The Mares & Dacor HUB

[divegeek]

I don't own one of these things, but always wondered about repairing something on it. If you need regulator service, do you need to take in the whole unit? You might want to find out what a typical repair charge is for servicing this unit-it looks fairly complex.

One other thought-do you have a choice of regs for this unit, or are you stuck w/ what it comes with?

Someone at my LDS was talking about servicing it last week. I think he said the service cost with all the manifolds, was over $200. YEOW!

Although the air powered cam band is real cool!

 

[jplacson]

Ok, my take on the Mares HUB... I tried one out in the shop, and played around with it for quite a while... I can't vouch for the reg performance, but I can say this about the unit as a whole... it's a really great toy.

I mean this in the nicest way. For those of you who think you're getting a great product, forget it though... it's just a neat toy to have... kinda like that rear-view mirror that clips to your mask.

And I honestly don't think it's for beginners. It's fairly difficult to access the emergency/back-up systems... and should the primary systems fail, a beginner would surely panic trying to reach for the emergency inflator, or the octopus that's stuffed in pockets.

I applaude Mares for trying to come up with new ideas, but they should do a lot more testing before dumping these things in divers hands.

Another concern of mine was the numerous (and I really mean numerous) dumpvalves that are all connected via cables to the Airtrim system (this applies to the Airtrim in general, not just the HUB) ... any failure on the cable could cause a power deflate... equivalent to ripping your BC apart...not just a small leak. There are just way too many holes in the thing for comfort.

Now, mind you... all these systems work fine when the unit is new, the problem comes after you've had the unit for a while... you cannot afford to wait for something to go wrong before you bring it in for servicing. You must have the unit serviced long before any signs of failure are present, since a failure with the HUB would be a lot worse than on traditional systems due to the complexity of the unit.

I honestly don't think the HUB was designed to be a "keeper" system. This is business, and Mares must come up with a renewable line-up. The HUB is their 'flavor of the month' for now, until the next HUB incarnation comes up.

If you have money to spare, and this won't be your only system, it's a fun toy to have.

 

[Mortlock]

Hi there,

I'm considering purchasing a HUB. The manufactores give big lists on the advantage on a HUB, but I can't seem to find out about the disadvantages.

Could anyone fill me in on the disadvantages of a HUB compared to a normal BCD?

Thanks for your help,

Morty

*EDIT* Some additional information.

Thanks sndt1319.

I have an AOW cert and I've only done about 40 dives. I mainly plan to dive in warm to tropical waters within recreational limits (well maybe a bit more occasionaly ;-) ). After a recent trip to the Philippines where I used some very dodgy equipment I've decided to get my own gear.

Previously I'd never considered getting a HUB, but I saw a new Dacor HUB with Viper Metal regs for only $550. I figurged this is a damn good price considering the same regs with octopus seem to cost around $400 on there own.

 

[archman]

Oh brother are you on the wrong message board!!

 

[Mortlock]

Why's that?

 

[sndt1319]

Well you see....there are somewhat opinionated people on this board......some see such a piece of equipment as "dangerous". They are usually viewing all equipment from a technical diving viewpoint. I was convinced that a backplate and wing BC was the way to go, but I still love my split fins and the DIR gods be damned. However don't be discouraged, there are some really smart and experience people on this board with an open mind that you can learn from. Also to save someone else the trouble you should let people know what kind of diving you will be doing. How cold is the water where you dive? How deep do you plan on going? This will help you get better advice.

 

[Boogie711]

http://www.scubaboard.com/t1214.html

 

[japan-diver]

Hi there,

I'm considering purchasing a HUB. The manufactores give big lists on the advantage on a HUB, but I can't seem to find out about the disadvantages.

Could anyone fill me in on the disadvantages of a HUB compared to a normal BCD?

Thanks for your help,

Morty

*EDIT* Some additional information.

Thanks sndt1319.

I have an AOW cert and I've only done about 40 dives. I mainly plan to dive in warm to tropical waters within recreational limits (well maybe a bit more occasionaly ;-) ). After a recent trip to the Philippines where I used some very dodgy equipment I've decided to get my own gear.

Previously I'd never considered getting a HUB, but I saw a new Dacor HUB with Viper Metal regs for only $550. I figurged this is a damn good price considering the same regs with octopus seem to cost around $400 on there own.

Of course you don't expect the manufacture to list problems with their gear!!!

The HUB is bulky for traveling and if anything breaks while traveling repair parts will be few and far between. Because the rig is one piece if anything breaks all your gear is shot so you are renting everything or not diving. This is a terrible set-up for a traveling diver because of this alone, finding someone that can fix this gear in the Phillipines or on some small island in the Carribean is probably not going to happen. Most regs can be fixed with generic parts to save a vacation and if one part of my gear breaks on vacation I only have to rent a BC or one one vacation I had a gauge break in my luggage and didn't have a spare so I rented just a gauge but still used my own regs.

The HUB because of the hose routing adds numerous failure points in the unit that a standard reg and BC set-up doesn't have- xtra o-rings and stuff.

The octopus and console are not routed in the best fashion on the HUB and zipping the octo in a pocket definately a no no in my book.

If you ever decide to get more serious about your diving the HUB can't be used and you have to start over- not upgradeable.

If the dealer is letting a HUB go at $500 thats below cost and that means its either been there for a long time or no one else wants it or both ....... thats says something about the unit.


These are just a few disadvantages off the top of my head.

 

[armyscuba]

With everything being integrated it looks very convienient, but as stated tough to pack or even inspect from a safety standpoint. Being that cheap is another problem. They run MO Money and You'll still need and SPG (Do they still make those?) or Computer. I agree, forget about Your uprgade possibilities. They look like the Perfect Rental outfit to Me.

 

[Mortlock]

Thanks very much guys. I've now definately decided to get rid of any ideas of buying a hub. Special thanks for that link Boogie, more than enough info in there to dissuade me ten times over!! I also now see what you meant Archman! I actually did try a search but amazingly I got no results for "HUB"!?

Anyway,

Thanks again everyone. I'll now concentrate on getting a more traditional set up. Any suggestions? I'm looking for some quality gear that won't break the bank.

Morty