Pony regulator

[upton75]

Well i hope this topic hasn't been beat to death. I tried doing a search but was unable to locate anything about a good pony regulator. I am looking to setup a pony system and decided on a 19cf tank. The only matter that i need to decided is what regulator to use.

Does anybody have any advice on what regulator to use for a pony bottle. I have a Sherwood blizzard for my normal setup.

 

[upton75]

Disregard found a good post thanks anyways.

 

[Diver0001]

What I use on my stage bottle is an Aqualung Calypso (unbalanced piston) DIN version. it's incredibly compact (ie not in the way) and it's a proven bulletproof design.

Probably everyone else will now come and recommend what they use, just as I did, which isn't going to help you make a decision.

Probably the best way to make a decision about this is to list your requirements and see which regs fit that.

That's what I did when I chose the Calypso. my requirements were

1) Above all else reliability ...
2) serviceability
3) compact design
4) my own personal brand preference (I've owned 6 regs and 5 of them were aqualung... one Sherwood).

I would personally reject the Sherwood because of the bleed thing on the first stage. You want to open the bottle to pressurize the system and then turn it back off again so it can't leak to empty. A Sherwood, despite having what is arguably the most reliable 1st stage on the market, has that bleed thingy that doesn't lend itself to being used for this application.

R..

 

[down4fun]

As Diver0001 said you will get lots of personal opinions. My only advice is this...don't skimp. If you are bailing out to your pony then the crap has already begun to hit the fan and the last thing you need is a reg that not functioning 100% no matter what depth or position you are in.

 

[upton75]

The only thing i really desire is that it is reliable. I am getting it with the hopes i never have to use it, but i want to have it just in case it is needed. I am not worried about brand, just looking for a reg that is decent priced and will work for its purpose.

 

[NorthWoodsDiver]

my advice is always to use the same regulator as your primary.

 

[newman_diver]

my advice is always to use the same regulator as your primary.

Second that. Maintenance will be easier and you'll be able to swap out your primary in case of a failure.

All my 1st stages are Apeks DS4 DIN and my second stages are TX/XTX50's. Same rebuild kits for all.