Mares regs?

[Former FLL Now MSP Diver]

Scuba446 once bubbled...
Recently I had an opportunity to try a friends Mares MR12 Axis 1st stage and 2ns stage. I must admit, its performance made me take a 2nd look at the Mares line up.

Changed my opinion of Mares 100%. I can buy a MR12 Axis from Lesiure Pro for a mere $140. That makes it a great buy, in my book, and will be my workhorse reg for my 19 cu in pony.

It's great to see that you're openminded enough to try out something on your own instead of just accepting the "it's crap" stuff written in a number of these posts.

And that is an excellent price.

Better be careful though - you don't want to be kicked out of the club.

Marc

 

[Scuba446]

Marc,
I think I got 'kicked out of the club' when I bought and subscribed to the idea, that I wanted a single AL19 on my side as a backup.
I can take it anywhere I want, when diving and have it just in case.

If I selected to go the 'H-vlave' on my AL80, that wouldn't give me much redundancy while off renting a tank on a paid charter.
And, I can't arrord to go out now and buy a set of twins, Explorer wings, etc. and won't after having just gotten certified recently.

Unlike DIR, I believe that your best 'buddy' is yourself - so tkae care of yourself as much as you can - in case your buddy can't take care of you.

Example: During a silt out during check out dives - my buddy and I could hardly SEE each other. By the time he would have gotten my attention on a problem or an OOA emergency - it could have been too late. Thats just my opinion. And like we said earlier above, I don't like an agency dictating to me, whats right fro me or not. To me, having that pony is cheap insurance to my wife and kids, in the event of a mishap. Maybe it will be one of those 'I've never needed it' deals - but boy if I do just once, I'll be glad it was there!

 

[divernva]

Hmmm... in a silt out situation probably should stop, find the line, look for lights of team members and help them to line. Start using constant touch contact for communication.

In any case, the distance between team members is based on the environment. Possible silt out, tighter formation. Open water two or three kicks apart.

Redundant gas is good, but good team skills and situational awareness is priceless. The pony tank reg isn't going to just end up in your mouth. A buddy will jam one down your throat if need be.

Be a good teammate if your counterpart isn't.

 

[Scuba446]

I try.

We had no 'line.' This was our Open Water Check Out Dives, where my 'buddy' decided (during the silt out) to ascend due to a mask leaking problem. Which is OK, if he gave me the thumbs UP sign and we ascended TOGETHER!

That could have been a bad situation for both of us in the event of an OOA Emergency - even though we were only in 44 ft of water - but, still. I always TRY to stay together - as a team. if one guy goes up - BOTH go up, etc.

Its a team effort.

Dive buddies can't read each others minds, and should not have to. You have to communicate when something is wrong, when you are 'thumbing' the dive, changing direction, etc.

 

[KZMAN]

Scuba446 once bubbled...
Marc,
I think I got 'kicked out of the club' when I bought and subscribed to the idea, that I wanted a single AL19 on my side as a backup.
I can take it anywhere I want, when diving and have it just in case.

If I selected to go the 'H-vlave' on my AL80, that wouldn't give me much redundancy while off renting a tank on a paid charter.
And, I can't arrord to go out now and buy a set of twins, Explorer wings, etc. and won't after having just gotten certified recently.

Unlike DIR, I believe that your best 'buddy' is yourself - so tkae care of yourself as much as you can - in case your buddy can't take care of you.

Example: During a silt out during check out dives - my buddy and I could hardly SEE each other. By the time he would have gotten my attention on a problem or an OOA emergency - it could have been too late. Thats just my opinion. And like we said earlier above, I don't like an agency dictating to me, whats right fro me or not. To me, having that pony is cheap insurance to my wife and kids, in the event of a mishap. Maybe it will be one of those 'I've never needed it' deals - but boy if I do just once, I'll be glad it was there!

Amen Brother, and your wife and children!

 

[Welshman]

Scuba446

Good for you for basing your opinion on Mares on the fact of having tried a Mares reg.

Regards

welshman

 

[BIGJC]

I own a Mares Nikos and several Apeks regs.... I love the mares but do not trust it in deep water...its a good travel rec wreck but if you waana go deep or cave go with the Apeks... moneys the same and the reg has a better track record... bottom line I think you should fir your need!

Hey take a look at my aqualung post about the oxygene, I'd lke some comments!

 

[Scuba446]

chuckrt,
I have to respectfully disagree, to a point, on this one.

Both my friend and I own Mares Axis regs and octo's. We purchased one mainly out of curiosity at one point, and I like regs w/o all the 2nd stage adjustments. Less to have to fiddle around with.

Anyways, some time when we go to A-Bay I'll have to let you breathe off of it and see what you think. It is true that Mares doesn't seem to ''load up' when in a head down position, etc.

If they are cheap regs, they sure don't work too badly at all. But, I'll let you TRY mine just for the heck of it and see what you think.

Why aren't they more popular here? Good question - which I can't answer. Might be lack of Mares dealers in our area. I know there is one in Albany, NY.

 

[MaresMan1]

I know this is a dead post but, here is a review of the best Regs from Cyber Diver for 2K3. There are similar reviews on DiveOz, DiverNet and Rodales (not that anyone cares). Just my 2 cents


"When it comes to selecting scuba diving equipment, you know better than than to trust ads or so-called independent evaluations conducted by monthly scuba rags dependent on ad revenue from dive gear manufacturers. Our scuba diving equipment tests and those conducted by the US Navy are the only fully independent and unbiased dive gear reviews and scuba equipment evaluations available to the general diving public.

Top 10 Scuba Regulators

Mares V-22 Abyss 9.7
Apeks ATX-200 9.5
Zeagle Flathead 6 9.4
Mares V-16 Proton 9.2
Poseidon Odin Jetstream 9.0
Oceanic Delta DX4 8.8
Scubapro MK25UL S600 8.3
Dacor Viper CE 8.2
Sherwood Maximus 8.9
Atomic B1-T2 7.9

Only SSL dive gear tests are 100% independent and objective. We are also the world's first, and still only, testing facility that conducts "blind" evaluations according to specific testing criteria.
Blind evaluations prevent members of our test team from knowing which models they are testing.
This ensures that results of CYBER DIVER scuba diving equipment evaluations are not tainted by individual bias for specific models and manufacturers.
Scoring is based on a scale from 0 to 10 with 10 the best possible score."

Bottom line, dive with whatever makes you feel safe and comfortable in the type of diving you do, regardless of manufacturer.

Dive Smart; Dive Safe
Enjoy the ride
:mean: