Delta 4 frustration.

[cerich]

Hello Everybody,

The 7 Ft. hose for the Delta 4 MSRP is $79.95. There is additional cost over a "standard" hose simply because of the swivel fitting.

The FDX10 first stage has standard 3/8" first stage ports.

Ther are many recommendations concerning use of adapters etc. in order to get the desired length. May I recommend as a Technical instructor that you do not add additional failure points.

Use of the Delta 4 in technical diving applications is quite simple with two (2) possible approaches.

1/ You like the swivel and don't see it as an additional failure point or compatability issue in team based diving and you realize that the swivel is more expensive by its nature. Personally because of the design of the swivel I don't see it as a huge issue in regards to failure, but because I do dive and teach technical as team based I do the following....

2/ Remove the Delta 4 inlet coupling which is unique to the Delta 4 (where the hose with the swivel attaches), replace with a inlet coupling from a GT3/Alpha 8 (part #4330 with a MSRP of $10) and move over the oriface to the new coupling inlet. Now use a standard inline tool to tune the second stage. Viola! Any standard 3/8" hose will now fit and the swivel is gone. Now you have full standard compatibility with team mates and one less "potential" (stretch given the design of the swivel) failure point. It's also cheap as well as easy and will save money over the other suggestions here.

There are quite a few requests I get from people wanting to use of swivel hose from the Delta 4 on older Oceanic products, they do just the opposit, so it you list the removed Delta 4 inlet coupling and hose here I'm sure they will go.

I hope this helped and cleared up some questions.

Best,

Chris

 

[cerich]

I had a bunch of LP hoses laying around so when I went to long hose configurations I bought a few connectors for connecting 2 LP hoses on ebay for about $7 each. Then simply add the appropriate length LP hose to the Oceanic hose and you will be in business. It will also allow you to go custom length (I found a 5'4" hose worked better for me than the std 5 footer. It also puts another swivel point which I find handy.

That just adds failure points (small, I am aware they are static when assembled) but also can be a pain when you need to deploy the long hose. It also looks "cobbled together" which can be another issue...

Here's what I'd do.

Buy a standard 7ft hose. Attach it to your first stage. Buy a new second stage from Dive Rite, Salvo, Diver's Supply or whoever, and toss that Oceanic second stage in the "spare parts" bin along with the proprietary hose. Why manufacturers do this is beyond me.

I'm glad I bought "standard" gear."

We don't get offended that easy, your suggestion is a waste of money....

Why we do this is because most (99.9%) of our sales are for recreational use and in the case of the Delta 4 it is a feature that consumers ask for and yes it helps us/our dealers sell the product. Compared to most swivel designs available it is MUCH better and more reliable. We however did see that some will want to use a longer/shorter hose and made various lengths available in 7 ft, 5 ft, 39", 30" and 22". In truth these hoses hardly sell.

 

[PerroneFord]

One could easily argue that spending $80 on a 7ft hose is a waste of money.... But I understand what you're saying. Frankly, I've never seen a reason for a swivel on a 7ft hose. Or a 24" one either, but that's just me.

 

[redacted]

That just adds failure points (small, I am aware they are static when assembled) but also can be a pain when you need to deploy the long hose. It also looks "cobbled together" which can be another issue...
l.

Yes, it does look cobbled together. But it matches my homemade back plate. If the industry were really concerned with added failure points, we probably would not have most of our modern plastic 2nd stages packed full of o-rings. My mostly retired modern balanced barrel poppet 2nd has over a dozen o-rings. I have an older classic downstream 2nd that uses only one o-ring. Talk about reducing failure points.

 

[cerich]

One could easily argue that spending $80 on a 7ft hose is a waste of money.... But I understand what you're saying. Frankly, I've never seen a reason for a swivel on a 7ft hose. Or a 24" one either, but that's just me.

Option 2 is $35-$50

 

[cerich]

Yes, it does look cobbled together. But it matches my homemade back plate. If the industry were really concerned with added failure points, we probably would not have most of our modern plastic 2nd stages packed full of o-rings. My mostly retired modern balanced barrel poppet 2nd has over a dozen o-rings. I have an older classic downstream 2nd that uses only one o-ring. Talk about reducing failure points.

Delta 4 second stage has 4 orings... very little.

 

[GreenDiverDown]

Personally, I'd like to see these regs offered sans swivel... it would make 'em more appealing to the growing bunch of DIR/Hog types. Option 2 works but one still is stuck paying for that swivel... nice as it is, some of us just don't want it.

Cerich... GI3 used to be a proponent for the Oceanic regs. I believe that shortly after Apeks went to Aqualung he considered bringing them into the WKPP. What happened to that?

I think Oceanic has some great regs but they don't seem to get the respect that they deserve around here. I've seen guys call them second tier... which I don't believe is at all fair, BTW. Give us a no frills dry-sealed DIN reg with porting that works for good hose routing on doubles...

 

[Meister481]

The FDX10 first stage seems to do well for a max of 2 lp and 1 hp connection per side. My configuration is: long hose and BC on the right post- Short hose, drysuit inflator and SPG on the left. I believe this is a standard setup and it seems to work well with the slightly angled ports of the first stage.

I have an alpha 8 reg that I could swap the fitting on to come up with a short hose configuration. It's my pony reg and could use the swivel. Both regs will have to go to the shop to get tuned after the transfer, which is another charge.

I ordered the 7' hose from the lds here for use on my tech setup until I can purchase the dive rites. I will use this reg as my recreational setup/backup and stay with the long hose all the time.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I also dive oceanic regs and being affiliated with a shop that sells them parts are not a problem. Having said that I'm also transitioning into tech and now dive long hose except when asked not to for training purposes(ow classes). For that reason I stayed away from the delta 4 when I bought my reg for the left post. I purposely went with a GT3 w/cdx5 non-dvt. My primary is a delta3 with cdx5. My instructor has been trying to get me to put a swivel on my second for two years and I've refused. Not only does it create a failure point but I don't need it and never have. I saw no advantage to it when I would use his reg from time to time. I like being able to grab the hose and just plop it in without the second flopping around on the swivel. And there are some people we trained who are thinking about long hose and have bought the 4 with the fdx10. I've advised em to get rid of the swivel and buy a standard 7' or 5' lp hose. The swivel is not needed and why spend the extra money. I also recommend to those thinking of going tech or just long hose to consider the cdx5. I don't like the fdx10 having that little piece of plastic sitting on top of the first stage. To me another possible point of failure in the event it comes into contact with a hard object such as may be encountered in an overhead environment. To me the FDX10 is an excellent open water recreational design. I like the cdx5 for times I might encounter any other situation.

 

[Darryl Bowerman]

Personally, I'd like to see these regs offered sans swivel... it would make 'em more appealing to the growing bunch of DIR/Hog types. Option 2 works but one still is stuck paying for that swivel... nice as it is, some of us just don't want it.

Cerich... GI3 used to be a proponent for the Oceanic regs. I believe that shortly after Apeks went to Aqualung he considered bringing them into the WKPP. What happened to that?

I think Oceanic has some great regs but they don't seem to get the respect that they deserve around here. I've seen guys call them second tier... which I don't believe is at all fair, BTW. Give us a no frills dry-sealed DIN reg with porting that works for good hose routing on doubles...

Hey Stephen,

The current GT-3 with the CDX-5 First stage is basically the Delta 4 without the swivel and dive/pre-dive switch on top. This would be a better setup for the guys who don't want the swivel or hassle of putting a 7ft hose on the Delta 4. This is a can't beat product for the price. Retails less than $400.00. Really writing to tell you thanks for the kind words on the regulators. For those of us that have been with Oceanic for a long time the lack of respect our regulators get is are number one pet peeve for sure. I have often said that I would take the Delta, the GT-3 and even the Alpha 8 second stage and put them up against any of the higher end SP's, Atomics, Apeks, Mares or whatever brand you want. We often say that our regulators are unfortunetly the best kept secret in the industry and nobody beats our performance to price ratio. Okay, sorry ranting now. Anyway, thanks for the support.

Regards,
Darryl Bowerman
AERIS/Oceanic Regional Manager