Regs?

[DA Aquamaster]

Sure they do..."A cheap technical diver jumps in the water with only about $7000 worth of gear on."

 

[elan]

You can make use of Zeagle FHVI closeout on now and get Zeagle FHVI. I dove it under ice and 37F water. You can also get Scubapro MK17/G250V (not S600). There are few people I have heard here telling me S600 is not good below 40F and I have seen the prob myself with S600 under 40F. I guess if you get technical you will have to spend a fortune so the reg you are buying now will most likely be peanuts at that time.

 

[meesier42]

a regulator is NOT a good place to be cheap. Your fins, mask, and you regulator are the 3 pieces of gear that you can not live with cheap. For all of these items must fit comfortably and provide you perfect performance.

Granted there really aren't any "bad" regulators out there anymore. Properly tuned they will all breathe for you well enough that you should never be in a dangerous situation. But that doesn't mean that you will be happy with your purchase, if is in constant need of adjustment, tuning, or you can't find a good techician who is competent at servicing it and can readily get parts for your equipment. Buying cheap may look like a good deal up front, but if the local shop has to special order the parts for you its going to cost you a great deal on the back end. The cost of a regulator is not in the purchase up front, it is the ~$100 per year that you spend on it for service for the rest of your life (at least while you are using it).

without making too many generalizations, you are not going to find a cheap regulator that is also good in cold/dirty conditions. Environmental Sealing a reg gernally cost money, often on the order of $100-250 more. Also the sealing generally limits the overall performance of the reg, although most are so good the loss is neglible.

If you are wary about spending the money on a good quality regulator then you should continue saving some money. Your regulator should be the absolute best that you can afford.

After saying all that, I would recommend Zeagle, I have not seen any regulators on the market that have the performance per dollar that you will find in these.

 

[Jeff Toorish]

I just wrote a review of the AquaLung Legend Glacia and I have to say, it is a sensational regulator. I tried to freeze it during very cold water dives and it breathed perfectly.

It has three heat exchangers on it that actually help warm the air you breath, so it keeps you warmer on cold dives.

I've tried all sorts of regs, and most of them are great, but with what you are looking for, I'd buy two Glacias and be done with it.

The APEKS XTX 100 is also a great reg.

Jeff

 

[Airtech77]

Ok ok I don't want "cheap" gear. But I wouldn't mind some very very good in-expensive gear. I want the best bang for my precious and few bucks.

 

[halocline]

a regulator is NOT a good place to be cheap.....(snip).....without making too many generalizations, you are not going to find a cheap regulator that is also good in cold/dirty conditions. Environmental Sealing a reg gernally cost money, often on the order of $100-250 more. Also the sealing generally limits the overall performance of the reg, although most are so good the loss is neglible.....(snip)...Your regulator should be the absolute best that you can afford.

Once again we get the classic line, spend as much as you can, Isn't your life worth it?

I guess my life isn't worth much. I spent $84 on my go-to primary doubles reg, and about $60 on my current favorite single tank reg.

There is a tremendous amount of hype and BS in regulator sales. Any decent reg in good condition will work extremely well for recreational diving. A few decades ago, pro divers were routinely making extreme dives on regs that most OW students wouldn't take in a pool today. (Some of those old regs breathe really well, too)

BTW, environmental sealing has NO limiting effect on regulator performance.

 

[Slonda828]

Once again we get the classic line, spend as much as you can, Isn't your life worth it?

I guess my life isn't worth much. I spent $84 on my go-to primary doubles reg, and about $60 on my current favorite single tank reg.

There is a tremendous amount of hype and BS in regulator sales. Any decent reg in good condition will work extremely well for recreational diving. A few decades ago, pro divers were routinely making extreme dives on regs that most OW students wouldn't take in a pool today. (Some of those old regs breathe really well, too)

BTW, environmental sealing has NO limiting effect on regulator performance.

+1 for what Matt said. There's no reason to believe that a 600 dollar regulator works better than a 100 dollar regulator purchased off of Ebay. If it's rebuilt, and of high quality, the cost does not matter.

 

[Graeme Tolton]

+1 for what Matt said. There's no reason to believe that a 600 dollar regulator works better than a 100 dollar regulator purchased off of Ebay. If it's rebuilt, and of high quality, the cost does not matter.

Realistically, if someone is planning on starting off and eventually tech diving, a good quality used reg(s) that has been serviced is probably the best option. Just because it is new, doesn't make it better. A lot of the old, all metal regs are much more reliable than some of the newer compact plastic c#ap that is on the market today, especially in cold water.

 

[SCU5]

You should take a look at the ATX40/DS4 regs as well. They are sealed, have a solid track record, and are reasonably priced. There's a reason many tech divers have a quiver full of these puppies.
Apeks ATX 40 DS4 + ATX 40 Octopus. Regulators Regulators, Scubastore.com, buy, offers, scuba