speak ill of the recently departed

Cheers,

__________________
Phil

No comment on open circuit... it's an evolutionary dead end not really worth discussing here. Dave Sutton, 2007

I have always felt that the dive I am on is not nearly important as the dives I plan to be on the rest of my life. Tom Rose, 2007

www.hugsac.org.uk

Abbo

For me, I am pretty used to getting on a plane to go diving - so getting on an 8-hour flight to spend a week taking a training course with a great instructor seems the most natural thing in the world. Good instruction is worth travelling for. I am used to getting spare parts online, so I'm not too fussed about a local dive store not carrying the parts. What I wouldn't do is let training, service or parts turn you off a model if it otherwise seems the right thing for you. These problems can be overcome.

If you're not 100% sure between eCCR and mCCR, then the Copis Meg seems to make some sense, as you can win your spurs on the Copis then replace just the head to switch over to eCCR when you win the lottery.

The reality of the matter is that diving is expensive and rebreather diving especially so. An $8,000 rebreather seems a lot more expensive than a $5,000 one, but when you look back on that purchase through the haze of transport costs, training costs, rebreather consumables, other must-have diving gear and so on and and so forth..you can see how it might be easy to be penny-wise and pound-foolish. A crossover course might well cost $1500, and you might well get $1500 less for your old breather than you paid for it: that would soon bury the $3000 price difference. And don't forget the 2nd-hand market.

For me, I wanted a rebreather that was robust: I didn't want to have to be worrying whether a rough ride to a remote location was going to make my flimsy baby a deathtrap. And if it gets bent out of shape, I sure as Hell won't know how to put Humpty Dumpty together again: I'm a mechanic of the strictly "this is going to need a bigger hammer" variety. I also wanted one that is small and light enough to travel as clandestine hand luggage, because it makes me grumpy to share my hard-earned wad with airlines. Your needs may differ, but it pays to think hard about what those needs are. Whatever you choose, enjoy: life's too damn short not to.