Regulator Service Technician Training - Unrestricted

[RayfromTX]

Thanks so much to Rob. I think he did an amazing job of all of it and it is surprising how well he was able to work with the various personalities, skill levels, reg choices and tool limitations of the attendees. I wouldn't change a thing in the macro as it would mostly serve to cater to one end of the spectrum if you did.

I have rebuilt a dozen deep6 regs and have been working on stuff for 50 years so I saw it differently than others may have. I also didn't have all my tools as I'm in an apartment in Mexico. I have my regs and kits and emergency rebuild kits but I didn't want to take apart working regs without my torque wrenches and other special tools for the rebuild. What I gained was a thorough understanding of every type of regulator that I've ever seen other than double hose which, even that I'll be able to figure out now. The understanding of how regs work so I'm not just replacing parts by the steps was quite valuable and will serve me forever. The countless tips that Rob taught will make my rebuilds go smoother and more safely. I repeatedly found myself applauding with excitement.

I think any nits to pick in the micro will be things Rob will adjust in future classes. I'm sure he learned some things. It is obviously a labor of love and perhaps an inner need to fight against the mediocrity he has seen in the scuba regulator world. He gets excited about things that usually only people like me care about. The class offered a huge amount to everyone and your benefit will depend on your ability to absorb it but whatever you learn will be hugely beneficial and if you have a steep learning curve it might be good to take the course, work on some regs and then take it again. There is a huge amount to cover and dialing it down to a lower common denominator would be a disservice to some. I would recommend that attendees not view the class as a way to learn how to rebuild your reg but instead as a way to understand all regs, service tips and tricks and things to avoid when working on gear. You will need the service manual when you do a rebuild any way and the class should prepare you to fully understand the manual in spite of its weaknesses. Building skills and knowledge is where this course shines and why it takes so many hours.

Bravo Rob
Huge respect for what you do.
After two really long days, teaching for 11+ hours each day, to see you on scubaboard later contributing in a thread helpfully after communicating with a manufacturer, I became convinced that you never tire of helping others.

Thanks again and again

 

[Open Ocean Diver]

Thanks Rob, really enjoyed participating in your two day training course. You are a true scuba regulator guru. Your trade tips and tricks, solutions to problems, tools and equipment, theory and capabilities on so many brands is truly amazing.

I would give the course 5 stars for technology/communication and content and 4.5 stars for execution. Overall, I learned quite a bit and am excited for the next learning opportunity.

For future classes, it would be beneficial to:

1. Divide the course into two levels: Beginners and Intermediate/Advanced. This will help with the overall learning and retentions.
2. Set aside 15-20 minutes after each major section for Q&A rather than questions during the training/presentation time.

Again -- overall outstanding job!

 

[DavidFL]

Bottom Line Up Front: most definitely worth the time and money, and I would recommend it without any changes. My sense, however, is that @rsingler will improve it. Full disclosure, I actually will be doing it again, because I attended the full sessions but didn't attempt the actual regulator hands-on work because of a last minute medical problem the day before the class and some follow-on constraints and better living through chemistry.

The biggest challenge I had with the course was the two very long days, and they would have been longer if I had been cleaning and doing part of the actual hands-on work on multiple regulators outside of the on-line Zoom hours. But I probably wouldn't have been able to do several medium-long days, so even though breaking the course up into smaller chunks seems like a good idea it might actually reduce the number of people able to fully participate.

The zoom medium of the class worked better than I expected. @rsingler had multiple cameras, including a microscope camera and he did a great job of manipulating multiple cameras (and I presume multiple monitors). There were a few of the usual glitches, but compared to other long online videoconferences it was relatively glitch free.

The main point, from my view, is that the very long two days were captivating due to a combination of @rsingler's preparation, experience, amazing collection of regs and parts and tools, and fusion of history, theory, and practice. I missed several breaks because right after the break was announced someone asked a question (sometimes me), Rob responded comprehensively almost always pulling a reg or part out of somewhere that was relevant to the question, and I was drawn back in for the break time. Definitely a continuous Fear of Missing Out.

Even though I wasn't working my own regs, seeing and hearing the things that came up for others and watching troubleshooting-in-practice was a big part of the learning experience. Many many problems and issues were raised, analyzed, and fixed within the zoom call context. One classmate had a second stage cover on a one year old regulator that she couldn't remove, and no combination of reading the manual, joint "try this" non-destructive suggestions, or anything else worked.

I took the course mostly out of a long time curiosity about maintaining my own regs, previous 'false starts' of acquiring books and some tools, lots of unanswered questions about tools and lubes and parts that can be reused and those that can't, and finally a growing collection of modern and vintage regulators and occasional frustration with the results of 'professional' servicing. If you have any/all of those same needs, then this is for you.

 

[davehicks]

I joined the class this weekend and got a lot of great information out of it. I'm in awe of @rsingler who put an incredible amount of preparation and enthusiasm into the project! Just the information he shared up front and his goodie bag alone were worth the price of the class. I had already serviced a handful of personal 1st & 2nd stages in the last couple of years, but mostly self taught from manuals and SB threads.

As with any new project like this there are probably a few tweaks that would improve the future sessions.

• Preparation for the class inspired / required that I get a few more basic tools that I didn't already have, such as a bench mounted vise. This was incredibly helpful and almost seems required to me now.
• 
  
• Participants should prepare by fully disassembling their chosen 1st & 2nd stages a few days prior to class, following the service manual. This would ensure that they have the right tools on hand and give them time to get feedback on roadblocks. In addition it builds familiarity with manual and schematics so you are not studying that for the first time during the live instruction.
• 
  
• Take pictures of every step of your disassembly with your phone. This is very helpful the first time through as many of the manuals use less than helpful illustrations rather than photos.

• Be prepared to multitask. I used a Laptop and a Tablet at the same time. One just for Zoom, the other for my service manuals. Plus some preprinted schematics for all my regs getting worked on.

A little preparation will give you some extra bandwidth to absorb the broad and general information that is being shared without getting overly task focused on your own project.

Many thanks to @rsingler for putting this together and dedicating the time to sharing and educating others!

 

[formernuke]

It's good to hear the reviews here.

 

[rsingler]

Thank you all for this input! I'm waiting for some of the less congratulatory comments from a couple of very frustrated attendees. Please chime in!
Having taught this stuff in person for awhile now, the shift from pre-loosened, cleaned regs, all of a uniform type, to a distance-learning format with as many brands as there were attendees, and an inability to reach out and touch a problem reg really made this the Wild Wild West! My deepest thanks to all of these Round #1 participants for their patience as we worked out the kinks.
I'd especially like to thank @couv for sitting through all 20+ hours, interjecting with comments from his vast store of experience, and manning a breakout room for one-on-one assistance with individual problems.

One clear need is for a preparatory 1-2 hr session Friday night. As pointed out above, for those who have never cracked a reg, there is an obvious reluctance by some to start learning on their primary gear, and several folks bought cheap eBay "gems" to start with. While learning tricks to open up a recalcitrant green crusty regulator without damaging it is certainly a valuable skill, doing so uses up time that only frustrates others watching, simply because it can take so long. Next Round, we'll do that Friday night, so you can clean your parts in advance. I'd recommend against starting in advance just from a book or video, because there are a number of unwritten tips that can protect you from fatal disassembly errors.

We will eventually offer a "four shorter bites" course over two weekends for those who can't devote a whole day, but that won't happen often.

For my European and Pacific lurkers (there are currently four) Round #3 will be a 4-6 hour increment course tentatively starting at 0500-1100 UTC Saturday morning (my Friday night) and running over two days and two weekends. Stand by for more info and PM me if those times are deal breakers.

For the two-day session (now augmented by a Fri nite quickie), I'll certainly be adjusting based upon the comments here and by email. For the record, one thing that won't happen is to make this a "one reg style" shorter course. My passion is helping folks understand the theory, because that's what enables you to understand what's causing a problem, rather than just resorting to "a service" (read: a parts change) and hoping things turn out okay. That means knowing all the ways to smoothly stage 3000 psi down to ambient for breathing, and how each tiny part does what it does.

And who knows? Maybe one day you'll be like me, and (after 20 years in pistons) start diving diaphragm regs. Knowing what's happening on the dark side may help you make the jump earlier than I did. Now I like and respect both designs, after many years of ignorant defense of one or the other.

If you want to learn how to disassemble/ reassemble one single model of regulator, there are YouTube videos for that. I'm not dissing it; but it's just not my passion. And as the attendees learned, I was pretty harsh in criticizing the repair technique demonstrated by more than one videographer.

Currently after a couple of cancellations, there are three slots open for Round #2. I'll be sending out (now better organized) communications on preparing for that shortly. There's a fair amount of prep work/tool acquisition required, though I have lots of ways to help you keep the tool cost down to $150 or less if you're on a tight budget. PM me if you're interested. Dates are tentatively planned for late July or late August.

Not-so-fancy diplomas for newly minted journeyman Scuba Repair Technicians will be in the mail shortly! Congratulations to all!

Volunteers are now being accepted to help me clean up my shop. OMG! There are regulator pieces EVERYWHERE!

 

[DavidFL]

Volunteers now being accepted to help me clean up my shop. OMG! There are regulator pieces EVERYWHERE!

Wish I wasn't halfway across the country. Helping and watching how you manage that cleanup would be entertaining as well as educational. Figuring out how to organize, store, index/remember, and access the tools and the parts seems to me to be a big deal, especially for a DIYer who is using non-dedicated space.

 

[formernuke]

Thank you all for this input! I'm waiting for some of the less congratulatory comments from a couple of very frustrated attendees. Please chime in!
Having taught this stuff in person for awhile now, the shift from pre-loosened, cleaned regs, all of a uniform type, to a distance-learning format with as many brands as there were attendees, and an inability to reach out and touch a problem reg really made this the Wild Wild West! My deepest thanks to all of these Round #1 participants for their patience as we worked out the kinks.
I'd especially like to thank @couv for sitting through all 20+ hours, interjecting with comments from his vast store of experience, and manning a breakout room for one-on-one assistance with individual problems.

One clear need is for a preparatory 1-2 hr session Friday night. As pointed out above, for those who have never cracked a reg, there is an obvious reluctance by some to start learning on their primary gear, and several folks bought cheap eBay "gems" to start with. While learning tricks to open up a recalcitrant green crusty regulator without damaging it is certainly a valuable skill, doing so uses up time that only frustrates others watching, simply because it can take so long. Next Round, we'll do that Friday night, so you can clean your parts in advance. I'd recommend against disassembly just from a book or video, because there are a number of unwritten tips that can protect you from fatal errors.

We will eventually offer a "four shorter bites" course over two weekends for those who can't devote a whole day, but that won't happen often.

For my European and Pacific lurkers (there are currently four) Round #3 will be a 4-6 hour increment course tentatively starting at 0500-1100 UTC Saturday morning (my Friday night) and running over two days and two weekends. Stand by for more info and PM me if those times are deal breakers.

For the two-day session (now augmented by a Fri nite quickie), I'll certainly be adjusting based upon the comments here and by email. For the record, one thing that won't happen is to make this a "one reg style" shorter course. My passion is helping folks understand the theory, because that's what enables you to understand what's causing a problem, rather than just resorting to "a service" (read: a parts change) and hoping things turn out okay. That means knowing all the ways to smoothly stage 3000 psi down to ambient for breathing, and how each tiny part does what it does.

And who knows? Maybe one day you'll be like me, and (after 20 years in pistons) start diving diaphragm regs. Knowing what's happening on the dark side may help you make the jump earlier than I did. Now I like and respect both designs, after many years of ignorant defense of one or the other.

If you want to learn how to disassemble/ reassemble one single model of regulator, there are YouTube videos for that. I'm not dissing it; but it's just not my passion. And as the attendees learned, I was pretty harsh toward the repair technique demonstrated by more than one videographer.

Currently after a couple of cancellations, there are three slots open for Round #2. I'll be sending out (now better organized) communications on preparing for that shortly. There's a fair amount of prep work/tool acquisition required, though I have lots of ways to help you keep the tool cost down to $150 or less if you're on a tight budget. PM me if you're interested. Dates are tentatively planned for late July or late August.

Not-so-fancy diplomas for newly minted journeyman Scuba Repair Technicians will be in the mail shortly! Congratulations to all!

Volunteers now being accepted to help me clean up my shop. OMG! There are regulator pieces EVERYWHERE!

I'm pretty sure I'm on the opposite side of the country.

 

[lowwall]

I live in an apartment. My dining table is covered with a pair of laptops and trays of tools, service parts, notes and regs. Next to it is a tank tied to a chair (I have kids and a dog) which is covered with more regs and hoses.

Speaking of trays, regs, and hoses...

It's really nice to have lined trays to organize the tools and prevent little parts from rolling away or getting scratched. I used sheet pans (aka cookie sheets) that I already owned for my trays and cut up an old yoga mat for tray liners. Net cost of $0 and I don't have to figure where to store the trays once I get everything cleaned up

And you'll need at least one extra working second stage on a hose to serve as a pressure release valve whenever you are testing regs. I'd have an extra working first on standby so you can tune your second if something prevents you from reassembling one of your class first stages in time.

 

[lowwall]

I'd especially like to thank @couv for sitting through all 20+ hours, interjecting with comments from his vast store of experience, and manning a breakout room for one-on-one assistance with individual problems.

Indeed. I forgot to mention couv sat in and offered some very helpful hints and had ready answers to some of the more obscure questions. Thanks.

One clear need is for a preparatory 1-2 hr session Friday night. As pointed out above, for those who have never cracked a reg, there is an obvious reluctance by some to start learning on their primary gear, and several folks bought cheap eBay "gems" to start with. While learning tricks to open up a recalcitrant green crusty regulator without damaging it is certainly a valuable skill, doing so uses up time that only frustrates others watching, simply because it can take so long. Next Round, we'll do that Friday night, so you can clean your parts in advance. I'd recommend against starting in advance just from a book or video, because there are a number of unwritten tips that can protect you from fatal disassembly errors.

This is a great idea and would have preempted most of the larger issues we faced which kind of threw the schedule out the window. It might even allow Rob to get the occasional break.

For the two-day session (now augmented by a Fri nite quickie), I'll certainly be adjusting based upon the comments here and by email. For the record, one thing that won't happen is to make this a "one reg style" shorter course. My passion is helping folks understand the theory, because that's what enables you to understand what's causing a problem, rather than just resorting to "a service" (read: a parts change) and hoping things turn out okay. That means knowing all the ways to smoothly stage 3000 psi down to ambient for breathing, and how each tiny part does what it does.

I was suggesting doing one reg style as a straight lecture/demo rather than leaving it out entirely. This would probably cut that part down from 2-3 hours per day to 1 hour per day. But the Friday session should help quite a bit with this. If you don't adopt this suggestion, I can't recommend enough that attendees without prior knowledge of reg internals or theory buy and read at least the first half of Reg Savvy before the course. A lot of the theory in the course gets covered while you are working on the regs. This is useful because it's a lot easier to visualize what is going on when you have the parts in your hand and on the screen. But if you have to stop and concentrate enough to learn the theory at that point you are going to fall behind. If you are already at least familiar with it, you can continue to work while absorbing whatever you missed or didn't understand in the reading.

And who knows? Maybe one day you'll be like me, and (after 20 years in pistons) start diving diaphragm regs. Knowing what's happening on the dark side may help you make the jump earlier than I did. Now I like and respect both designs, after many years of ignorant defense of one or the other.

I've only dived diaphragms and thought about skipping the piston reg, but Rob (Robert? Dr. Singler?) convinced me to get a piston. I will readily admit that I was impressed by how simple and robust (not to mention pretty) my $45 eBay ScubaPro Mk 5 turned out to be. I thought I would pass it on right after the course, but now I want to dive it at least once.