what to look for in BC/reg for UW photography?

[s.s.seafan]

I like my Oxy 18 BP/wing. It has a fabric plate and is very comfortable. Regulator, for photography NOTHING beats a double hose regulator. I use a custom Phoenix Aqua Master. You would be amazed at how much closer you can get to marine life before they turn and run and the constant battering of my ears as occurs with a noisy single hose is totally absent with a double hose regulator, quiet and smooth.
N

where can I get more info about double hose regulator? I did a search on the few online stores and couldn't find anything.

 

[Nemrod]

where can I get more info about double hose regulator? I did a search on the few online stores and couldn't find anything.

Unfortunately, it is not simple, you have to purchase an old Aqua Master (Ebay, approx 250) and then get in line at vdh for the next run of Phoenix nozzles (I think another 250) and then replace all of the hoses and mouthpiece and cage valves (100) and you are in business and of course vdh ( Vintage Scuba - Vintage Scuba Gear at Vintage Double Hose ) will do the work if one cannot. That is just the way it is since the last of the things were circa 1973. Sorry, they are still unequaled regardless.

N

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I have a DA Aquamaster I use once in a while and it clearly is better for fish viewing. I snuk up to a little tube snout striped fish sitting on a rock and watched it for several minutes. My mask was just inches away. I would never have been able to do that with a single hose reg.
My DA is from 1960 and it's completely stock. I use it with a little oxycheq wing on a plate but I just orally inflate it when I need to because there is no LP port on the DA unless you use the hookah port, which some people do.
You can pick those up fairly cheap ($100 to 250) but then like Nemrod said you'll need to either go through it or have Bryan at vintage double hose go through it for you. A whole rebuilt was only $75 the last time I checked. But that doesn't include any hoses or anything not included in a standard rebuild kit.
I got mine for about $150 (actually a trade) and then put about $75 into it in parts and it's better than it would have been new because of the new silicone parts.

The double hose route is definitely worth it for photography and besides it's just cool to use Sea Hunt era gear.

Good luck.

 

[s.s.seafan]

your posts really opened up new doors for me - I've seen pictures of those double hose, but didn't know they were vintage gear. It sounds really like something specially good for UW photography to get closer to the fishes etc, is there any trade-off compared to the current single hose regulator?

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

your posts really opened up new doors for me - I've seen pictures of those double hose, but didn't know they were vintage gear. It sounds really like something specially good for UW photography to get closer to the fishes etc, is there any trade-off compared to the current single hose regulator?

Well I guess the trade off would be that double hoses breath different from single hose regs. They are hard to breath when the mouthpiece is lower than the reg can (the big round metal thing that's attached to the tank) but easy to exhale in the head down position. But then they are really easy to inhale from when the mouth piece is equal or higher that the reg can and more difficult to exhale.
However, you must remember that we don't use any muscles to inhale, only to pull the diaphram down, but we do use muscles to exhale. So the hard to inhale feeling can really get some people but the key is to take long slow breaths and just let the air pour in to your lungs as it wants knowing in your mind you aren't really using up oxygen to any degree while inhaling. Where people can get in trouble is when they pant. This is really an ineffective way to breath and can lead to C02 build up.
Sometimes if you need to take a break you can get into a more verticle position which will give you more air than you want or you can roll left side down while cruising along and that will free up breathing also.
I'm speaking for my DA Aquamaster here because that's all I've ever used and don't know any different.
From what I understand the Royal Aquamaster (Aqualung's top of the line double hose and last model made) was a balanced first stage model and breathed better than the DA Aquamaster which was the all around workhorse reg but was an unbalanced model.
vintagedoublehose.com has ready to go DA Aquamasters fully rebuilt with all the new silicone replacement parts in what they call an "Explorer Kit". Last I looked the kit was $250.00 which included the reg and a banjo fitting which is a thin spacer with a tube off the side that goes between the valve and the reg and makes so you can put an SPG on it.
The deal is, that you use the reg for a year and then you have an opportunity to upgrade to a Royal Aquamaster and he gives you some credit back when you send back the DA. Or if you like the DA you just keep it and you have a perfectly good DA guaranteed to work for $250.00.
The other drawback is that a stock DA might have a thin yolk which would limit it's use to LP tanks. The latest Royals had a thicker yolk and could be used on higher pressure tanks.

The only other drawback would be that without another conversion kit known as the Phoenix, the DA will not have a way to run LP hoses conveniently for an octo or BC inflator hose. There is a way from an extra hookah port that came on those regs but I never bothered to hook it up. Also with a Phoenix conversion any pressure tank can be used.

I don't always use a wing but when I do using my DA I just orally inflate it as needed. I solo dive quite a bit so I have no need for an octo.
I suppose a person could also mount a small pony to their main tank for a bungeed second and an LP hose for the BC if it made them feel better.
Or an H valve could be used

 

[herman]

Hi,

I'm looking to buy BC/reg with UW Photography of coral reef and marine life in the tropics as my primary interest. What are the features I should be looking for in them?

thanks,

Jason

The very first thing to look for in a reg and BC for UW photography is a highly skilled diver. A little tongue in cheek but YOUR skills are what are most important, a skilled diver can make any BC look good but no equipment can compensate for lack of skill. I carry a camera a lot and dive anything from no BC at all (my preferred way) to an old jacket to a BP/wing. To top it off, super macro is my preferred photographic style, unless your skills are spot on and natural, equipment choice is pretty much irrelevant.
Like Nem, my reg of choice is a Phoenix Aquamaster. I like not having bubbles in my face and fish do seem to be less skittish when approached with it and frankly, I use prefer DH regs in general. But like ZKY has said, they are different beast and you really need to spend some time with a diver who is an experienced DH diver that can teach you the proper way to dive it. In all likelihood, if you just buy one and head out on your own you will not be happy with it. And by all means DO NOT just buy an old one that someone claims is "working fine", it's almost certainly not. While I am at it, Aqualung made a modern DH reg a few years ago but it was a huge POS. Poorly designed and a kludge at best. Add to that it still must dove like an old DH and it failed badly. Buying a DH reg will also effect your choice of BC, most modern BCs do not work well with DH regs, one of the many reasons I prefer no BC at all.

 

[danvolker]

Hi,

I'm looking to buy BC/reg with UW Photography of coral reef and marine life in the tropics as my primary interest. What are the features I should be looking for in them?

thanks,

Jason

Here is a video showing good technique for u/w photography in the way of bouyancy and trim...the diver is using a Halcyon Backplate and wing....In this video, the diver is using double tanks, which you are not likely to need, unless you plan on some 4 hour macro dives in a 30 foot deep area ( and there are plenty of divers in fl that will do this gue-reversekick1 - YouTube With the Halcyon system, you can have absolutely perfect trim, as in the video, and can have a wing for normal recreational duration dives of 30 pound lift capacity, and you "could" also have a double swing like this one, which is a 40 pound wing....While the doubles wing may seem good for both, it is much wider, to have optimal trim for doubles, and would be poor for single tank use...Also, one of the biggest dangers in recreational level diving, is a runaway inflator causing a rocket ride to the surface in a high lift BC. a 30 pound wing, where there is 15 or 20 pounds of extra positive lift ( beyond negative gear) will pull you up slowly enough, to allow you to fix the problem, or at least, be able to exhale rapidly enough not to embolize....A wing or BC with 60 pounds or 100 pounds of lift, could pull a diver up so fast it could almost guarantee death would result. sorry for the preachyness, but I did feel I had to make it clear that "more" if not always better