rx dive mask and other beginner equipment

[The Business]

Where should I look for prescription dive masks? I stopped by a local dive shop and they had a cressi model that they could put my prescription in for about $145 total. Or I could pick another model, but it would be more expensive. Any suggestions on where and what to buy?

What's a good brand of fins for a beginner?

Is there any other equipment that I would need to begin learning about the sport?:martial

 

[matrixed82]

Can't help you with the rx dive mask but [ame="http://forums.deeperblue.net/showthread.php?t=64959"]this thread [/ame]can give you a good idea on what equipment to get to start out.

 

[rslomkow]

Do you wear contacts or glasses?

I don't need corrected vision but several of my friends do. Most of them tried the corrective lenses and gave up on them.

The biggest reason is the end of the dive, not being able to see anything really sucks. And the mask would alwasy fog up a bit on the surface, and they might have to walk a ways before finding their glasses.

Yes there is a risk of losing your contacts in a flooded mask if you don't close your eyes. I have heard "stories" of people having gas problem in contacts, but I personally know people who SCUBA with contacts regularly (at least once a week) to -25m (-80feet).

It might be cheaper to get soft disposable contacts for diving that you don't care about that much if you lose, and keep spares at the car.

Just a thought. I thought that perscription lenses were the right solution and bought them for a my girlfriend, and she stopped using them on her 3rd dive and started using another mask and her contacts. She also has a very weak eyes and had to get custom lenses.

 

[gman]

I just bought an Aqualung Look mask from Scubastore.com. The mask and lenses shipped to me was about $100 ish. It is the smallest (lowest volume) perscription maks I could find. Perhaps your eye doctor could take a mask and put a perscription in it, but I prefer the way I did it. Best of luck.

 

[The Business]

Thanks for the advice. I gave up on contacts a year or two ago. They irratate my eyes :ko

 

[Elvin]

Hello
I am an Optometrist that freedives! Sorry didn,t reed your post sooner! The main problem with scubastores selling you prescription masks is that they now nothing about refraction! It is much more complicated than selecting a lens from a "box inventory". So people get disapointed with their vision with the divemask. Imagine , you can have millions of individual Rx's but in scuba stores they got only about 20 ! If they have yours, you are lucky. Many end up with something similar to what their prescription should be. In fact scuba stores are not permited by law for filling spectacle prescriptions! At least here in Puerto Rico. I recenly made a OMER dive mask with prescription to a friend of my. Cost of lensses was $280.00. If you got your mask for $100.00 with prescription lenses I guess that they fited you with pre fabricated lenses from an inventory.That is not bad , if it is really your exact prescription.You should go to an Optometric office or Optical Shop to verify if they filled your spectacle prescription correctly.
If you now some profesional ,dedicated optical shop that can get you a divemask with your exact prescription ,if you have high astigmatism for example for a better price than $280.00, I would like you to tell me about it.Here in Puerto Rico pre fabricated "box" lensses cost from $40 to $75 each.
You can learn much from DAN scuba heath organization in the internet.Look for optical articles in their index.

 

[gman]

My perscription was filled without the astigmatism portion. Scubastore had within a quarter diopter of what I needed on one eye, and exactly what I needed on the other eye. If the astigmatism is not severe, there is no reason not to get a stock correction. It is just like the drug store reading glasses: not exact, but pretty darned close. It is alot better than wearing contacts, no correction, or three hundred dollars for a perscription that I could read with. I had thought about having the laser surgery done years ago, but never did. Now I think I still won't because I am only a few years away from my eyes doing the "age change" thing anyway.

 

[Fondueset]

I have an Omer Alien and a Cressi Matrix with prescription lenses from http://www.prescriptiondivemasks.com I've been using them for a couple of years and they work great - also reduces the volume of the mask.
Price was $130 per mask