Why is apeks the best regulator ever conceived by human mind???

[The Chairman]

I think that's exactly what he was saying... you just have to read between the lines.

 

[glbirch]

Your english is far better than my spanish!!

Have to admit, I was thinking the same thing...

 

[ElectricZombie]

Hi dear friends...

now JJ and George Irvine said apeks is the best...and surprise... now apeks is the best.....?????

From the pics I have seen, JJ uses ScubaPro. When I went to a DIRF class, the two Instructors (Sweetin/Moon) both had ScubaPro Mk25/S600/R380 setups.

Apeks makes a nice reg, but they are not the only good reg around. I don't know who makes the "best" reg...it depends on who you ask.

 

[jonnythan]

They're not necessarily the best. They're a good breathe, simple and solid design, easy to service, bombproof, a terrific value, and have dry sealed first stages with good hose routing.

They're recommended because you can't go wrong with them. The first stages are easy to buy for moving to doubles.

The bottom line is that they have a great combination of features that make them well applicable to basically every possible type of diving, and they're relatively cheap.

 

[nwdiver2]

I use micra adj also maybe it will become the new favourite! It would be interesting if a 10-15? year old reg became the new fav, it has stood the test of time. Many regs have come and gone while my mircas with a variety of 1st stages from al keep on ticking. I do have several other regs also but rely on the micras.

 

[will_tekkie]

I'm not sure how you can make such an emprical statement on such a subjective matter. Whether apeks is the best or not is not something that can be determined absolutely (and hence saying Apeks is the best is just as invalid as saying apeks is not the best). It really depends on which metrics you use in your determination of "best", and this will differ from diver to diver.

i´m agree with you warren...this stament have to be based on technical tests..this is why ANSTI test always have shown SP is the best breather...being apeks..no so bad but always behind....i´m mostly a tropical diver so SP is the best choice for me. i based it in their outstanding performance and their wide and good parts and service worldwide. I have not been in a country where i was not unable to find a scubapro dealer. Mk25 in fact has a amanzing flow capacity...(something like 300 scfh..sorry if the number is not true i´ve seen it in a thread time ago). SP is a evolutive design that even you have the chance to update them with the last develoments. VERY old SP regs..can be overhauled like new ones because SP parts still available...

these have been some of reasons i´ve choosen SP. i can´t understand why SP have not developed a new (top ofthe line) diaphram design ( dry sealed design included) which face the ATX200 line for example, for cold water diving...MK25AF design being good is no the best for cold water in my opinion..diaphram is a better design for these conditions. i´d been living in a cold country i´d use a apeks like design....MK25 VERY high flow and the cooling asociated to drop pressure ( as said DA Aquamaster in other thread) is showing probably the limit of this design for cold water even with TIS system and the others insulated methods applied...and cold water diving style (avoiding free flow, high tank pressure to reduce the pressure drop in the reg) are a must to follow..

i´ve been found interesting the reactions...some of them very logical...

 

[CRDiver]

ScubaPro regs breathe awesome and are easy to service - that's why WKPP uses them so much, plus GI has said he got a great deal on prices. But they aren't respected for their cold water performance (check out the 1st abstract from NEDU testing on http://scilib.ucsd.edu/sio/nsf/diving/nedu.html ). Apeks are dry sealed, very good breathers, and since Aqualung's parent company aquired them, parts are easy to find in the US. And Zeagle regs - when they were simply rebadged Apeks a few years ago - earned a great reputation before Apeks were even seen around here.

As far as the original poster's venting, I'm sure we all know what he's talking about. Right now, every wannabe tech guy is imitating JJ and GI and buying their gear. And it's all for one reason: an 18,065ft. push into a cave. If that hadn't been done, they would be just another highly competent cave diving team that few people outside the hard-core tech community would pay attention to. Now, divers barely out of OW are spouting DIR dogmatics as if they've been tech diving for years. It's the run-of-the-mill immature hero worship that every sport has.

 

[pufferfish]

Interesting link and that the Navy nixed the MK20 for cold water use. It would be interesting to see the test repeated with the MK25 antifreeze but my guess is it still would get nixed. I have MK25AF and in cold water below 40 F I just get nervous when it just starts to flow lightly on its own. As Lubold said it might freeflow, it might not. I've never had a freeze failure, but that is being real careful with handling and air quality.

It is a great warm water reg but I will succumb to peer pressure in that Apeks or other dry sealed reg is probably a better way to go in water below 40 F

Actually I will have a look at the Aqualung LX Supreme and the Atomic M1 too.

 

[WarmWaterDiver]

CRDiver, that's a very interesting and informative link. For 28 degree F water, I'm pretty sure you have to be in the polar regions where the water becomes super-saline as the salt is "squeezed" out of the water that freezes, increases in density, and sinks to go back around in a loop. So, if something works for these conditions, it should work under less strenuous ones. Definition of "work" could be subjective - someone mentioned "stuttering" of their Poseidon regs as something they found less desirable after trying another brand, but the Poseidon still "worked'.

I've posted some info in the Tech Talk section on the thermodynamics involved - properly dried compressed breathing gas supply is the crucial first step - otherwise any design can freeze up internally in the first stage, and the second stage is by definition a subcooled moist environment for diving in waters less than 98.6 degrees Farenheit as soon as the diver exhales for the first time through the second stage.

 

[The Chairman]

One of those authors is none other than our own RainReg. YEA Mike!!!