Has anyone used the newer Atomic Aquatics St1 Stainless Steel Reg?

[FredGarvin]

Has anyone used the newer Atomic St1 Stainless Steel Reg?


If so, what are your thoughts and have you any point of comparison?

Is there really much of an issue with corrosion with standard plated brass regulators?

Any "real world" benefit to this new stainless steel reg. set-up?

Thanks,
"Garvelous"

 

[beanojones]

Is there really much of an issue with corrosion with standard plated brass regulators?

Yes on that one. Unsealed Piston first stages' ambient pressure chamber, and where the lever for the second stage pivots in the second stage, eventually kill off the regs that have them. (Also known as "why US Divers regs can last forever")

As far as the rest, I asked in an earlier post about whether anyone had a long-term usage on Atomics Titanium and also another brass reg with a lever that pivoted in the barrel, and whether they had noticed a difference in wear. But no one answered. Steel is much harder than brass, though, and chrome pits eventually.

Is the Atomics Reg a stainless first and second?

My Titamium question post is here:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/re...-stage-wear-does-atomic-titanium-hold-up.html

 

[FishOutUvH2O]

Has anyone used the newer Atomic St1 Stainless Steel Reg?


If so, what are your thoughts and have you any point of comparison?

Is there really much of an issue with corrosion with standard plated brass regulators?

Any "real world" benefit to this new stainless steel reg. set-up?

Thanks,
"Garvelous"

The ST1 is my primary reg, but with only 25 dives on it, I won't be able to give you any input on wear/corrosion issues yet. In general, SS is less prone to corrosion than plated brass. Since it's machined from a solid piece of SS you don't have to worry about scratching or nicking any platting off and having it corrode. Atomic also warrants the 1st stage for life against corrosion. The reg is great, but then again, I imagine every other high-performance reg out there right now probably performs about the same. I think my wife's SP Mk25t/S600t works great and so did the Sherwood SR1 I used.

As for the real world benefit question (besides the resistence to corrosion). . . Weight. I really didn't want a Titanium 1st stage and the ST1 weighs less than a brass one.

Is the Atomics Reg a stainless first and second?

Only the 1st stage is SS. The metal parts of the 2nd are titanium.

 

[FredGarvin]

The ST1 is my primary reg, but with only 25 dives on it, I won't be able to give you any input on wear/corrosion issues yet. In general, SS is less prone to corrosion than plated brass. Since it's machined from a solid piece of SS you don't have to worry about scratching or nicking any platting off and having it corrode. Atomic also warrants the 1st stage for life against corrosion. The reg is great, but then again, I imagine every other high-performance reg out there right now probably performs about the same. I think my wife's SP Mk25t/S600t works great and so did the Sherwood SR1 I used.

As for the real world benefit question (besides the resistence to corrosion). . . Weight. I really didn't want a Titanium 1st stage and the ST1 weighs less than a brass one.




Only the 1st stage is SS. The metal parts of the 2nd are titanium.

I was told one has to decide whether one will use a titanium reg as "air only" or "Nitrox only". Is this true for the SS1 based on the 2nd stag titanium components?

Garv

 

[FishOutUvH2O]

No. That warning is for titanium 1st stages, like the T2. Atomic has no problem with switching back and forth between air and EAN with 2nd stages that have titanium parts: ST1, Z2, or B2. My wife's titanium Scuba Pro also has the same EAN or air warning.

 

[beanojones]

Only the 1st stage is SS. The metal parts of the 2nd are titanium.

That's interesting. I got a Titanium second stage from them for the long life of titanium, but I dive Nitrox so I would not get a first stage from them (at that time it was Ti (Fire!) or brass (Rust!) only.)

So they have finally addressed the case of people like me who like the titanium second stage for corrosion resistance, but did not like the Titanium first stage for EANx stuff, and have given up on Brass flow though piston designs for corrosion reasons.

So the second stage is just the same as the titanium one then huh.... Atomic might be getting some of my money....

 

[FishOutUvH2O]

The Z2 and M1 2nds still have brass. The T2, B1, and ST1 are pretty much the same 2nd with different model #'s on the purge cover. All 3 have the same exact internals. The T2 does come with a Titanium swivel (B2/ST1 have SS) and metal accents around the cover that make it different from the ST1 and B2. And I hate to be superficial, but it does make the T2 look pretty cool. When I had both the T2 and the ST1 in my hand trying to decide, I almost bought the T2 based on those accents. If it weren't for my wife buying a titanium reg (we're kind of competitive), I probably would've gotten the T2.

This isn't an endorsement to disregard the manufacturers requirements, but everyone I know that dives a titanium 1st, including my wife, readily switches between EAN 32 & 36 and air all of the time with no problems. I'm guessing (read as my unsubstantiated opinion) that the recommendation by manufacturers is probably way more cautious than it needs to be. And probably has more to do with the legal department than the engineering department.

 

[beanojones]

This isn't an endorsement to disregard the manufacturers requirements, but everyone I know that dives a titanium 1st, including my wife, readily switches between EAN 32 & 36 and air all of the time with no problems. I'm guessing (read as my unsubstantiated opinion) that the recommendation by manufacturers is probably way more cautious than it needs to be. And probably has more to do with the legal department than the engineering department.

I 'heard of' a first stage fire of a Atomics Titanium reg a while back, but never saw any confirming info so it could have just been FUD. But I am a envirnomentlly sealed first stage fan anyway.

I do love the titanium in the second stage though, and the overall coolness of the Atomic Titianium second stages (light, soft cover, seat saver) makes me like their second stages.