How do I shop for a regulator?

[FurtekJR]

Hey All,

I am begining to shop for my first regulator and have a short list of the various models that I am considering. My question is this . . . what is the process for actually testing a regulator in my local dive shop? Is there any sort of standard protocal? I guess what I am trying to get at is will they break out a tank and let me test the regulators?

Thanks.

 

[deepblueme]

It is kind of hard to tell the difference in most same catagory reg's from breathing in the shop.
You can tell a low end from a high end reg by how eazy it "cracks" how much effort it takes to make the reg start breathing. But that is about all.

Alot depends on your budget and the type of diving you will be doing.

If mostly cold water I would tell you to go with a diaphram as they are eazier to seal.
Typically piston regs have a better flow rate but there are some diaphram regs that out preform some of the pistons in that department.
As for 2nd stage get a pnumaticaly balanced one for your main as they have a lower cracking effort and some people like one for their back up as they may be using it in the event of a problem.

Which reg's are on your short list?

 

[spectrum]

Hey All,
I guess what I am trying to get at is will they break out a tank and let me test the regulators?
Thanks.

Surface breathing has not mimicked underwater performance in my experience.

First decide if you need one that is cold water capable. (if you ever plan do go to 42F or colder)

Think about DIN VS yoke though that won't be a performance criteria.

If you can get them in a pool that can be telling.

Spending as much as you care to spend on something serviced locally works for many.

If it's a good shop willing to spend some time with you ask to put a few front runners on the flow bench for evaluation and tuning. Often they are not at their best right out of the box. While going through the exercise a preference may emerge.

Pete

 

[EvaL]

I agree with deepblueme - regs are split into categories, which are probably based on price. But that is not to say there aren't any good and cheap ones around. For example the Oceanic Alpha Sport is under $200 and rated very highly.
There's really no good way to test a regulator at the store, even if they have a pool and let you bring the reg to the bottom, which is only 10 or 15ft deep. You'd probably want to compare stuff like how regs perform at depths of at least 100ft or more - how much air they deliver, can they handle two 2nd stages breathing at the same time (if you buddy is out of air), how wet they breathe, how they perform upside down, in current etc and you'll need to compare several regs at the same time to feel the difference, if any. That's too much for me, so I'd recommend checking out previous tests done objectively (or as objective as can be) by Rodale's Scubalab - they have conducted several reg reviews in recent years using breathing machines as well as real people in the water:
http://www.scubadiving.com/regulators
As deepblueme says, if you dive in cold water a lot, a sealed diaphragm 1st stage is better, unless you want to pay more to environmentally seal a piston 1st stage.
Good luck and dive safely.