beginner / intermediate setup

[allaniest]

Hello fellow water lovers!

I've recently become obsessed with the art of freediving and apnea. I'm looking for some direction as to purchasing the gear I'll need to start training with a local club.

I've read a bit about it but I'm feeling a bit over whelmed. Most of the literature I've read (Manual of Freediving / internet) is detailed on aspects characteristics of equipment as opposed to specific brands. If anyone can recommend specific brands (that are hopefully easy to find) that would be most helpful.

Basically I'm looking for a middle of the line setup that is of sufficient quality I won't be like, "Wow, I really should of spent an extra 50 dollars for the next model.". hehe. At the same time, I don't really want to spend like 200+$ on a mask.

I live in Canada so I'll be looking at diving in colder lakes (I was thinking 5mm wet suit?).

These are the items I'm looking for guidance on:

Mask
Snorkel
Fins
Wet Suit
Weight belt (is this neccessary for free diving? dynamic apnea? both?)

So any comments or recommendations are greatly appreciated!

Hopefully this thread will prove to be useful to other beginners looking for a setup

[fcallagy]

Hi allaniest
masks are subjective depending on your face shape try as many as you can cressi minima suits me.
Snorkel i use any i have handy simple j style and soft is usually best.
fins i use cressi garas and have no complaints but they take getting used too. there are several types LD are softer and may be easier to use on the surface.
suits i use a cressi 5m supercomp off the peg and have no complaints i also have an elios which are worth the few extra euro but you cant go wrong with the cressi.
weight belt just make sure its rubber as it can stretcg when you breath.
note i dont work for cressi but find their products good for a reasonable price.
check out this thread also,
http://forums.deeperblue.net/beginne...reediving.html

[allaniest]

Thanks for your reply!

[deep thinker]

Hey there mate, welcome to DB. Heres a few answers to your qs
Mask - Try on and try on some more, brand sizes vary so try on all of them till you find one that fits comfortably. Omer and Seakodive masks work well for me.
Snorkel- Keep it simple and plain, soft is good so it can bend when it snags. Omer black comp and a few others in the same line are nice snorkels, also make sure that the diam arent too big...
Fins- See this thread, loads of info there http://forums.deeperblue.net/freediv...your-info.html
Wet Suit- Custom normally works best, elios makes good ones. Off the peg works well if you have a "standard" build but once again try on as many as you can.
Weight belt- The Rob Allan marseilles buckle type works well. And yes rubber works best. Youll need it for diving as you get rather boyant when you wear your suit
Hope this helps and good luck with your choices

[allaniest]

Thanks for taking the time to reply. Much appreciated!

[monkeyhatfork]

if your going to start training with a club, maybe just go and ask them first hand, they are likely to have a variety of gear you may be able to try out before making purchases and they will know specifics for gear needed in your area i.e how thick wetsuit, socks , weight, etc. maybe give you tips on obtaining gear from your area. The most important thing with most gear is fit so trying on as much as possible will cut down on blowing money on the wrong stuff.

[allaniest]

Thanks for the advice. I just went to a local scuba shop and they had very limited inventory of freediving stuff. One mask and one set of fins. They also said the suits are very expensive. I think the sales rep was referring to the cell suits. I'm going to take your advice and go to the first session with the club before purchasing anything. I'll definately need to ask them where they purchase their gear. I'm thinking they may order online.

However I'm grateful for the previous posts and the additional insight.

Cheers!

[monkeyhatfork]

I've not tried one yet but you might look up Diveskin - Neoprene Creations they offer custom sizes open cell for around $150 look in the spearfishing section for open cell inside.