Everyone says it is good?

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Jakoman

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Everyone, Including the people at the local dive shop say that the Mares Mr22 abyss Titanium reg that I was pricing is a really good regulator. The only thing is there has been one on ebay that relisted after a week without bids and has a standing bid of $80 at moment? Is it just outdated or is there something I dont know that everyone else does?
 
Everyone, Including the people at the local dive shop say that the Mares Mr22 abyss Titanium reg that I was pricing is a really good regulator. The only thing is there has been one on ebay that relisted after a week without bids and has a standing bid of $80 at moment? Is it just outdated or is there something I dont know that everyone else does?

I believe it was top of their line some years ago. It has some very good reviews. Im not sure how well Mares supports older models, something to check. The reg will likely need a service so the additional cost should be factored. Hopefully a Mares "expert" will offer more solid advice. $80 sounds very cheap.

Can probably check parts availability if you ask over in the Manufacturers Forum "Mares...just add water".
 
You may also find that there is a reserve that will not show up until a bid is placed. And yeah, do consider the availability of parts in the future. Just ask Dacor users.
 
It's a very fine reg that's been around with very little changes for nearly 20 years.
They don't hold their prices well because of discount sellers like Leisurepro.
Note that "titanium" in the Abyss only refers to the finish and look......it is NOT made out of titanium.
 
. The Mr22 abyss has been around for ages (over 15 years) and is a solid regulator. You might be seeing an older version on ebay. It boasts one of the highest flowrates for 2nd stages- notice the 1/2" hose fitting on the 1st stage.. Also, the full metal 2nd stage housing is suppose to reduce drymouth- your hot breath will condense on the cooler metal housing, retaining moisture for your next breath.

Mares does tend to be a little more expensive to service- for the 1st stage, the standard part kit does not include diaphragms or seats- they are priced separate as they are only replaced every other year, as needed. Mares just moved their US headquarters to Boca, Florida so I take it they plan to stay around for a while- You wont have any problem finding parts
 
The Titanium Abyss has a titanium coating that was applied using PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition). It uses the standard Abyss internal parts on the 2nd stage, and the MR22 1st stage parts. You will have no problems obtaining parts for a very long time. I do recommend upgrading the 1st stage to use the Tri-Material HP poppet assembly, along with the latest MR seat.

Greg Barlow
 
This may be a little off topic, but I think still relevant to anyone looking at a second hand MR22/Abyss!

A friend gave me a lightly used but slightly crusty MR22 Abyss (2005 model I think- no adjustment port on the second stage body!) that I have been playing around with to return to service.
Apart from a full service and change of first stage seat to a "tri-material" version, here are my other observations and modifications:

The mouthpiece was pretty useless, but I usually change them to a Seacure anyway so I that's what I did.
The Seacure improved comfort and stability in the mouth but also (being slightly longer than factory) moved the reg body ever so slightly further away from my mouth resulting in a surprising increase in exhaled bubbles in front of my mask while horizontal in the water.
This appears to be due to the square top edge of the exhaust tee that does not divert exhausted gas to the rear of the tee the way many other regs do.
I am looking at changing the upper front edge shape of the exhaust tee by gluing in a very small insert or re-shaping the exhaust tee to remove the top front right angle, project pending!!

The factory hose was a 1/2" "high flow" model and rather stiff.
I first installed a Miflex hose with a 1/2 to 3/8" adapter but I then noticed that the male fitting on the factory hose has a large bore orifice that fits over the DFC tube of the first stage leaving a gap around the tube.
The 1/2" adapter has a smaller orifice and fits tightly around the DFC, I am not an engineer but I have worked with industrial venturis and I suspect that this gap is critical to the DFC function so I removed the adapter and miflex.
One option was to remove the DFC tube altogether and I think this would be the best option if using the adaptor/ miflex , but I preferred to retain original design functions as much as possible so I then bought a Mares Superflex hose specifically sold for the Abyss (from Scubatoys).
The Superflex hose has a 1/2" male fitting orifice that matches perfectly with the factory so (apart from the hose being slightly long at 29") I am happy with that.

I will take it along on my next trip in a month or so and give it a work out alongside my current main reg, a Scubapro A700/MK 17.
Cheers
RR
 
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I have the Mares Abyss 2005 and the model before.
Second stage is difficult to adjust, but once it is done, it just works. I made the first service 2012. I looked at it inside. there is not much that can make problems. Everything is metal and lasts forever.
It is an ugly big junk of metal but it never makes any troubles...I love it.
 

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