1960 DA Aquamaster

[Gilldiver]

Vintage Diving, It's not just a Hobby, its a disease!

You start with one regulator to play around with, then 2 or 3 years later you end up with this and more.

Pete Johnson

 

[Paladin]

Nice collection! I'm envious!

 

[SwimJim]

Vintage Diving, It's not just a Hobby, its a disease!

You start with one regulator to play around with, then 2 or 3 years later you end up with this and more.

Pete Johnson

And that's just the tip of the iceburg!! LOL I've been accused of having a dive store in my garage.

Jim

 

[Paladin]

I know what you guys mean. I'm already drooling over the idea of picking up a Royal Aquamaster. Maybe in the spring.

 

[Gilldiver]

What you have to understand is that that is only what I took for that day. There is another Aquamaster and a Voit single stage downstream on the bench and now I may pick up 2 Polish double hose regs in 2 weeks.

I realy hope my wife never starts counting how many single and double hose regs I have.

But, I NEED THEM ALL!

My son uses them too, so they are not just for me

Pete

 

[fire_diver]

In the pic, is your son using any type of backplate?

Also, it's just disgusting that you have so many nice double-hose regs. You must be racked with guilt at hording such a vast amount. I think you should sell a couple to me to help you sleep better at night.

 

[Nemrod]

A few years ago, it was a joke on this board if you dove a twin hose. Now, there is a standing army.

N

 

[Gilldiver]

In the pic, is your son using any type of backplate?

Also, it's just disgusting that you have so many nice double-hose regs. You must be racked with guilt at hording such a vast amount. I think you should sell a couple to me to help you sleep better at night.

He is using a 1970's plastic back pack with an aluminum 40. The reg he is using is a Royal Aqua Master. If you look on his left shoulder you will see a nylon rope with an eye splice on it. When I used that back pack, that rope went over my right shoulder and the wreck bag was cliped onto it.

If you want a double hose, I have a 1958/59 Mistral with all new silicon rubber parts and new seat ready to go. The chrome is only fair on the body but good on the cans. PM me and I'll send photos. It is a good diver and you could send in the body parts for new chrome to make it a show piece.

Pete

 

[Paladin]

Gilldiver,
Where could one get a new HP seat for a DA Aquamaster? Mine is good right now, I would just like to have a spare one just in case.

VDH doesn't have any. Bryan says that some might be made sonetime in the future but isn't sure.

 

[Nemrod]

Ultimately it is not just the seat that limits the lifespan of a nozzle assembly but more the volcano orifice. The DA and RAM like most older regs utilize a machined brass nozzle assembly with a non replaceable volcano orifice. One of the big improvements with the Phoenix as with newer AL regs like the Titan is that the volcano orifice can be replaced. With continued use the volcano orifice will eventually need a regrind. This is an easy skill to freshen it up but in time the sealing edge of the volcano orifice slowly becomes broader or more rounded. When this begins to happen we see IP creep and we fiddle with the HP seat and then we grind the orifice a bit to try and get it to seat and this only makes it worse. What is really needed is a new volcano orifice. Now, certainly, a good DA or RAM is good for hundreds of dives and with care many of our regs will live long lives yet. Some of us have experimented with trying to regrind the orifice to an original contour, I have not been able to satisfy myself with that, except with the original small diameter DA volcano, using a fluted step reamer bring it to the larger diameter. The nozzle assembly is locked in a drill press vice and squared and the reamer is chucked in the spindle and hand turned into the orifice. This produces a new sealing edge, not quite like the large ID DA nozzle but at least the sealing edge is renewed. Anyways, so it goes, YRMV.

N