First Reg - overwhelmed

[NAM001]

To take a break from the bruised egos for a moment. I got new regs in 2003. I did not know what to get as i had been out of the water for 20 years. So i went to reodels for some comparison advise. All the brands today were new kids on the block when I started in the 60's. I made my chiose based on a spec about how deep can you go before the reg starts breathing hard. The scubapro mk25 and teh s600 cam out on top at 200 ft plus. So i bought it. And hae never regretted it. I got it from leisure pro for 450. Not a lot of money and boy what an air supplier it is when you need it. I now have I thnk 5-6 of them. Also as a factor was that the lds sold SP and could/would service it. Some Atomic regs have a recommended service interval of 2 years. The other brands are 1 yr. I agree with intended idea of an expensive reg doesnt mean it will perform better. but certainly a cleap reg will perform worse. warm water , cold water, I think hog regs are pretty reliable and simple so you can fix on the shoreline with little effort. Heck take it apart under water and reassemlbe. Absolutely go with an established maker that will be around a while. Bypas DACOR. Remember when you take it into the lds tell then you got the reg as a gift from an out of town relative so he wont feel cheated out of a sale.

Good luck

 

[currier]

Are rental regs GENERALLY worse than most of the regs on the market?

Yes.

But I completed well over a hundred dives using rentals before purchasing my first set. It afforded me the opportunity to recognize what I liked/disliked, and gave me lots of experience dealing with unforeseen equipment malfunctions!

Most importantly - it allowed me to dedicate my limited resources toward the most needed expense for a new diver.

Diving.

 

[Kay Wilson]

If you are only going to dive depths of 30' - 60', then I would recommend the Scubapro MK2 plus standard piston w/ a R295.

This is a great option, inexpensive, serviceable, and great for tropical diving, and if you look after it it will last you for years to come.

I would strongly recommend that you build a relationship with your local dive shop, rather than buying from the internet, you will avoid warranty issues for sure, you'll gain years of experience and the opportunity to meet other like minded divers, who are likely to become good dive buddies!

 

[Oldbear]

Diver Lopez,

Perhaps you might look at a regulator's technical specifications before looking at price. There are balanced regs, unbalanced regs, piston regs, and diaphram regs, stainless steel regs, titanium regs, some with life-time maintence parts service plans, etc.

Once you have an idea how a regulator works and its design features, you can make a series of regs to your personal diving preferences and then look at price.

Here are some artiles from a search I did...


Scuba Diving Regulators - How To Information | eHow.com

Scuba Regulators - Guide To Buying Dive Regulators And Picks For Best Regs

How to buy a Scuba Regulator - Scuba Diving News

Scuba Regulator - How To Choose The Best Dive Regulator For You

Tips on How to Find the Best Dive Regulator

SCUBA Gear: How to Choose a Diving Regulator


Good luck with your search...and happy bubbles,

~Oldbear~

 

[ams511]

If you go to the hot deal forum you will see the Beaver Divers is advertising a G250V/Mk17 for $399 while John from Ness is advertising an Apeks XTX-50/DS4 for $369. If this is your price range then pick one as both are excellent regs and at great prices. Both regs are favorites with technical divers so you will not outgrow them. If you want to go cheaper than Cave Adventurers has the Hollis I linked to for $150. At these prices a used reg makes little sense. For example a G250HP/Mk25 I was watching sold on eBay for $255 plus $20 shipping. If you bought that it will cost around $100 to service with parts. So that is $375, a brand new 250V/MK25 from Beaverdivers is $400. So the price difference is negligible. I agree with Halo that there is nothing wrong with either used regs or lower-end regs, but unless you know what to look for and watch ebay closely your not going to save a great deal of money.

 

[Paladin]

Expensive regs like the ones listed are no more dependable than simpler entry-level or mid range models by the same companies. The truth is that all regs are very dependable if they are maintained well, and many are dependable even if they're not...sherwood and scubapro unbalanced piston regs are among those bulletproof workhorses. They are also among the least expensive and simplest regs out there, whose design has not changed significantly for decades.

Ignore the B.S. about spending more because the reg is your "lifeline". It's the oldest sales trick in the book, and it's flat out wrong.

Buying used is a great way to get regs IF you either know enough about them to evaluate what you're buying, or if you have a friend or mentor that can do it for you. I know a lot about regulators and I would not consider buying a new one; the prices on used regs are simply too good to pass up (in the right situation) and the truth is that regulators have not appreciably improved in decades.

A perfect reg for you might be a lightly used aqualung titan, or SP MK2/R190. But there are many choices, and it's really hard to go wrong if you stick to the major brands like SP, aqualung, Sherwood (not the SR1, though!!!!)and recently HOG has been very popular. Just make sure you buy a yoke reg if you're using yoke tanks.

Don't forget the Aqua-Lung Conshelf series. The early Aqua-Lung Titan was little more than a renamed Conshelf 30. Conshelf 14, 21, 22, SE SE2, and SEA are still among the best, most dependable regs out there and they are very reasonably priced on the used market. The SE is especially cheap because of its non-standard port sizes. But this is easily compensated for using adapters and most SEs on the market already have the adapters installed.

I have a nice little 1st and 2nd stage Conshelf SE with the hose adapters, nice and clean inside and out, if you're interested.

 

[milbournosphere]

+1 for used Conshelf rigs. My first reg was a US Divers Sport regulator that my dad bought new in 1985-6; he gave it to me when I got certified back when I was 14 in 2002. It's not the shiniest, has an old Conshelf XIV 2nd stage for an octo, and has an old no-frills cluster. But it serviced right up and has been aces ever since. Its been my only regulator and it has given me enough time to slowly purchase/upgrade the rest of my gear and figure out what I wanted in a regulator. My roommate picked up a Sherwood rig of early 90s vintage for 150 total outlay after having it overhauled, and it's worked wonderfully for the past year of ownership.

 

[pelan-pelan]

Have come to this thread late. Interesting points of view. Different regs will "breathe" differently either because of design and/or because of the way they've been adjusted. Another factor in "breathe" is how they fit your face/jaw. This can be affected by the mouthpiece your are using. Work out how you can try as many as possible. Can you go down the pool with your dive shop's entire hire section. And don't forget people you are diving with - ask if you can take some breaths off of theirs. My experience was to dive on a variety of regs that I had hired, but still made a mistake with my first reg. The reliable ScubaPro - theoretically a good buy but was just uncomfortable and delivered too much air with too little demand. Adjustment might have helped but I'd tried someone else's Oceanic. Sold! Breathes just the right amount and the worst problem has been dive boats threatening not to refill the tank because the air consumption is so low.

So I agree with other posters, try before you buy, go to a trusted LDC and no need to spend a fortune. Keep it simple and common - if you travel, it improves the chances of someone local being able to fix it if you do have a problem.

 

[Lopez116]

Thanks for the advice everyone

 

[eelnoraa]

For first time buyer, very likely new divers, I would suggest get new regulator instead of used. Buying used does take some understanding of dive equipments, and then throw in the cost of service, it can be close to what new reg cost.

Again, for first time buyer, I recommend stick to major brand that your LDS supports. Nothing is worse than having a small glitch or adjustment need that your LDs can fix in 15 minutes, but since your LDS doesn't support it, you have to ship out to have it fixed. That is two week turn around with the possiblity that the issue is not fixed properly. If you are think you will be diving on vacation quite a bit, it is better to get a brand that you can get support anywhere inthe world too, ie. Scubapro, Aqualung, ..

My persoanl recommendation has been Atomic Z2. It breathes as well as any Atomic models but at entry model price. It will carry you through all your single tank recreation diving. Recently, I think the $399 scubapro deal posted by Beaver is also a very good choice.