Eric Sedletzky
Contributor
Just wondering about an old US divers back pack design probably from 1964 ish?
It's one of those Kam "EZ" Paks made out of plastic with the stainless tank band with the cam lever.
The reason I ask is because a fellow vintage diver had one roll off the bed of his truck and hit the ground one day as we were gearing up for a dive. The impact shattered the lower corner of the pack and so we had to Jerry rig it (no pun intended, the guys name really is Jerry). He used it to dive that day but was heatbroken that the pak was trashed. So I told him not to frett because I could make him an identical one out of fiberglass.
The first thing I did after I got home was crazy glued all the pieces back together so I would have something to go off, then I made a mould from the old pack and then used the mould to cast a new pak out of fiberglass. The result was a perfect replica of the pak but much stronger. I drilled the holes where they needed to be and cut in all the slots in the same exact locations then transfered all the original hardware and it all fits perfect.
I did it for no money as a favor so there was no profit involved.
Am I infringing on any patents here since I'm not selling them and the one I made was technically a repair or replacement.
Is the patent still even valid?
I know Aqualung hasn't made these things for years, probably since the late 70's.
It's one of those Kam "EZ" Paks made out of plastic with the stainless tank band with the cam lever.
The reason I ask is because a fellow vintage diver had one roll off the bed of his truck and hit the ground one day as we were gearing up for a dive. The impact shattered the lower corner of the pack and so we had to Jerry rig it (no pun intended, the guys name really is Jerry). He used it to dive that day but was heatbroken that the pak was trashed. So I told him not to frett because I could make him an identical one out of fiberglass.
The first thing I did after I got home was crazy glued all the pieces back together so I would have something to go off, then I made a mould from the old pack and then used the mould to cast a new pak out of fiberglass. The result was a perfect replica of the pak but much stronger. I drilled the holes where they needed to be and cut in all the slots in the same exact locations then transfered all the original hardware and it all fits perfect.
I did it for no money as a favor so there was no profit involved.
Am I infringing on any patents here since I'm not selling them and the one I made was technically a repair or replacement.
Is the patent still even valid?
I know Aqualung hasn't made these things for years, probably since the late 70's.
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