Question: Reputable website to buy Scuba gear from?

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Answer #1:

Just one thought for you to consider. Annual and regular gear service. Are you going to UPS your gear all the time?
Online sales for minor gear purchases can make sense, sure. Dive knives, hoods and gloves. dive computers with user replaceable batteries, and lights. Fins...sure if you have already tried that set and know it ( likely from a visit to a dive shop)...mask too...again...from a visit to the dive shop. Funny how that works.

Regs, BC, dry suit and even wet suit....not a good idea to buy online unless you like to pay shipping charges often. The money you'd save on the purchase usually goes up in smoke with the shipping back and forth for service ( if they even offer it) and sending things back that don't fit.
This stuff has to fit...it has to work and be free of defect. Online sales and you're rolling the dice on all that. In shop visit...you're not. You get to see if there's a missed stitch on a strap for example and you'll get first hand instruction on how to use a particular piece of gear.
For the record...I'll buy things online that make sense. Buying my dive gear online doesn't make sense. Besides..I get a 15% discount for being a regular customer at my local dive shop on any purchase, right off the bat and that's even on merchandise on sale. No online sales will ever offer that to me. I save money this way, I save myself aggravation and I save time.
Edit: As you see, Andrew and I agree on the LDS (local dive shop) versus online approach. This stuff supports your life. It HAS to be serviced regularly by the people that sold it and properly attained by yourself. Look at it this way. How much is your life worth? I'm not kidding...how much? Are you on sale? If I kill you today...do I get a discount on the regs that are factory seconds with "minor defects".? That's what you have to answer besides the fact that will your buddy dive with you if he knows you have second rate, potentially unsafe gear. He has to rely on you being safe just as you rely on him/her. It's their life too.
I don't dive with newly minted divers who figure they need to thrift on gear purchase and NEVER dive with folk that don't have their gear regularly serviced or have doubts about their gear period. I may need it to function too, besides the buddy not aborting over some silly gear issue that could have been avoided by spending an extra 10 bucks. Their saving 10 bucks may have ( and has) cost me 60 bucks on a charter and I'll no longer consider diving with them. I have things to offer experience wise, but not to those that waste my time and money. Their loss. That's also something to think about. The divers in your LDS likely think the same way.
Sermon done...sorry about that but you pay to play safely and it really is worth any extra cost that may or may not be incurred by just taking a stroll into a dive shop. You get to ask questions and have answers in real time...face to face.

Answer #2:

Before you buy gear, you should as the question of "How often am I going to dive?"

Many divers have good intentions to dive twenty five times or more a year, but the reality is most divers stop diving after their first year.

If you KNOW you will be diving at least 8-10 times a year, then buying gear is an alternative to renting the gear.

I am going to assume you are an avid diver and will be diving at least 10x's a year. Where should you get your gear?

Some good sites for SCUBA "accessories" are Click Here , Click Here , and Click Here

WARNING! You should absolutely purchase your gear through a dive shop. Hopefully you have more then one in your area and can get the best price.

Online sites are fine for accessories such as lights, markers, knives, booties, gloves, etc, but the purchase of items such as regulators, dive computers, tanks, Buoyancy Compensator (BC), fins, wetsuits are best made at your dive shop.

Many online sites can not warranty equipment as your dive shop. SCUBA Pro for example will not allow their product to be sold online, but there are several online vendors who claim to be "authorized" dealers. The equipment they sell is manufactured by SCUBA Pro, but it was retailed overseas. Because the equipment is being sold improperly online, it is not warranted by the manufacturer as it would be had it been purchased from your local dive shop.

The dive industry is self regulated and allowing non-divers to purchase equipment freely to go out and use with out proper training will only bring trouble to the industry.

Other issues include service of the equipment (not covered by dive sites so you have to ship to someone who will service), possible sale of used equipment as new, hidden charges for shipping and handling, etc.

Sorry for what might seem as a lecture, but important that people understand that you "get what you pay for".

If you are looking to save some money when purchasing good equipment, look into used equipment. Most dive shops have rental equipment and will sell it after a few years of use. This equipment is usually well maintained and is sold at deep discounts.





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