halocline
Contributor
Most places in Cozumel use convertible tanks now. Not sure about the ocean-oriented shops on the mainland, but all the cave/cenote oriented shops use convertible tanks or 300bar DIN.
Converting the MK11 between DIN and yoke requires a special yoke socket which may be hard to find; you'd have to buy it and carry it with you. The older SP yokes had enough clearance so that you could use a big adjustable wrench (or even vise jaws) to grab the retainer and loosen it, and the DIN fittings use a hex key; best to get a hex bit for a socket wrench. But some of the newer yokes (which I'm not that familiar with TBH, most of my regs are old) have more of a slope in the shoulders of the yoke itself, meaning you can't get a grip on the retainer with a wrench. It's another in a long line of SP designs that force you to use their tool.
Anyhow, the safest thing to do for this particular trip is to bring a yoke reg; that way you absolutely know that you can use it everywhere. But it's pretty low risk to bring DIN and hope for finding DIN compatible tanks. I agree using the adapter sucks, but it will work in a pinch. How uncomfortable it is with banging into your head depends on how high you position the tank on your back, and how close to your back. For a typical jacket style BC, usually the tank is fairly low and far away from your neck. With a BP/W, no STA, it's probably going to be a pain in the neck, literally.
I wouldn't want to count on converting from DIN to yoke (or vice-versa) on the trip unless you are also bringing the special yoke socket, the hex key bit, and a socket wrench, preferably a torque wrench. And something to hold the reg steady while you do this. There is a torque spec for that fitting (used to be around 21 ft/lbs) it's not absolutely critical, but it is pretty tight and you don't want to over-torque it.
Probably more information than you wanted, but I'd say if you want a DIN reg for home use, just buy it, buy or borrow a spin-on adapter, and hope for DIN tanks.
Oh yeah, one extra thing; I've seen this on boats in Cozumel. Some shops that have the convertible tanks just leave the plugs installed, and they can be a bear to remove, especially on a rocking boat with rusty worn out hex keys. I'd bring a good quality, fairly new, good sized to apply more force, 6mm (I think) hex key. That way you can deal with getting a sticky plug out of a tank if it's necessary. If I'm wrong about the size, I'm sure some helpful soul will chime in.
Converting the MK11 between DIN and yoke requires a special yoke socket which may be hard to find; you'd have to buy it and carry it with you. The older SP yokes had enough clearance so that you could use a big adjustable wrench (or even vise jaws) to grab the retainer and loosen it, and the DIN fittings use a hex key; best to get a hex bit for a socket wrench. But some of the newer yokes (which I'm not that familiar with TBH, most of my regs are old) have more of a slope in the shoulders of the yoke itself, meaning you can't get a grip on the retainer with a wrench. It's another in a long line of SP designs that force you to use their tool.
Anyhow, the safest thing to do for this particular trip is to bring a yoke reg; that way you absolutely know that you can use it everywhere. But it's pretty low risk to bring DIN and hope for finding DIN compatible tanks. I agree using the adapter sucks, but it will work in a pinch. How uncomfortable it is with banging into your head depends on how high you position the tank on your back, and how close to your back. For a typical jacket style BC, usually the tank is fairly low and far away from your neck. With a BP/W, no STA, it's probably going to be a pain in the neck, literally.
I wouldn't want to count on converting from DIN to yoke (or vice-versa) on the trip unless you are also bringing the special yoke socket, the hex key bit, and a socket wrench, preferably a torque wrench. And something to hold the reg steady while you do this. There is a torque spec for that fitting (used to be around 21 ft/lbs) it's not absolutely critical, but it is pretty tight and you don't want to over-torque it.
Probably more information than you wanted, but I'd say if you want a DIN reg for home use, just buy it, buy or borrow a spin-on adapter, and hope for DIN tanks.
Oh yeah, one extra thing; I've seen this on boats in Cozumel. Some shops that have the convertible tanks just leave the plugs installed, and they can be a bear to remove, especially on a rocking boat with rusty worn out hex keys. I'd bring a good quality, fairly new, good sized to apply more force, 6mm (I think) hex key. That way you can deal with getting a sticky plug out of a tank if it's necessary. If I'm wrong about the size, I'm sure some helpful soul will chime in.
