What the hell did I just watch?
Question Anyone ever had an incident because they serviced their own gear?
- Thread starter Tom_Ivan
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I will admit my **** ups since picking up servicing on my own, none of them ended in any incident though (looking forward to you guys telling me how it could have nonetheless).
#1: Piston reg, schematic does not facilitate exact reality. #18 is the HP-Seat Housing and in my instance a screw with a head.
Instead of using O-Ring #16 "on the right side", so the bottom of the housing-screw, I put it towards the "left side", pushed it over the thread all the way to the head of the screw.
With two MK25 evos, nothing happened. With a MK5 clone, the O-Ring sat absolutely horribly (which bothered me, but not enough to recognise my mistake) and overextruded due to HP and obviously leaked. With the MK25's, I discovered that mistake around 50 dives into it, 1 year later. With the MK5, the **** up made itself clear while testing. To my excuse: The screw looked like it wanted the O-Ring where I put it, a bit of clean space inbetween the head & the thread.
#2: I was watching TV while disassembling a second stage. Since the TV was absolutely thrilling (some wrecks I assume), I did not get rid of the pin (#18) before unscrewing #26. The screw is made of plastic and while using some force, it broke. Obviously, assembly is impossible then, no diving, no accident.
#3: I pick up ebay-regs, max 40euro, to learn servicing. A few of them are impossible (to me) to disassemble and then I break stuff.
My methods for reluctant stages in that order:
Water & vinegar
Lots of WD40 in all holes, let it sit a while.
Heat - usually "only" boiling water
Then I resolve to destructive measures, like drills, screw extractors and so on.
Two more non-destructive methods I was told since my last ebay-reg:
WD40 and pressurizing the reg (untested by me so far)
Some time in the freezer - rsingler wrote that a couple of times.
Lessons learned:
Be precise.
Focus on one task at a time.
Go with the service manual for the step-by-step (dis-)assembly.
#1: Piston reg, schematic does not facilitate exact reality. #18 is the HP-Seat Housing and in my instance a screw with a head.
Instead of using O-Ring #16 "on the right side", so the bottom of the housing-screw, I put it towards the "left side", pushed it over the thread all the way to the head of the screw.
With two MK25 evos, nothing happened. With a MK5 clone, the O-Ring sat absolutely horribly (which bothered me, but not enough to recognise my mistake) and overextruded due to HP and obviously leaked. With the MK25's, I discovered that mistake around 50 dives into it, 1 year later. With the MK5, the **** up made itself clear while testing. To my excuse: The screw looked like it wanted the O-Ring where I put it, a bit of clean space inbetween the head & the thread.
#2: I was watching TV while disassembling a second stage. Since the TV was absolutely thrilling (some wrecks I assume), I did not get rid of the pin (#18) before unscrewing #26. The screw is made of plastic and while using some force, it broke. Obviously, assembly is impossible then, no diving, no accident.
#3: I pick up ebay-regs, max 40euro, to learn servicing. A few of them are impossible (to me) to disassemble and then I break stuff.
My methods for reluctant stages in that order:
Water & vinegar
Lots of WD40 in all holes, let it sit a while.
Heat - usually "only" boiling water
Then I resolve to destructive measures, like drills, screw extractors and so on.
Two more non-destructive methods I was told since my last ebay-reg:
WD40 and pressurizing the reg (untested by me so far)
Some time in the freezer - rsingler wrote that a couple of times.
Lessons learned:
Be precise.
Focus on one task at a time.
Go with the service manual for the step-by-step (dis-)assembly.
On my very first at home by myself 2nd stage rebuild after taking @cerich awesome class I tried to tune with pressure on the seat. It seemed fine but when diving it would free flow just a little. Not enough to cause an "accident" but was pretty annoying. I swapped it out and all was good.
I think if you work on your own cars or have then it's pretty easy. If you have a mechanic's touch (ie you've broken enough **** to know how not to!)
Could I have gotten by without the class, maybe. But it was really nice to see someone else do it and have someone point out where the tricky spots were.
@rsingler teaches an online class on here as well.
Good luck!
I think if you work on your own cars or have then it's pretty easy. If you have a mechanic's touch (ie you've broken enough **** to know how not to!)
Could I have gotten by without the class, maybe. But it was really nice to see someone else do it and have someone point out where the tricky spots were.
@rsingler teaches an online class on here as well.
Good luck!
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Have you heard the one where someone tries to undo something and it just won't come
then they hand it off to some of the other eager volunteers to try and they get it first go
well thats just like the freezer myth where with another take it was going to give anyway
freezer or no magical freezer
my reg guy up thread, Mr freeflow well he's a freezer guy too and mostly it doesn't work
What does work is whacking your first stage with a plastic hammer to crack the verdigris
then you can crack the thread
Freezers and ovens belong to putting ring gears on diff centres and other putting small stuff on big stuff
where you can cool or heat stuff individually, separately by themselves, not all together in a clump things
then they hand it off to some of the other eager volunteers to try and they get it first go
well thats just like the freezer myth where with another take it was going to give anyway
freezer or no magical freezer
my reg guy up thread, Mr freeflow well he's a freezer guy too and mostly it doesn't work
What does work is whacking your first stage with a plastic hammer to crack the verdigris
then you can crack the thread
Freezers and ovens belong to putting ring gears on diff centres and other putting small stuff on big stuff
where you can cool or heat stuff individually, separately by themselves, not all together in a clump things
admikar
Contributor
Yes, I caused a serious accident while servicing equipment, and I risked my life.
It was a CC pure-oxygen rebreather, a Cressi ARO mod. 57B.
This was, at the time, the basic scuba system employed for training new divers here in Italy.
At the time I was an assistant instructor, and my training did include servicing these rebreathers (dismounting, washing, replacing the soda lyme, detaching the tank, filling it and reassembling everything).
The incident occurred during reassembling.
I had finished the teflon flat washers ensuring seal between the oxygen tank and the manual "bypass" valve, so I did employ a similarly-sized hard rubber washer, which evidently was not rated for pure oxygen at 200 bar.
When I opened the valve on the tank, the rubber catched fire, creating an hole in the body of the bypass valve, from which a flame beam, half a meter long, erupted.
Luckily this flame was not aimed towards my face.
I was cold enough to close the valve immediately, interrupting the oxygen supply.
It was truly dangerous and scaring.
That was one of 5 times i risked my life during my juvenile years.
It was a CC pure-oxygen rebreather, a Cressi ARO mod. 57B.
This was, at the time, the basic scuba system employed for training new divers here in Italy.
At the time I was an assistant instructor, and my training did include servicing these rebreathers (dismounting, washing, replacing the soda lyme, detaching the tank, filling it and reassembling everything).
The incident occurred during reassembling.
I had finished the teflon flat washers ensuring seal between the oxygen tank and the manual "bypass" valve, so I did employ a similarly-sized hard rubber washer, which evidently was not rated for pure oxygen at 200 bar.
When I opened the valve on the tank, the rubber catched fire, creating an hole in the body of the bypass valve, from which a flame beam, half a meter long, erupted.
Luckily this flame was not aimed towards my face.
I was cold enough to close the valve immediately, interrupting the oxygen supply.
It was truly dangerous and scaring.
That was one of 5 times i risked my life during my juvenile years.
you can actually count the number of times you risked your life as a juvenile?
I think they just want to keep their dealers happy. They are often desperate to keep customers coming through their doors.
admikar
Contributor
I think there is some merit to "professional" service network. Some people shouldn't be allowed to dive, not to mention service diving equipment.
L13
Contributor
Which is why we should keep going through the doors of the good ones, to keep them from being tempted to desperate measures.
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