B2, Proton Ice or MK17/S600

[IvanM]

Well here is a dilemma….turns out I can get a Atomic B2 for the same price as a Mares Proton Ice or a Scubapro MK17/ S600, each with their octopuses. Now I have read a LOT of good things about Atomic regs, and the service for all 3 would be accessible. Now I mainly dive in warm sea water a moderate lake waters, but would do a couple of dives a year in colder fresh water also….the Atomic would be my favorite since everybody seems to love it, and if I get it environmentally sealed it should work in cold water also right? Or should I just stick with Mares or Scubapro? The thing I don’t like about the Proton Ice is it is not ready for nitrox….any opinions???

Thanks…

 

[WICKED_WIZARD]

Hi

I have no experience with the Atomic, but I do dives with two regs on my cylinder. Backup reg is scubapro MK25 with x650; main reg is mares V32 with proton ice.
Both are excellent regs. The scubapro being non-metal does however leave your mouth a little drier than the metal proton ice. The scubapro MK17 that you refer to is a diaphragm reg made for cold water, although the MK25 will handle water to 5 degrees Celsius well. The mares V32 is a diaphragm that has no problems in ice diving. All scubapro regs to my knowledge comes 100% O2 ready. Meaning they are cleaned and compatible with 100% O2. The mares reg is ready for EANX diving up to 40%. You can have them cleaned and O2 compatible parts put in to allow them to be save to 100% O2. Apart from that, if price and service is no problem. It’s more of a personal choice. But do note that the MK25 scubapro reg has swivel ports and being a piston allows better hose placement when running 2 regs on a H valve than the mares reg. For single reg diving both will be fine. It is expensive, but I am now replacing the mares V32 with a MK25 and using the proton ice dv as main and backup dv. Basically cos of the hose placement allowing me easier access to my shut of valves with the scubapro and cos I like the breathing on the proton ice. (And looks)

All the best.

 

[IvanM]

All of the sites I visited state the Proton Ice is not ready for nitrox…if it was nitrox ready it would be on the top of my list….are you sure about it being OK with nitrox? My LDS said it will not hurt it, but it is not recommended. I am not nitrox certified yet, so please explain to me if oxygen cleaning can be done on any reg and how much does it cost? Did you use your proton with nitrox?

Thanks

 

[fdog]

IvanM, I'd make a list of characteristics I'm looking for; then try before you buy. That way it's not a guessing game. These regs are expensive enough without a nagging doubt that you bought the wrong one for you.

All the best, James

 

[abitton]

I've been using my Proton Ice with Nitrox for a while and I'm still here to write about it...


Seriously, I think it's more of a lawyer thing.

As per the previous posts, I suggest you try all of them and decide which one you prefer. I personally like the Ice very much (it's been rock solid below 100 ft at 40 deg), but YMMV.

Alex

All of the sites I visited state the Proton Ice is not ready for nitrox…if it was nitrox ready it would be on the top of my list….are you sure about it being OK with nitrox? My LDS said it will not hurt it, but it is not recommended. I am not nitrox certified yet, so please explain to me if oxygen cleaning can be done on any reg and how much does it cost? Did you use your proton with nitrox?

Thanks

 

[IvanM]

Unfortunately in the country where I live it is not easy to find gear and try it, the rental regs are mostly the cheap ones, and in my town there are few divers…so my only choice is ordering from the internet and using as much information as I can get to help me in my choice…for example I never saw my Halcyon BP/W, or my dive light or my compass and so on until I ordered them from the internet, but thanks to a lot of research I love all the stuff I bought….anyway thanks for the help….I did read in a lot of places about all regs being ready for 40% nitrox….well right now the Mares is on the top of my list….some people here dive under the ice, would be nice to try and have a safe reg….

 

[Hoosier]

MK17/S600.... That's my vote...!!

 

[divejax]

Well here is a dilemma….turns out I can get a Atomic B2 for the same price as a Mares Proton Ice or a Scubapro MK17/ S600, each with their octopuses. Now I have read a LOT of good things about Atomic regs, and the service for all 3 would be accessible. Now I mainly dive in warm sea water a moderate lake waters, but would do a couple of dives a year in colder fresh water also….the Atomic would be my favorite since everybody seems to love it, and if I get it environmentally sealed it should work in cold water also right? Or should I just stick with Mares or Scubapro? The thing I don’t like about the Proton Ice is it is not ready for nitrox….any opinions???

Thanks…

Ivan
With the enviro-sealed upgrade option you will be just fine with the B2. You may also want consider adding the Atomic M1 heat exchanger to your B2 as well for added cold water protection.
Another option would be to just add the swivel hose upgrade to the M1 and be ready for everything including 80% O2 mixes right out of the box.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

A Mk 17 S600 would be a good choice, but I'd suggest that a Mk 17 G250 would be an even better choice and would save you some money.

 

[WICKED_WIZARD]

All of the sites I visited state the Proton Ice is not ready for nitrox…if it was nitrox ready it would be on the top of my list….are you sure about it being OK with nitrox? My LDS said it will not hurt it, but it is not recommended. I am not nitrox certified yet, so please explain to me if oxygen cleaning can be done on any reg and how much does it cost? Did you use your proton with nitrox?

Thanks

Hi

I do 2 to 5 dives every weekend. I only dive EANX. The proton ice is not O2 ready out of the box. Meaning that it is ready to be used on recreation EANX mixes. (Up to 40% O2) If you want to go technical later you might then have to have compatible parts inserted for mixes with O2 above 40%. You want your rig to be O2 service ready. This means that it has been O2 cleaned (all dust and hydrocarbon removed and burs or shavings from molding removed that can cause hot spots) and that O2 compatible parts have been used. O2 is not flammable; it’s an oxygenater. Rust is an example of slow oxygenation and fire fast. Carbon materials react violently in 100% O2 esp. under pressure. So all the normal o-rings and silicon grease needs to be removed and replaced with compatible parts. Take note that if you had your reg. O2 cleaned and use it on an air dive, you will have to have it cleaned again before you can use it on mixes above 40%. Because of the hydrocarbons found in normal air. Please note that this is just a high level explanation. The process of O2 cleaning is more technical. But in short, you will have no problem with the proton ice on recreational mixes up to 40% right out of the box. But as I stated before, I use both scubapro and mares, and both are excellent rigs for either EANX or deep diving. The scubapro first stage just allows better hose placement.
If you can rent or borrow rigs and try them out for yourself it would be cool.

All the best