Are old steel 72's worth it?

[captain]

Her is my rules for buying old steel 72's
1 If they have a boot take it off and check for any rust.
2 Try to get them from fresh water diving areas, Great Lakes, mid west states,etc.
3 If they look good on the outside they are usually good on the inside.
4 If you can take the valve off and peek in side, if you can't hold it up by the valve and tap it lightly with a hammer, it should have a clear high pitched ring. If it sounds dull it probably has excessive rust inside

 

[LobstaMan]

72s are great tanks for shallow shore diving if you can get them on the cheap. I have two, one was free from my dad and the other I bought a few years ago for $100 that just had a brand new hydro and VIP. But, once you start getting into replacing old valves(many of them are the old J style valves) or rebuilding newer ones, then the cost might not seem worth it. I tell everybody that asks, forget the 72s or the AL80s and cough up the extra dough for a pair of a HP100s or LP95s...IMHO they're worth it.

LobstaMan

 

[captain]

72s are great tanks for shallow shore diving if you can get them on the cheap. I have two, one was free from my dad and the other I bought a few years ago for $100 that just had a brand new hydro and VIP. But, once you start getting into replacing old valves(many of them are the old J style valves) or rebuilding newer ones, then the cost might not seem worth it. I tell everybody that asks, forget the 72s or the AL80s and cough up the extra dough for a pair of a HP100s or LP95s...IMHO they're worth it.

LobstaMan

There is absoutly no need to replace working J valves, just leave the lever down.

 

[LobstaMan]

I know J valves work perfectly well, but I'm pretty anal about having all my equipment the same. Less thought, less mistakes works for me. By the way, I went DIN a few years back and had to replace them then anyhow. I wasn't saying it's automatic, although the LSD I went to to get them checked out said it's getting harder and harder to find replacement parts for the older J valves. I still have them in my dive locker.

LobstaMan