Lifetime Warranties on Regs

[ONESPEED]

And people say that some of my posts come across as arrogant...

I'm fine w/ being called arrogant, hell I take it as a compliment. Now being a know it all blowhard like some of the posters in this thread is a whole different story.

Oh, and FYI, I may have thousands of posts but I have thousands of dives too. Not sure where some people get the opinion that being sociable on a website makes you less of a diver, probably more of a statement about themselves.

 

[letterboy]

And people say that some of my posts come across as arrogant...

You are arrogant though . . .

 

[halocline]

I pretty much agree, except I buy ONLY used regs. check them out, use them until there is a tiny leak or IP creep or something and then usually just sell it. When I sell it, I am honest and tell them that it needs work, because what sane person would use a used regulator without a complete overhaul anyway?

Often, I can get years use from a reg. without any professional service. The sealed sherwood first stages are unbelievably hardy.

I always soak my regs over night in freshwater and this makes a big difference in longevity in my experience.

I also only buy used regs, but I work on them myself and rebuild them immediately after buying, partly for curiosity's sake to see what kind of shape the internals are in, partly because I enjoy it, and them dive them until there's some evidence of a problem. There is rarely any evidence of any problem, maybe a little IP creep on a reg that hasn't been used in several months, or an exhaust valve sticking on one of the 2nd stages. I bought one of my absolute favorites, a MK10/D300, for about $80, rebuilt it once, (another $40 for the kits) and have used it on over 100 dives so far without a hint of any problem. The way most people dive (not so much the regular posters on SB) their reg might have rebuilt via the warranty 4 or 5 times for a similar number of dives.

I've also bought 20 year old regs that have what appears to be original o-rings and seats still installed, and they still hold pressure fine.

 

[diver 85]

yep! If you take care of your gear properly, there is no real need

that's mine....~every 3 to 4 years on my Mk10/G200 since '89(one time was even longer)

 

[Teamcasa]

<off topic>
The 40mm DOCE's are simple but I'm partial to the 48 IDA's.

...It aint rocket science, it aint submersible science, it aint even a dual throat side draft webber...

</off topic>

Regulators just are not that hard to service for the mechanically inclined. That said, many mechanically inclined divers still prefer to have others service thier gear.

 

[Thalassamania]

<off topic>
The 40mm DOCE's are simple but I'm partial to the 48 IDA's.


</off topic>

I had a 302 with four 48 DCO SP Webbers on crossover manifolds, the linkages were, to say the least, interesting.

Regulators just are not that hard to service for the mechanically inclined. That said, many mechanically inclined divers still prefer to have others service thier gear.

Absolutely, and there's not a damn thing wrong with that (as I said earlier).

What I object to is the incredible arrogance of "professional" regulator adjusters who think that somehow in a four hour program they have been anointed to a level of cosmic wisdom that is hidden to all others.

 

[rstofer]

Regulators just are not that hard to service for the mechanically inclined. That said, many mechanically inclined divers still prefer to have others service thier gear.

I don't think it is a matter of inclinatiion and I don't think it is a matter of the cost of tools. Simply, it's about the availability of parts.

If I had a source of Oceanic Omega II parts, they would never go out for service. I have the time, money and inclination to set up a proper repair bench but where do I get the parts? I do have to remember, however, that setting up a proper repair bench will cost more than several years worth of maintenance. I wouldn't consider doing the work without all of the proper tools.

I have several Omega II sets. What I have decided is to keep two sets current and let the rest slide. There is no reason to do annual maintenance on regulators that will never get wet.

Richard

 

[Teamcasa]

I had a 302 with four 48 DCO SP Webbers on crossover manifolds, the linkages were, to say the least, interesting.

That's why we built bell cranks and finally went to cables for multi-carb engines. My personal favorites were the 911 Weber IDA-3C's. Easy to tune and sync.

What I object to is the incredible arrogance of "professional" regulator adjusters who think that somehow in a four hour program they have been anointed to a level of cosmic wisdom that is hidden to all others.

Most regulator (or any other technical/mechanical based) professionals all begin with a short class primarily to build on thier other experiences. They serve to provide the technician with a shorter learning curve and a clue on where any pitfalls may be. I have taken many a short class/lecture and have given a few myself.

The class alone does not instanly make you professional nor did I think anyone felt it did.

I don't think it is a matter of inclinatiion and I don't think it is a matter of the cost of tools. Simply, it's about the availability of parts.

You may be right for the most part. But now, with the help of the internet, where there is a hole, someone is out there to fill it.

 

[halocline]

I don't think it is a matter of inclinatiion and I don't think it is a matter of the cost of tools. Simply, it's about the availability of parts.

If I had a source of Oceanic Omega II parts, they would never go out for service. I have the time, money and inclination to set up a proper repair bench but where do I get the parts? I do have to remember, however, that setting up a proper repair bench will cost more than several years worth of maintenance. I wouldn't consider doing the work without all of the proper tools.

It's not that tough to get parts. You should be able to get those parts from Scubatoys or some other online source, if your LDS won't sell them to you. Many of the required parts, like o-rings, are also available from alternative sources. Trident carries some fairly generic rebuild parts like LP seats. IOW, if you really want to find what you need to rebuild your regs you can do it.

In terms of tools, I spent less than $200 on tools to rebuild my SP regs. That included some brand-specific tools from scubatools, an IP gauge, snap ring pliers, a tube of Christolube, and some nice o-ring picks. You simply don't need many of the more expensive things like a magnahelic gauge or even an ultrasound. (That will be my next purchase) You can still get things nice and clean, it just takes a little more time, and you can still tune 2nd stages for nice low cracking effort, it just takes a sink full of water and some patience. A jeweler's loupe is a nice thing to have for inspection, I use mine all the time.

 

[Slonda828]

It's not that tough to get parts. You should be able to get those parts from Scubatoys or some other online source, if your LDS won't sell them to you. Many of the required parts, like o-rings, are also available from alternative sources. Trident carries some fairly generic rebuild parts like LP seats. IOW, if you really want to find what you need to rebuild your regs you can do it.

In terms of tools, I spent less than $200 on tools to rebuild my SP regs. That included some brand-specific tools from scubatools, an IP gauge, snap ring pliers, a tube of Christolube, and some nice o-ring picks. You simply don't need many of the more expensive things like a magnahelic gauge or even an ultrasound. (That will be my next purchase) You can still get things nice and clean, it just takes a little more time, and you can still tune 2nd stages for nice low cracking effort, it just takes a sink full of water and some patience. A jeweler's loupe is a nice thing to have for inspection, I use mine all the time.

Matt, we find ourselves in agreement quite often. I was looking through my tool cabinet, to see what I had purchased to rebuild all 8 of my US Divers regs. Here's what I have:

-Magnehelic (used off of Ebay for 25 bucks)
-O-rings (Reef scuba, packs of 25-50)
-HP seats (Trident, 7 bucks each)
-LP seats (Trident, a buck a piece)
-Snap rings, filters, etc...
-Pliers
-Wrench
-Christolube
-White vinegar
-USD poppet adjustment tool
-1/4" open end wrench

I bet that's probably about 150-200 bucks in supplies and tools. Then again, getting 8-10 regs rebuild by a shop would easily be over 300 bucks, and that's if they only charge 30 bucks. Plus I have kits to rebuild my regs in the field if I have to, in little ziplocks in my save-a-dive kit. I'm not saying everyone should do this, but it is something to work toward.