NW OH, SE MI, NE IN- who services your scubapro regulator locally?

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

If you are in northwest Ohio, southeast Michigan, or northeast Indiana- who services your Scubapro regulator? I have a MK10+ that I purchased from someone who says it hasn't been in the water in a decade. I'm all over these areas for work.

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

It would only let me add five images!!

He said he was very diligent about rinsing it after diving.

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

I could go to Columbus, OH to have it serviced but that's a bit far for me- 2 1/2 hours each way. I'd much rather find a really good shop in Detroit or Ann Arbor or South Bend, Toledo, Lansing, etc. I guess going rate is about $40-$50 per stage (I have two) plus parts which might be $40-$60?? Is that ballpark? I would like to have it sealed for cold water as well- Gilboa Quarry is really close to me.

And another random question- do folks just add another G250 as an octopus?? Is that a thing? But how do you make it yellow- are there people making yellow faceplates for these? I get certified less than a month from now in Cancun- VERY excited about that!!!!!

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

Seeing listings like this really make me want to service it myself, but that is probably not wise at this point in my (pre-) diving career.

Scubapro G250/MK10 -Good condition | eBay

・Good condition. Weight:1st 841 g /2nd 246 g /LPhose 149 g. The air pressure of this item has been tested on land. Good Condition. Item Condition. It has not been tested underwater. Have the product inspected by a professional before use.

www.ebay.com

 

[Mobulai]

Nice find, very interesting that you know about sealing mk10s before you started diving

I’m in the EU so can’t recommend a place to service it at; but your cost estimate seem about right

The tricky part— finding the SPEC boot (black silicone ring without the ambient holes) that is used for sealing, they have been discontinued
(I do have some SPEC boots in storage and would share, let ne know if you don’t find a closer source to avoid cross-Atlantic shipping)

And the cost of the lube on top of xourse (around 2Oz); the „proper“ way now is Cristolube or Tribolube which costs more, some DIY users still fill with silicone (cheaper)

I would go with 2 G250s ( having 2 identical 2nd stages), wouldn’t bother with having a „yellow octopus“
It’s a preference thing
(i also have spare g250s if you can’t source locally, I would even send it serviced — again last resort due to shipping and possibly tariff costs)

DIY service is a great idea, but of course at your own pace

E2A: I just realized that for service and also learning DIY you might wanna reach out to @rsingler (His reg tech class did wonders for me, and I was servicing mk10/g250 as well in class)

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

Nice find, very interesting that you know about sealing mk10s before you started diving

I’m in the EU so can’t recommend a place to service it at; but your cost estimate seem about right

The tricky part— finding the SPEC boot (black silicone ring without the ambient holes) that is used for sealing, they have been discontinued
(I do have some SPEC boots in storage and would share, let ne know if you don’t find a closer source to avoid cross-Atlantic shipping)

And the cost of the lube on top of xourse (around 2Oz); the proper way now is Cristolube or Tribolube which costs more, some DIY users still fill with silicone (cheaper)

I would go with 2 G250s ( having 2 identical 2nd stages), wouldn’t bother with having a „yellow octopus“
It’s a preference thing

DIY service is a great idea, but of course at your own pace

I've been watching and reading all that I can about diving, and because I live in a cold climate and Lake Huron is so easily accessible, I gravitate toward the cold water stuff- hence the sealing!! I lived in Hawaii (Kona on the big island) and was in the water every day free diving but that was long ago and I'm just getting back to the water now.

Thanks for the offer on the SPEC boot and I will take you up on it if I get desperate to find one! Is this the stuff most folks use?

Pricey but I guess not horrible. Is this a seal-it-once and it's good for hundreds of dives? And the whole point is to fill this area with a lubricant so water can't get in there and freeze, true?

Roger that- I will plan on another G250. So- I'm guessing that some regulators come sealed from the factory and already have that lubricant in place- or does the design mean that they don't need it at all? I was looking at Deep 6 signature regulators and it seems like some folks like the design especially for cold water and the price is good too. Plus you can send it to them to have it serviced or buy the kit and do it yourself. I have an email in to them about their service class.

I just figured if my dive buddy is struggling and looking for something to grab, why not have a yellow octo. But a yellow hose would serve the same purpose I guess!

Do you have a favorite cold water destination in Europe? Or what about warm water there? I can't get enough of the videos on youtube of Silfra, but I have a ways to go before I am ready for drysuit training!!

 

[lexvil]

MK 10 is fine with silicone packing, it’s also dead simple for overhaul with a few simple tools. Find some old ones to practice on, they tend to sell pretty cheap, I usually give them away when I end up with one.

Personally I would just find a sealed diaphragm like a MK 17 or HOG/Deep 6 etc.

 

[Mobulai]

Pricey but I guess not horrible. Is this a seal-it-once and it's good for hundreds of dives? And the whole point is to fill this area with a lubricant so water can't get in there and freeze, true?

Umm, technically it’s a seal it for the service interval (officially 2 years); but @rsingler did a DIY boot for his mk10 and that lasted 10 years with stable IP between services
I believe others have also reached the 5year mark
It’s only propper to avoid cross contamination with silicone for high o2 applications — but silicone will work (might have 2-5PSI higher IP)

Roger that- I will plan on another G250. So- I'm guessing that some regulators come sealed from the factory and already have that lubricant in place- or does the design mean that they don't need it at all? I was looking at Deep 6 signature regulators and it seems like some folks like the design especially for cold water and the price is good too. Plus you can send it to them to have it serviced or buy the kit and do it yourself. I have an email in to them about their service class.

a matching Safe second is the key thing here (as in matching performance)
The D6 ones do match the g250 (ok almost, I don’t wanna be egged )


Funny enough I am not a coldwater diver (ok I did my drysuit class in a 14C lake and maybe 4 more cold dives); I’m more of a redsea diver
I find Austrian lakes very nice tho; they tend to be very clear and calm; same for German and Swiss lakes
My “fav” would be Grünersee in Austria but it’s now has a natural reserve status and only biologists can dive there; it’s a park with a 2m deep lake all year that gets flooded in summer by glacier water turning into a surreal 12m deep lake
I still dream of diving there

 

[HamTrainChickenLaser]

When you say "high O2"- how high are we talking about? So this means I can use cheap silicone grease if I am never diving with Nitrox, or 32% is OK- or 36% but no higher? Thank you for the information!!

WOW it looks fabulous!!!!


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Anyone can be a scientist now- shop on Etsy for these! I'll bet one that says "biologist" will get you in!!!

 

[Mobulai]

When you say "high O2"- how high are we talking about? So this means I can use cheap silicone grease if I am never diving with Nitrox, or 32% is OK- or 36% but no higher? Thank you for the information!!

I mean over 40~50%; silicone will work fine with Nitrox (maybe even a % higher would work; but I don’t wanna try )

Anyone can be a scientist now- shop on Etsy for these! I'll bet one that says "biologist" will get you in!!!

I wish, sadly only affiliated ones that go for work (Idk surveys/upkeep work) — diving is closed to public since 2015