im looking into my first bc but i have been stumped by one problem. who will service my bc if i do not choose one carried by my LDS. will they service it, do i have to air mail it for repairs, or do i just do it myself. im new to diving... i love it and want to try everything i can get my hands on. but my LDS doesnt really have a selection.
who will service which bc's
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blacknet
Contributor
Hello,
What's there to service? you take it apart and clean it.
Ed
What's there to service? you take it apart and clean it.
Ed
ElectricZombie
Contributor
Yeah, you dont' really service BCs. Most problems that occur with BCs are easily preventable. If problems do arise, you can 9 times out of 10 fix them yourself.
The major repairs to a BC in the long term tend to be to hoses and dump/overpressure relief valves and most are pretty standard. US Divers/Aqualung used an odd size hose for a while and if they still do I'd avoid it. With a standard size hose, the power inflator can be replaced with just about any model and/or with an air two or some variation on the theme.
Cam bands are also for the most part pretty standard and with a few exceptions, a standard cam band can be made to work on just about any BC. (For some reason my spouse does not like the Scubapro tank strap and buckle, but I retrofitted it with a standard cam band in about 2 minutes.)
If it is a weight integrated BC, I'd buy an extra set of weight pockets at the time of purchase in the event that you lose one someday. It saves time getting back into the water and worse, it really sucks to have a weight integrated BC with a missing weight pouch and then to find they discontinued making them.
Cam bands are also for the most part pretty standard and with a few exceptions, a standard cam band can be made to work on just about any BC. (For some reason my spouse does not like the Scubapro tank strap and buckle, but I retrofitted it with a standard cam band in about 2 minutes.)
If it is a weight integrated BC, I'd buy an extra set of weight pockets at the time of purchase in the event that you lose one someday. It saves time getting back into the water and worse, it really sucks to have a weight integrated BC with a missing weight pouch and then to find they discontinued making them.
Charlie99
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Service of most of the BC is simple cleaning. Flush out the bladder, check for wear. It's easy to unscrew the dump valve and inflator hose and clean off the mating surfaces while looking for wear and tear.
The only thing where you might need professional assistance is the inflator valve, and those seem to be fairly standard, so any shop should be able to take care of that when you eventually get it checked.
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