Gear for those going down south: copper with black American (5)
I believe the answer is:
scuba
'gear for those going down' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'south copper with black american' is the wordplay.
'south' becomes 's' (abbreviation).
'copper' becomes 'Cu' (chemical symbol).
'with' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'black' becomes 'b' (abbreviation as in pencil classifications).
'american' becomes 'a' (common abbreviation - e.g. in organisation names).
's'+'cu'+'b'+'a'='SCUBA'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for scuba that I've seen before include "Skin-diving apparatus" , "Device that lets divers breathe under water" , "Diving apparatus" , "Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (acronym)" , "Aqualung" .)