Question about used gear...

[Zung]

No, Regulator Savvy is the "other" book; the Air Speed one is called Scuba Regulator Maintenance And Repair. Both are must have.

And $50 is too much: make a counter offer at 25-30.

 

[Peter_C]

I would highly recommend getting a nice IP gauge and check it before every day of diving. That can prevent issues under water, like free flowing second stage regs. Takes only a few seconds to do. I think my small gauge came from Pirahna. Middle Pressure Gauge DELUXE Style Rubber Protector, Piranha Dive Manufacturing Don't get the super small gauge, as they do not offer enough graduations.

The rest of the gauges needed are going to be a bucket of water and your lungs. I have a super duper reg testing stand...the bucket of water works just fine. I do prefer the IP gauge on the reg testing stand though. Of course all of our regs are tunable so they can be adjusted to tune out a little bit of free flow at depth, and then make a tiny adjustment to correct it once back on land.

The Air Speed Press book has all kinds of great info. You can also do a PDF search for you regs rebuild manual, but the Air Speed Press book has much more tips in tricks, vs here is the part number. I do not know much about the Regulator Savy Book.

Scubapro regs suck for their policy of not selling rebuild kits. Therefore they are expensive to purchase when you can find them. I have two MK25's and two S600's, so I know. My gal has HOG's which were cheap and so are the parts.

Now I fully understand the desire to play with stuff, taking it apart and putting it back together, but how many sets of regs do you need? I do not have a backup reg, nor do I feel I need a set. I could always borrow or rent if needed (And then fix the rental that always seems to free flow LOL). So if you want to tear down and rebuild a set of junkers, then that is a reason to get a smokin' deal on a set.

 

[herman]

Don't do it! The hoses are old, everything else is just junk compared to what you can get today brand new for a reasonable price with plenty of service parts and places to service it available.

Think HOG regs, and others. Scubatoys and Dive Right In Scuba have great prices and service and can help you acquire gear. There is nothing wrong with buying used, as most of my gear is. You just need to know what you are getting.

Peter, I have to respectfully disagree with you. The AMF/Voit regs of the MR-12 and similar type are solid regs that will perform as well as most current regs if tuned by a good tech. The internals of the MR-12 series first stages are the same as the USD/AL Conshelf/Titan/SEA and darn near all of the other USD/AL regs over the last 45 or so years so service parts are not going away for a long long time. The second stages use currently available parts as well so parts are not an issue for them as well- I just rebuilt 2 of them. The second stages when properly tuned may not quite keep up with a HOG or Scubapro on a breathing machine but the HOG and SP will be long dead before the AMF gives up. Even with new hoses and a complete (DIY) rebuild they will not cost anywhere near what a new reg will cost

 

[Ed Palma]

I'll agree with the other posters: If you can get the price a wee bit lower, then get it.
(the ad did say that they are "completely negotiable within reason).

 

[Peter_C]

Peter, I have to respectfully disagree with you.

I know you are highly knowledgeable on these types of regs.

Since you say the cost is about similar to other regs, is it about $25 a stage for the parts?

You also mention they breathe well, but might not test as well on the test stand. The only thing that really matters is can you over breathe them? I have tried with my SP regs and they performed beyond my expectation. I huffed and puffed, and all my regs did was supply the air I demanded.

 

[herman]

About $25 full retail for the first stage kit, less if you use your own orings and just buy a HP seat ($15 ish retail). To be clear, you are not likely going to find an "official" kit because the regs have not been made in a good many years and AMF/Voit brand is long gone but like a said above, they are (and were) USD parts anyway- long story but the short version is USD and Voit (pre AMF) worked together for many years, sharing design and manuf. Assuming the diaphragm and exhaust valves are OK in the second stage all you really need is a penny DIY LP seat. If the diaphragms and exhaust valves are the later silicone ones then it's unlikely they need replacing, otherwise $12ish for the main diaphragm and $2ish for the exhaust, neither of which you will likely ever have to replace again.

And to touch on the Dacors, not the best breathing regs but still the old seconds are not bad and certainly better than 90% of the low to mid range octos of today and the old metal ones will for certainly take a lot more abuse than any of the plastic stuff sold today. Like the AMFs, original parts might be hard to find but other regs still use ones that are perfect fits and all of them use the DIY LP seats. The first stages are more problematic but some of them also used USD guts, just like the AMF/Voits, I went through one a few weeks ago for a friend. I was unsure if we could replace the internals but when I open it up, there were USD/AL Conshelf/Titan internals....no problem to replace.

Granted, this is DIY 201 stuff but still not difficult once you understand the insides of the regs.....now the Healthways I am working on now with the Titan HP orifice, customized Zeagle HP seat and custom machined actuating pin is a different matter.

What you have to realize is the machine numbers don't mean a lot. Kinda like saying a 100K sports car is way better than a 25K one because flat out the 100K one will do 5 mph more than the cheap one. The speedometer can tell the difference but the driver can't just as the machine can tell the difference in the WOB of a reg but a diver can't unless it's huge. The over breathing thing IMO is mostly pure BS. Any reg from the last 30+ years can supply more gas than any one diver can use, assuming it is properly setup.

 

[fjpatrum]

Thank you, everyone. If I can get out there tonight or tomorrow, I will be picking these up for about $35-40 for everything. I figure even if I'm a little overpriced I'm satisfied with what I'm getting so everyone will be happy.

I really appreciate all the information and advice.

 

[Fishpie]

The MR12 II (with the bypass tube) is basically the same as the Mares Abyss/Voltrex 2nd stage.
One of the all time classics.

 

[Texfrazer]

Please post pics when you get them so we'll know what great regs you got for steal!

Seriously, I'd like to know which pacers you ended up with.

 

[fjpatrum]

I picked these up and promptly drove to Florida so I haven't had a chance to take pics. One of the regs definitely had some minor corrosion, but I suspect it's not critical. I'll try and take some pictures later to get everyone's opinion.