durable balanced second stage and not expensive

[gehadoski]

I think that second stage could affect on breathing in deep water too

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Service in Egypt might be a little rough to find though...

That's why when you order the second stage you order a kit or two with it. And HOG has always been good about sharing tech info with those shops/techs willing to service a person's reg in areas where they don't have an established dealer. It is realized that people move, travel, etc.. No reason to penalize them for that. Not to mention that if a shop can service apeks, dive rite, or any balanced second of similar design it isn't rocket science. All you need is any reg specific info from the mfg. And on a second stage of this design that's something that could be covered in an email quite easily.

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[ams511]

Apeks ATX50
SP R195, S360

ATX 50 is no longer made and the SP R195 is not balanced.

---------- Post added April 30th, 2014 at 06:55 AM ----------

Service in Egypt might be a little rough to find though...

Probably not, a Hog uses off the shelf parts and I am sure dive shops in Egypt don't have liability issues like in the US.

---------- Post added April 30th, 2014 at 07:00 AM ----------

AFAIK the heavier breathing at lower tank pressure is not influenced by a un/balanced second stage, it is a function of the first stage

A balanced second-stage can adjust for differences in IP from the unbalanced firsts. So they affect breathing also.

 

[halocline]

AFAIK the heavier breathing at lower tank pressure is not influenced by a un/balanced second stage, it is a function of the first stage

It's the combination of an unbalanced 1st stage and an unbalanced 2nd stage. The balanced 2nd stage will tolerate more variance in IP without a noticeable increase in cracking effort.

---------- Post added April 30th, 2014 at 11:11 PM ----------

I think that second stage could affect on breathing in deep water too

Not significantly. 2nd stages function pretty much exactly the same regardless of depth. The first stage works harder at greater depth, although this primarily is manifest as an increase in IP drop during demand. As a result, a balanced 2nd stage will tolerate a larger IP drop than will an unbalanced 2nd stage. Putting a balanced/adjustable (or G250) on a MK2 will make it breathe easier at any depth.

But, the real solution to better performance at depth is a first stage with higher flow and better IP recovery. The thing in this case is that the MK2, while unbalanced, still has a strong flow rate of a little less than 100SCFM (or the equal of emptying an AL80 in under one minute) and a very quick IP recovery, so I don't imagine the MK2 causing anyone problems at recreational dive depth. At significant depth and low tank pressure, you'd have a low IP combined with a large IP drop during demand; that could really lower performance, but if you're at, say, greater than 120 ft and you have under 500 PSI, you probably should be worrying about getting to the surface more and your regulator's performance less.

 

[gehadoski]

So I guess my problem mainly in the first stage and not the second stage

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[halocline]

I'd try to find one of the metal case SP 2nd stages and have it upgraded to balanced. Try it, if it solves your problems, you're done. If not, you can get a higher performing 1st stage, also used, like a MK5 or MK10. I'm not sure what your used market is like in Egypt. There is a SB member who rebuilds the metal case regs and sells them, his name is couv. He's generous and honest, you could buy something from him with complete confidence. I'm not sure what the shipping from the U.S. would be, it might be high.

As far as current SP 1st stages go, there's not much to choose from that's not expensive, maybe you can find a slightly used MK25 at a decent price. I'm not a fan of any of the current SP 2nd stages when compared to the great older ones. That's just a personal opinion, though.

 

[rhwestfall]

The MK-2 is simply a bullet-proof and simple to maintain reg. It may not he a "hot rod", but teamed with a balanced second stage, I'd wager that 80% or more divers wouldn't really notice the difference to another "performance" first stage.

 

[crab4life]

Not sure which are balanced, but somewhere online I found that Aqualung and Mares and a couple other manufacturers had their gear for half-off. I cannot remember what the website was, you might have to do some digging. It was leisurepro or scuba gear .com or something like that.

 

[HungoverDiver]

somewhere online I found that Aqualung and Mares and a couple other manufacturers had their gear for half-off.

Ohhh, please find that. I'm looking for a new aqualung second stage to replace my octo second stage. I don't know why I buy into brand loyalty, but I do.

 

[claymore]

Prime scuba has/had the Kronos Octo on clearance for $79