Damaged DIN connection - still ok to use?

[Bob01]

Hey All,

I'm looking for a DIN kit for my Aqualung Legend - it just happens a fellow Scubaboarder has one for sale, but is a bit damaged... Would this still be safe to dive with?

From the given description

"... had a little issue switching out the DIN parts for the Yoke parts tonight because the DIN kit was installed so tight. We ended up stripping some of the inside of part of the hex fitting that you unscrew to remove the DIN wheel. You can also see a small tool mark on the outside of the hex fitting where we had to clamp it down in a vice."

"There are brass marks on the outside of the round hex fitting, and the inside of the hex fitting is stripped out a little, but not all the way. It still seals and worked when I hooked it back up."

from the pics it looks like:
- The Din fitting is a bit squared
- Hex fittings are somewhat stripped
- Various vise/plier wearings

Hes selling it for less than half my LDS would sell it to me (which is still lower than almost all online retail sites) - so should I go for it?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Scott L]

For $25 more buy a new one. Don't start cutting corners. A very slippery slope would be started...

 

[wjefferis]

You have to ask yourself this question: Do you really want to dive with something that is damaged that is your life support? I mean maybe you dive it and it is ok for a couple of dives and then one day you are 100 feet down and you have a failure and now have no access to gas from either one of your regs. Dont skimp on something that keeps you alive. You can buy used (have it checked at your LDS), just don't buy damaged. Just my two PSI.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

You can buy used (have it checked at your LDS), just don't buy damaged. Just my two PSI.

1+.

I'm a big fan of used equipment, because you can often save significant $$$ on lightly-used but perfectly good equipment.

But this is not a "perfect" piece of used equipment, it is clearly damaged, and it serves a critical function.... personally, if I had been servicing the reg and that happened, I'd have immediately tossed the fitting and bought a new one.

The edge that helps retain the o-ring is damaged, and that appears to be an o-ring extrusion just waiting to happen.

I'd pass. Get a new one. Just not worth the risk.

Best wishes.

 

[redacted]

I dive some pretty bad looking stuff; but that one would have to be dirt cheap.

 

[Zung]

+1
Barely worth the cost of shipping.
The original owner should search for & study awap's soak & heat & cold treatment to loosen things up.

 

[spectrum]

No good can come from it, just say no.

 

[tfsails]

Think about this: if it was tightened so much that somebody needed to really honk down on several different tools to get it out it was tightened enough to potentially damage some of the threads that hold it into the regulator body. Key word here is "potentially". I would get a new bolt from a dealer and install it in place of the old bolt. And I wouldn't tighten it down so much, either.

 

[keyshunter]

"a bit damaged"? IMO it is criminal to butcher parts in that manner. But, having done the deed, it is worse to try to sell them for reuse.

 

[Bob01]

Thank you everyone for chiming in - I didn't get a good feeling seeing the scrapes and the dent in the fitting. I guess I'll just go the normal route and get a new one (80-120 bucks) - 50-90 bucks is well worth the extra peace of mind when I go on the deep dives ;-)