New to diving requesting gear selection help

Chew · 05-16-2007, 09:14 PM

I have just recently started scuba diving and i need to purchas gear for my class. The store that i am taking my course is out of town for me so i found a local store. When ever any one asks about the brand of gear i bought they always make a "odd" face. I admit the reason why i bought the gear was a spur of the moment thing. I knew i needed it and i didn't shop around. I think i have decided to return the gear and talk to some one about specifically selecting the gear that is right for me. The brand of fins, snorcle and mask that i bought was saekodive. The mask is Saekodive Barracuda Mask, their genaric snorkle and the fins are Saekodive HydroDynamic Fins. I'm torn because i don't know what to do. I don't want to end up with something that is going to cause me problems.

MgicTwnger · 05-16-2007, 10:59 PM

That company is new to me, so I googled it. Apparently the company is Tiwanese and has a full lineup of gear. How good it is, I really can't say, but they say that they have been around for 36 years, and that's something.
I would at least make sure that you can get it serviced by a local shop.

**glynneco** · 05-17-2007, 02:06 AM

Saekodive? You should see the look on my face! Never heard of it. But.... If people you know are diving with it and happy go for it.

**Kev Martin** · 05-17-2007, 08:01 AM

Around for 36 years and this is the first time I have ever heard of them! I suppose that if it is just mask, fins and snorkel then, as long as they fit well and feel comfortable, you haven't made such a terrible mistake. Lets face it, most of the masks, fins and snorkels sold by all the big name companies come from Taiwan!

Enjoy your course.

MgicTwnger · 05-17-2007, 10:54 AM

This looks like a fairly large manufacturer that does most of it's business in Europe. Although their web site says that a large part of their business is in America, they are new to me and I'm a gear shopping junkie.

Chew · 05-17-2007, 06:44 PM

I thank you all very much for this imput, it is greatly valued. I don't know of any divers that hold this equipment. I'm very excited for my course. If you were to recomend a brand what would it be? I find that the dive stores that you visit tend to be biased towards the brand of gear they carry.

scubatoys · 05-18-2007, 01:20 AM

It's really not so much a single brand. Really in the scuba industry - as well as others, many items are identical with different brand names. Many companies buy from the same manufacturer and simply re-brand the products. For this reason, features is more important than brand.

For example, our best selling package in our shop to students taking a class is our Zoom Package. And this comes with a mix of products. It utilizes the Tusa Split Zoom fins - a panoramic mask (a ton of different companies toss their name on this from ScubaPro, Oceanic, Genesis, Tilos.... all the same though) there is a dry / semi dry snorkel (you can swap back and forth) booties, mesh back pack bag, soft strap, defog... and we wrap all these different manufacturers products into one package.

Just because a company makes a good fin -does not mean they make a good snorkel, or good boots.

You will find the same when you progress into the full gear. I use a different manufacturer for my computer than I do my BC, which is different from my reg... and I can have anything I want! So I pick and choose by features - not by brand.

Chew · 05-18-2007, 08:04 AM

That makes perfect sence... I think the main reason why i want to return part of the gear is because i have found a set of fins that i like more and have heard great feed back about. I'm just new to the whole dive scene and i wanted to get more experianced peoples advice...

MgicTwnger · 05-18-2007, 12:48 PM

I think Larry hit the nail on the head. Check out what other divers are using, ask their opinions, and don't be afraid to use equipment from different manufacturers.