Which regs do you use?

[Alex_Tattersall 90]

Hi all,

 

Just doing a bit of market research and wonder if you could just tell me which regulators you use.

 

Many thanks

Alex

[Scubamoose 0]

Suunto, Apex and a few coltrisubs.

 

Karel

[DuncanS 0]

Hi all,

 

Just doing a bit of market research and wonder if you could just tell me which regulators you use.

 

Many thanks

Alex

Ok, here goes. Bear in mind that I am in Sharm full time so don't have to travel so weight etc is not really an issue for me....

 

Mares MR22 Ruby (now converted to trilastic) with Ruby Metal 2nd Stage (Like abyss) - Lovely air deliver, bullet proof, easy to adjust. However VERY heavy....use day to day recreational. Easy to service.Balanced Diaphragm

 

Mares MR22 Abyss - Same as above, use for tec (2 sets of these) Balanced Diaphragm

 

Scubapro Mk25 / S600 - excellent air delivery, adjustment on 2nd stage. Use for tec and recreational. Both 1st and 2nd stage are very complicated inside. More difficult to service. Much lighter than above. Slight design weakness in LP turrett, usually the first place to get small leaks. It is possible to just buy the turrett oring, but to change it you have to strip the bottom half of the 1st stage. (I have 2 sets of these) ballanced piston

 

Scubapro MK2 / R190 - Simple is not the word......good breathe so cheap and easy to service (there is nothing in them) Bullet proof.....Use as spare regs on hang tanks or for guest rental. (2 sets) Unbalanced piston

 

Scubapro mk14 / r290- Very nice 1st stage design, internally nice and compartmentalized so you can problem solve without having to disturb high pressure seat if needed. Easy to service, balanced diaphragm reg (2 sets)

 

Poseidon Extreme x 3. My 1st choice tec regs. Light, small, awsome air delivery, little bit 'switchy' in shallow water (ie off or on), Side vent. Need lots of love and fine tuning of 2nd stage. Easy to strip and repair. Love them...other hate them...bit like the marmite of regs.....

 

Damn, better not let the wife see this list...she has no idea......

 

Duncan

[tdpriest 115]

Poseidon Cyklons for the last twenty years: still going strong, from 0.6-60m!

 

Tim

 

[Paul Kay 46]

Apex (not sure which models without looking). I used to use Poseidon, but Apex are cheaper and easier for me to get serviced. Assuming that you get your regs regularly serviced (surprisingly not eveyone does) then this might be important to you, especially the ease of reliable, local servicing. I get my Apex serviced by a local diveshop who do an excellent job and neither the Apex nor Poseidon have ever let me down since using this shop. The Poseidons did become expensive to service though - after the bill hit £180 for the two regs annual service I shifted to Apex and haven't regretted it - they work fine.

[londonsean69 1]

Apeks ATX40 on DS4 first stages. Have used them since I started diving. Have tried loads of others (when working abroad) but none seem to have the same combination of price and performance. Easy to service, plus I have 6 service kits for them.

I only tend to service them if they begin to whisper, which when working abroad was roughly every 500 dives.

[DuncanS 0]

Apex (not sure which models without looking). I used to use Poseidon, but Apex are cheaper and easier for me to get serviced. Assuming that you get your regs regularly serviced (surprisingly not eveyone does) then this might be important to you, especially the ease of reliable, local servicing. I get my Apex serviced by a local diveshop who do an excellent job and neither the Apex nor Poseidon have ever let me down since using this shop. The Poseidons did become expensive to service though - after the bill hit £180 for the two regs annual service I shifted to Apex and haven't regretted it - they work fine.

Service for Poseidon are on 24 month basis....After 12 month Level A service, 24 months Level B. Service kit (level B) for extreme 1st stage 16 euro, 2nd stage 8 euro. You can get some bills for servo tips (£25) and balloons (£16.50). Servo tips i remove every month and ultra sonic clean 1 min to remove, no tools reqd. Had 1 balloon go in 5 yrs. Labour, my own time.....

 

Duncan

[stewsmith 14]

Scubapro MK25 S600 for me.

 

Stew

[cor 0]

Julie and I both use MK25/S600

[Nige Wade 0]

Poseidon Cyklons for me too with some ex-treme deeps for open circuit tri-mix

Having said that I dive the Uk on an Ispiration Vision CCR the cyklons are then used on my bail-out side slungs

I've had the cyclons for 18 years now and never had a promlem and they get horribly abused.

 

Nige Wade

[Timmoranuk 10]

CJ and I use Scubapros. All Mk17s for back gas (singles and twins). I use Mk2s on my stages. We use X650s, S600s as second stages and 290 / 390 as octopi. There's a bag full of Oceanic Deltas which I havn't used for twenty years...

[Scubysnaps 9]

2 Apex XTX40's (one handed) and a pair of TEC3's Alex, I chose these because they are one of the (if not the) cheapest for parts and to service. I also have a Mares Abss which costs more than double to service

[Alex_Mustard 0]

Like several others, Scubapro Mk25 Ti + X650. You're welcome to try next time we dive together. Although I have found they do need regular servicing to keep them performing optimally.

Alex

[Elainew 1]

Scubapro Mk25, S600

[PIG004 0]

Scubapro Mk25, Mk17 - S600 & X650

Mares Proton Metal for the Octo.

[Timmoranuk 10]

Like several others, Scubapro Mk25 Ti + X650. You're welcome to try next time we dive together. Although I have found they do need regular servicing to keep them performing optimally.

Alex

 

Alex, do you find the X650 a bit twitchy?

 

I service my own and have always found the X650 tricky to setup nicely. Last time around I gave them to an approved Scubapro service centre and they can back worse than before so I sent them to Scubapro. Even now they aren't spot on. We have three which I'm thinking of selling and adding to our collection of S600s...

[Paul Kay 46]

Service for Poseidon are on 24 month basis....After 12 month Level A service, 24 months Level B. Service kit (level B) for extreme 1st stage 16 euro, 2nd stage 8 euro. You can get some bills for servo tips (£25) and balloons (£16.50). Servo tips i remove every month and ultra sonic clean 1 min to remove, no tools reqd. Had 1 balloon go in 5 yrs. Labour, my own time.....

 

Duncan

In the UK the HSE require servicing of regs every 6 months!!! I had numerous problems with servo valves going, and failed silicone sleeves as well as corrosion. Don't get me wrong because I liked my Poseidons (my wife still uses some for work) but at least one dive school I know shifted from Poseidon for the same reason.

 

And yes Poseidons do seem to keep working after heavy abuse, but for life support gear that's not the point is it? At the end of the day, servicing cost and reliability won me over to Apex as well as good after sales service - one has been back to Apex for work on it for shipping cost only.

[Alex_Mustard 0]

Alex, do you find the X650 a bit twitchy?

 

I service my own and have always found the X650 tricky to setup nicely. Last time around I gave them to an approved Scubapro service centre and they can back worse than before so I sent them to Scubapro. Even now they aren't spot on. We have three which I'm thinking of selling and adding to our collection of S600s...

 

I don't get involved in the setup! I know about cameras, but not dive gear. Scubapro UK service mine.

 

I don't notice a big difference between the S600 and X650. Scubapro switched me over to the X650 a couple of years back. I actually think their A700 is their best breathing reg, but it is too heavy for (my) travel.

 

Alex

[tdpriest 115]

... Poseidons do seem to keep working after heavy abuse, but for life support gear that's not the point is it...

 

I thought that was the whole point?

 

I do understand the problem for a pro. subject to HSE regulation, however: I do spend a fortune on servicing (I have 5 Cyklons somewhere in my garage...)

 

Tim

 

[Paul Kay 46]

Tim

 

I watched a Cyclon fizz the other day after being put into vinegar - due to severe limescale build-up. There's abuse in use and then there's ABUSE due to neglect and lack of servicing. The bronze filter was vivid green too. I know of another case where a Cyclon was condemned due to it being uneconomic to repair - to be fair a 13 year servicing interval is a bit long.

 

I'm glad that you spend on servicing, although sad that its a fortune! 5 Cyclons sounds a lot..... what are you doing?

[DuncanS 0]

Tim

 

I watched a Cyclon fizz the other day after being put into vinegar - due to severe limescale build-up. There's abuse in use and then there's ABUSE due to neglect and lack of servicing. The bronze filter was vivid green too. I know of another case where a Cyclon was condemned due to it being uneconomic to repair - to be fair a 13 year servicing interval is a bit long.

 

I'm glad that you spend on servicing, although sad that its a fortune! 5 Cyclons sounds a lot..... what are you doing?

Yes, a bit too long.......

 

5 cyclons - 2 backgas, 2 stage, 1 recreational maybe?

 

Servicing isn't just about swapping out parts, whilst this is important, proper cleaning and lubrication prolong the life of the regulator and keep things moving smoothly with out causing damage to the sealing surfaces inside. (in fact you would be suprised at how little is changed at a service with some regs. Somethimes maybe 4 orings and a filter!) I am often amazed at how much grease is sometimes used when regs have been serviced, takes ages to clean out properly so that the dynamic orings can actually move as they are supposed to...

 

The bronze filters are a pain, especially in the red sea (high salinity) the tips start to discolour within a week.

 

It is also very easy for water to enter the 1st stage without you realizing (when rinsing etc or when on stage tanks) You only find out when you open the 1st stage and see everything crusted together!!

 

Yep, I can see how 6 monthly servicing soon adds up....

 

Cyclones are easy to service apart from the 'puck' which needs a special tool to take it apart and reassemble (sort of like a press)

[BDSC 1]

I use an Atomic T2X. Best reg I've ever owned!

[Andy Morrison 0]

Poseidon Jetstream on all my tanks except for my 100% O2 - I use a Dive Rite on that one.

[Poliwog 4]

Mares MR22 Abyss and Mares Nikos(?) for pony bottle applications.

 

First and only regulator I ever bought and after more than 15 years still couldn't be happier with them. They were expensive when I bought them but had decided I would not worry about expense when it came to purchasing what would be my primary source of life support in an otherwise hostile underwater environment.

 

Love the air deliver system. Breathes the same at 130 feet as it does at 15 feet. No need for a tweaking lever to de-tune the regulator either. One less thing to worry about as far as I'm concerned.

 

I have the regulators service annually, and therein lies the only thing I don't like about the regulator. Seems the service technicians have a habit of initially setting the cracking pressure too low and allowing them to free flow ever so slightly(just enough to be irritating, but otherwise no big deal). It usually takes a second trip to the dive shop to get them set properly. I have tried several Mares dealers in the area and have experienced the same thing at each. Other than that, I think they are perfect.

 

Carbon fibre MR42 Regs look interesting and may upgrade to them for lightweight travel but that purchase is still a long way down the road for me yet.

[PRC 2]

Apeks - bullet proof - service them or not choice is yours.

 

Posidon tend toward the expensive as they demand that you take a minimum order for servicing parts that make your eyes water.

 

Paul C

Edited October 11, 2010 by PRC