Found My Old Gear

[Peter Guy]

A little while ago, while looking for something else in an old shed, I found my two old double hose regulators from the late '60s. My first reg was an Aqua-Lung "DA" Navy Approved -- S/N 50043; my second reg was an Aqua-Lung DA "aqua-master" S/N 219374

I thought they were long gone but evidently they were in a box that had been lying around for a LONG time. Any ideas as to what I should do with them?

I also found my old Nikonos flash attachment that my mother bought for me, along with the Nikonos, in the summer of 1967 when she was on a trip to the Far East.

 

[tbone1004]

send em to me for proper disposal!! That said the regs are still serviceable, @herman is probably the resident guru on the double hoses. Though if you do want to get rid of them, they will have a good home here where they will be well loved and used

 

[rhwestfall]

Peter:

There is no reason to do anything but put them back to use. VDH (Vintage Double Hose) in Fla has both parts and offers repair service, with the sky as the limit of upgrades that equal most modern regulators, or simply to get them going again as they once were. They also make available the manuals for repair & service. Bryan is a member here too ( @OWIC647 ) and along with a cast of notables, is responsible for the Argonaut Kraken modern DH. I have resurrected 3 1967 USD DH's (2 DAAM's and a RAM) using Bryan, and along with having a Kraken, and I cannot speak well enough for what he has done. They are great to dive!!!!

You should get them going and use them with your students as an extra experience. There is an instructor over on the West Coast that got a specialty accepted to teach through PADI. Re-kindle the fire!

Bob

 

[Akimbo]

I doubt I would put them back in use but they sure look cool on a shelf attached to top 12" of an Scuba tank that didn't pass hydro.

 

[rhwestfall]

Unless irreparable, they are better to be used (and shared).....

 

[USdiver1]

Christmas in September, and from your own past to boot! I second the "send 'em to Bryan at VDH" in Florida for rebuilds.

The Navy Approved is the last in the line of the Broxton Aqualung Trademark style regulators - the original Cousteau Gagnan types, super nice and super cool.

The DA Aquamaster can be upgraded with the Phoenix balanced first stage and the HPR second stage. So many choices, so many choices . . .

 

[Peter Guy]

They are going to be repaired by someone -- and thanks for the tip about VDH. I have another Aqua-Master that was rebuilt about 8 years ago. I'm thinking of displaying the three and maybe diving them every once in a while.

BTW, what's the price range on rebuilt/reconditioned Aqua-Masters these days?

 

[Nemrod]

They are going to be repaired by someone -- and thanks for the tip about VDH. I have another Aqua-Master that was rebuilt about 8 years ago. I'm thinking of displaying the three and maybe diving them every once in a while.

BTW, what's the price range on rebuilt/reconditioned Aqua-Masters these days?

Not all "someone(s)" are equal. As well, most NOS parts are rotten (hoses, mouthpieces, diaphragms, valves, seats etc.). The reproduction parts offered by VDH and those that VSS have are the way to go and are generally superior to the NOS stuff, in most cases far superior.

The USD DA AM is run of the mill, common. A nice one rebuilt, $300, maybe more. The later round label heavy yoke RAMs are desirable (and can fetch commanding prices), square label RAMs with the long yoke are nice. Anything Voit commands a good price. Conversion to a RAM or Cyclone is the way to go if actually diving them (but keep the original parts).

Conversion to the DBE (duck bill eliminator) is a significant improvement all around if one actually plans to use the regulators.

N

 

[herman]

Welcome to the DH side.
The Navy is serviceable but few of the upgrades can be added to it, if you want a DH to dive the DA is a much better choice. I have no idea what Bryan charges for servicing one but I can give you a general cost of parts to get it back in diving shape. You will need to replace the hose loop (hoses, mouthpiece and cage valves), main diaphragm, put a service kit in it and replace the duckbill. Rough numbers, that's about just shy of $200. To that list I would add new hose clamps, a band clamp , a duckbill eliminator (instead of the DB above) and a hookah port adapter....roughly another $50. The majority of the cost is replacing the old rubber parts, that is almost a one time thing since the new silicone replacements last a very long time. While you might get away with reusing the old rubber parts, I highly recommend not using them unless the goal it to keep it as original as possible. Reguardless of how they look and feel, they are no where near as good as the silicone replacements and frankly, I hate the taste of the old rubber mouthpieces. If diving it is the objective and not "restoring" it to original look, the new DSV hose loop would be a good choice. Mouthpieces are a personal choice (assuming you are not trying to keep it original looking). Personally, I dislike the straight one- it's too big to be comfortable for me. My choice for a reg I dive a lot is the Voit hourglass design, I find it the most comfortable of the rubber(silicone) replacements.

From there, you can do a lot of modifications to improve the performance if you like. All of the mods are bolt on so they do not damage to regulator, it can be returned to original by simply returning the old (style) parts and most of the mods can be added one at a time or all at once.

There is a very active group of us here who rebuild, restore and dive these regulators so help and assistance is easy to find, just ask.

 

[H20doctor]

I dive my double Hose 2 to 3x a week .. spent $500.00 on it with all new upgrades ... breaths Like Butter