Adobo:
Someone was kind enough to give me some old equipment that they were no longer using.
Can anyone help me identify what these pieces are (and approximate dates of manufacture)? I am thinking of getting the items serviced but am not sure if they will be worth the trouble.
Picture 1 is (obviously) a G200. This was an unbalanced second stage produced in the late 80's to early 90's. The cool thing is that these can be upgraded to balanced G200B status using a balanced poppet - the same one used by the current G250HP, S550 and S600. As is it is an R390/S295 class second stage and when upgraded it is a S550 class second stage. With or without the upgrade they are fully supported by SP.
Picture 2 is an Air 1. This was loosly based on the earlier Pilot but used a much simpler center balanced poppet rather than a servo valve. It did not use an exhaust valve but rather had a diaphragm held in place by a metal lip on one side that allowed the exhaust to slip out the other side. The diaphragm faced up and consequently, they could be rather wet breathers. SP moved the diaphragm to the bottom side of the case but retained the same poppet assembly on the newer D300. Annual service kits, per se, are not available, but they use the D300/D350/D400 poppet which is still available. Diaphragms however are no longer made so if you have one with a hole in it, you are out of luck. So..if you have one serviced, you are best off just having the poppet changed and not remove the diaphragm, mess with the lever, etc. as the metal lip holding the diaphragm in place has a habit of poking holes in diaphragms when they are removed and installed. The Air 1 was made in the later 70's through mid 80's.
Picture 3 is an early to mid 80's MK 10. The early ones did not have the groove for a SPEC boot like the later ones. It is the AK47 of first stages offering excellent performance, easy maintenence and bullet proof reliability. If there is ever a nuclear war, the surviving mutant cockroaches will no doubt be diving with the equally tough and durable Mk 10's. The Mk 10 is also still fully supported by Scubapro.
Picture 4 is a D300. This was the second stage that replaced the Air 1 in the early 80's although they remained side by side in production for a few years. The D300 had the solid Blue dive/pre-dive switch while the D350 and D400 used a black switch with a decal. The early D350's shared the D300's "early" case, while later D350's used the same case used by the later D400. One difference betwene the D300 and Air 1 is that on the D300, the "dive" position of the switch is down unlike the less logical arrangement on the Air 1 where the dive position is "up". The D300, D350 and D400 all offer exceptional performance and are arguably the best second stages ever made (much drier breathing than the Air 1) and they are still fully supported by Scubapro. A D300 can be upgraded to D400 status, but it requiresa new case and related parts and there is really not any reason to do so as the D300 breathes virtually the same as the D400.
Picture 5 is a late production "080" High Performance" second stage. These were produced from the late 60's through the mid to late 80's. Yours looks to be one of the last produced. I always liked the red diaphragm on the later models and these also came in an octo model with matching red exhaust Tee.
Picture 6 is a 80's era Mk 3. It has the smaller holes in the ambient chamber to accomodate environmental silicone to insulate the reg for cold water use (SPEC kit) as well as the heavy 3000 psi yoke and squared cap found on the 80's era Mk 3's. This first stage was produced from the late 60's through the mid to late 80's along side the High Performance, with which it was usually paired. They were replaced by the very similar MK 200 (which was usually paired with the G200 that replaced the High Performance). The Mk 200 was in turn replaced by the current Mk 2 Plus, which is still very similar to the Mk 3 but uses a larger diameter piston. The Mk 3 is still fully supported by SP and I use them on my deco bottles.
A Mk 3 High Performance or Mk 3 G200 would work well down to 130 ft. The High Performance, when properly tuned is a very nice breathing second stage although with an unbalanced first stage like the Mk 3, inhalation effort will increase toward the end of a dive. This can be a handy reminder that you are getting low on air. I started diving with a Mk 3 High Performance (and still own it) and used it for my forst few years of divign without an SPG (starving college kid).
A Mk 10 D300 would serve you well under any conditions and is going to give you performance on par with just about anything you could currently buy new. In fact, the D300 will breathe better than just about any second stage currently available. The dive industry took a giant leap backward when Scubapro discontinued the D400 in 2003.
Other than the Air 1, all are readily serviceable and are well worth the trouble. I'd pair the D300 with the Mk 10, upgrade the G200 to a G200B and then use it as the octo. The Mk 3 High Performance would work great on a pony bottle. (Be advised your SP dealer may disagree, as many dealers would prefer to sell you new regulators rather than service your 20 year old equipment, even though new regulators would offer you no real world performance advantage at all.) It's realtively inexpensive ($5.00-$6.00) to upgrade both the MK 3 and Mk 10 to the newer knob style yoke screw used by SP. I prefer the knob as it is less likely to snag line and is easier to screw and unscrew. The late production Mk 10's used the newer knob and many Mk 10's and Mk 3's have been upgraded in this manner so you see them in both configurations.
On the other hand, I am tempted to say that they are all worthless, hazardous to your health and then PM you my mailing address so I can take them off your hands and "dispose" of them properly.
