What have i gone and done?

[BorderCollieSam]

I'm new to these forums and expecting to get flamed here and probably deserve it to be honest.

I did my PADI open water on holiday in Greece, been snorkelling for years and swam with turtles etc., whilst snorkelling and Open Water was certainly top of my ambitions and something I really wanted to do.

Got back home and ambitious to practice my skills and get back diving, I was shocked to find out it was going to cost me £45 per dive mainly due to the hire of the equipment

I've got good quality fins, mask, snorkel, and boots, but need regulator, bcd, and tank.

Although £45 per dive might not be a lot to some, it is for me, and therefore I thought if I can buy used from eBay it will reduce my dive cost down to just over a 10er each time and will serve its purpose and get me in the water, not worried about flash equipment I just want to dive!

So, Ive been tralling eBay, lost out on a really nice Cressi Aqualung 5 bcd, then looked at regs and found a Seac sub reg which I have seen that brand elsewhere on the net and knew they were a good brand, and was really happy when I won them for £67.00...

However, I realised last night after researching that the type I've won were reviewed around 2000, so that makes them 12 years old, and from info I've read the parts are probably no longer available for servicing and they were never known for lasting long as were entry level regs......

I've still paid for them regardless, as didn't want to mess the seller around, or get neg feedback, but looks like ive bought a Lemon?

They are the Seac sub sorius and has the octopus, 2nd stage, 1st stage, and depth/pressure gauge combo plus hoses.....

I suppose I may as well dump these when received?

 

[DCBC]

I can't comment on the specifics of the equipment you've purchased, other than to say that there is equipment that I use (from time-to-time) that is closer to 50 years old than 15. Parts for some gear may be difficult to find, but for the most part can be found. All to often however, equipment is not properly maintained and stored, which can cause even the more recent equipment to be garbage. Good luck with your purchase and be sure to have any equipment inspected by someone who knows what they're doing before using it. Enjoy!

 

[DevonDiver]

My first set of regs were some Apek T50. These had been dumped in a box/cupboard for several years - they belonged to a defunct dive club before I bought them, so they had lots of use and abuse.

I got them serviced...and they worked great. After several years, I 'upgraded' to some new regs and sold the Apeks. I regretted that immensely - the 'old' Apeks were so much better. They were more than 15 years old when I sold them on..

Age doesn't matter really... there's not much technological improvement since single-hose regs were first designed... and certainly most of those improvements are immaterial for general, warm-water, recreational diving. Everything that can degrade (seals/o-rings/diaghrams/hose) can, and will, be replaced in the course of a routine service.

So... unless the regulators are damaged in some way, or you cannot get service/spares for the components (unlikely)... then you don't really need to worry.

 

[BorderCollieSam]

Hi guys, thanks your your replies.

These are what I've bought.

http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=320970561519&index=22&nav=SEARCH&nid=29658814290

I've spoke to a local dive shop and they said sue to the age of them I would be best off spending out and buying new, they said I can pick up a brand new pair with warranty for £300.00!! I said that is a lot of money to me.

I spoke to another company who although they are 3 hrs drive away do arrive seac sub and have confirmed they can still get the parts.

However, I will mostly be using them in a 4 metre pool and a 10 metre lake, will they def need servicing before I use them in these environments? Or could I get away without and buy a new pair after Christmas?

If I can get away without servicing, what would and how would I need to check them.myself to make sure i don't breath in any debris that may be lieing inside the hoses or regs? Will hitting the purge valve blow it out?

 

[DevonDiver]

I've spoke to a local dive shop and they said sue to the age of them I would be best off spending out and buying new, they said I can pick up a brand new pair with warranty for £300.00!! I said that is a lot of money to me.

EbayUK is full of good deals on scuba kit. Before I left the country, I bought at least 8 pairs of regs from there; Apeks, Poseidon, Scubapro and Dacor - all at a massive saving on buying new. I never had a problem with second-hand kit, assuming the cost of a service.

If you pay via credit card or paypal, you get some decent consumer protection against faulty stuff - but generally, people just off-load their older stuff when they buy new, not much duff kit being sold.

Age is quite irrelevant when it comes to regulators. Have a browse of the 'vintage divers' forum and you'll see that some divers still get immense joy from diving 20, 30 or 40 year old kit..

Of course, we can't blame a retailer from trying to 'poo-poo' the second-hand option... it's against their interests to encourage that.

I spoke to another company who although they are 3 hrs drive away do arrive seac sub and have confirmed they can still get the parts.

That's what matters. SeacSub is far from the most popular brand in the UK - so it's always worth confirming the availability and pricing of spares/ repair/ service when considering a purchase, whether new or second-hand.

However, I will mostly be using them in a 4 metre pool and a 10 metre lake, will they def need servicing before I use them in these environments? Or could I get away without and buy a new pair after Christmas?

Did the seller state when they were last serviced? If not (recently), then a service would certainly offer peace-of-mind - many regulator components (o-rings etc) will perish over time, especially if unused.

Have a good look at the regulators when they arrive - check the o-rings/diaphragms/one-way valves that you can see... do they seem perished, cracked, 'dried out' or inflexible? Set up the kit, pop it on a cylinder, pressurize it, turn off the cylinder...and see how long it retains pressurization...does the SPG needle drop over time?

For pool use, you could probably consider dives with it as testing - just remain cautious in case of failure. Test in the pool first, several times, before venturing into open water.

Water temperature is an issue. I'm assuming that the 'lake' is in the UK... diving over the winter? If so, be aware that the SeacSub regulators probably are not 'cold water rated'... take heed not to provoke icing or free-flow (worth starting a new thread about that, if unsure of good cold-water diving protocols).

If I can get away without servicing, what would and how would I need to check them.myself to make sure i don't breath in any debris that may be lieing inside the hoses or regs? Will hitting the purge valve blow it out?

Some simple tests described above. A purge will clear the system - but to be honest, the risk of failure underwater superceeds any issues of dust etc.

Issues to be wary of:

Torn/displaced diaphragm - regulator second-stage will flood with water.
Torn/displaced exhaust valve - regulator second-stage will flood with water.
Torn mouthpiece - regulator will flood with water and/or you won't be able to grip it in your mouth easily
Burst HP hose - cylinder will leak air at a moderate rate, until empty.
Burst HP O-ring - cylinder will leak air at a rapid pace, emptying in 2-3 minutes.
Burst LP/IP hose or 1st stage O-Ring - cylinder will leak air at a rapid pace, emptying in 2-3 minutes.
Any problems pertaining to 1st stage - regulator will free-flow, depleting air in a few minutes.

 

[herman]

Odds are it's OK but without actually testing it, there is no way to really know. For pool diving I would not be too worried but any place else I would not suggest you try it. Like the rest have said, age is not really an issue but rather the condition of the internal parts, I routinely dive regs that are 40+ years old however all their internal parts(parts that are normally replaced during a service) have been replaced with modern replacement parts. My best suggestion is to have it serviced and dive it, learning a lesson in the process- when buying used gear, make sure you can get it serviced. A possible option may be to send the reg to the shop that services them via post or other package carrier. The cost would likely be less than the fuel it would take to drive it there and would take a lot less of your time. After a year or 2 of diving it, you can always put it back on ebay and get part of your money back.....and the final option is to learn to service them yourself. Not the easiest option but it can be rewarding on it's own......no way I could afford to have someone esle service the dozens of vintage regs I own.

 

[fire_diver]

If the second shop can service regs, go with them. run away from any shop that is only interested in selling you new gear.

Definately get the regs serviced, then enjoy diving them!

 

[USdiver1]

You've already made the purchase investment. Get your regulator serviced (regardless of the depth you are planning to dive, fully functional equipment is a MUST HAVE), dive it for a time and then decide if you want to switch for something newer. BTW, my everyday go-to regulator was purchased new in 1986, so that makes it 26 years young now. I am a vintage equipment diver and regularly use equipment form the 1950s and 1960s. Just last month I was using three of my favorite regulators, 1956, 1959 and 1962 manufacture. If you keep it well maintained, it will last a lifetime.

 

[Zung]

If you have access to a tank, go through couv's commandments carefully.

I'm not familiar with that brand, but from the pic, it looks like a simple unbalanced piston first, and probably classic downstream 2nd; there's not a lot that can go wrong with these guys.

I too dive gears that are 20-30 years old, and I'm still alive. I service them myself.

 

[flots am]

I've spoke to a local dive shop and they said sue to the age of them I would be best off spending out and buying new, . . .

I went to the barber shop the other day and asked if I needed a haircut and they said yes!

You can't trust a dive shop to be objective when it comes to selling you new hardware.

There are only two things that matter with your regulator:

• Are parts still available?
• Does anybody know how to service it and have the tools?

I believe this is the manufacturer. You could poke around their website and look for a service facility.

Regulators

flots