What makes one rebreather "better" than another?

[RedSeaDiver]

Or why did you choose your rebreather model over the others available on the market?

[graham_hk]

Look at what diving people are doing with Units and who is using them. Some are quarry bashing units and shit themselves anywhere near the sea

[notdeadyet]

What makes a unit better is what unit you own. If you've spunked the price of a car on a rebreather then it's the best on the planet. It's like asking whose partner is the most attractive. No-one wants to admit to a moose. Threads like these are inevitably pointless.

[Woz]

I chose mine as:
1. I can teach on it
2. All my mates dive one

It doesn't necessarily mean it's the best unit, but it does mean that when it breaks I'm likely to have some spares available.
There isn't the perfect unit out there. I've found that most have post-purchase justification as to why theirs is the best, but I've seen almost every type crap out and miss dives. About the only ones that don't are the kiss style mCCR where there are no electrics to go pop- but that doesn't preclude mechanical failure which is always an option.
For my unit i have a big list of gripes that the manufacturer needs to sort out. However the eye watering cost of CE/UKCA testing stops incremental development which is bonkers.

[barnaby_s]

I have yet to complete training on my unit (which I got from another member on here) but I picked it mostly as I knew it was easy to get serviced here in the UK, and there are several other people using them in my club.

[nigel hewitt]

I started on an Inspo
Then I defected to some other thing
It was so 'good' I bought another Inspo.
That outlasted me and was used on my last dive. (too old)

Only the third was a reasoned choice because by then I knew what sort of diving I wanted to do.
However, what works for me probably isn't applicable to you.

I still have the IDA64, the oxygen rebreather that was my favourite of all.
I tried to give it away to a good home but all that fell through.
It's still sitting here looking for somebody who will love it.

[Paulo]

I started off on an AP classic, then added an AV head, then a 2ndary SW plugged in as a back up, then BMCL and a frame. In the end I got fed up of failing AV cables and diving what was in effect a collection of parts. So now I am a JJ wanker. I am waiting on a NERD 2 to arrive ... you can never have enough add ons to any unit

[Wibs]

The all have their good and bad points. The major ones are all fine machines, all with quirks. For a first machine the esoteric ones are probably best skipped: sidemount, chestmount, "recreational rebreathers", etc.

Need to get to know your new love of your life. Lavish plenty of care and attention on it. Practice all the skills on it. Slowly build up your dives, duration and depth. If you fail to do that, your new love will try to kill you. They're all fickle beasts at heart -- well, that plus the fleshy thing driving it making poor decisions.

[Barrygoss]

I started on an Inspo
Then I defected to some other thing
It was so 'good' I bought another Inspo.
That outlasted me and was used on my last dive. (too old)

Only the third was a reasoned choice because by then I knew what sort of diving I wanted to do.
However, what works for me probably isn't applicable to you.

I still have the IDA64, the oxygen rebreather that was my favourite of all.
I tried to give it away to a good home but all that fell through.
It's still sitting here looking for somebody who will love it.

Nigel,

Still here to get it - covid and life has gotten in the way.
It'll join Apoc x 2, a kiss classic, a kiss sport, a Poseidon MKIV and a JJ

Let me know an address and I'll be down to collect - apologies for the delay

B

[graham_hk]

The all have their good and bad points. The major ones are all fine machines, all with quirks. For a first machine the esoteric ones are probably best skipped: sidemount, chestmount, "recreational rebreathers", etc.

Need to get to know your new love of your life. Lavish plenty of care and attention on it. Practice all the skills on it. Slowly build up your dives, duration and depth. If you fail to do that, your new love will try to kill you. They're all fickle beasts at heart -- well, that plus the fleshy thing driving it making poor decisions.

What utter rubbish - a rebreather never tries to kill you…. All they do is decide whether to add O2 which in actual fact keeps you alive