Zeagle F8 or Atomic Z2 octo

[DEVILDOG]

You've probably already made your purchase but just in case you didn't, as evad said they are all in the same parent company. The supposedly big change was that the F8 had the seat saving orifice borrowed from atomic and is not titanium like the t3. Also has a manual Venturi which I like. Essentially it's like getting atomic engineering for Zaegle prices. I just bought an F8 and have about 10 cold water dives on it now. Love it, and am totally happy I got it. Breathes easy and super comfortable. It's paired to a envoy Octo. Can't say I love that maybe I'll upgrade later. I would like to put the comfort swivel on it like the atomic t3 has, not sure if it can be retro fitted.

 

[McJosh13]

I have had this same question, I picked up a Zeagle F8 first and second stage and considering whether to get an Atomic second stage and use the F8 as octo or get another F8 second stage. I guess the F8 is too new to have many comparisons yet. I emailed Huish asking if the F8 second stage was basically the same as a Z2 second stage with a manual venturi and this is the response I got (within a half a hour, at 730pm.. pretty impressive for a big company)

Hi,

Both regulators incorporate the seat saving orifice design and will function very similarly but they are different internally and aesthetically simply because they are two different companies. It's sort of like comparing a Mercedes to a BMW.

Kind Regards,
Huish Outdoors

 

[Captain Larry]

I also agree with the suggestion to buy a Z3 second stage and use it as your primary, keeping the Z2 as your octo. You can always upgrade the setup down the road if you want to environmentally seal the 1st stage, add a swivel hose to the Z2, or add a swivel LP port to the 1st stage. We have upgraded and modified many of our customer's Atomic regulators.
We are an Authorized Atomic Dealer and Authorized Atomic Service Technicians. If you have any questions about the Atomic that I can answer please feel free to reply, PM, or email.
Larry