aqualung mistral

[mpittman]

May I first of all state very firmly "this is NOT a troll". I have recently inherited a 1965ish model aqualung mistral . I already dive a mid 80s pacer xle with a conshelf octo on it , and a new aqualung titan and titan octo. My grandfather was a diver in his day , and has referred to this regulator specifically as one he used to dive with back in the day before bcs and computers and other such modern feats of technology. this unit is in extremly good shape (hoses look new , mouthpiece as well , the can has no dings or dents nor any oxidation inside or out ) vintage scuba will be supplying me with a replacement duckbill exhaust valve , new mouthpiece cages and valves as well , i am having the insides of the can serviced at my LDS as we speak. my real question is , does anyone here have any experience diving these old rigs? ive been schooled on how to clear them of water , and what i should know about diving without a BC , im curious about how to fit an spg on this thing as there is no hp port on it . does anyone still manufacture a long style yoke and the addon banjo fitting to accept a simple spg? I really want to try this out on shallow easy o/w dives and just enjoy the vintage feel of the rigs of that era , and to experience just how things were for my grandfather in his days of diving. Thanks for any help , advice , concerns , or flames

 

[Delta_P]

does anyone still manufacture a long style yoke and the addon banjo fitting to accept a simple spg?

I've never seen one of those in the flesh. Around here it's easier to find weird old valves, like the Nemrod J valve used on some steel tanks I have from the late 60's. In addition to the burst plug they have a 3/8" HP port on the side. I seem to recall Scubapro valves made with a similar fitting. There are adaptors available to go from the 3/8" HP to the modern spg hose fitting, but it might be tough fit, given the port's position directly under the valve hand wheel.

You could always go totally retro, and dive with the J valve active and no spg. I think GMC still sells actuator rods for them, if you can't reach the valve yourself. Can you ascend to 15' and do a safety stop with 750 p.s.i. remaining?

 

[mpittman]

yeah ive considered just nixing the k valve and modern spg altogether in favor of a j-valve , my lds says he can get me one. yeah i dont have any problems reaching the switch on a J hehehe if i do , id better pray noone ever pranks me into a fake OOA by turning off any valve on any tank. heres the REAL question though , wouldnt not having a spg be considered anti-dir? *shameless laughter* hey i got an idea , vss sells enough of this stuff to actually turn a profit so i guess im not the only one interested in vintage diving at its best , why dont we put together a 12 member council of old timers who remember diving and tweaking that stuff and create our own methodology to diving , we can call it DIO (Do It Obsolete) whos game? I repeat this is not a troll for trouble , I love the DIR outlook on underwater fun , I just think there are a few zealots out there who refuse to dive 10 feet off the bank with a single non dir plastic clip on their rig.

 

[scubafanatic]

...probably the simpliest solution is contact 'vintagescubasupply' in Oregon.......a while back Dan sold me a couple K-valves with an HP port built into the actual tank valve, so that you can install a 'modern' SPG......and you can install a BC inflator hose on the 1st stage hooka port, if you have one.....I actually have 2 custom hoses from Dan that allow me to do just that.

He can probably get you some of those special K-valves........but he only made a limited production run of those special BC hoses, and I bought the last 2 he had...but that was a while back, who knows, maybe he's made more since then.

I recently saw some guy on E-bay selling custom brass fittings that allow you to use a modern BC hose on the hooka port......just look on E-Bay for that.

I'd stay away from a J-valve........if it's in the 'wrong' position (down already when you thought it was up......or gets knocked down accidentially) you might breathe your 'reserve' without knowing it, and get a nasty surprise when you try to access that last 500 psi.

Karl

 

[Bob3]

For a reserve & BC/drysuit inflator you can just rig up a pony bottle with a single hose on it.
I dove a double hose w/pony like that for ice diving, it worked very well.
When using a J valve we'd always remove the pull rod, it cut in half the places it could get snagged & give you those unpleasant suprises.

 

[oxyhacker]

The Mistral is single stage and doesn't have a hooka port.

Dacor K valves which have an HP port are pretty common - one ought to be able to find one used for $15 or so. Personally I would go with a J valve (once again, ought to be pretty easy to find a used one for $15 or so). With a little practice you should be able to sense how much air is left in the tank by breathing effort alone, Cousteau-style.

Using a J-valve isn't all that hard - you just get in the habit of checking the rod position a lot. If absolute safety and convenience is your goal, you shouldn't be diving the Mistral !

If you want a BC and more safety, a pony bottle with an octopus and inflation hose is probably the simplest solution.

.you can install a BC inflator hose on the 1st stage hooka port, if you have one.SNIP
I'd stay away from a J-valve........if it's in the 'wrong' position (down already when you thought it was up......or gets knocked down accidentially) you might breathe your 'reserve' without knowing it, and get a nasty surprise when you try to access that last 500 psi.

Karl

 

[mpittman]

Thanks for all the wonderful and thought out replies folks . aye , no hooka port on this puppy. i like the idea of the k-valve with the hp port on it , if i cant find one for some reason , a good old j valve will be my second choice (this rig wont touch beyond 50 feet and odds are mostly hang at 35ish where all the local critters hang out at) if i j valve it , i may just run a pony and rig the pacer xle to it as a backup. (the old dacor rig will hopefully get replaced with a mk25 x650 soon) not worried about any sort of bc inflation mechanics , after a bit of testing i plan on running just fins,mask,snorkle , suit , old us divers backback , 8 lbs of lead (more or less) , and maybe a wrist compass/ depth gauge in addition to what weve previously discussed. (from what pops has told me you were a pretty high tech dog with loads of money to blow on diving if you had anything as fancy as a horsecollar bc back in his day). ill start off strapping the rig to my glide pro and just using oral inflation till i get the hang of the regulator itself (i figure that way ill get plenty of practice doing those hose clearing barrel rolls every time i adjust my trim har har)