Can I buy 2nd stage and rent 1st?

[poma]

I just passed Open Water exams and thinking about buying some equipment. Is it possible to buy only 2nd stage of regulator and attach it to rented 1st stages when diving?

1st stage is expensive and heavy to transport in luggage. Also I don't see why it is important. Own 2nd stage on the other hand improves comfort, hygiene and ease of breathing. Am I right?

P.S. at the moment I have my own mask, fins, wetsuit and diving computer. I certainly would not buy my own BCD, cylinders and and weights right now.

 

[Roman_66]

Not every second stage can be connected to any first stage.
I don't think that any dive shop will allow you to disconnect second stage from rent set and temporary connect yours.
If you don't like to use second stage after mouth of somebody else, you can bring you own mouthpiece ($3-$10) and ask to replace and keep it later on rent set.
You can buy titanium or travel version for traveling.

 

[DENLASCUBA]

As mentioned above not every 2nd stage can be used with every 1st stage, the 1st and 2nd stages are tuned to match each other. Some 1st stages have different size ports for the second stage LP hoses.

Personally I would not rent just the 1st stage out to a customer to attach their own 2nd stages for the above reason and also liability as I do not know how well your 2nd stage would match up to my 1st stage and also if there was a failure during the dive.

The 1st stage is very important as it lowers the tank pressure to a working pressure for the 2nd stage, the 1st stage also continuously balances this out to help regulate the proper airflow to the 2nd stage making it easier for you to breathe the deeper you go.

Yes some 1st stages can be a bit heavy but there are also light weight travel models available, these can be more expensive than a normal reg set. If this is important for you where that few ounces makes a huge difference when you travel then save up for a travel model. I would suggest the Apeks flight model very light weight and comfortable.

As for the hygiene part if you are that worried then buy your own mouth piece and zip ties and ask the dive shop to put yours on and have them keep theirs until it is returned. I have never had a customer complain about this but I can understand how some divers feel about sharing mouth pieces, a good shop will always rinse their regs well after each rental and will replace the mouth pieces once they show signs of mildew (which yours will also show over a period of time). Its not like you are receiving a reg to use that just came out of someones mouth a second ago and has not been washed yet.

 

[axxel57]

I just passed Open Water exams and thinking about buying some equipment. Is it possible to buy only 2nd stage of regulator and attach it to rented 1st stages when diving?

1st stage is expensive and heavy to transport in luggage. Also I don't see why it is important. Own 2nd stage on the other hand improves comfort, hygiene and ease of breathing. Am I right?

P.S. at the moment I have my own mask, fins, wetsuit and diving computer. I certainly would not buy my own BCD, cylinders and and weights right now.

Well, depending which brand and model you choose to buy, it can fit on a fleet regulator or not.

Poseidon would be probably not a good choice.

I doubt that you find a diving venture which accepts model cross swapping of brands and models.

Usually fleet regulators can be technically combined with most 2nd stage on the market, but it is not clear if the owners of the diving venture know and accept that.

I travel sometimes only with my mask,computer and one of my D350/400s, but I check before, if this is okay with the diving business.

Mostly it is, because I dive a lot with friends in the business, who know that I know what I'm doing.

Actually, concerning your argument about the ease of diving your own 2nd stage, I doubt that your new 2nd stage is breathing more easy than the ones of businesses, because 2nds out of the box are usually adjusted very conservative, means they are usually within the specs of the manufacturers pretty hard to breathe and should be adjusted by a technician before use to be able to breathe from this 2nd as easy as it is possible (within the specs).

Frankly, I guess you will be soon tired of the discussions you are going to have with Dive Businesses about using your own 2nd only, so you will get yourself a regulator set or dive rental equipment.

Anyway, good luck.

 

[drbill]

Not something I would even consider. Spend a little more time saving up and buy a matched set.

 

[diversteve]

The other issue with buying a mouthpiece is that they're not generic either. They are one size fits most but there's some exceptions - mostly it depends on the age of the rental gear. Seacure has a chart on their website that applies to their line: http://seacure1.com/regulator-size-chart/

Besides the Apeks Flight, if money is not a consideration Titanium regulators that some mfr's offer are often the lightest - and generally the most expensive in their line since it's an exotic metal. Atomic, Scubapro, Cressi, others make one.

An example of the weight difference in Atomic's line. This is 1st stage/2nd stage and hose.:



Atomic Aquatics Regulator Systems Comparison Chart

So we're basically talking ounces...

 

[oldschoolto]

I travel with us divers conshelf xiv regulators and never really thought that my carry on bag was to heavy....

Jim....

 

[tbone1004]

why are you so concerned about weight? Carry it in carryon and you don't have to worry. A reg set only weighs a few pounds and can fit in a briefcase or backpack no problem. Granted I carry a full set of cave gear as carryon, so there's that.

No dive operator will allow you to do that, and there is no way to guarantee an improvement in ease of breathing. Second stages have to be tuned to the IP of their first stages in order to perform optimally. If the IP on the rental first stages is set low to save hard seat wear and reduce freeflows, and your second stages are tuned to a higher IP, sure they'll breathe great where they were tuned, but not so much when they aren't connected to that IP.

Long story short, first stages are still pretty cheap, and certainly light enough for carryon. Some sets have been mentioned above, the Apeks US4 is another good little regulator that's nice and light, I've traveled with one many times. The Edge Epic is also a good little reg set and quite cheap. I see you're in Russia, but it may still be worth working with a US dealer to see if they can ship it to you. Dive Right in Scuba is a great company to deal with, and they have some killer deals all the time.

 

[redacted]

why are you so concerned about weight? Carry it in carryon and you don't have to worry. A reg set only weighs a few pounds and can fit in a briefcase or backpack no problem. Granted I carry a full set of cave gear as carryon, so there's that.

No dive operator will allow you to do that, and there is no way to guarantee an improvement in ease of breathing. Second stages have to be tuned to the IP of their first stages in order to perform optimally. If the IP on the rental first stages is set low to save hard seat wear and reduce freeflows, and your second stages are tuned to a higher IP, sure they'll breathe great where they were tuned, but not so much when they aren't connected to that IP.

Long story short, first stages are still pretty cheap, and certainly light enough for carryon. Some sets have been mentioned above, the Apeks US4 is another good little regulator that's nice and light, I've traveled with one many times. The Edge Epic is also a good little reg set and quite cheap. I see you're in Russia, but it may still be worth working with a US dealer to see if they can ship it to you. Dive Right in Scuba is a great company to deal with, and they have some killer deals all the time.

The tuning problem can be managed. Almost all regulators work with an IP set between 125 and 150 psi. Use a user adjustable 2nd tuned to leak at IP over 125 and you can use the adjustment for maximum performance with any 1st set in the 125 to 150 range.

But, unless you are planning a trip up to the space station doing this to save about one pound is silly. Get a high performance, user adjustable 2nd and couple that with an unbalanced piston 1st or a small diaphragm 1st and you will avoid a host of problems.

Or you could buy socks and rent shoes.

 

[CptTightPants21]

why are you so concerned about weight? Carry it in carryon and you don't have to worry. A reg set only weighs a few pounds and can fit in a briefcase or backpack no problem. Granted I carry a full set of cave gear as carryon, so there's that.

No dive operator will allow you to do that, and there is no way to guarantee an improvement in ease of breathing. Second stages have to be tuned to the IP of their first stages in order to perform optimally. If the IP on the rental first stages is set low to save hard seat wear and reduce freeflows, and your second stages are tuned to a higher IP, sure they'll breathe great where they were tuned, but not so much when they aren't connected to that IP.

Long story short, first stages are still pretty cheap, and certainly light enough for carryon. Some sets have been mentioned above, the Apeks US4 is another good little regulator that's nice and light, I've traveled with one many times. The Edge Epic is also a good little reg set and quite cheap. I see you're in Russia, but it may still be worth working with a US dealer to see if they can ship it to you. Dive Right in Scuba is a great company to deal with, and they have some killer deals all the time.

I was waiting for someone to mention this. Who puts a regulator in checked luggage? You should always have the regulator in your carry on to protect it against theft and damage.

There are some very good regulators that you can pick up in the 200-250 range (HOG D1, Aqualung Titan from LeisurePro, Oceanic Alpha Series, Hollis DC1/ 212). You should be looking to spend about 350-450 for the full regulator set up of First, Second, Octo, SPG, BC inflator. Check on line, a lot of retailers will have packages available.