Help Identify: Opinions?

[XLT_66]

Hey guys, I finally got my G250 Graphite in the mail.

This is what all came in the box:

G250 Graphite
Suunto Console (poor condition)
Scubapro Air 2
Scubapro 1st Stage - I think its an MK5

Can you guys help me identify what the 1st stage is?

Also, what should I look for to see if this stuff is any good? All the o-rings where the hoses plug into the 1st stage look brand new.

Picasa Web Albums - Evan - ScubaPro Regu...

The last three pictures are the ones in question. Is there any way to tell how old they are? When was the G250 Graphite manufactured?

 

[Fishpie]

Scubapro MK5
G250
Air 1
Air 2 (2nd gen)
.....very nice.

 

[Thalassamania]

The funny looking regulator (with the dive/predive switch) is a Pilot, it has a problem that you need to be aware of, there was a fatality some years back that was traced to spraying silicone spray on the diaphragm (that does double duty as both inhilation diaphragm and exhaust diaphragm), this makes the diaphragm slippery and can cause it to come out from under a clip that must hold it in place, if that happens the regulator fills up with water and no longer functions.

 

[redacted]

The 1st stge with hoses connected is a very nice Mk5 (heavy yoke, 5 lp port swivel) and the other is a Mk10.

 

[XLT_66]

Hmmm...So i've gotten a few different things from these posts.

I've determined from previous posts that the 1st stage with hoses is a heavy yoke, 5 lp swivel, MK5 like awap said. The Darth Vader 2nd was determined to be an AIR 1.

The other 1st stage, the one without the hoses, is an MK5 or an MK10? It is more used than the MK5 with the hoses. Which would you dive with?

Also, which would you dive with... An Oceanic AIR XS 2 that is currently attached to my oceanic bcd or would you switch it over to the Scubapro AIR2 2nd gen? I know some of you don't like octo/inflators but that is what I have so i am going to dive it for now...

 

[redacted]

Hmmm...So i've gotten a few different things from these posts.

I've determined from previous posts that the 1st stage with hoses is a heavy yoke, 5 lp swivel, MK5 like awap said. The Darth Vader 2nd was determined to be an AIR 1.

The other 1st stage, the one without the hoses, is an MK5 or an MK10? It is more used than the MK5 with the hoses. Which would you dive with?

Also, which would you dive with... An Oceanic AIR XS 2 that is currently attached to my oceanic bcd or would you switch it over to the Scubapro AIR2 2nd gen? I know some of you don't like octo/inflators but that is what I have so i am going to dive it for now...[/QUOTE

Yes, the 1st stage with no hoses is a Mk10 (or perhaps a Mk10+ if it has upgraded). The clear discriminator is the location of the ambient chamber holes which are in the swivel cap of a Mk5 but in the body of a Mk10.

I have quite a few Mk5s and Mk10s and I have come to prefer my Mk5s as they seem to give me a more stable IP over the range of tank pressures. It is a small difference that I believe is related to the lighter spring (smaller piston head) in the Mk10. Both use the same HP o-ring seal design which tends to be one of the weak points of the BP 1st design.

As far as the octo/inflator goes, I am only familiar with the Scubapro model but doubt if there is any clear design or performance reason the select one over the other.

 

[XLT_66]

Awap, thanks for the info.

I'm going to dive the MK5 since it is the heavy yoke, 5 lp swivel, and it is "like new" condition. Not even a scuff on it at all. With that, I'm going to dive the G250 Graphite and the Oceanic XS 2 octo/inflator since it is already hooked up and matches my BC so well.

How hard is it really to service the MK5/G250? Is there somewhere I can look online, like a step by step. I'm a mechanical engineer with access to just about every tool there is. (except it there are specialty tools involved) I feel like I can just do this myself but maybe it's better that I watch someone do it the first time...

 

[halocline]

I think I offered to help you with this a while back, but if you want to try it on your own, go for it. It's not too hard, you can get the vance harlow book on regulator repair from airspeed press to start with and then post questions here as they come up.

Edit; as far as which 1st stage to use, what I would do is rebuild them both, or at least take them both apart, and see which one is in better mechanical shape. The knife edge of the piston is the critical part, and you won't know how that is on either one until they're disassembled. Chances are they're both in good shape. The one other thing to closely inspect is the turret bolt, especially on the MK5. Some of those bolts were brass and easily damaged by overtorqueing. The MK10 bolts were almost all stainless steel, so they're stronger, and since they tighten with an allen wrench rather than a socket, they were probably less often grossly overtorqued. Just a guess, but I've seen Mk5 bolts I would not want to use, but never a MK10 bolt.

One other thing, it's a little tricky removing and installing the HP o-ring on these without scratching the body of the reg. You just have to be careful, but the point is, if someone else was not, there could be a few scratches which will cause some problems. That's another thing you won't know until you pressurize the regs. So you might want to get both ready for diving then decide which one you'll use.