Preferred deco bottle reg?

[uncfnp]

@Caveeagle that one is still smaller than the MK2 though which helps.

@stuartv i don't really prefer the swivel turrets for deco regs because I have never had an issue with 40" hoses. I.e. they're not enough of a benefit for me to sell my fixed turrets and buy swivels. If I were buying new, and the price were about the same though, then turrets all the way *which is why I have 4x Scubapro MK10's for deco/stage regs and 2x MK20's for my primary first stages right now in sidemount*.

If you already have XT's that you were thinking of relegating or selling, then just use those. If not, that $100 MK10/G200 is going to be about as good as it really gets and they are super cheap to maintain

Clearly it’s worked for you and I am probably being too obsessive but is the HP seat for the MK 10 considered O2 compatible?

 

[victorzamora]

That was kinda my thought about the swivel turret. No bend in the hose when stowed and also none when deployed..

So I have all swivel-turret diaphragm first-stage regs (HogD3/Zeniths or DiveRite XT1s) for all of my regs and my wife's regs...except for my O2 bottle. It's the Dive Rite O2 Deco reg. I haven't found a comfortable setup for it yet and it's been driving me bananas. The closest thing I've come to being happy is to actually swivel the whole thing around when I switch to it.

So now, when I get on O2, I leave the hose looped in front of me and stupid. Then I shut the valve down, breathe the pressure down while rotating the first stage to point the hose straight up, and then put the hose behind my neck. I don't like it, and I don't think that the "inline" regs are really any lower profile than even big swivel turrets like the Hog D3.....but it's not annoying enough to buy a new reg.

 

[tbone1004]

It says 80% officially but it is 100% as long as you keep it dedicated to 100% O2.

keeping a reg dedicated to O2 has no bearing on what percentage it can be used with, just only used with OCA. The O2 ratings are often done at various pressures. I.e. 100% to 2400psi, 80% to 3000psi, etc.

@uncfnp no seats are ever really 100% O2 compatible, but the 10's have been used with high pressure O2 for a long time with no issues that I'm aware of. To my knowledge, Scubapro only uses 1 seat material across the entire range and their standard parts kits are all EPDM o-rings which are O2 compatible as well, and many prefer them to viton for the piston o-rings since their abrasion resistance is a lot higher.
The 10+ uses the same part number seat as the 25 IIRC so it's not really any different than the mk25. The regular 10 uses a different seat and piston, but the seat is the same material so it's fine as well.

 

[halocline]

I would use a MK2 1st stage and a 109 2nd stage. There's very little rubber and almost no plastic. The HP seat is tiny, there are no dynamic o-rings subject to HP gas, very simple flow path for the gas, in many ways an ideal O2 regulator. The 109 is dirt simple and extremely rugged, a nice feature for a reg that spends much of it's life strapped to a stage.

 

[tbone1004]

I would use a MK2 1st stage and a 109 2nd stage. There's very little rubber and almost no plastic. The HP seat is tiny, there are no dynamic o-rings subject to HP gas, very simple flow path for the gas, in many ways an ideal O2 regulator. The 109 is dirt simple and extremely rugged, a nice feature for a reg that spends much of it's life strapped to a stage.

the second stage is pretty irrelevant, though the 109 does breathe really well which is why it's on mine.

The first stage is certainly about as ideal as it gets from a gas path, just not quite as comfortable as some of the others so it's a trade off. They're also really expensive both new and to convert to DIN.

edit:
din mk2 for $124. Not entirely sure it's any better than the ones from WMD that are half the price, but no way I'd pay the $213 they want for the MK2 EVO new. That's nuts
Scubapro Mark 2 Plus

 

[uncfnp]

the second stage is pretty irrelevant, though the 109 does breathe really well which is why it's on mine.

The first stage is certainly about as ideal as it gets from a gas path, just not quite as comfortable as some of the others so it's a trade off. They're also really expensive both new and to convert to DIN.

edit:
din mk2 for $124. Not entirely sure it's any better than the ones from WMD that are half the price, but no way I'd pay the $213 they want for the MK2 EVO new. That's nuts
Scubapro Mark 2 Plus

Thanks @tbone1004. I admit to being a little over cautious (paranoid) here. The cost of 02 service for my MK 25 was in large part to the special kit the shop required in order to do the service. I have often wondered if that little geen seat was any different from the standard.

The MK 2 seat is teflon and O2 compatible.

 

[tbone1004]

@DA Aquamaster may know what the actual seat materials are. They probably use a different one for the actual O2 kit, but I know a lot of people use the standard seats in them for O2 service with no issues

 

[BoltSnap]

keeping a reg dedicated to O2 has no bearing on what percentage it can be used with, just only used with OCA. The O2 ratings are often done at various pressures. I.e. 100% to 2400psi, 80% to 3000psi, etc.

I am repeating what I was told by Atomic rep. but you are right, it is about clean OCA. AFAIK, >70% O2 at 200Bar and <70% at 240 Bar.

 

[stuartv]

Thank you all for all the suggestions and info. I have plenty to chew on.

I think, for now, I am going to go with the no-cost (sort of) option, which is to repurpose my DR XT regs to be deco bottle regs. I have never had ANY complaints about how they breathe (though that could certainly be due to my very limited experience with different models of regs). OTOH, I have been slightly unhappy with my Hollis HO2 1st stage because of the hose routing compromise it requires (due to no swivel turret). I suspect I will be very happy with the XTs as deco regs. If not, well, I can sell them after I figure that out and why.

 

[stuartv]

Not sure what you mean by "stick straight out".

...but I do really like how some of my Poseidon regs 1st stages are more compact, and how the 2nd stages are ambidextrous, and stow very well when not in use. The Xstream is just an amazing allaround reg.

I have a cyklon 300 that I use on both a 50% bottle and a safety/buddy bottle. That's about as compact of a 1stage as you could hope for.

View media item 203552

Meaning exactly the 1st stage config in your picture. I.e. like a Mk2 (sticking straight out of the valve) versus a Mk25, which has the reg body at 90 degrees to the valve.

The setup in your picture looks really nice. But, I think I would like it even better if the 1st stage had a swivel turret to avoid the hose ever having to make a 90 degree bend.