The single most common question as participants prepare for the Seminar, is "what tools to buy?"
You can almost fix regulators with a bolt, a screwdriver and a spoon (okay, I exaggerate), but the point is that you can have a budget of from $100 to $1600 depending upon how easy you want to make your job.
Common tools are those required by ALL service techs. There aren't many:
-thin brass picks
-a steel double-hook pick
-blunt brass spade
-wooden dowels
-a bolt with clean fine threads for both HP and LP ports, or a fancy vise handle and a vise
-lube
But this is where it gets difficult. Some regs are a piece of cake to service. Some (Mares comes to mind) are a veritable PITA. Disassembling them may require specialty tools, and entire businesses revolve around supplying technicians with the toys that make their jobs easier and faster.
Scuba Tools
Scuba Clinic Tools
Scuba Instruments
Salt Blue (Poseidon only)
https://www.scubaservicetools.com/
https://www.divesupport.de/
https://dive-king-pro.de (Affiliation with Padi / SSI / whatever must be provided)
To open up your first stage, do you need a "face spanner" with pins that engage the cap? Do you need a "hook spanner" with a bump that goes in a hole? Do you need a big adjustable wrench? And when it's time to button it back up, do you need an expensive specialty tool that not only has the special pins, but also a broach for a torque wrench? We cover workarounds in class, but maybe we need to have that discussion here, so folks don't spend more money than they really need on what is only an occasional undertaking.
This thread could be a forum where that information might congregate. I will start by appending two files that have gone out to previous seminar participants. It can be overwhelming to look at the potential expense. But remember the screwdriver and spoon. If you are really pressed, open a conversation and I'll bet we can figure out a bargain approach until you decide that reg service is so much fun you want to spend your entire allowance on tools.
More important, as you discover specific regs with specific requirements, post about them here! Soon, I'll try to start with a workaround for Poseidon's tools #3605 and 3606, which together run for $190!!!
But @Bigbella contributed this great link
https://www.silentexplorers.com/online-store/Service-Technician-Parts-Tools-c46740403
for much less $$.
They can also be built at home with just a little ingenuity.
Jump on in with suggestions! Previous participants...tell us what you might have discovered.
You can almost fix regulators with a bolt, a screwdriver and a spoon (okay, I exaggerate), but the point is that you can have a budget of from $100 to $1600 depending upon how easy you want to make your job.
Common tools are those required by ALL service techs. There aren't many:
-thin brass picks
-a steel double-hook pick
-blunt brass spade
-wooden dowels
-a bolt with clean fine threads for both HP and LP ports, or a fancy vise handle and a vise
-lube
But this is where it gets difficult. Some regs are a piece of cake to service. Some (Mares comes to mind) are a veritable PITA. Disassembling them may require specialty tools, and entire businesses revolve around supplying technicians with the toys that make their jobs easier and faster.
Scuba Tools
Scuba Clinic Tools
Scuba Instruments
Salt Blue (Poseidon only)
https://www.scubaservicetools.com/
https://www.divesupport.de/
https://dive-king-pro.de (Affiliation with Padi / SSI / whatever must be provided)
To open up your first stage, do you need a "face spanner" with pins that engage the cap? Do you need a "hook spanner" with a bump that goes in a hole? Do you need a big adjustable wrench? And when it's time to button it back up, do you need an expensive specialty tool that not only has the special pins, but also a broach for a torque wrench? We cover workarounds in class, but maybe we need to have that discussion here, so folks don't spend more money than they really need on what is only an occasional undertaking.
This thread could be a forum where that information might congregate. I will start by appending two files that have gone out to previous seminar participants. It can be overwhelming to look at the potential expense. But remember the screwdriver and spoon. If you are really pressed, open a conversation and I'll bet we can figure out a bargain approach until you decide that reg service is so much fun you want to spend your entire allowance on tools.
More important, as you discover specific regs with specific requirements, post about them here! Soon, I'll try to start with a workaround for Poseidon's tools #3605 and 3606, which together run for $190!!!
But @Bigbella contributed this great link
https://www.silentexplorers.com/online-store/Service-Technician-Parts-Tools-c46740403
for much less $$.
They can also be built at home with just a little ingenuity.
Jump on in with suggestions! Previous participants...tell us what you might have discovered.
