Regulator for tec

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Thats fine.


Certainly.
And pulling up a Deep6 first and second shows $390. Which is significant.
On LeasurePro, a Mk25 G260 comes up at $810, w/ S600 $845.
Which is part of the cold facts. Perhaps the pricing is different elsewhere.
Whether that is relevant depends on their local service intentions.


I believe that SP pricing in the US is much higher than other parts of the world for several of their products. I don't know why, but it is what it is. I think that SP (this is my guess) realizes that certain parts of the world are so poor and for them to establish their strong presence there, they need to be more flexible in their pricing. This is just a guess on my part. I know that vendors in other industries do this for greater market share and dominance in certain markets.
 
You know, paying a $300 or $500 for a regulator distributed by a tiny company in the US and then having to buy another one from another company may not be a big deal for somebody living in a "rich" more affluent US but for somebody in third world country where a $300 or $500 are several months of salary, it is a huge thing if their investment doesn't pan out and they can't get support or service.

This is very easily overlooked, I fear. Years ago, I followed the tides of high praise and bought Salvo regs. Several things motivated my decision,including the fact that they'd sell service kits directly to the end-user, when very few others would. Most of all, however, was the fact that they came well reviewed and trusted by the Florida cave crowd. I don't cave dive, I had no expectations of getting into cave diving any time in the near future (still don't, >10 years later), but I figured cave divers are probably among the most critical of their equipment. If it's good for them, it's certainly good enough for me to do 70ft in open water.

Then Salvo went under, I couldn't get service, and I wound up buying other regs.

I definitely won't suggest HOG or D6 aren't quality kit, frankly I don't know either way. I won't suggest they're not stable companies who are likely to be around for another 50+ years. Personally though, I already learned the hard way: making a good product, having a respected presence in the market, and having a loyal consumer base aren't necessarily enough to keep you around. For the rest of my diving career, I'll choose any equipment that requires a steady supply of service components (namely regulators) with heavy consideration toward the perceived longevity of the manufacturer. I certainly hope the "little guys" are successful for the long term, but I personally can't afford to gamble a rather sizeable investment. Fool me once..
 
Then Salvo went under, I couldn't get service, and I wound up buying other regs.
That is a good point. Did you get periodic service from someone? How much did that run? How often? When they went under, how much had you spend on the regs, and how much on service over time?

(I have no connection to any reg manufacturer)

For 1st+2nd+2nd, a shop near me (AnyWater) charges 99+parts,
DiveRightInScuba charges $105+parts.

At DGX, some part kit costs are:
DGX: 29+19+19 = $66 (same for OMS)
Hollis: 20+15+15 = $50
DiveRite: (19-63)+(11-26)+(11-26) = 41-115
So, say $50 in parts, assuming service center markup = DGX markup.

Over 6 years, serviced every 2 years, that is $300 + 150 = $450
Over 10 years, $750.
 
I'm sure loosenit2 will answer as well. The Deep6 are common designs. They sell the repair kits, they provide the repair manual. They teach the class (generally in the US). The repair is very similar to Apeks regs. I've rebuilt my SP109, 156, and Deep6 a few times. They are all very similar. Second stages are rather simple. First stages a bit more complex, but just simple mechanics if you have the right tools such as torque wrench. Service Manual

Vintage Double hose has videos of SP109 and 156 repair. The Deep6 is really just the same.

As others have mentioned, if someone there services Apeks, they would have familiarity to service Deep6 (or Apeks).

YEs apeks is here. But i dont think they will service any other reg. They use to be dealer of scubapro and have a fallout with them. They wont even service scubapro anymore. They just point sp to the next dealer. Even the ones they sold
 
I believe that SP pricing in the US is much higher than other parts of the world for several of their products. I don't know why, but it is what it is. I think that SP (this is my guess) realizes that certain parts of the world are so poor and for them to establish their strong presence there, they need to be more flexible in their pricing. This is just a guess on my part. I know that vendors in other industries do this for greater market share and dominance in certain markets.

Yes sp is more expensive in the u.s. such that i find it cheaper to buy here in the Philippines. More like economics. Distribution here is cheaper but offset by higher cost of ahipping. Cost of living here is cheaper. 400$ goes a long way. A month long of food and living. You dont need to earn much. Business models here is more on return customer. Theyll hit us with servicing fee. But if im not mistaken mk17 ,s600 costed me 80$ approx to service. Until i befriended a non sp tech who does regs. He does it very cheaply less than 40$ replacing only whats worn out. I do alternate from both.
 
I asked about servicing since one day id like to learn to do my own stuff. I mean its a life line equipment . I should learn how to. There are a few tech divers here who service their own regs . They learned by experienced or taught by qualified technicians but are not officially certified technicians
 
Id be interested where to buy the tool for attachingthe stage 2 to the hose. Without buying from the lds.

???
Using original Scubapro hoses, that tool is YOUR FINGERS.
The hose is designed to be hand-screwed, and the hose sleeve protector is designed in such a way of protecting the finned flange, for ensuring that it does not unscrew by contact with your body or the equipment.
This allows to swap the second stage on boat with your fingers, if needed. And it happened to me to do that a number of times...
 
I asked about servicing since one day id like to learn to do my own stuff. I mean its a life line equipment . I should learn how to. There are a few tech divers here who service their own regs . They learned by experienced or taught by qualified technicians but are not officially certified technicians
Yes, a tech diver should always service his regs. Consider this as a part of training required for becoming a true tech diver.
Regarding availability of original parts and proper tools, in my opinion no other brands equates SP. I still find original service kits for my four old Mark V (that is a MK5+109) after 40+ years they were built!
And during the years I was allowed to update them adopting all the innovations occurred, such as a balanced poppet for second stage, blue silicon exhaust valve, the new hand-screwed hoses, the stainless steel retainer for the turret on the 1st stage, the new conical seats for the MK10, etc...
I think that with no other brand I could be still using them after 45 years.
A word about the "grey market" for service kits. I do not know exactly what you do mean, but here in Italy there are several physical shops who are authorized Scubapro dealers, so they buy the kit directly from the factory, and then they sell them on the Internet. When I did purchase them, I got also the regular "scontrino fiscale", which is the document proofing the payment for the Italian tax Agency. All legal, all official, nothing "grey" or "black"...
As these online offers are not limited to Italy, you can buy these service kits online almost anywhere in the world.
Here for example a couple of them, selling the MK25 service kit:
https://www.acquasub.it/en/catalogu...58/maintenance-kit-scubapro-mk25-af-sa-t.html
Scubapro Kit Revisione 1° Stadio MK25/AF/SA/T/MK20/MK25 EVO - TEK Evolution
The second is a bargain, just 18€.
If you happen to come to these shops, you can also walk in and buy the kit at the desk. I see nothing "grey" in this...
 
The miniature, make-belief,
You don't seem to like Deep 6 and seem surprised when people see you as being "hostile". You posted that these are simply facts, but the verbiage you use has no facts in them. Why call them "make belief" when they actually exist? There is a lot of movement in our industry. Companies, even 'big name' companies have been sold or have gone under.

This is typical of the "if I don't sell, teach or dive it, then it must be junk" mentality. You've made some big claims here, but provide no facts to back them up. How many regulators have you seen fail at 180 feet? Oh, people fail at that depth way before the gear will. You glibly use the fear of death, but really: how many people have died because the reg has failed? You make it sound so common, when I can't attribute a single death to that, much less to any of these "miniature, make belief" companies you keep railing against.

It's my opinion that your fear and the "facts" you refer to are the real make believe in this thread.

I've dove many a reg deep and in caves. There are simply no "bad" regs on the market anymore. I would and have trusted my life to many varieties of regs and the biggest issue for me is not how well they work, but how well they work for me. On my back mount, I simply love the way my Atomic reg hoses lay out. It's perfect and no other reg will route my hoses quite the same way. Sidemounting? Oh, I use Deep6, Dive Rite and/or Hog first stages because of the way the hoses get routed. They are such a joy to use! For my second stages, I really prefer Dive Rite because I like their solution for left and right handed regs. On my SF2 rebreather, I love Apeks regs for the way the hoses are routed... again.

So when you try to figure out the best, look no further than the regs already in your kit. See how the hoses lay. Do they feel right to you. Can you do better? Keep looking at other reg sets that others dive. Once you start looking, you'll begin to get a feel for what's right.

As for the rebuild it yourself controversy. Professionals built the Titanic while amateurs built the Ark. No one is more motivated to get things right in a reg than the person who will be using it. The designs are incredibly simple and once you've learned how to build one, you're close to being able to build most of them. Atomics and Poseidens can be a bit tricky, so there's YouTube to help close that gap. I see getting parts as a real plus. Imagine if I couldn't buy a master cylinder for my 2005 Sprinter? Oh, but it's safety related! Big whoop. The average person, using average care and skills can repair just about anything. Can't understand how to do it? Well, don't disparage those of us who can and will. I won't trust my vehicle or my regs to others. Why? Because I don't want my regs blowing up on me at 200ft or a couple thousand feet back in a cave. See? Unreasoned fear works both ways. :D

For what it's worth, I have had a reg utterly fail at 60ft. It was my Aqualung Micra First Stage. However, it wasn't the reg at fault, but the fidiot professional who rebuilt it. Yes, he had a diploma from Aqualung, but he still put in a defective diaphragm. and it pulled away from the flange allowing me to try to breathe water at depth. He didn't replace it because he thought my bill was already too high. It was, but his decision, made without asking me, put me at risk. The technician failed me, not the reg. I was aghast paying $200 for the rebuild, but that it failed me on top of that was the real insult. When the diaphragm came in, it was $12 or so. The technician almost didn't sell it to me because he felt that only HE was qualified to install it. There was no way I was going to let him touch my regs again. I've been rebuilding all my regs since.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/
http://cavediveflorida.com/Rum_House.htm

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