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There shouldn't be any problem getting parts for the first stage for quite a while. It is an Apeks clone and OMS rebrands it and sells it as their R-250 and its DIN sister as the R-251. There are some other name brands that also use it under their house brands.
Yes, there are quite a few good, low-cost deals out there for the budget conscious diver. Free parts for life is not a consideration for me as I seldom take my regs into a dive shop for service. I keep a supply of parts handy for my regs and do the service myself. That way, I know it's done right.
I just put together a rig for my pony bottle using an old SP MKII first stage which I traded for, an old oceanic octo which I already had, and a button guage ($35.00). It actually breaths as easily as my MK25/S555. I'm hoping to trade an old spiro single hose reg for either a SP 108 or 109 to replace the oceanic octo.