Dacor Pacer XL - but which one?

[bertschb]

I bought a Dacor Pacer XL in the early eighties. It's only been used 15 or 20 times since I bought it. I'm getting back into diving so I took the reg to my LDS for service. It cost $99 to service it. $35 for parts, $55 labor and $9 shipping. After reading some of the posts I'm wondering now if I should keep this regulator or just buy a new one. The LDS said it was as good as new but also said the repair shop they use won't service certain Dacor regs. The problem is, I know the reg is an XL, but I don't know which model number?

How can I tell which model Dacor reg I have? Also, should I dive this reg for a couple years and retire it or just retire it now?

 

[LUBOLD8431]

Actually, it doesnt matter what Pacer regulator it is, Dacor has decided to stop making parts for ALL pacer regs.

So, next time you try to get it serviced, the repair shop wont have the parts for it.

I would say retire it now...

I would not have gotten it serviced this time around...

Start shopping for a new reg...

 

[bertschb]

Yeah, if I'd known then what I know now I wouldn't have serviced it. Since it has all new parts wouldn't it be safe for another year or two?

 

[Doc Intrepid]

if you just had the reg serviced and the tech indicated it was in good shape, you're likely fine for at least a year and perhaps longer. Might as well use it while you can. Meanwhile, save dollars for the next one.

 

[ew1usnr]

bertschb once bubbled...
I bought a Dacor Pacer XL in the early eighties. It's only been used 15 or 20 times since I bought it. I'm getting back into diving so I took the reg to my LDS for service.

Did you take it in for service because the regulator was exhibiting a problem? Or was it working OK? Just curious.

 

[ZenSquirrel]

bertschb once bubbled...
The problem is, I know the reg is an XL, but I don't know which model number?

How can I tell which model Dacor reg I have? Also, should I dive this reg for a couple years and retire it or just retire it now?

The model numer should be printed on the face of the yoke screw.

I had a similar problem. I got into diving and my friend had this Pacer XL 350 laying around. I could pay $100 to get it serviced or put that money into a new reg. I decided to rent-to-own a reg and put that $100 toward the new reg.

Since you already had it serviced, I would dive it for a year and save up to replace it when it comes time for it's next annual. Like renting to own but with your own reg!

 

[bertschb]

Did you take it in for service because the regulator was exhibiting a problem? Or was it working OK? Just curious.

It worked great. It was just so old I wanted it checked out. This led me to wonder if a rebuild is required due to how old the reg is or how many dives are on the reg. It had been 15-20 years since last inspection and no parts were replaced at that time. This was the first parts replacement since new but it only had 15 or 20 dives since new.

 

[ew1usnr]

bertschb once bubbled...
It worked great. It was just so old I wanted it checked out. This led me to wonder if a rebuild is required due to how old the reg is or how many dives are on the reg. It had been 15-20 years since last inspection and no parts were replaced at that time. This was the first parts replacement since new but it only had 15 or 20 dives since new.

I was not surprised that your Pacer still worked fine. The old Dacor regulators were extremely rugged and durable.

To extend the life of your regulators:
1. When you put it on a tank, hold down the purge button and open the tank valve slowly. Release the purge when you hear air and then finish opening the tank valve. This prevents suddenly slamming the regulator HP seat with 3000 psi and cutting a groove in it, and will help it last longer without beginning to leak.
2. Wash your regulators out very well with fresh water after a salt water dive.

 

[bertschb]

Thanks for the maintenance advice.

Do regulators REALLY need annual service? Seems way too often to me. As I said, mine was twenty years old and worked fine before I brought it in for service. The more I think about it, my old Dacor probably had more like 50 dives on it, most of them in the early eighties. During the last 10 years just a few dives and all fresh water.

I know everybody says to do an annual inspection but is that for liability reasons? Paranoia? If the reg is treated really well and only used maybe 10 times a year shouldn't it go at least 5 -10 years before anything needs to be replaced?

I'm not being cheap. I have the money. It just seems like a racket instituted by the manufacturers and LDS's. I don't like getting ripped off.

I'm probably going to just go out and buy an Atomic M1 since no more parts are available for the Dacor but I don't want to pay my LDS $100 to "inspect" my new reg every year if it isn't really necessary.

 

[PurduEE]

Rubber/plastic parts and o-rings can break down over time, even if it's in the closet collecting dust. It's like the oil in your car, it's a time/mileage (# of dives) thing but both will do damage. What I do if I haven't dove a reg in a while is a quick bench test. Make sure the seconds don't leak when you breathe in with no air in the system. Put the first stage on a tank, check for leaks, free-flow - make sure the purges work. Attach an IP gauge and check for the HP seat creeping. Make sure you get air from both seconds, etc... If all is well, should be safe enough for recreational diving.

EDIT: As far as annual maintenance goes, I think it's not necessary that frequently, if you clean your regs and take care of them. Having seen some regs folks bring into the shop I hang around in, it amazing how much damage some people can do to a reg in a year. I don't think it's a racket necessarily, but it's probably the shortest measure of time that they see failures - more likely from abuse in most cases than the reg's parts wearing out.