Does anyone like 1st stage swivel turret?

[okie]

I've been doing research on various regulators and the multitude of options available. Man, that's enough to drive someone nuts. :eyecrazy: Anyhow, I was wondering if anyone likes the models with a 1st stage swivel turret like the Zeagle ZX/50D. So far I have found several comments from people who hate them but I haven't really found any positive opinions. How about it, does anyone want to chime in? Are there any advantages to this setup? Why would manufactures such as Zeagle and Apex have this if there is no benefit (either real or imaginary)? Thanks in advance for your opinions.

 

[Kray_Z]

what i have heard is basicaly it allows for esier assembly and doesnt wear on the hoses as much because instead of kinking or pulling on the threads it just kinda swivels... personaly... i dont like them because it gives too much slack on a short hose and causes it to be pulled pointing directly at the back of my head where i cant look straight if im horizontal... hose hits me in the head

 

[Nemrod]

This is like the ball swivel thread--a non issue. Numerous manufactuers have used turrent type first stages. I have five of them, clones of the Scuba Pro version--Mk V I think it is. They are piston types--work great. In over 26 years of using them I have had them leak a handful of times---never catastrophic--just a stream of bubbles. usually caused by wear and inattention to overhaul regularly by myself. I have also used swivels--three port swivels-- for more than 30 years and never had one single failure. I have used those ball swivles for decades--no failures. Some people could kill a brick. N

 

[Kim]

I have an Apeks DST - that's one of them. Sometimes I regret that when I bought it I didn't know enough to get the DS4. However - on a single tank it's pretty much a non-issue really. I can see that it might be more of a pain if you tried to use it with doubles or stages though.

 

[okie]

Thanks for your responses. I thought that maybe the turret was a solution to a problem that doesn't really exist, kind of like a purge valve on a mask. It seems like manufacturers sometimes create features to put on sales literature and charge more for, but aren't really necessary.

It's nice to know regs with turrets aren't necessarily more dangerous than those without but I haven't heard from anyone who would buy one intentionally because they get some sort of benefit from them.

Anyone else want to chime in?