Double hose regs

[SwimJim]

I was reading a thread in the basic forum about who owns tanks. Beside my al80's I also own three steel 72's. These are specificly for shorediving and for my double hose regulator collection. I currently own four double hose regs and they are all fun to dive. My first one was a Dacor Diving lung with Dial a breath. Its really cherry. Looks like its never been used. Then I picked up a mid sixties vintage Healthways. Not a bad reg. I also have a Pico address DA Aquamaster which is a real nice breather and I recently aquired a "DA" Navy approved. I just got that back from Vintage scuba Supply who rebuilt it for me. They also did my DA and they do great work. So, the question is who owns what? How did you get into diving the old two hose regs and what is your favorite? Mine is my DA Aquamaster. I sure would like to try and or aquire a Royal Aquamaster sometime, but thats another thread.

Jim

 

[scubapro50]

I still own a Dacor R-4 double hose regualtor from the 70's ...... it's in excellent shape but I hardly ever use it except in the pool.

 

[Creed]

I own a DA Aquamaster(Warner St label). I keep trying to pick up other regs, and I keep getting outbid.
I got into it for several reasons. For one, even though I am a young diver in every sense of the word, I feel like I have more in common with this crowd than with your average, "follow the leader" diver. I first ran into it when rebuilding my Conshelf XIVs. I had people looking at me crazy because dove with such "old" equipment. And when I found the guys who understood the passion of rebuilding a quality piece of machinery, I found out that they were all diving stuff that made my XIVs look brand new. I eventually caught the bug, and scored my Aquamaster for under$90.

 

[captain]

I have two Aqua Masters, one of which I purchased new in 1968. One U S Divers Mistral and one LeSpirotechnique Mistral, my favorite, and a rare ex-Navy U S Divers regulator that is somewhat of a mystery, it is half DA Navy and half Aqua Master and there is no documented information on why or when it was made.

 

[Luis H]

I have three Royal Aqua Masters. A round label that I have owned since 1972, a square label that I got last year from eBay and my new experimental prototype RAM that I built from parts and the new first stage nozzle body I designed with HP ports.

I also have a couple of DA Aqua Masters; a late 1950’s a friend gave me and a late 1960’s I traded an old Poseidon (early 1960’s Cyklon) single hose for.

I also have a nice USD Mistral that I can’t wait to dive.

I have a Healtways SCUBA DeLuxe I need to overhaul and another USD Mistral that needs an overhaul which I will probably end up selling.

I also have a number of vintage single hose regulators: several Scubapro Mk5’s, a Voit MR12, a couple of Poseidon Cyklon 300, etc. (and some modern regulators). But since we now have parts for our Royal AM and fittings for SPG (banjo) and hookah port I haven’t felt the need to use a single hose regulator.

My favorite: my original round label Royal Aqua Master.

Back in the early 70’s we didn’t have a banjo fitting in the dive I used to work, so my favorite every day regulator back then was the Poseidon Cyklon 300, followed by my Scubapro Mk-5. And the round label RAM was reserved for photography dives.



PS: SwimJim
If you are interested in converting a DA Aqua Master to a Royal Aqua Master (for the purpose of diving, not as a collector, the conversion can be easily reversed), take a look at the following thread:

http://vintagedoublehose.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=261

The conversion can be easily reversed if you want to display it in its original configuration.

 

[Bob3]

Nemrod Snark IIIs are my favorite, I bought my first one out of a Sears & Roebuck catalog in the mid-'60s. They were still being made up 'till 6-8 years ago, and later models came with a HP port. I switched to a Cyklon 300 in the early-mid '70s 'cuz that was the only single hose reg that had anti-freeze capabilities.
The Nemrods don't have a duckbill exhaust, they use a mushroom which is way easier to replace & lasts longer.

 

[Scuba Cowboy]

I've got 2 DA Aquamasters, a Royal Aquamaster and a Mistral that are all dive ready. Also have a new Aqua Lung Mistral double hose, but I like the old ones better. Still haven't decided which is my favorite, I like all of 'em.

 

[pescador775]

I own a couple of Royal AquaMasters, a Mistral and JetAir. I use the Royal for everyday diving. The Mistral is like new but I prefer the 2 stage. The JetAir is a beater used for decanting gas from a partially full diving tank and pumping the gas into another, also partially full tank. A portable compressor is used for this purpose. A 1" inch hose runs from the JetAir directly to the compressor.

I've been diving a long time and started with a SeaHorse, then Divair. Tanks were double 38's, MIL surplus.

There is something to be said for "old stuff". I would not hesitate to take the JetAir to 200 feet. The single stage regs, however obsolescent, are very simple in design, and stable, even over many years.

The Nemrod is a very good reg. However, because it is offset somewhat, I prefer to use these with a double tank rig that has the orifice under the manifold.

 

[rmannix]

West Pico unserialized Mistral
West Warner Square label DA
Round Label Aquamaster (I bought this one new in late 72 or early 73)
Round label Royal Aquamaster (gets the most use)

 

[Nemrod]

Five functoning double hose regulators that I dive, I rarely use modern gear. A Pico Mistral that I have had a very long time and I have dove the hoses off it more than once! I have a very nice DA Aqua Master and three Royal Aqua Masters, two round labels and one square label. One is essentially brand new. My favorites are the Royal Round Labels. My favorite due to personal significance is the Mistral. When I use it things feel right.

Oval masks, UDT fins and a Royal Aqua Master, it just don't get better. In the picture, that is a square label Royal Aqua Master, Dacor oval mask and UDT fins under the water.

My favorite single hose, vintage, are the Voit MR12 types.

My favorite annoy the divemaster regulator--though not vintage --is the Tekna T2100.

Take a stand, burn a BC today!

I cannot wait for the Oriskinay, probably I will not get there for a year yet, I plan to swim through the hanger deck at 160 feet with my Royal Aqua Master!!! It will be a grand day. N