Beginners Reg
fredd500 Ok, I know this is going to be a bit subjective and everyone is going to have their personal preferences, but... Which regs should I be looking at for a first time purchase? I don't have loads of money and as the dive show at the NEC is in a couple of weeks, I shall be looking for a bargain there. I have been reading some of the reviews on divernet.com and they don't seem to like the poseidon which goes dead against a recent recommendation I have had telling me they are the dogs bollox. They do seem to like the MARES ruby. Does anyone have any experience of the MARES regs? I notice simplyscuba.com have the MR12 Axis for £105 which seems reasonable. How does this compare? Any comments gratefully appreciated...
fredd500
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Originally posted by fredd500: Ok, I know this is going to be a bit subjective and everyone is going to have their personal preferences, but... Which regs should I be looking at for a first time purchase? I don't have loads of money and as the dive show at the NEC is in a couple of weeks, I shall be looking for a bargain there. I have been reading some of the reviews on divernet.com and they don't seem to like the poseidon which goes dead against a recent recommendation I have had telling me they are the dogs bollox. They do seem to like the MARES ruby. Does anyone have any experience of the MARES regs? I notice simplyscuba.com have the MR12 Axis for £105 which seems reasonable. How does this compare? Any comments gratefully appreciated...
Followup... I have found another review of regs on divernet which slate the Mares Axis range. This review liked the oceanic alpha 7 and although more expensive, not stupidly so. Does anyone have any experience with the oceanic regs? Also, forgive my ignorance (I still have a lot to learn) but what is the difference between a piston 1st stage and a balanced diaphragm 1st stage?
driftwood
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Originally posted by fredd500: [Followup... I have found another review of regs on divernet which slate the Mares Axis range. This review liked the oceanic alpha 7 and although more expensive, not stupidly so. Does anyone have any experience with the oceanic regs? Also, forgive my ignorance (I still have a lot to learn) but what is the difference between a piston 1st stage and a balanced diaphragm 1st stage?
Hi Fred The Alpha7 is a nice, tidy entry level reg. I picked up the aplha7 & CDX environmentally sealed 1st stage at DiveScotland in 2001 form SDS for £130 - I've taken mine to 35m with absolutely no problems. Okay Davey will no doubt object as if you find one at the dive show it'll probably be an a-clamp version but you can get it converted at service for circa £30. They are fairly solid though - I've hit mine off the top of a tunnel (above water) with no ill effects (apart from now having a scabby looking knob) Oceanics also come with the first owner lifetime Alliance scheme - this means that if you get it serviced annually by an authorised dealer you will NEVER pay for parts. Cool huh? Remember though if you are buying a set of regs you will also need an spg & depth guage (£50-85) , octo (£40-100) , bcd inflator hose (£12) and possibly drysuit hose (£20) Rightho.... masterclass of valves When the diver inhales the pressure in the intermediate hose drops allowing the first stage valve to open and air then flows from the cylinder into the intermediate hose until the pressure reaches a pre-set level of around 5 to 12 bar above ambient. The diaphragm type first stage operates simply by allowing the drop in intermediate pressure (IP) to lift the valve, allowing air to flow from the high pressure (HP) side to the IP outlet. However, as the IP rises, the valve is returned to its seat and the airflow ceases. This is an ‘upstream’ type valve. In the more modern balanced configuration, both ends of the valve stem are exposed to IP air. This results in less force being exerted on the valve stem as it is returned to the seat. Water, at ambient pressure, pushes the valve away from its seat as the diver inhales, so allowing air to pass through. This configuration is fail-safe by design and consequently modern regulators of this type are highly reliable. In the event of a component failure, the system would revert to free-flow operation (i.e. continuous air). Diaphragm types keep the water away from the working parts of the regulator first stage and so are the best choice for use in dirty or cold water like the Alpha7 CDX and Apeks range The piston type acts by having a large spring connected to a piston which controls the opening and closing of the valve seat. The performance of an unbalanced piston design drops as the main cylinder pressure falls during the dive, but it is cheaper to manufacture and this is revealed in the price. Unbalanced piston designs are more suitable for use by those who do undemanding dives, and for schools that want an inexpensive item for use by trainees in safe, confined water. The Mares Nikos and Spiro Ranger are both popular. As for pozzies.... Well, they have a higher IP than most regs (10.5 bar I think), need a non-standard hose, are solenoid activated (your tonsils get air blasted), more expensive to service, and have a high freeflow performance. But can be used left or right handed...... Hope this helps Yes, it's me again....
parahandy Like Anything you get what you pay for? I would suggest a good entry level regulator is the Apex TX40 they have recently upgraded this to the ATX model I believe. Depending on where in the country youre located you need to be considering where you can get it serviced. No use purchasing one of the more expensive regulators aimed at the Technical Divers to find you have to send it away to an authorised dealer. One of the questions you need to ask is how much is a service, and typical price of service kits. By vertue of the fact these are life support kit they all do the job some better than others.
ian.wood0 Can't add very much more to the reply that driftwood gave about the Alpha7 I have a Alpha 7 and i love it ,its been my main reg for just over a year after the write up in DIVE mag. Its been down to 56m and breaths as well there as it does at the surface.
driftwood I've got a magnetic chess set which is good for underwater! Great Heads, glad there will be a few of us... Hint: Married to an Irish lass..... Have friends in Donegal Yes, it's me again....
driftwood Yup, just be sure you don't get the SP4 unbalanced pish-ton 1st stage - it's not sealed and I've not heard as many good reports. Go for the CDX. Mine has been demoted to pony reg only because I got a stonking deal on an ATX200 which I'll be using for my trimix entry level course with Willo next year..... If he's up for it or will he be a ???? Note the Alpha7 will be a main reg on the twinset. Yes, it's me again....
AndyC My main piece of advice is not to view it as a beginners or entry level reg. Unless you want to dive to 200m or something crazy in the near future then the chances are you will be using the reg at similar depths for quite some time. If you want to be able to breath underwater, which is an obvious benefit in diving, then your reg is your primary life support. I would really get the best reg you can afford at the time. Personally I love the Apeks range of regs and use the TX100's on my twinset & singles set-up with an Aqualung Cousteau on my deco/pony bottle.
Heads Up
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Originally posted by driftwood: Mine has been demoted to pony reg only because I got a stonking deal on an ATX200 which I'll be using for my trimix entry level course with Willo next year.....
Erm, I'll be doing that too by the looks of it - have an idea for a project for 2004 which will require (at least) entry level trimix if not more. Will discuss with you both once I have thought it through a bit more. [HINT - may involve diving U-Boats off the Donegal coast in 50-75m]. Heads Up
PeterT Found this a Mares Ruby in our own Classifieds at UKDivers.com [url="http://www.ukdivers.com/forum/classViewAds.asp?catID=7"]LINK[/url]
Davey_Willo Heads you little tinker!! So your gonna mince the path of techdom too then, Grrrreat! Until Drifty also mentioned that he was gonna do it I thought I was on my lonesome, so I'm delighted to know that there will be a couple of good mates who I'll be going through the training with, and who I can torture on those long deco stops. Gotta practise my Tic Tac Toe