Mares or Apeks

[fot411]

Looking to upgrade from my old Apeks TX50 with Atx 40 occy.
Have been reasonably happy with Apeks with couple of issues.

My TX 50 has a bad habit of leaking water into my mouth in strong current. Think this is caused by a grain of sand on diaphramn seat. So I clean it thouroughly after each dive. But even then I can still have this issue, have had it regularly service and diaphramn replaced also

. Otherwise reg breathes great at all depths and I like the user flow controls on reg
The ATX 40 seems too sensitive and will free flow sometimes even with venturi control set to -

So as much as I do like my Apeks think I might like to try a Mares Abyss or similar, unless someone can convince me I wont have these issues with an XTX 50 or similar.

One thing I don't like on the Mares is lack of user flow controls on reg

Any opinions on these two regs?
My diving is mostly warm water sports diving with strong currents at times
Cheers

 

[scubafanatic]

......among my regs are a pair of Apeks XTX 200's......and a few older Mares......and while my Mares regs are just fine and have been very reliable, I actually prefer my Apeks ones....the Apeks have a balanced 2nd-stage, plus 2nd-stage adjustments, which come in handy heading into strong currents.

 

[carrielsal]

+1 on the Apex XTX200's.

 

[Tortuga68]

I dive strong currents (Canyons, Puerto Galera, Philippines) with XTX200 and ATX100 regs and have never had either of the probelsm you describe

 

[Black Red]

Otherwise reg breathes great at all depths and I like the user flow controls on reg
The ATX 40 seems too sensitive and will free flow sometimes even with venturi control set to -

You can try using a size 5 allan key to detune the regulator so that its less sensitive.

 

[Amphibious]

been diving my ATX40 and TX100 both in very strong currents (rivers & BC tidal flows) and never had an issue.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Any decent reg tech should be able to troubleshoot the issue you are having with your TX50 (wet breathing while diving into a current). A faulty diaphragm (torn or sand on it) is one of several things that could be the problem.

From an Apeks 2nd stage reg technician manual, the standard troubleshooting procedure for water entering the second stage is:

1. Hole in mouthpiece >> Replace mouthpiece.
2. Demand diaphragm damaged >> Replace diaphragm.
3. Exhaust valve damaged >> Replace valve.
4. Venturi lever o-ring dirty, damaged, or worn >> Disassemble and replace o-ring.
5. Diaphragm improperly seated in box bottom >> Remove front cover and properly reassemble sealing ring with diaphragm (check for distortion).
6. Box bottom damaged. (Check exhaust valve sealing surface.) >> Disassemble and replace box bottom.
7. Inlet o-ring damaged >> Replace o-ring.
8. Valve spindle o-ring worn or damaged >> Replace o-ring.

Some of these issues (particularly the ones involving o-rings) will be automatically fixed as standard procedure during a typical overhaul. I'd bet that the exhaust valve is worn/damaged since that's not a piece that is replaced during a standard overhaul. Box bottom damage is also a possibility. Whatever your problem is...it's clearly not a "complete" failure of the part since the reg doesn't always breathe wet.

If your ATX40 octopus freeflows too easily, then you should have it detuned. This is a very simple adjustment of the lever height. It should take anyone who knows what he's doing about a minute to do. While you're at it, make sure that the IP of your first stage is set within normal limits. It's possible that it might be set too high or may be climbing higher on its own which is an indicator that something's wrong with the first stage.

Apeks regs are great. I highly recommend learning how to work on them. Not as difficult as you might think.
IMHO, moving from Apeks to Mares would be a downgrade. If you lived closer, I'd offer to buy your Apeks reg setup. For the most part, inside the second stage, the ATX50, TX50, and XTX50 are very similar. Performance-wise, there should be very little appreciable difference. The only added feature of the XTX50 is that the hose can attach to either side of the case. Not a big deal in my book.

 

[fot411]

Thanks I'm getting some great responses.

I suspect my tx50 has has something amiss ever since I bought it (7 years ago second hand). It's only sideways and into strong current/surge (at the start/end of a dive usually) that water enters the second stage. I'm starting to question the quality of my reg technician. I've complained to them about issue and diaphragm change did not fix it.

Will try to adjust the occy as want to keep it but still like to replace first/second stages
I'm leaning back to Apeks again esp the XTX 100 it looks good value for money and I like the adjustments on second stage
So will resign the TX50 to pony bottle use

One thing I did like about the Mares product is the 2 year Hp seat life. How often do you guys have the Apeks serviced, mine is done yearly due to HP seat supposedly needing replacement?
Is this correct
Cheers

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I suspect my tx50 has has something amiss ever since I bought it (7 years ago second hand). It's only sideways and into strong current/surge (at the start/end of a dive usually) that water enters the second stage. I'm starting to question the quality of my reg technician. I've complained to them about issue and diaphragm change did not fix it.

Print out the troubleshooting list and ask them to address each issue. It's worth a shot.

One thing I did like about the Mares product is the 2 year Hp seat life. How often do you guys have the Apeks serviced, mine is done yearly due to HP seat supposedly needing replacement?
Is this correct

I have no experience with Mares. I'm sure the company makes good regs.
My Apeks rig (ATX100/ATX50/FST) has gone for 2.5 years (approx. 150 dives) without servicing. I just got around to overhauling the first stage. I've heard of other people doing longer service intervals. I'll tend to the second stages when I get the chance. The reg setup is still breathing quite nicely.

I think your HP seat is getting replaced too often. Apeks recommends overhauling the reg every 2 years. Which first stage do you have?

 

[dbulmer]

I agree with BubbleTrubble.

I use Apeks in the UK where we do have the conditions you describe minus the warm water so the regs are suited for the conditions you have in mind. I think it might be worth your while to get someone else to service your regs and see how it goes.