Mndiv
Contributor
Hey Guys,
I have a tendency to check craigslist every once in a while for any good deals on scuba gear in the area. Well I stumbled accross someone selling 4 steel cylinders for a very good price. I inquired over email for some details and the information he gave me was: Annual inspection certificate dated Aug. 96----2 of the tanks are blue and 2 are black----all 4 are marked CTC/DOT-E6498-3000----LUXFER---They all have air in them". I know the 3000 means PSI, and I'm somewhat unsure weather "annual inspection certificate dated Aug. 96" means they were first inspected in August of 1996, or they were last inspected in August of 1996... (I have sent him another email asking this and some additional info).
Now I know that there was a time in the 70's and 80's during which a bad 6351 alloy was used which promoted Sustained Load Cracking (SLC). I found some info about this on aluminum tanks, but not much on steel tanks. I know that the number E6498 has something to do with it, but I cant quite make heads or tails of it...
This might sound stupid to some of you, but as with so many of my newbie questions I would much rather have knowledgable fellow divers answer it than some random website
Any advice or opinions are welcome, right now my biggest concern is about the E6498 and how it pertains to the bad alloy. I will post more info as I get it.
Like always - Thanks!
PS - I know I should have them all hydro and visually inspected before use, and this is something I plan on doing.
I have a tendency to check craigslist every once in a while for any good deals on scuba gear in the area. Well I stumbled accross someone selling 4 steel cylinders for a very good price. I inquired over email for some details and the information he gave me was: Annual inspection certificate dated Aug. 96----2 of the tanks are blue and 2 are black----all 4 are marked CTC/DOT-E6498-3000----LUXFER---They all have air in them". I know the 3000 means PSI, and I'm somewhat unsure weather "annual inspection certificate dated Aug. 96" means they were first inspected in August of 1996, or they were last inspected in August of 1996... (I have sent him another email asking this and some additional info).
Now I know that there was a time in the 70's and 80's during which a bad 6351 alloy was used which promoted Sustained Load Cracking (SLC). I found some info about this on aluminum tanks, but not much on steel tanks. I know that the number E6498 has something to do with it, but I cant quite make heads or tails of it...
This might sound stupid to some of you, but as with so many of my newbie questions I would much rather have knowledgable fellow divers answer it than some random website
Any advice or opinions are welcome, right now my biggest concern is about the E6498 and how it pertains to the bad alloy. I will post more info as I get it.
Like always - Thanks!
PS - I know I should have them all hydro and visually inspected before use, and this is something I plan on doing.