How much is truly too much. How much more should you pay to keep them going? Most of my equipment didn't come from my local dive shop. I seen this as a blessing to us both. I got my stuff and I can dive more due to prices but they get service fees and more classroom time out of me. I have caught poo for this from a couple people now. I will not repeat what I told them to do. My first example of support is I bought a UK light cannon for 250 at local shop when I have it for 195 or less online. Mine did come with batteries...that is what I have told myself to justify it. Duracell costs alot, a whole lot. I don't feel so bad when I am paying 140 for a Nitrox class and the book is 50 of the 140. The dude is making 90 bucks for me to answer a test.

I admit life support I buy from a shop , But all other gear fins , mask , lights , ect I buy on line usually. I agree to buy fins for 140 from a shop when you can get em for 70 why the hell not buy online that other 70 bux goes towards another class anyway

At least I am not the only one...

Even life support can be safely purchased via the internet. As long as it is from an authorized dealer and assembled by a tech that knows how the gear goes together and how it is used. Warranties are important as service parts are often covered during annuals that cna be performed by any local authorized service center. All gear purchased from any authorized dealer is serviceable at any authorized service center.

let's make this simple. Dive shops live and die from gear sales not classroom service, air or anything else. When you by off the internet you kill your local shop and the access to to training, air, service and good advice. Period.

I guess unless everyone else pays for the exotic trips and the gear from there it will fold up...However I see it a little different. They make alot more from classes than gear if they treat us right. I paid 140 bucks for a nitrox class. The manual, DVD, and dive tables were 40 bucks...like it cost that to print it. so 100 smackaroos for me to sit for 2 hours and watch a video and answer 25 questions. Then I do the dives which I pay to do also. So for one night they made 800 bucks for 2 hours of class time? Yep they did and good for them. Now when they try to sale me something for 2 times the price that I can find it somewhere else? I am all for keeping them alive but we have to get sane here.

I drive some of the most gas guzziling toys in the world but when I can drive 2 hours to another shop and beat the price and still come out ahead? Example #1 This past weekend I bought a spare air from Divers Supply which happens to be internet store but I drove to local branch while on my way to dive site. I paid 229.00 for my Spare Air(dive buddy for the day). Local shop that you wish for me to support has the exact same setup for 299.99. I saved 70 bucks by getting it there while on my way. Had I went for just that I would have only saved 40 due to gas prices. So would you rather make the money or not sale it at all? I offered to buy it for 250.00 and they said no. So end result I guess that the non local shop made 10-20 bucks from it. The local shop on the other hand made 0 but could have made the 10-20 and then some had they came down on the price. It took a whole 3 minutes for me to go in and come out with my new Spare Air and I can say 10 bucks for 3 miutes of time is not bad.

I know where you are going to go now and don't try it because I have done the homework on it. They both pay the same price for it and one doesn't get it cheaper for buying in bulk. They are the same cost to them no matter how many you buy. My wifes uncle is dive instrutor/shop owner and gave this up due to fact that he doesn't care if he sales to us or not, he only gives the truth. He could have got Spare Air for me cheaper but with shipping and time it was not going to work. The time was 2 days and that's insane shipping cost. I can get things at cost from him when I am willing to wait for them and pay the shipping. He actually will tell us places to find things cheaper than he can find them sometimes. Some things are better priced when sold in bulk.

Enough said,
Shep

[ 10-12-2005, 01:48 AM: Message edited by: scubashep ]

I can't tell you how wrong you are but I will. First pricing is based on volume with every vendor in the dive industry and it can be substantial. Secondly many of the online dealers are not authorized to sell the products as they are gray market products with no dealer warranty. Finally by far and I mean way by far product sales unless you are a resort is the money maker for any dive shop. They provide classes, trips air and everything else in order to sell gear. So I will tell you your friend is mistaken.

yada yada yada , bring prices down we wont need to go elsewhere.I buy half my stuff at a shop other half online. and ya know what you shops don't care if its online or at a shop fact is even if a student buys gear from a LDS but NOT yours , you get pissy. lower your damn prices so us normal income ppl can enjoy diving also.

for your information local dive shop owners on average probably make less than your average income and put more hours then you ever would. typical response from someone with no knowledge of owning a business and collects a paycheck. Hope you can figure out how to hook a whip to your laptop to get your next airfill from your online store.

typical responce to a money hungry schlebb, that refuses to bring a few bucks down, there is no need for prices to be that HIGH I bought my main gear from a shop and his prices were only 40 bucks higher than Leisure pro so you tell me why others like yours is hundreds more than that usually 50% higher prices. I go to scuba shops that have a sense of keeping returning customer. so if your one that seems to "need" to keep prices that much higher maybe you should close, maybe someone with alittle customer service and care will open it again. or maybe your one of these "weekend" shops that only are opened acouple days aweek as a hobby that feels you need to hike those prices up to get a return for closing so many days aweek