In search of the driest upside-down breather...Atomics Z2x...your thoughts?

[Belce]

I use Scubapro's A700 and have to say that position is not a consideration in dry or not dry breathing. I have swam head down from the surface to over 100' without issue, I have swam on my back at depth for over ten minutes without issue. Currently my training involves alot of using other peoples regulators and they all really suck compared to what I have.

 

[Dry_Diver]

I have been diving an Atomic B2 for about three years now. I can say with certainty that it is a very dry reg. I do a lot of lobstering and don't want to think of the weird and contorted positions I have gotten myself into while trying to get myself that one last bug ;-) I have never gotten any amount of water in the reg to make me stop and say WTF. I am very happy with the performance. The B2 breaths on the surface and at 150' with no noticeable difference in performance.

The only thing that I will caution you on is the cost of servicing the reg. I think that I might have been taken for a little of a ride, I am not too sure. The cost for servicing my 1st, 2nd and octo (SS1) was around $230. Now the shop that I used said that it was more expensive because of the Crystal lube for the environmentally sealed 1st stage. If this is true I don't know. I was a little pissed when I picked up my reg. Now to offset that statement, The Atomic B2 and SS1 have a two year service interval. Keeping that in mind the $230 really only breaks down to $115 per year so I guess that is not too bad.

All in all I could not be happier with the regs, they have worked flawlessly now for three years and don't expect to have any issues any time soon. I do think that I will try to find another dealer to service them this year.......

Good luck with your search, hope this helped

 

[scubafanatic]

I have been diving an Atomic B2 for about three years now. I can say with certainty that it is a very dry reg. I do a lot of lobstering and don't want to think of the weird and contorted positions I have gotten myself into while trying to get myself that one last bug ;-) I have never gotten any amount of water in the reg to make me stop and say WTF. I am very happy with the performance. The B2 breaths on the surface and at 150' with no noticeable difference in performance.

The only thing that I will caution you on is the cost of servicing the reg. I think that I might have been taken for a little of a ride, I am not too sure. The cost for servicing my 1st, 2nd and octo (SS1) was around $230. Now the shop that I used said that it was more expensive because of the Crystal lube for the environmentally sealed 1st stage. If this is true I don't know. I was a little pissed when I picked up my reg. Now to offset that statement, The Atomic B2 and SS1 have a two year service interval. Keeping that in mind the $230 really only breaks down to $115 per year so I guess that is not too bad.

All in all I could not be happier with the regs, they have worked flawlessly now for three years and don't expect to have any issues any time soon. I do think that I will try to find another dealer to service them this year.......

Good luck with your search, hope this helped

...next time have them use Christolube...."Crystal lube" is impregnated with diamond dust or something, no wonder it was so expensive! "Annual" prices vary all over the map, my average experience is in the $ 125 range, give or take, assuming the regs don't need anything extra parts/service wise above and beyond the usual 'annual' stuff. For Atomics that are environmentally sealed, add extra $ for that Christolube. You can save some $ by doing 'annuals' based less on time intervals and more on # of dives/hours used, especially if you are careful with your regs and keep seawater out of the 1st-stage, etc. Still, it wouldn't hurt for you to do some comparison price shopping on servicing and see what the going rate in your area is...and always remember, a $ 230 'annual' well done may be a better deal than a poorly done $ 150 'annual'.