little help...tank fails and destroyed

[PhilEllis]

Phil, did you return that cracked 6061 tank to Luxfer, curious as to their take on it? Thanks for the info.

N

Oh, I might have mislead here. The crack that we personally detected AFTER the eddy current test approved the cylinder was a 6351T6 cylinder. I have talked pretty widely about this particular cylinder on various threads over the past 15 months.

It was our hydro facility that said they have condemned two cylinders of 6061 alloy since they began using the Visual Plus 3 machine. Since I was not involved in those cylinders, I don't know if they were ever sent to Luxfer or whoever was the manufacturer. As I said earlier, I don't even know if they were "real" cracks. The could have been false positives.

Phil Ellis

 

[SparticleBrane]

JUST as an update - I called the Company - Stallion Air out of Cedar Falls, NC - guy I spoke to agreed that they should NOT have killed the tank without checking with me - took my address and promised to "hook me up with a replacement". Sounds good - but I've been around wa-ay too long to believe everything I hear and very little of what I see... Thanx for the help guys! I'll stay on this!

Next time go to Safe Air Systems in Randleman, NC. I had 2 PST LP80s hydro'd there a few months ago -- $9.50/cylinder, they did the requested PST pre-test, and they gave me all the test data (didn't even have to ask for it). They were fantastic, especially since the locals here in Raleigh were quoting me $30+ per cylinder for a hydro.

 

[NOVIZWHIZ]

Thanx for the advice - like I said - this was thrown in with a lot from the local FD - we're pretty limited here as to scuba related assistance - closest dive shop is Charleston or Savannah - then the shops tack on all their extra charges when you drop them off for hydro's and refills...so you really get nailed. I was trying to by-pass the middle man. They charged me $15 a cylinder for the hydro, them another $15 for the eddy..., but they came down picked them up and brought them back- -price of gas prob not TOO bad...

 

[mike_s]

The crack that we personally detected AFTER the eddy current test approved the cylinder was a 6351T6 cylinder. I have talked pretty widely about this particular cylinder on various threads over the past 15 months.

Phil and/or everyone else...

I remember when this happened last year. Phil posted a whole thread on it last year, but it was one of those threads that got lost in one of the Scubaboard crashes and was not recovered.

But I saved the initial post as I emailed it to someone (cut-n-paste).

I still have that if Phil or anyone else wants to read it, but it gave a pretty clear summary of what happened. he followed that up with some other posts with more info, but I didn't save the entire thread and don't have that.

If anyone wants me to post it, let me know.

-mike

 

[roakey]

Eddy current testing is not valid on new tanks, so they should not even be doing it on a new 6061 alloy tank. They screwed you because they have no clue what they are doing.

Who doesn't have a clue?

Luxfer: Press Releases

Anyways, the bottom line is if you did not sign a release allowing them to destroy the cylinder on determination of failure, they owe you a new cylinder. This release is part of the standard PSI cylinder inspection forms, so most probably your shop doesn't have trained inspectors either (though I realize that it's the hydro facility, not the shop that destroyed your cylinder).

Roak

 

[vshearer]

Thanx for the advice - like I said - this was thrown in with a lot from the local FD - we're pretty limited here as to scuba related assistance - closest dive shop is Charleston or Savannah - then the shops tack on all their extra charges when you drop them off for hydro's and refills...so you really get nailed. I was trying to by-pass the middle man. They charged me $15 a cylinder for the hydro, them another $15 for the eddy..., but they came down picked them up and brought them back- -price of gas prob not TOO bad...

Use PyeBarker on Lynes in Savannah. They are good.

 

[NOVIZWHIZ]

Just talked to the guy at the Stallion Air - said my tank was being shipped to me - got the word the paint job's a lime green leopard print over pink....seriously - can these tanks be recycled? What's the going price for aluminum / lb? Isn't it an alloy - not pure al?

 

[RonFrank]

Lime Green Leopard print over pink! That is just special!

 

[letterboy]

I will take it off your hands if you don't want it

 

[NOVIZWHIZ]

Lime Green Leopard print over pink! That is just special!

at least it'll match my fins.....

i hope he was just jerkin' my chain.....