Project Argonaut, totally new, vintage style DH regulator

[trapezus]

I do not discuss the Kraken in quality ,I believe that Rob had tried deep knowledge I believe him.
I donn't accept using a new regulator in vintage diving.. .. It looks like a new jacket to go to the prom dress.. there are 500,000 licensed diver in my country.. There are many photographers but only 3 new Aqua Lung Mistral sold. Now they are trying to sell in the area.And no one wants to have a Kraken.
The promotion of a regulator is not easy, if it is old system it would more difficult.I use my deep dive Apeks XTX 200 is the best of all.
World deep record prefers.
But for vintage diving Europen allways prefer vintage regulators.Do you know what I mean.I hope so widespread and sold.

 

[Tug]

I do not discuss the Kraken in quality ,I believe that Rob had tried deep knowledge I believe him.
I donn't accept using a new regulator in vintage diving.. ..

I don't think anyone has claimed that the Kraken is a vintage regulator, because frankly, it isn't. It is a modern double hose regulator. Just because something has double hoses, doesn't make it vintage.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Nemrod]

I do not respond to him.

One thing that does not get talked about is the travel weight of the Argonaut regulator, especially if outfitted with Miflex/braided type hoses.

N

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I do not discuss the Kraken in quality ,I believe that Rob had tried deep knowledge I believe him.
I donn't accept using a new regulator in vintage diving.. .. It looks like a new jacket to go to the prom dress.. there are 500,000 licensed diver in my country.. There are many photographers but only 3 new Aqua Lung Mistral sold. Now they are trying to sell in the area.And no one wants to have a Kraken.
The promotion of a regulator is not easy, if it is old system it would more difficult.I use my deep dive Apeks XTX 200 is the best of all.
World deep record prefers.
But for vintage diving Europen allways prefer vintage regulators.Do you know what I mean.I hope so widespread and sold.

Trapezus,

Please see the new thread I have started to discuss this question. This isn't an appropriate area for this discussion.

John

 

[trapezus]

John Ratliff ,

Why don't you tell to others ? Moreover this is not discussion ,this comment is made for new and old . I don't pick a fight with anyone.
You have complained to me sounds like someone. Reading what I've written and I'm sending messages to new topics .
Different ideas being is not a crime. Such thoughts adds richness to the site. I don't have to think like everyone else .

 

[John C. Ratliff]

John Ratliff ,

Why don't you tell to others ? Moreover this is not discussion ,this comment is made for new and old . I don't pick a fight with anyone.
You have complained to me sounds like someone. Reading what I've written and I'm sending messages to new topics .
Different ideas being is not a crime. Such thoughts adds richness to the site. I don't have to think like everyone else .

Trapezus,

Agreed, but I wanted to avoid a confrontation here. Let's discuss this on the other thread. This thread is about the development of the Argonaut Kraken regulator. By the way, I won't be buying a Kraken regulator myself. My Hydro Twin, Trieste II and Mossback Mk 3 are doing well.

SeaRat

 

[SurfLung]

Trapezus,

... I won't be buying a Kraken regulator myself...

SeaRat

I don't know why you felt the need to say that, John. I think you would like diving an Argonaut Kraken at least as much as your other regulators... Sure you have enough regs and don't NEED another, but since when has NEED had anything to do with adding to our double hose regulator collections?

 

[Nemrod]

So just a few moments ago, while straightening up my secret underground SCUBA shop, I weighed my Argonaut Kraken. It is fitted with Miflex hoses, B&G spg, 36 inch octopus hose with second stage with stainless bolt snap and a BC inflator hose. All up weight, ready to dive was exactly five pounds and three ounces. Not super light but only one pound heavier than my Titan LX also fully rigged with all Miflex hoses including a 60 inch long hose primary and which is a fairly light rig itself, four pounds and three ounces. So traveling with my Argonaut vs my Titan LX incurs a modest one pound penalty. I can live with that.

N

 

[Luis H]

During the design phase, one of the considerations was to keep the weight down.

With today’s restrictions in airline luggage weight, I felt that keeping the weight down was important.

If you look at the main body, I removed any material that was not necessary, both inside and outside.


---------- Post added July 20th, 2015 at 10:32 PM ----------


The modern design tools allowed me to create a 3D (three dimensional) model that allow us to look and study every view, inside and out, and allowed me to do solid model calculations that were unheard of a few decades ago. I could get accurate component weights and precise geometry properties that were impossible to obtain in the past.

With today’s modern modeling tools, I am able to design, view, and analyze the air passages, the mechanical links, and the structures in ways that Emile Gagnan and other engineers of that time could not even dream about. I have a lot of respect for what they accomplish with the tools they had.

There is no question that I have studied every vintage design that I have had the opportunity look at. There is nothing to be gained by re-inventing the wheel. My preference is to build on the previous experience, both the good designs and the mistakes have lessons to share.


---------- Post added July 21st, 2015 at 07:36 AM ----------



I received another PM from someone wanting to buy an Argonaut. I do not manufacture or sell the Argonaut. I only design it. For me, this is a hobby, I do not have any Argonauts for sale.
Thanks

 

[Fishbird]

I have been diving the VDH Argonaut for about a year now. It is absolutely fantastic! My interest in double hose regulators began because I wanted to keep bubbles out of my viewfinder. The ever-shrinking exhaust T on single hose second stages are a scourge on scuba diving. I can't stand bubbles blasting past my ears and blocking my view of the camera!! I went through a rebreather phase and loved the lack of bubbles, but I realized that a double hose regulator can accomplish most of what I need without all the hassle of a rebreather. I tried a US Divers Mistral (the new one from ~2004) for a few years. It was okay but didn't breathe well, had huge, buoyant hoses and was heavy to pack. Then I met Luis and tried a VDH-modifed Aquamaster with a Phoenix nozzle. I loved it, bought two of them, and dove them for several years. I did a video about it here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsWb9UaRQKw I switched to the Argonaut when it became available and I think it's simply the finest regulator for underwater photography that has ever been made. It's lightweight for travel, it breathes great--it's a modern regulator with the old school look. And man does it get comments on a dive boat.This past weekend I got to dive a prototype for the forthcoming Argonaut DSV and it's super cool. Looking forward to the production version.I really think underwater photographers should try the Argonaut, it's a vast improvement over single-hose regs. Sure, it's not for tech diving or whatever, but man, it's great for keeping those bubbles where they belong!Jonathan