Sherwood Maximus

[Diver0001]

Yeah, all these people complain of regs breathing wet when upside down. Let's take a vote now. How much time of your dive do you spend upside down? Hmmm...

Rescuediver009. I often hvae the need to look behind me. Not for my buddy, when I have one he's usually beside me, but for groups of people who might be following me. I often do this by tilting down and looking backwards between my legs and when I do this I don't like it when my reg lets in water.....And that's what the Maximus does, to the point that it starts to gurgle and that's what I call wet..... I will admit to being picky about it but I can afford to be because there are good regs on the market that don't breathe wet in any position and in particular in this position. It's a point of design that I personally find important in judging a regulator...... Please feel free to agree or disagree depending on your experience.

R..

 

[Damselfish]

Not a large percentage of time, but I sometimes I do it to look under something, behind me, and sometimes just for the heck of it because I can. It's nice if it's dry when I do.

 

[rjchandler]

Yeah, all these people complain of regs breathing wet when upside down. Let's take a vote now. How much time of your dive do you spend upside down? Hmmm...

about 10 min every morning

 

[Jetwrench]

I like the Maximus. The underarm setup works well and is streamline. I use the second stage adjustment often when I want add a little breathing resistance. I had it checked for the recall and haven't had any problems with it before or since. One thing about Sherwood is the dry air bleed first stage. It works well in cold water areas where freeze ups and freeflows can occur. As far as wet breathing upside down, I don't usually dive that way so haven't noticed it.

Jet

 

[rescuediver009]

Ok maybe I interpretted it as your entire body being upside down. And yes I do that frequently as well. I think that this would depend on how much it leaks. If it only gurgles like my former blizzard it is probably not a big deal. When I find fault with the maximus it is not for this aspect however. AS mentioned I don't like, (when setting it up) how you cannot adjust it, or how the knob allows it to freeflow so much. I would agree however that the underarm hose routing is pretty convenient. The only other thing that I look at and am not a fan of is the price. Most people can get an Apeks for the same if not very little more than the maximus.
One thing that I think you will agree with is that no one in their right mind would take the maximus as their first pick. The people that do like it are usually not close to an Apeks dealer or they are not willing to explore new regs. Kinda stuck in their ways I guess...

 

[Jetwrench]

One thing that I think you will agree with is that no one in their right mind would take the maximus as their first pick. The people that do like it are usually not close to an Apeks dealer or they are not willing to explore new regs. Kinda stuck in their ways I guess...

Right mind? First off, I am left-handed which means I AM in my right mind. As far as choice goes, I have not used an Apex reg but am not opposed to trying them, so we can dispense with that point. My LDS doesn't sell them, so availability and service IS an issue.
Most of my diving is in VT(thats Vermont, in case you need help) and water temps are cold year-round. When you see and talk to a group including a master instructor, instructors, and DM's(all using Maximus regs) at an ice diving course and they are discussing which student/s they need to watch closely for reg problems because of the gear they have, you can't help but take note!
It's a great reg for me. It does everthing I want in a reg, and I have no problem adjusting it(as you have said) to suit the conditions. Cold or warm water makes no difference.
I have nothing against Apex and have heard many good things about them, but that "right mind" statement just set me off a bit. Choice is just that. Don't be surprised when someone like me pipes back when you post a message like that. "R.E.S.P.E.C.T...just a little bit". Dive Safe!

Jet

 

[CA Wreck Diver]

I purchased a very slightly used (5 dives) maximus about 6 months ago for a very reasonable price and I love it so far. The underarm hose routing is great. I have tried my reg in all positions and had no problems at all with it breathing wet. I have not tried an Apeks yet, but would be more than willing to. Bottom line.....for the diving I do (rec only) the Maximus works great.But when I step up to tec I am sure I will get a better reg.

 

[Greg Barlow]

While I have always liked the design feature of the constant bleed system, the performance of the first stage has always left a bit to be desired. While I was serving as the Science Editor for Rodale's Scuba Diving Magazine, we tested many, many regulators on the ANSTI breathing simulator. The Sherwood first stage could never provide enough gas flow to meet the minimum standards for a US Navy Class A classification. The overall flow rate was, if my fading memory serves me right, at about 3,500 liters per minute. This is plenty of flow for the vast majority of recreational dives, but when you crank up the machine to 2.5 liters per breath and a rate of 25 breaths per minute it just can't keep up. The intermediate pressure can't rebound quickly enough to compensate when the depth gets down past recreational levels. Just for comparison, a Mares MR12 provides about 4,000 lpm with a Mares V16 going at 4,400 lpm. I would estimate that a ScubaPro MK25 with that huge flow-through piston could easily deliver 5,000 lpm.

Diver Magazine (UK publication) has also tested the Sherwoods several times for their comparitive review and achieved basically the same results. The German mag, Underwater, reportedly found the same performance. When one considers that these are the only 3 periodicals that actively test using the simulator, then that is not a sign of one mag "picking on a brand" as some in the industry like to state.

Sherwood regs are very robust, and extremely simple to service. They are a great value, and serve recreational divers well. It may make many owners angry, but they simply are not in the same class of performance as many other regs. I am criticized by some other technical divers for using Mares regs. The bulk of the argument being that they can't deliver the gas flow that models such as the Apeks varities are capable of. This is true, as I readily acknowledge. If this is true of the Mares MR12, then what does that train of thought hold for the Sherwood?

I am anxious to see the WOB charts for the new Sherwood models that are coming to the market. My bet is that they will have better results.

Greg

 

[fdog]

If there is a more demanding ice diving environment, it will be tough to find. The Maximus has apparently racked up an impressive record in Antarctica.

The web site is here . Especially impressive is the link that shows failure rates.

All the best, James

 

[Jetwrench]

While I have always liked the design feature of the constant bleed system, the performance of the first stage has always left a bit to be desired. While I was serving as the Science Editor for Rodale's Scuba Diving Magazine, we tested many, many regulators on the ANSTI breathing simulator. The Sherwood first stage could never provide enough gas flow to meet the minimum standards for a US Navy Class A classification. The overall flow rate was, if my fading memory serves me right, at about 3,500 liters per minute. This is plenty of flow for the vast majority of recreational dives, but when you crank up the machine to 2.5 liters per breath and a rate of 25 breaths per minute it just can't keep up. The intermediate pressure can't rebound quickly enough to compensate when the depth gets down past recreational levels. Just for comparison, a Mares MR12 provides about 4,000 lpm with a Mares V16 going at 4,400 lpm. I would estimate that a ScubaPro MK25 with that huge flow-through piston could easily deliver 5,000 lpm.

Diver Magazine (UK publication) has also tested the Sherwoods several times for their comparitive review and achieved basically the same results. The German mag, Underwater, reportedly found the same performance. When one considers that these are the only 3 periodicals that actively test using the simulator, then that is not a sign of one mag "picking on a brand" as some in the industry like to state.

Sherwood regs are very robust, and extremely simple to service. They are a great value, and serve recreational divers well. It may make many owners angry, but they simply are not in the same class of performance as many other regs. I am criticized by some other technical divers for using Mares regs. The bulk of the argument being that they can't deliver the gas flow that models such as the Apeks varities are capable of. This is true, as I readily acknowledge. If this is true of the Mares MR12, then what does that train of thought hold for the Sherwood?

I am anxious to see the WOB charts for the new Sherwood models that are coming to the market. My bet is that they will have better results.

Greg

Greg,
Thanks for the info! Much of what you knew about my reg is new to me. Yet another lesson learned. I don't doubt the test findings and will consider them in the future if I should need a reg with a higher performance for the type of diving I plan on doing. Til then, I think I fit into that "vast majority" catagory of divers who have Sherwood regs and like them reguardless of how they rank. I'll be diving mine for some time to come, as it fills my needs in versatility, dependability, and performance.

My previous post was mainly to address an opinion that went(IMO) over the line. Most people don't like to hear they are not in their right mind because of the gear they have selected. I respect others choices, so I guess I had to rant a bit when mine was not. Kind of the "if it works for you" theory. And to say it is a bad choice for a first reg lost me all together. The positive aspects of this reg you pointed out does not support that statement.

I hope I have made my point without ruffling anyones feathers, and I have to go cause the ice is receding and the drysuit hose has to go back on before my noon dive.

Jet