My little vintage Scubapro Reg Restoration Project

[ZoCrowes255]

A guy recently came in who had given up on diving more than a decade ago and wanted to get rid of his stuff. When he told us (the store I work for) it was over 20 years old I assumed it would just be more junk we could throw in our little museum. Boy was I in for a pleasent suprise. Turns out he had a little 70s model Scubapro MKV/R109 Blanaced Second stage in EXCELLENT condition. So today I went about restoring it for use while I serviced my S600.

The MKV/R109 is in EXCELLENT condition. There was a slight big of corrosion around the piston in the first stage other than that it was in excellent condition. Usually when you service regualtors that have been allowed to sit without use this long and without a service the knife edge on the metal orifices in the second stage tend to get knicks. This one was in PERFECT condition. No need to replace with the newer style plastic one.

She got a damn good cleaning and she looks brand new. Unfortunately I did not have my camera at work today so I did not do any before and after pictures but you can just see here how nice she is afterwards.

The only real change I made was to take the pressure gauge out of the console, put it on a shorter hose and put a (BIG) boltsnap on it.

If anyone is curious I will let you know how it does after I dive it. It's pulling 1.2 Js on the Magna Helix right now. My S600 is pulling .7 J's.

My reg count right:
MK25/S600 on 40 inch hose with swivel and a Mini Pressure Gauge

MK10/G250 (normally equipped with) an Oceanic Datamax Pro Plus. Right now it's being used by a DM candidate when he helps with class

The MKV/R109

Sherwood Oasis w/ NavCon and Scubapro R380 backup reg


Pictures:

The 2 complete setups

 

[ZoCrowes255]

The first stages

Notice the HP adaptor on the MKV. You can tell it's a pre 1981 model because it uses the original smaller sized HP port.

 

[ZoCrowes255]

Pressure Gauges

The gauge on the MKV is actually an 87 model not pre-81 like the reg itself.

 

[ZoCrowes255]

The individual second stages

 

[ZoCrowes255]

And the guts:

For the 109 I plan on replacing the original diapraghm with a modern one found on the G250HP. Because it's thiner there will be less breathing resistance. Also, doesn't clear just look cooler?

 

[ZoCrowes255]

The S600 just looks cooler inside. Maybe it's the graphite air barrell that makes it so cool looking.

If you are not a certified Scubapro repair technician please do not try this at home (CYA)

 

[ElectricZombie]

Very nice find. I really like the old ScubaPro regs...they just look so cool. The Mk5 and 109 are classics.

I had something similiar happen to me when I worked at the LDS. I ended up getting a bunch of gear including a mint Mk10 and a good condition original G250 for next to nothing. Everything looked perfect when i opened them up except for a small pin hole in the 2nd stage diaphram. Great regs.

 

[ZoCrowes255]

ElectricZombie once bubbled...
Very nice find. I really like the old ScubaPro regs...they just look so cool. The Mk5 and 109 are classics.

I had something similiar happen to me when I worked at the LDS. I ended up getting a bunch of gear including a mint Mk10 and a good condition original G250 for next to nothing. Everything looked perfect when i opened them up except for a small pin hole in the 2nd stage diaphram. Great regs.

It's amazing some of the things are people are willing to just give away! I usually tell them to sell it on e-bay but this guy did not want to bother. Once man's trash in another man's treasure.

The MK5/109 is actually my father's regulator of choice. He was using a MK20/G500 for a while but he said it felt too much like a toy to be a real regulator lol

Yeah the hubcap regulator look is pretty damn cool

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I picked up a very lightly used Mk V Adjustable a couple weeks ago. I managed to find the parts to upgrade it to 4 LP ports rather than 2 from an out of business dive shop owner (SP no longer makes those particular parts). The upgrade kit to balance the second stage is no longer available as kit but the neccesary parts are still available and I have the parts on order to upgrade it. I also managed to scrounge up an adpater so I can use a modern SPG. It has the early low pressure yoke and if anyone has one, I'd be interested in buying a shiny chrome 3000 psi yoke.

My diving started in the early 80's with a Mk III and shortly after a Mk 10. I have never used a MK V although I remember the die hards who were concerned about the new and unproven features on the MK 10 and chose to stay with their Mk V's.

I am still very much a confirmed Mk 10 Balanced Adjustable fan and use one on both tanks. Upgraded with the latest generation of poppet assemblies and diaphragms they breathe exceptionally well without the cotton mouth common to the newer all composite regs.

 

[redacted]

Good looking setup, but what do you think about the yoke capacity? I have a couple Mk5s. One has the modern 3000 psi yoke with 9/16 yoke nut. The other has an older yoke that is stamped at the base "3000" but has a 1/2 inch yoke nut which SP documentations says is not suitable for 3000 psi service. From what I can see in the pictures, it looks like ZoCrowes255's is of that same vintage. Also, my SP LDS is having a hard time finding a new exhaust valve for a 109. Anyone have a source that I could tap. I picked up a rig on e-bay that was in pretty bad shape. The 109 is more brass than chrome on the inside. But I got it breathing well except it was not getting a good seal on the exhaust valve. A little polishing of the metal surface has it working OK but the valve is a bit frayed on the edges & really needs to be renewed. The exhaust tee mating surface with the case is pretty ugly also but I think I can fix that with a little silicone caulking. I'm so happy with these older regs that I've relegated Mk20/G500 to the ready reserves and use metals as my primary and boat spare rigs.