Question for Poseidon owners

[caymaniac]

Chickenbone,

Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the family of Poseidon owners. I choose life support equipment based on performance and reliability, pretty much without regard to cost, and I think Poseidon makes the best regs on the market. If I didn’t dive Xstreams, I’d be diving Jetstreams. And if I didn’t dive those, I’d dive with Atomic T1s or M1s. If I didn’t dive that, I’d dive something from Apeks.

All of my buddies dive with Jetstreams, so I’ve spent a good amount of time breathing from them during air sharing drills. The Jetstream in a very good and capable reg. As far as differences between the Jetstream and the Xstream, the Xstream has a slightly smoother feel to it and a slightly smoother valve opening. The second stage body of the Xstream is a little smaller, and is a little drier breathing because of the placement of the exhaust value compared to the placement on the Jetstream. Also, the Jetstream needs an (inexpensive) plastic cap on the first stage for very cold water (ice diving), while the Xstream doesn’t.

As far as quirky is concerned, that all depends on how good of a service tech you have working on them. Poseidons have to be tuned and flowed properly in order to breath properly. A good Poseidon tech is kind of hard to find unfortunately. It isn’t that they’re particularly hard to work on, it’s just that there are a few tricks and there’s definitely a learning curve involved. If a tech doesn’t work on many Poseidons, he or she generally isn’t going to be terrific at tuning them for that reason. Also, Poseidon sends the regs from the factory untuned, and they need to be tuned and flowed before first use. Of the people that have tried a Poseidon and not liked them, the odds are very very very good that they got ahold of one that was not tuned properly. Generally if they’re poorly tuned, they blast air at you so hard that the back of your throat hurts.

Use the purge value with a light touch, and remember to tilt your head to the right when clearing them. Good luck!

I used to have a Cyclon and loved it, you are right when you say that the tech's are hard to find. My Cyclon was stolen on a dive trip a few years back as well as the octo. The reg I have now doesn't match up .to the Cyclon and your'e right about the the statement at 100 you'll really love it. I did however have a freeflow once in awhile until you tip it the right way while boarding or just off the boat.

 

[jrk]

Whoa... you got a heck of a deal.
You'll probably want to have the IP checked again after they're broken in.
Welcome to the club; you're about to become spoiled.
The Xstream's claim to fame is their 1st stages, the design is so downright outstanding that I'm going to have a cutaway drawing framed & hang it on the wall.
The "ball bearing" replacing a HP needle is the single most impressive feature.

Bob3,
I've got two jetstreams that I have been using/babying for about 2 years...not much diving though. I've been putting off having these serviced b/c I'm scared to death of someone screwing them up. Any chance you know and recommend anyone very capable of doing this work?

Thanks,
Randy Kight
Richmond, VA

 

[Thomcmdchief]

I've been diving my Cyklon 300 since 1974 and its got over 2000 dives on it and still is my primary regulator. I sent it off to John and Northeast Divers Supply last week to tune it up, but really, it probably didn't need it. I picked up a Jetstream for my wife four or five years ago and she absolutely loves it.

My bottom line is this is a professional regulator, at least the Cyklon is, built to last forever, or at least as long as I last, as long as its maintained.

 

[Mordred]

I was lucky enough to do all my OW cert dives with a Poseidon Xstream. Great reg - but the purge scared the living daylights out of me - talk about forceful!

 

[rab]

I was lucky enough to do all my OW cert dives with a Poseidon Xstream. Great reg - but the purge scared the living daylights out of me - talk about forceful!

Yeah, you learn to close your throat if you need to purge the reg.
-Rob

 

[Tristessa]

I've been using them for years, and i would'nt have it any other way! I think their top notch and you won't be dissapointed with them whatsoever. You got a heck of a deal on them. The only problem is servicing them in the US. There like some exotic foreign car that you can't just pull into your local amoco station. If you can sevice them regularly they'll last forever. One of my first stages has a 4 digit serial number, and still performs like brand new! Congrats on your purchase!

 

[Tristessa]

If you need service on any poseidon i would recommend Allen at terrace watersports in Tampa, FL. He has any part in stock and has quick return times, his pricing is very fair too. A simple google search will provide his number, i don't have it here at the moment!

 

[ChickenBone]

thanks for all the feedback, folks.
Finally had a chance to get them in the water this weekend. I'm very pleased with the purchase! I cannot believe how forceful the Jestream purges. It's almost like it wants to suck your tongue right through the regulator, lol. Took a little getting used to. It also took me a minute to get acclimated to the purge being located on the side. On the same note, however, it's nice that regardless of how i donate the reg to a buddy, there is no 'upside down'. Overall, they both breathe fantastic - I do prefer the Cyclon a bit more simply because it has a smaller profile. Also, I noticed some ice crystals when breathing the Jetstream (water was 39degrees), but not the Cyclon. They are definitely unique regs in every way, but they seem to be rock solid and dependable.

Tristessa - thanks for the tip regarding servicing. i'll keep Allen in mind when the time is right. Northeast Scuba Supply handles alot of Poseidons as well.

 

[SDAnderson]

Sweet breathers with an outstanding reputation for reliability in cold water. The problem with them is that they are time-consuming, expensive and a little finicky to service. Parts kits can cost 3X as much as kits for other cold-water regulators and sometimes have more o-rings than many regulators have parts. I don't think they're worth the extra cost and hassle but there are a lot of folks who disagree with me.

 

[jiseson]

Where can I get replacement mouthpieces for my Xstreams? I gave up my Scubapro regs for these-have 4- i dive deep wrecks at times 240'-you don't know u have a reg in your mouth! Best i have ever tried!