131 steel

[DSCS3svo]

Hi all,

I am brank spankin' new to this message board.

I bought a 131 steel tank today (off ebay) by surprise--I didn't think I'd get it.

These are the vitals:

2400 PSI service pressure. Rated DOT-3AA2400
Hydro test November 2004 - good until end of November 2009.
Visual November 2004.
Thermo K valve.
Original manufacture date December 1998.
Tank is 8" in diameter. Approx 31" high without valve - 34" high with valve.
Empty weight approx 67 lbs. Full approx 73 lbs.

I've been diving 8 months, I am Nitrox and AOW, but I've always dove aluminum 80s, can you tell me what to expect? Good, bad, too heavy, what?

Thanks, smart diver fellas...

 

[teknitroxdiver]

Theyre going to be really heavy! A set of twin E8-130s is about 110 or so, so those are really heavy for a single! You probably won't need nearly as much weight as with an 80, and you'll get a lot more bottom time. Be SURE and do a buoyancy check in shallow-ish water so you don't get a runaway descent going. One thing is for sure, you're going to get strong if you carry those very far!

 

[Dryglove]

One thing i'll throw out there is pay attention to your NDL's as it is very easy to get into deco without realizing when diving a large tank such as your new 130.

 

[teknitroxdiver]

Right. It'll take you a while to get used to the fact that it will take a lot longer to get to whatever PSIs you use as significant points in the dive (e.g. 2000psi, 1500psi, 500psi) Also you need to remember that since its a LP tank, your fractional numbers will be different. For example, 1500psi isn't half a tank anymore.

 

[Dryglove]

Holy cow i just noticed the height and weight(yikes) of your cylinder. Thats one big sucker. Start eating your wheaties. You could always use it for a banking system if you ever decide to buy a compressor later on


As stated be sure to do a weight check so your not way over weighted since you are used to alm 80's .

 

[teknitroxdiver]

This will probably tick you off, but I would sell it and get a E7-120 instead. Or a Faber 95. That way you'll actually be able to make it to the end of the dock and still be able to dive!

 

[DSCS3svo]

Thanks everybody,

ALL my suspicions are confirmed... I'll definetely check it out in shallow water before I hit deep water. I've already got a few people that want to buy it if I dont like it. The whole reason I bought it was because it looked sooo cheap (it ended up @ $215 shipped). It's still in the mail and I'm getting ready to hit the water with rental 80s. Thanks for all the info, I will definitely be spendin alot of my time on this board.

 

[scubafanatic]

....you may be in for a shock if you're used to AL80's....... I predict you will want to sell it the moment you attempt to gear up with it, if not sooner....ie, when the UPS man hands you the package! My 1st 2 tanks were Faber LP steel 120's, so I'm familiar with diving BIG tanks.........however, 2 months ago I took them to my LDS to try to sell them for me, as it's been a long time since I last dove them (he still hasn't found a buyer, and I've very flexible on their selling price)

I down-sized a notch, now diving OMS 112/ PST E7-120/ PST E8-130..........also have a LP 76 and LP 85 steel twinset.......your new LP 131 weighs about as much as my twinsets.......my LP 85 twinset, overfilled to 3000 psi, weighs 83 lbs ( for 193 cu. ft. of gas ) and my LP 76 twinset is a bit lighter than that.......my smallest tank is a sweet LP steel 85.

I hope you're a tall person as well, I'm 5'8" and found my LP 120's just too long for comfortable use, that was a bigger issue than the sheer weight. ( my LP 120's, overfilled to 3000 psi weigh 55 lbs)

......I almost suspect, based on your new tank's weight figures, you bought a Beuchat tank....those are insanely heavy, as in unsafe to dive, assuming you can even move the thing......they are extremely heavy on land, and incredibly 'negative' in the water......if this is true please test dive it in a pool first......and consult with your local dive shop on the appropriate wetsuit/drysuit and BC/wing combo.........you stand a good chance of overloading your BC and crashing straight to the bottom with no way up......I think you will have to spend big $ upgrading to a tech wing/BP combo.........for example, I spent $ 800 on a tech DeepOutdoors Matrix harness/BP/55 lbs wing........then later another $ 400 to upgrade the wing to a DiveRite 55 lbs dual-bladder redundant wing.......so that 'cheap' tank may end up costing you serious $ !

Karl

P. S. ......your tank weighs more than you think.........if it's 67 lbs empty, and you add 131 cu. ft. of gas, that's an additional 10 lbs of weight......so your tank really weighs 77 lbs, not 73 lbs.

 

[teknitroxdiver]

If you do find that it's unacceptably heavy/tall/big you could put it back on eBay and probably get enought cash to cover a HP steel tank, which would be just as big but smaller and lighter.

 

[skyking]

Think I saw a Heiser/Beuchat on Ebay recently. If that's the one you bought, beware - that tank is a death trap. It is/may-be safe only for VERY BIG people in dry suits who need extreme weight to descend and who have the redundant buoyancy of a drysuit. It's something like -18 lbs empty. I have a friend who tried one and nearly got himself killed because his BC wouldn't float him. Nobody expects a tank to be that negative. Diving the thing in a wetsuit is unthinkable due to the buoyancy shift that occurs when the wetsuit compresses (especially beyond 50-60 ft). No kidding about runaway descents. I recommend you sell the thing the minute it arrives and spend the few extra bucks on a good HP 130, 120, 119, or a good set of twins.