Diving DIVING DIVING!!!!!!!!!!

[cmdchiefthom]

Dgonza

 

First off, the set-up you have is new. That makes it obviously better than any rental set you might happen to get issued through a dive shop. That's a good thing. Some questions I have are will you be able to get wet with it before you leave? As for the computer versus the depth guage, you've got a mechnical device versus an electronic device. Personally, I use both. It's interesting to notice the difference between the two. Depth guage may read 70', but the computer puts you max depth at 67'. Unless you have a tape measure hooked to the surface, who knows for sure. Having said that, the other information maintained by the computer, time, depth, number of inmersions in a given number of hours is the safer bet, and having had the bends on a textbook USN table dive, in today's world, go with the technology. It's worth it.;)

[Dgonza]

Thanks for the advice cmdchiefthom. I just emailed her back asking for the dive computer. I want to try out the equipment in the pool before I just lug everything with me, and so I can get acquainted/comfortable with it. I have a swimming pool but it is frozen right now..lol I might see if the dive shop will let me use their pool. Thanks again.

[infopaul]

cmdchiefthom,

 

When I read between the lines I knew you had a unique diving history. I'm amazed with your EOD experience. Dangerous now, I could only imagine what it must have been like then. When I read your threads i'll have to sprinkle holy water on my computer and bow (LOL). It would be interesting to talk story (Hawaiian euphormism for "shooting the breeze"). I bet you could write a book.

 

Growing up I watched Sea Hunt. 20,000 Leagues (the movie) definitly tweaked my interest and made me want to explore the oceans (i've always wanted to have a submarine like that). It's good to know someone else felt the same about diving. It sounds as if you get to live the dream. Pick and choose the time, where and when to go diving. That's fantastic! Thanks to cruise ships i'm half way there. When my wife retired early about 4-5 years ago (Dr. in Ed.) we got the time. Because she doesn't dive I get to pick where I go diving. She picks when we go shopping. March 25 is cruise #42. We are also snow birds vacationing 4-6 months a year.

 

I do take extended dive trips without my wife. I'll dive 4-6 times a day for as long as I can hold out. In one of your threads you mentioned the Sea of Cortez. I wouldn't mind making a small excursion. I'd like to catch a couple of night dives there to. Even San Diego has some possibities. To my advantage the wife has been a personal travel specialist and agent. Logistically speaking my question is, do I go with a group of divers or make it a vacation destination and bring the wife or can it accommodate both?

 

Here's something for Dgonza to add to "it's a small world". I was a Navy air traffic controller. When Pres. Reagan broke up PATCO a lot of us got hired on after our seperation. I was artcc, in Fla. Presently I reside in "Happy Valley", Pa. I never thought I would live here, but I do. My wife was educated here and taught here, "We Are PENN STATE". I grew up in N.Y. (The Orange Crush) near Syracuse, but I went to college in the city. One more thing Dgonza...Happy Birthday!!!...Paul:)

 

P.S. bruce68usa: Did you find any divers ?(LOL)

[cmdchiefthom]

Infopaul

 

Geez, you'll give me a big head. I do have quite a few stories to tell, but that comes with age. The EOD work was interesting, to say the least. I recall a request from the Greek government in the early 70's. Tourism was begining to become big business on Crete, and the Greeks had done very little in the way of cleaning up UXO's left over from WWII. Off the beach in a village called Chersonosiss, a Luftwaffe light bomber had crashed with a full load of bombs in around 30' of water. This particular beach had began to become popular with snorkelers, and of course the wreckage attracted the tourists, who wouldn't realize that the munitions were still live. The government's take on it was lets not let any tourists blow themselves up, hence their call to our base. However, because the site was underwater, the Greek navy had to be involved, and the large navy base at Chania sent over two of their divers, along with the explosives, det cord and fuses. My partner, Kenny Grossinger and I were shocked by the stuff the Greeks brought with them. Even back then, we typically used C-4 (plastic explosives), especially for underwater use. Low and behold, the Greeks showed up with half pound tins of TNT, probably left over from WWII. The stuff was packed in individual tins, sort of like spam, and you popped the top and bottom off, and there was a semi-drilled hole in the center where you would slip the det cord through. The problem was really one of how much is too much. With C-4 you can vary the amount you need, With the tinned TNT, what you see is what you get. The detonators were also something out of the stoneage, and needed to be kept essentially dry until the last minute to insure they worked. That was kind of tough considering the targets were 30' underwater. The Greeks decided to build kind of a bouy out of scrap boxwood that would float on the surface and mount the suspect fuse, keeping it dry, connect to the det cord, pull the pin, and get the small fishing boat we were using, out of Dodge, hopefully, before the explosion.

 

On the bottom, the plan was to put two charges on each of the 50kg bombs, one on either side. As I recall, there were four bombs on each side of the wreck, where each of the wings were. This part was realitively simple. Two spools of det cord on the surface in the boat, loose ends goes down with two divers, each team goes to the most distant target, pull enough extra cord to allow for a safety perimeter, cut the cord, and begin stringing det cord through the charges. Once finished, you splice the det cord together, attach the fuse, pull the pin, and get the hell out of there.

 

Needless to say, timing was everything. With a battery operated detonator, small wires attached to a blasting cap, crimped to the det cord allow you to get as far away as possible before you decide to blow the shot. With a fuse, you've got about the amount of time the fuse is rated at, give or take a couple of seconds. I've got to tell you, I was more than nervous about getting far enough away from the area, before the whole area blew. Afterall, we're talking over 800 lbs of high explosive going off at once.

 

The Greeks took it all in stride. They had the fisherman crank his one lung engine over, pulled up the anchor, put their home-made bouy in the water, and then just pulled the pin. The fisherman headed towards the shore, maybe 300or 400 yards away at full speed. I could have swam faster than this boat sailed. About three minutes later, we were still 50 yards from shore, the whole area exploded. The column of water must have gone two maybe three hundred feet in the air, and the next thing I knew, it was raining salt water, sand, small rocks and fish. The wave it created, took the boat and literally drove it up on the beach. The Greeks grinned ear to ear, I pee'd in my wetsuit.

 

At least we all survived, but the job wasn't finished. With the help of a whole group of now wet, local onlookers, we were able to get the boat off the beach and back into the water. Before the job would be finished, we had to back and make sure all the bombs were destroyed. It was going to take some time for the visibility to clear, so we had some time to kill. We also had some tins of TNT left over. I love the Greek people because they have this desire to party. These guys were no exception. And what's a Greek party without food? So now it was time to plan on dinner, and what better food, but fish. We don't need no stinking fishing poles. So the Greeks tell the fisherman to head out of the bay towards a rocky point where we had told them we had done some great spearfishing in the past. Large Sea Bass were frequently speared there. Can you say fishing with TNT?:eek: They got to the point which was roughly 80' to 90 ' deep, took out a tin, wrapped it in det cord, crimped a fuse, pulled the pin, tossed it over the side, and headed out to sea. A couple of minutes later, bang, if felt like the boat had been picked up and dropped on solid concrete. We slowly sailed back towards the point, and slowly but surely, the fish started floating up towards the surface, completely stunned. We snagged around a 20 lb Grouper, but the fisherman was going crazy. He probably never had a better catch in one day.

 

We headed back into Chersonosiss harbor, figuring we could snorkel the blast area later in the afternoon and assess the success of our days work, which in fact we did, and there was nothing left of the bombs, and little left of either the bottom structure, nor the wreck.

 

That evening, we gathered at a harborside taverna, whose owner graciously offered to gut our fish (as long as he got the head) and prepare it for us for dinner. Many of the locals thanked us for the work, afterall, they hoped to make money on the increasing tourist trade.

 

We partied until God knows what time, danced to bazouki music, threw plates, what an awesome experience, especially since I lived.:D I kept in touch with Petros and Evangelos for several years, but you know how time passes. Now those are just entries in my dive log from a long time ago. 12 July 1970, to be exact.

[Dgonza]

Infopaul, wow that brings true meaning to the song "its a small world after all"...lol So you were a controller in the Navy? So I assume you went to Millington for "A" School? Thats where I went. The ended up moving the school to Pensacola, FL. So how long did you work in Miami Center? Did you retire from the FAA or are you still a controller? Thanks for the Birthday wish.....Its not quite my birthday yet. I am trying to savor my last 9 days of being in my twenties....lol When I reach the big 3-0 its all down hill...lol So you said you are going on a cruise on March 25th? What cruiseline? I am sailing on March 25th too on the Golden Princess.

 

cmdchieftho: Nice sea story!! You are very lucky to still be alive. Are you sure you dont have 9 lives?...lol

[cmdchiefthom]

Don't know about 9 lives, but I still have 10 fingers/;)

[infopaul]

cmdchief

 

I stood on every word, what a great story. Sounds like... page 1. OOPA! Have you ever gone back to dive Chersonosis or any of the restricted ports from those days? How about Cuba or P.I.? Page 2 (LOL)...Paul:)

 

Dgonza

 

Yes, I went to NATTC, Millington /Memphis, A+C, 79 and 81. Yeah, I heard it went to Pensacola and a long long time ago it was in Glynco, Ga. I wonder where it will go next? What happened to NATTC? Did they still have other airdale schools, where did the Marines go? Did you ever work a FACSFAC? You did go to Oak City? Sorry, just thought i'd catch up.

 

I was at artcc Hilliard outside JAX, Alpha Kilo. Couple of years later I divorced and moved back north, needed the minimum seperation(LOL). Couldn't get the transfer to New York Center and hit the departure runway, I L...eft (LOL). I picked up a stock brokers license, invested back in 92, semi retiring at 36, next year i,m 50.

 

Basically I travel and been diving, i,m also a Padi Inst. This next cruise #42 is on Holland America MS Veendam. I picked this one because of Guatemala and Mahahual, ports I haven't been to. We travel with them more than the other cruise lines. It's more upscale and they have recently upgraded their line with the Signature of Excellence. I like what they've done and i'm really treated well. This cruise will be a little different, we have more than 30 people in our party. I could go on about Holland America or others, but I make no endorsements. It all depends on what you want out of a cruise...Paul:)

[Dgonza]

InfoPaul. I went to Nattc Millington for A and C school too (catcc). I was the last catcc class to go through Millington. All the airdale schools moved to Pensacola. Nattc is now occupied by Bupers (bureau of personnel) if you forgot..lol They moved them from Washington Dc to Millington. I have never been to a Facsfac. I was on USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72, and Pt Mugu California. I was a direct hire for the FAA. I only went to Oak City for Radar school.....Which was dumb because thats all I had was radar training..lol Needless to say it was a piece of cake. I already knew how to vector, sequence, and clear aircraft for approaches. I was paired up with an ex airforce controller. We were on the "unofficial" advanced course. While everyone else was running training problems with 20-30 planes in 45 min, We were running 85-95 planes in 45 min. That sucks that you were not able to get a transfer to Zny. I have a buddy I was stationed with that is at Zny now.

 

To everyone else, I apologize we kind of just hijacked (no pun intended) this thread. Just talking about sea stories and catching up here. So now ......Back to Diving!!!!!...haha

[Texas_Diver]

With all of this warm weather, I can't wait to dive soon!

 

Anyone else out there just itching to get in the water??

 

D.

[Dgonza]

Warm weather??? HAHA not here. Its in the 20's and 30's here in Michigan. I am looking forward to the warm weather in the Caribbean. Three weeks from yesterday!!!

[cmdchiefthom]

Infopaul,

 

I had everything arranged to go back in the summer of 2000, but blew a heart valve and had to have my chest cut open. Lost the entire trip, money and all. Can you say "I don't need no stinking insurance".:eek:

 

As I sit here, watching the snow fly in South Bend, all I can think of 24 days and a wake up, and I'll be warm in Miami, heading to the Eastern Caribbean.:cool: I'm actually working on my Poseidon full face mask in-between writing this. I needed a surface air valve, so I picked on up and now am installing it. Next up, checking my U/W video gear, charging batteries, checking the dive computers, making sure the intermediate pressures on my regs is set correctly. Packing it all away in the dive bag so its ready to go.

 

Can't wait to dive Samana in the DR, followed by a return to the RMS Rhone in Tortola. I might even do something in St. Thomas if I can find something other than Block Island, or the Barges.

 

Anyway, I will be wet!:D

[infopaul]

cmdchiefthom,

 

I'm feeling a little antsy myself, 18 days. I wanted to thank you before for turning me on to scubaboard. I'm learning my way navigating the boards. I still don't have anyone at Guatemala to dive with. I think scubaboard will bear some fruit. I use infopaul on their boards also. Sometime next week i'll start confirming my plans for diving.

 

Your Poseidon FFM's a nice piece of gear. Do you use it on a regular dive basis? Ya'know, I have a discreet looking underwater metal detector I want to try in Guatemala. Yeah, yeah take only pictures(lol).

 

Well a half dozen years later how's the health? To bad you never made it back to Chersonosis and lost the money. I was a little more fortunate. Back in my Navy days I was on the carrier USS America doing a shake down cruise to Gitmo. I always wanted to see what was on the other side of the fence and scuba there. A couple of years ago I got a state dept. license to go and I did. Propaganda is just that, propaganda. Historically and in comparison, it's the jewel of the caribbean and if it should ever open up, WOW. Pristine diving to say the least. I dove with the asist. embasador and his wife from the U.S. on a couple of occasions. I turned her on to the REEF organization, she's a real cutie divaholic. Might as well do a little research for a good cause (especially in restricted waters). Although they had a 5 mile restriction from the capital city, I did not and took full advantage even diving an outter island called Isla de Juventude.

 

Maybe the infrastructure suffers from a lack of maintenance and could use repair but the locals are fantastic and it's a very safe place. I traveled throughout and didn't feel any threat. Poverty was typical as like any other impoverished caribbean city and or country. It's not as bad as you're lead to believe but still no picnic. I saw outside the capital city, life can be tough and with few luxuries if any. I have to admitt one thing, there are a lot of tourists of different nationalities. As much as i've heard about the illegal ways to enter, I didn't see anyone from the U.S. who had done it that way.

 

Back to your cruise. When you arrive at Samana keep in mind Punta Tibisi's, "The Tower". It's an experienced level dive on some pinnacles. It has caves and swim thru. I got the info from a local around here. The Rhone is the Rhone, what else can I say. I wish I could give you something on St. Thomas that might interest you. Have you tried "Miss Opportunity" it's another experience level dive on a 300 foot hospital ship, 90 foot plus dive. It has big pelagics and a big jewfish that hangs out. Restrictions keep me from giving you details unless you ask, but I have contact info and a web page for the dive operation if you want to check it out. You're in Charlotte Amalie Bay aren't you? Well, let me know and keep on counting the days down...Paul:)

[cmdchiefthom]

Infopaul,

 

Send me the info on St. Thomas. That sounds perfect.:D My email is listed below. My wife and I love wreck diving, and if we can make that happen, that will make our trip. Yep the Rhone is the Rhone, but I love it. Last year, I hid some small characters from Sponge Bob in my BC for the grandkids. Of course, the video had them jumping across the film, and the boys went crazy back in the cabin aboard ship. If you have any contacts in Samana, please let me know. We're scheduled through the ship to dive Cayo Farola which I know nothing about, but the pinnacles sound interesting.:)

 

I dive, depending on the circumstances, with either a Cyklon, an Aqua Lung Mistral double hose, or a Jetstream. The Cyklon's intermediate pressure is a little high for the FFM, tends to free flow, and the reg that comes with that mask has a Jetstream attached. My wife dives exclusively with a Jetstream. I've been diving Poseidons for close to 35 years, and still haven't found anything close, from a quality and ease of breathing standpoint. I still have my Unisuit from my military days, it's in great shape, but I really don't want to dive in water where I need to use a drysuit. Must be something about my age!:eek:

 

I really think that you should take the metal detector. You have really nothing to loose, looking for stuff, and it doesn't mean your going to take something, just locate it. I'm sure your guide will decide if any laws will be broken, and I'm sure they would like to use anything you locate as advertisement. By the way, I invested with Mel Fisher in 1975, before the Atocha came in:eek: you never know if "today is the day"!

 

Valve job is OK, better now than before the surgery. My doc cleared me for diving two months after the surgery, so that's not a problem. I just hate it when the cat stands on my sternum! :eek: I can still feel the wire sutures! As for Cuba, I really believe, economics will open that country to cruising, and eventually resort diving.

 

Let's keep in touch.

 

 

thomcmdchief@aol.com

[infopaul]

cmdchiefthom,

 

I sent the info, I hope it helps...Paul:)

[cmdchiefthom]

Paul,

 

I got it and really appreciate it!:D

[cmdchiefthom]

Hey Paul,

 

Did you have trouble having Admirality answer your emails?:eek:

[Scubagolf]

I am going on my first cruise. I will be diving in St Thomas. I am a new diver with only 5 dives under my belt. I have been certified for 6 yrs though. I took a refresher course since its been a while. I booked the Coki Beach dive. Partly because my sister is going to dive with me. She is not certified, but is going to do the "discover scuba" course. I booked it myself after hearing good reviews on this forum. I had some questions and sent an email to them. Within a few hours, I had my questions answered and booked our excursion. Apparently, there is a reef right off the beach with easy access. If you are not certified and are taking the discover course, then your limitation is 40 ft. You will have an instructor with you. So for me that works out, I get to be with my sister while she is doing her first dive, I get to dive, and we will have a guide to show us around. She of course will have an instructor. I thought the price was very reasonable. $60 for non certified, and $40 for certified divers and this includes all rental equipment, instruction, and a guide. If the certified diver wants a 2nd dive then it is an extra $20. They are also going to pick us up at the gangway!! Hope this helps out. Good Luck. I will be in St Thomas on March 26th. I cant remember the website, but do a google search for coki beach dive club. They will have contact info etc for all your questions.

I dived St. Thomas in December ('05) with Chris Sawyer Diving [http://www.sawyerdive.vi/] Great operator that you can check out with a search at this very excellent diving resource: www.ScubaBoard.com

[infopaul]

cmdchiefthom, I called them over the phone and you should have received an email by now (this morning). Hope that helps. I know them from being out there and didn't deal with them via email. By the way, I hope everyone there is doing fine. Best regards and counting down the days...Paul:)

[cmdchiefthom]

Paul,

 

I got a reply this morning. Thanks for your help. :) It's getting close now, I can't wait to get warm and wet. It snowed here this morning!:eek:

[Dgonza]

Ok guys, I am sooooo frustrated!!!!:mad: Remember I told you guys I bought new BCD and Regulator etc.... Well, I got it. It appears to be in good condition, and I am happy with it. Well, I took your recommendation and called up the local dive shop(the only one within 40miles) To see if they would check it out for me. I explained I just wanted to make sure everything was good to go and that safety was my main concern. He asked what brand. I told him Oceanic. He said "We are not a oceanic authorized dealer, there is nothing we can do" He then said is there some reason you didnt get your stuff through us? Did we not have what you were looking for? I told him I got an awesome deal online and it was brand new. He basically gave me the riot act and said there is no warranty etc....and that they wont check out my gear. So I asked if I could use their pool to check it out myself and get a feeling for it? He said no they cant have people bringing in gear from some place else and using their pool. He said if I bought it from them then they would allow me too. But since I didnt, it was a liability issue. So then I asked about my SSI card(from the refresher course I took) he said it wasnt in. They told me it was going to be about a week when I took the refresher. Here it is 2 weeks later. He was just soooo rude. He acted as if I am obligated to buy from him. All I have ever done with this dive shop is take the refresher course. Lets see if they try to hold my ssi dive card now. It doesnt really matter because I have my Naui card so its not like they are going to hurt me by keeping it...lol I dont really see what the big deal is. So what if I didnt buy my equipment from him. I mean we are scuba divers and they are in the business of providing a service to divers. I told him well, I guess I am going to have to start going down to the dive shop in Brighton (40miles away) I did call the dive shop in Brighton by the way, but they dont have their own pool. So do you guys have any suggestions on how to test out my own equipment. I just aired it up by mouth and let it sit for now. I was thinking of running it through the bath tub just to make sure. Any other suggestions. I hate dealing with sh**ty customer service like this. I could use a couple of things, but I dont even want to walk into his store now. That is pretty sad. OK well, I am over it now. I know Cmdchiefthom and infopaul have lots of experience so, I will just wait for your suggestions/ recommendations.

 

So my cruise is coming up in a week and a half. I booked my dive at coki beach in St thomas and went with Cmdchiefthoms recommendation to dive with aquanauts in Grenada. I will do 2 dives at each of those ports. should be lots of fun. Thanks again for all the great info, and allowing me to vent. I feel better now :)

[sea-jay]

Do you have a local YMCA? They might let you try out your gear there. Or, Check a hotel that may have an indoor heated pool. You don't say where you are from except to mention Brighton. Is that Brighton Beach in NY or Brighton England?

[cmdchiefthom]

Dgonza,

 

Having owned, past tense, a dive shop in Albuquerque, in some ways, I can understand your dive shop owner's frustration. First off, he, or she, wouldn't have a shop if they didn't want to make money. Secondly, they want their patrons to buy the equipment they stock, not a brand they don't. Thirdly, there is a liability issue, especially if they are using a pool, they rent, or lease, from a third party. Get over it, so they hate you! They should have made you a deal, you couldn't refuse.:eek:

 

Now let's look at how to make you feel more comfortable with the equipment you purchased, without actually trying it out in the water. What's the difference between what you bought, and what you might have been forced to use on a dive charter. Your stuff is brand new. The regulator will have been set to factory spec's. That's a good thing, so you won't have any problem there. You slap it on your tank, purge it, suck some air, it works, and its probably better than anything else on the boat. That's a good thing. As for the BC, you did exactly what I just did with my wife's new Aeris BC. It's been blown up, holding air for the past two weeks on the couch in the basement. It holds air....that is also a good thing. So are you feeling more comfortable?

 

There is not a dive equipment manufacturer out there that wants to be sued for wrongfull death because their equipment failed. Your brand new stuff, is better than any used stuff on a boat and the last person to use your stuff is the technician who set it to specs.

 

By the way, I just picked up a brand new Poseidon Deep 1st stage to use with my Poseidon full face mask for my trip on 1 April. Do you think I'd let my local dive shop touch either of those pieces of equipment, set from the factory????:eek:

 

You take that gear, use it, and tell us here how well you enjoyed your diving when you get back! ;)

[infopaul]

dgonza, Things aren't that bad. Yeah, I understand where your coming from. Your dive shop lost a good sale and I know he's not happy. He is in the business and that is how the business is. I haven't owned a dive shop so I defer to cmdchiefthom about that and the liability issues.

 

As for another suggestion made about the YMCA, that might not work because you need a tank and it doesn't sound like your buddy is going to fork one over just for you to blow a couple of bubbles. Don't fret.

 

The saving grace in all this is that your equipment is new. You can give your bcd the bathtub test or as cmdchiefthom suggests, either is good. My only concern for the bcd is, it was shipped and not knowing how it's packed etc,etc.

 

For your reg and bcd, giving it the real acid test will be when you get to enjoy it. After you set up, do what cmdchiefthom says "purge it, suck some air, it works" no rocket science. To go a little further inflate/deflate your bcd, get familiar with where your valve releases are, check your guages, turn your computer on if it's not water activated (some units should not be turned on once you begin your descent). Whether you intergrate weights or use a belt, your good to go.

 

When you find out who your DM is, give him a little heads up on your new gear. All things said and done, have some fun...:)

 

Now for me, I think I have a place in Guatemala to go diving. Have you heard of Hotel Green Bay? It's at the southern shores of Amatique Bay. It might be a long shot but there is supposedly a dive op. out of there. I just have to figure out how to get there. Since everybody is getting something new, i'm going to get a new safety reel so I don't feel left out. I'm counting down the days, i'm getting short...Paul:)

[Dgonza]

Thanks guys for all the great info/suggestions etc..... I think my biggest concern was even though my equipment is "Brand New" I did buy it off of ebay from a scuba dealer. (I think thats what angers the dive shop the most) I just wanted to make sure everything was legit and good to go. I would rather be out the money, and alive then the other way around. About the liability and the pool, they have an in house pool. But thats ok I am feeling better about this whole situation thanks to you guys. I am just going to relax, have fun and enjoy!! Afterall, isnt that what vacation is all about?

 

So I asked my daughter (9yrs old) if she would like to scuba dive. At first she was apprehensive and said no. I guess I screwed up when I told her you have to take the regulator out of your mouth and then retrieve it. So after going to a "different" dive shop instead of the local one, she was able to see kids her age taking an explorers class. She was really fascinated with it and now she wants to give it a try. The prerequisite is she has to take a snorkeling class. Granted, she wont be able to dive anywhere except in "their" pool. But that is a good experience for her. I guess they have some type of kids program once or twice a month after they get pool certified. So we will see what happens.

 

Thanks again for all the info. You guys and this board are a wealth of information!!

[scubaran]

Thanks guys for all the great info/suggestions etc..... I think my biggest concern was even though my equipment is "Brand New" I did buy it off of ebay from a scuba dealer. (I think thats what angers the dive shop the most) I just wanted to make sure everything was legit and good to go. I would rather be out the money, and alive then the other way around. About the liability and the pool, they have an in house pool. But thats ok I am feeling better about this whole situation thanks to you guys. I am just going to relax, have fun and enjoy!! Afterall, isnt that what vacation is all about?

 

Hi,

 

I've got one more piece of information, if you have a brand new regulator, you can dive with it on your trip (you're leaving soon) but when you return you might consider sending it to somewhere to have it checked out. I know that when I bought my new regulator, my dive shop warned me that it needed to be serviced right away as there are brass shavings (not many) that are found in a lot of regulators from the manufacturing process and they need to be cleaned as part of an initial check because eventually they can cause problems with the first stage if left in (he then took my 1st stage apart and showed me shavings on some of the O rings (he didn't have a chance to put them in beforehand as the reg. showed up at the shop while I was there)). I have a Sherwood regulator but he led me to believe pretty much all new regulators come this way. As far as you're dive shop not servicing it, try someone like scuba.com (http://www.scuba.com/resources/repair_info.asp). Anyway, some more information for you to consider.

 

Randall