Regulators Suitable for Technical/Trimix Diving?

[rjack321]

Ok. So what determines the performance of a regulator?

What is the difference between breathing with an Apeks XTX50 at 100 meters and breathing with Apeks AT20 at 100 meters? Their valves are different? Will AT20 go free flow, break etc or something? What makes the difference if frozening is not an issue ?

By the time you are diving 100m you will have so many regulators it won't matter. Except which ones you bought first for sentimental reasons.

Breathing one at 100' will be like breathing at 5'
Breathing the other at 100' will be luck sucking a thick milkshake through a thin straw.

This is an extreme example, but you get the point

Just about anything breathes great with trimix.

 

[Troutmaster]

+1 for the Hogs. I dive them and I love them. I use them on backgas and stage/deco bottles. They are not expensive, they breath great and service kits are cheap and available.

All my tech regs are Hogs w/ coldwater D1 first stages. I use some of my old SP regs as backups and stage regs because I already had them.

Apex makes GREAT regs, I just did not want to spend that much money. If you look close you will see alot of similar design features between the hogs and the apex.

 

[DevonDiver]

Apeks tells that XTX50 and XTX200 are tested at 200 meters. But I would tell this differently i I were Apeks. I would tell, those regs are tested under 21 ATA. This makes difference I think...

Not really sure what you are saying???

 

[CyprusSeb]

At the price SP charges for the MK2R/295 combo you can purchase a top of the line reg (HOG D1 first and second) for less money. That's what I love about HOG, you can have you're pork and eat it to.

Just a quick search I find:
Scubapro MK2 Plus/R295 for $214.95
D1 Regulator Set for $249.95

I picked up my MK2/R295 for about $100 used, having just been serviced and O2 cleaned by my LDS.

 

[pnw_diver]

So he tells me I can buy the regulators he uses (Apeks XTX50 / XTX20) if I will always be diving above 10 C degrees.

Is he suggesting that in cold water, that you need to replace the XTX20 with XTX50? (true) Or is he suggesting that neither is not a cold water reg? (false)

The XTX-50/ATX-50/TX-50 are cold water rated regs (as per Apeks specifications). I dive the XTX-50 and ATX-50 below 10C all the time and have dove as cold as 2C with no issues whatsoever. I've also dove the TX-50 in the same conditions.

OTOH, the TX-20/ATX-20/XTX-20 are not recommended for cold water (again, as per Apeks specifications).

 

[skankpile]

Isn't hog a Chinese clone? Hog gets great reviews, but if it were not due to the price you would probably not see them mentioned so much. I also notice that when people speak of hogs and Zeagle they usually talk about rebuilding/servicing the regs themselves. So you start cheap, and cut corners... just not my bag I guess. I want a reg that I can drop off to a tech if I get any problems and have it tuned, repaired, whatever... without and buts or caveats.

I know when my Apeks tech rebuilds the regs he does an ultrasonic cleaning, inspects everything, replaces all rubber and worn items, checks intermediate pressure, and puts them on a test machine to test the 1st and 2nd. I can't imagine the average person having the equipment to do all this.

 

[Jimmer]

Isn't hog a Chinese clone? Hog gets great reviews, but if it were not due to the price you would probably not see them mentioned so much. I also notice that when people speak of hogs and Zeagle they usually talk about rebuilding/servicing the regs themselves. So you start cheap, and cut corners... just not my bag I guess. I want a reg that I can drop off to a tech if I get any problems and have it tuned, repaired, whatever... without and buts or caveats.

I know when my Apeks tech rebuilds the regs he does an ultrasonic cleaning, inspects everything, replaces all rubber and worn items, checks intermediate pressure, and puts them on a test machine to test the 1st and 2nd. I can't imagine the average person having the equipment to do all this.

You're wildly overcomplicating a reg servicing, and being a bit insulting by implying that servicing your own regs is cutting corners. They just simply aren't that hard to service, and you don't need a magnehelic to adjust the second stage. The rest is very basic tools, like an IP gauge that I think every diver should own, and an ultrasonic you can get on ebay. Not a big deal to service your own.

Also, servicing your own regs isn't always about saving money, it can be about making sure that it is done to your satisfaction, and not wanting to leave your life support in someone else's hands.

You do have a good point about saving money tho. If I had to pay shop prices to service my dozen or so regs, I wouldn't be able to afford to dive!

Jim

 

[LiteHedded]

By the time you are diving 100m you will have so many regulators it won't matter. Except which ones you bought first for sentimental reasons.



Just about anything breathes great with trimix.

bingo
I put my easiest breathers on my nitrox deco bottles

 

[ucfdiver]

Isn't hog a Chinese clone? Hog gets great reviews, but if it were not due to the price you would probably not see them mentioned so much. I also notice that when people speak of hogs and Zeagle they usually talk about rebuilding/servicing the regs themselves. So you start cheap, and cut corners... just not my bag I guess. I want a reg that I can drop off to a tech if I get any problems and have it tuned, repaired, whatever... without and buts or caveats.

Dive Rite, Light Monkey, Halcyon, Scuba Toys, Sludge on CDF, etc can service hog regs for you if you really want to pay to have it done.

 

[mike_s]

Isn't hog a Chinese clone? Hog gets great reviews, but if it were not due to the price you would probably not see them mentioned so much. I also notice that when people speak of hogs and Zeagle they usually talk about rebuilding/servicing the regs themselves. So you start cheap, and cut corners... just not my bag I guess. I want a reg that I can drop off to a tech if I get any problems and have it tuned, repaired, whatever... without and buts or caveats.

I know when my Apeks tech rebuilds the regs he does an ultrasonic cleaning, inspects everything, replaces all rubber and worn items, checks intermediate pressure, and puts them on a test machine to test the 1st and 2nd. I can't imagine the average person having the equipment to do all this.

I know several people who rebuild their own regs that have ultrasonic cleaners, etc to do their regs correctly. And they know more about regulators than some people working at local dive shops.


Maybe they are buying regs like Hog's because they are easy to service and Hog willingly sells them rebuild kits, where most dealers for brands like Aqualung/Apeks/ScubaPro (plus others) won't sell rebuild kits directly to their customers.

Hog will even certify you to service your own reg. Seems to me they are going the extra steps for the customers who want to do stuff like this.