Decisions decisions

[Jaeger]

I am researching regs for my fiance and I, and think ive pretty well narrowed it down to three choices and am interested in opinions and experience anyone has had with these particular models. We are looking at having these around for a long time so experience in dealing with the customer service (warranty repairs etc) would be great as well.

My fiance is newly certified and I have logged only about 30 dives but we are both planning on doing alot of diving in the Washington and BC as well as some tropical diving. We will never be doing anything like cave diving or wreck penetration but we do plan on doing some current and possibly semi deep dives in the future and likely will want to go nitrox at some point. I like the idea of of a sealed first stage though im not sure thats a requirement. Thoughts?

The main factors I am looking at are:
1 - Performance/Comfort

2 - Reliability/Durability

3 - Warranty/Service


The regs we are looking at are:
Scubapro MK25/X650
Apeks ATX 200
Atomic B2 (w/Env seal?)

Right now I am leaning towards the Atomic for the performance and service. Also, I am worried about jaw fatigue for the fiance and the swivel and very light 2nd stage sounds very appealing.

Thoughts? Am I missing anything given our future plans? I trust the guys at a couple LDS but I know they are biased and want to make as informed decision as possible as these will be a fairly sizeable investment for us.

Thanks

J

 

[mxracer19]

Man alot of people like those Atomics!...have you considered the new Oceanic Delta 4? I think im going to buy the Delta 3.

 

[kennethw]

Like in Financial sales, I can't recommend a specific brand for liability issues, but as an indication, for first stages I have 2 Mares, 2 ScubaPro MK25's, 4 Apex DST's, 1 cheapo Taiwan replica, and 1 Drager 'reducer' for my Dolphin. I like them all, but I only trust my ScubaPro's and Apex's for very deep technical diving. Also, as far as I know, the only one that is environmentally sealed is the Apex 'DS' series.

The best thing for you to do is borrow different regulators that you are interested in and dive them in a pool or on a trip. One man's meat is another man's poison!

As for jaw fatigue, I have thrown away all the 'stock' month pieces and have replaced with orthodontic month pieces that you mold to your mouth and teeth simply by dipping in hot water and biting. Now, I don't even have to bite down to keep the mouthpiece in my mouth. This is especially great for long deco's.

Hope this helps.

 

[Unproductive]

You really can't go wrong with any of those choices. Personally I own Mk25's and G250's, I just like how simple and easy they are to use, clean ect.... The new Delta 4 looks pretty inovative and I'd really like to try one out.

 

[Scottri]

All three are very good regs. If you want one that is environementally sealed I would go with the Apeks. The Atomic is a piston first stage and sealing them is can be done but it is a messy job servicing them afterward. I have an Atomic and I used it for Ice diving this year without sealing it and it did fine but the choice is yours. The Apeks is a very good reg and it performs as well as the Atomic. I've used both in deep dives well below the recreational limit and they were great. Scuba Pro regs are also as good as anything on the market. It really comes down to personal choice.

Scott

 

[Jaeger]

Thanks for the feedback, I kinda figured I couldnt go wrong with any of these.

Is it common for shops to have demos of high end regs?

 

[Scottri]

Where are you in Portland? I'm moving back there next week and I will be working for a great shop in Tigard. I'm going up to Hood Canal Diving the first week in May and I'd be happy to loan you my Atomic for a dive. The shop I will be working for doesn't sell Atomic but they do sell Aqua Lung/Apeks but I don't know if they have any ATX 200's for demo. Drop me a line and I'll send you my number.

Scott

 

[Jaeger]

Hmmm, great shop in Tigard? Not underwater works is it?

I am in SE and work downtown.

 

[triton94949]

...The main factors I am looking at are:
1 - Performance/Comfort

2 - Reliability/Durability

3 - Warranty/Service


The regs we are looking at are:
Scubapro MK25/X650
Apeks ATX 200
Atomic B2 (w/Env seal?)
...

As far as reliability, there has been some issue with the ATX 200 and independent pressure creeping up then freeflowing.

You should be fine if you stick to ScubaPro or Atomic.

 

[BDub]

I have Apeks TX50/DS4's on my doubles and a Scubapro MK16/G250 for my single tanks. Both of them are awesome and I think you'll be happy with either one of them. I have no personal experience with Atomics, but they do have a good reputation.

I went with the MK16 simply because it is a diaphragm and I prefer a diaphragm over a piston in cold water.