Advice on buying used equipment

[Fishpie]

....no adjustment and no way to put one in (if you could you would have a Kirby Morgan Super Flow).
Be very careful removing that plastic end plug, make sure you seat the Allen key all the way down or you will shear off the top of the plug.
btw
the 2nd stage will only need adjustment if it free flows or the lever rattles and it's only going to do that if it has been previously serviced by a cowboy. They will never need adjustment once set.

 

[pedo]

but if you don't follow the yearly service requirement the warranty goes out the window....

 

[Fishpie]

As for warranty....if it ain't broken right out of the box it ain't going to break, and if it does it's user error or non warranty parts that break.
(99.9% of the time)

 

[jjjjeremy]

Be very careful removing that plastic end plug, make sure you seat the Allen key all the way down or you will shear off the top of the plug.

And what I I did? Super glue?

 

[beaverdivers]

I'm new to diving and been looking at gear. Any advice for a newbie on cautions for buying used . .. . . or should I stick to new only? Want to ease into the gear.

Thanks

Buying used SCUBA gear can be fine as long as the gear has been serviced & is in good working condition. I would be cautious about older gear.
Also, you should feel comfortable w/ the source of the used gear.

Compare the used price w/ deals on new gear.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Regs are one of those things that are a deal used IF
you take the time to learn about them and decide to do your own work.
If I was somebody who didn't want to bother with servicing regs myself then I would probably buy new and just play the game and go with the PFL program and warranty blah, blah, blah.
But since I'm not, I choose to find older Aqualung regs like Conshelfs & Cousteau's because they are diaphragm regs and so don't need to be serviced but once every 2 -3 years if kept really clean inside.
Piston regs need to be at least lubed up and checked more often so buying a piston reg used, especially SP and letting a shop service it without FPFL is a good way to get raped.

I just got a service kit for a Conshelf 21 for $30 online and put it in. It will be good for quite a while.

 

[Fishpie]

If you break the plastic plug discard the banjo shaped locking pin and use a normal brass and chrome 1/2" port plug in place of the plastic one.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Backplate and harness, STA and cambands? Easy enough to buy used: a child could look at it and see if it's in working shape or not. Wings, trickier... but still a very simple piece of gear you can inspect yourself. If the warranty on a new wing is good enough, maybe the
peace of mind is worth buying new.

Regs are a tossup: you should be able to get a good used reg for less than 50% of what you'd pay new (example: Atomic M1 is $720 MSRP new, $300-350 used in most cases). You pay that, take it to the shop, and give them $20-30 to inspect (not service) it. If it passes, you're good for a year or two. If not, you send it off for service/have the shop service it. Let's say you do Atomic and have the factory rebuild it...that's $150. On top of a $300 price (less for a Z2), that's a total cost of $450 or so for a like new, factory rebuilt reg... that's $720 new. The warranty issue...eh. Regs generally don't break (warranty), they require service/repair (not covered by warranty).

Computers I say buy new and from someone with a great customer service rep: electronics are, quite simply, full of magic and gremlins. Can't trust em, new or used, so you need the support.

but if you don't follow the yearly service requirement the warranty goes out the window....

Not all reg makers are sleazy enough to have that rule.