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Beginner needs advice on mask, fins, computer

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Freedivingpolarbear

New Member
Jun 9, 2019
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0
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Hi,

I just signed up at a local cmas club to get my diving certificate and they also offer freediving classes, so I signed up for that too.
I bought a Mares X vision mask for scuba, but can it be used for freediving too? Any recommendations? I read that low volume masks are preferred...
As for fins I just got some second hand Cressi Reaction Pro which I use for training.
Do I need to switch to other fins for freediving? I know there are special freediving fins like leaderfins etc. But kinda expensive.
Can you recommend a cheap freediving computer? Depth and time under water would already be enough.


Thank you :)
 
You can freedive with any mask if you don't plan to dive deep as the low volume masks don't need so much air to equalise them at depth in order to offset the increased ambient pressure, but at shallower depths this is not a problem so mask choice is not so critical. The main requirement is that it fits well on your face and does not leak with only a light tension in the head band or strap. The best divers are those who feel at home in the water and it is well worth building your water skills by doing a lot of snorkelling with the minimum of gear before piling on the gear for scuba. I have seen new divers kitted up with all the scuba gear get slapped in the face by a couple of unexpected waves, their gear dislodged and gasping and panicking instantly abandon all thoughts of diving and the next day offer all their dive gear for sale. You don't want to be in that situation, but don't take this as a comment on your abilities, it is just general advice accumulated over a lifetime of diving.

As for fins it is best to use moderate size fins as they are perfectly adequate for most diving purposes. Long blade fins come into their own when pumping your way up from the bottom on a deep dive where due to wetsuit compression you are in the sinking zone. Once your suit re-expands with decreased pressure then you rise much quicker, so the last part of the ascent is much easier. Just as well as by then you are eager to get a breath of fresh air once you hit the surface. Buy a simple snorkel with a mouthpiece that suits you as the simple ones have low hydrodynamic drag and are preferable to the ones with all the "bells and whistles".

The computer can come later once you get your "sea legs" so to speak.
 
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Actually the computer is some sort of motivation and safety for me... let me explain this to you and perhaps you can prove me wrong?
First thing is I know how deep I am at that moment, so I can´t " get lost " and know that I am still inside my comfort zone and able to get back up without problems.
For example: I know that diving 10 or 15m is absolutely OK for me, but on holidays I can´t judge how deep down I am since there is no signboard down on the ground. At least I know that I am still within my limit.
Second thing is the overall diving time.
For example: I know that I can hold my breath for X:XX mins and don´t know how long I still can stay down there before I have to make my way back up. At least I can estimate that if I needed x seconds to go down, just roughly calculate the same for going back up and deduct it from my overall time.
My english is very poor, I hope you know what I wanted to say.
 
Don't rely on a computer for those things as everyone is different. Staying down too long at depth and as you go up blacking out as the partial pressure of the oxygen in your lungs falls too low has killed many freedivers and spearfishermen. Buy a depth gauge and a dive watch, you can get simple ones that do both time and depth such as the Pyle watch from China. Casio also make simple snorkelling watches, I used their SNK-100 model for years. You can buy a better dive computer watch later when you reach the stage that you need it.
casio snorkel depth meter watch SNK-100.jpg
pyle watch.jpg
 
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