Inspecting second hand equipment before purchase, how?

[337]

Forgive me if this is the wrong section to put this, but it seemed like the best choice.

Since I'm new to the whole underwater world thing, I'm in the market for second hand scuba equipment. I don't want to buy brand new for a couple reasons, mainly for cost factors.

What signs are there on a BCD and on the first & second stages of a regulator that indicate that I should not buy either peice of this equipment?

The gear I'm looking at has not had the tank hydrostatic tested in 4 years, and nothing else has been serviced in that time.

Is there a quick & easy way to tell if a BCD is leaking air (submerging it in water may be out of the question), and can they be repaired reliably?

Any other tips that will come in handy?

Thanks,

 

[scubapro50]

Buying used equipment is like buying a use car ... you never know if you got a good deal until after you take it home and use it for a while. 1st ..... how old is it ? remember that you may have to put out between $60 to $100 on the regulator alone just to get it's annual service done. A tank will run about $10 to $50 or more depending on how much they charge you for annual inspection and if it needs to be cleaned or hydro ..... 2nd what brand of equipment is it ..... Mares, Scubapro, Sherwood .. great. Bad if it Dacor, Voit, Swimaster, Nemrod, Sportways, White Stag or any other brands that are out of business or don't make parts anymore. 3th ... find someone who been diving awhile to look at the equipment before purchase ... there's a lot of bad stuff out there and to get a real deal is rare ..... like buying that low miles, one owner creampuff of a car ... only with scuba gear you don't have a VIN number to run through Carfax to see if it has been wrecked ......

 

[337]

Thanks for the reply.

The BCD is a Dacor Nautica (Strike one), and the regulator is U.S. Divers arctic.

Everything itself is about 10 years old.

I know what you mean when you say "It's like buying a used car", I've had my share of lemons. That's why I'm asking for this advice before I shell out the money.

 

[pasley]

Not a dive professional or any other individual with any expertise. The following is IMHO

..... I don't want to buy brand new for a couple reasons, mainly for cost factors.

I completely understand and that was my first thought. After all what is the worse that can happen? A funeral is only what $7,000 or so. Some people have had excellent luck with used equipment, but I would not bet my life on it. I was all set to buy used gear for $700 for the whole shebang. My wife said you life is not worth it, go buy new for $1,200, so I did.

What signs are there on a BCD and on the first & second stages of a regulator that indicate that I should not buy either piece of this equipment?

BC: Mold, mildew, brittle, check inside the bladder for mold, mildew etc. If you see any rust colored stains on the 1st stage of the regulator, pass on it. Look for rust, cracked or checked or brittle hoses etc. Have a professional check it out. If the seller will not let you leave a deposit and have it professionally inspected, or take it for you to have it done and present to you the certificate of inspection, there probably is a good reason for it.

The gear I'm looking at has not had the tank hydrostatic tested in 4 years, and nothing else has been serviced in that time.

Have it all serviced before use (and before you buy). All dive equipment requires yearly service (or every 100 dives which ever comes first). Servicing your gear is not the place to save money. Stuff happens sitting in your closet, stuff that can kill you at 100 feet (or less). DAN published the story of a diver who had his gear serviced, dove it one or two times and put it away for a year or two. Then dove it again, for the last time….he died due to equipment failure at 100 feet. A very small flake of rust in the 1st stage was causing him to not get enough air and rust was cutting the o-rings inside to ribbons. The whole thing finally started leaking air out of the first stage in a big way and ended in his death. But hey, he saved $60 on having it serviced.

Is there a quick & easy way to tell if a BCD is leaking air (submerging it in water may be out of the question), and can they be repaired reliably?

Fill it full of air and let it sit for two hours. It should still be firm and take it to a professional for inspection. I would not trust a patch unless it was factory applied, and maybe not then.

Any other tips that will come in handy?

Buy new.

I use to have a Dacor Nautica, velcro weight pouches. I have some new spares to sell you. You will need them. Velcro will drop your weight pouches after you get 20 or 30 dive on them.

If the tanks are AL, do NOT buy them at any price unless they are made by CATALINA. The older AL tanks were, in most cases, made of an alloy that has had failures resulting in death, and maiming. Avoid AL tanks (except Catalina which never used the alloy) made before 2000. http://www.napsd.com/cscuba.htm

 

[BrianS]

Mares owns Dacor and parts are available. Dacor even makes new regs.

If it's older Dacor, then you can even do a trade in for newer gear.

..... 2nd what brand of equipment is it ..... Mares, Scubapro, Sherwood .. great. Bad if it Dacor, Voit, Swimaster, Nemrod, Sportways, White Stag or any other brands that are out of business or don't make parts anymore. ..

 

[redacted]

After the first dive, it is all used. And some of it may be used but sold as new when you buy it. What do you think some shops do with the gear they accept for exchange but only if it has not been in SW.

I completly understand and that was my first thought. After all what is the worse that can happen? A funeral is only what $7,000 or so. Some people have had excellent luck with used equipment, but I would not bet my life on it. I was all set to buy used gear for $700 for the whole shebang. My wife said you life is not worth it, go buy new for $1,200 so I did.

The scare tactic is interesting. What dive is worth a $7K funeral? But I was wondering if you could describe a realistic senario, involving properly serviced used gear, that could not also occur with brand new gear.

It is possible to get used gear that looks good but can not achieve acceptable performance due to wear & tear or service errors. I've got a half dozen reg that I bought on ebay based on pictures and description and have never been disappointed. But I have had to put in a good bit of tech service effort to make some work well. I would not have made some of those purchases if I couldn't have done the work myself.

 

[Damselfish]

Lots of good advice. One point, being Dacor is not quite as much a strike against a BC as a reg. Assuming the BC is in good shape and not leaking the biggest concern would be the power inflator. While getting parts for Dacor regs became hard to impossible, that's not such an issue for an BC/inflator. If all else failed it's not too expensive to just get a new inflator (it doesn't have to be the same as the original.)

As far as possibly unreliable velcro weight pouches, you could always just stick with a regular weight belt and not use them if it seems a problem. Not crazy about those, my friend had velcro pouches (not the same BC) and it took her much less than 20 dives to lose the first one.

 

[pasley]

....I bought on ebay based on pictures and description and have never been disappointed. But I have had to put in a good bit of tech service effort to make some work well. I would not have made some of those purchases if I couldn't have done the work myself.

The key point is experience. You are knowledgable and know what to ask and to look for and serviced the gear before use. The diver asking the question is new and does not have that knowledge.

....The scare tactic is interesting. What dive is worth a $7K funeral? But I was wondering if you could describe a realistic senario, involving properly serviced used gear, that could not also occur with brand new gear.

Not a scare tactic, I have no dog in this fight. But mearly putting it in perspective. dive equipment is life support equpment, sometimes we forget that in the effort to save what is in reality very little money. On the one end we have save a few bucks, on the other we have the increased risk of diving gear with an unknown history and servicability. Now if you have it serviced and inspected before you buy, maybe not an issue. I also see on e-bay equpment being sold and the bidding takes it over what I could buy that same equipment for at my local dive store, or within a few dollars anyway.

You asked for and example, I have already provided one. The example I sited is a real life senario that should not (nothing is could not) happen with new gear. A drop of water in the first stage, storage for over a year, and then take it diving. Result, one dead diver. This senario was published in Lessons For life part of a popular scuba magizine. Nothing is fool proof, but with used gear, you don't know the service history or abuse history of the equipment. Is all used gear bad? No. Is all new gear good, no, but it does come with a waranty and was factory inspected before shipment. Perfect no, but very likly more reliable.

 

[Scubaguy62]

My .02 psi,

If you're going to buy used gear, know your seller. Make sure that whatever equipment you buy has a record of service and there record it has been serviced. Then, get it serviced again, despite of whether it recently had service. Regs and BC's should be serviced once a year, tanks VIP'd once a year, hydroed every 5.

Don't buy alone, take an experienced diver/friend with you.

There's nothing wrong with buying used gear, only with buying used gear blindly. IOW, I wouldn't buy any Life Support Equipment from Ebay, but that's just my opinion. Personally I wouldn't buy a used mask, but again, that's just my opinion.

And don't be surprised if you find that quality new gear isn't that much more expensive than what you'd pay for used gear.

 

[337]

Arguments from each side are greatly apreciated.

One more question,

How about used equipment from an LDS? I know it's still used, but you know the service history. On the other hand, you know what it's been through & what type of person it was used by.

Thoughts?