Mares Axis Octo wont stop flowing...

[911_abuser]

Never had a problem before and its less than a year old. Only thing I've changed is the inflator hose for my new bc. Also from the first stage there is a small hiss.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should be looking for? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Fernando

[fdog]

The Axis second stages that were manufactured about a year ago had a soft material in the valve seat. This would start leaking eventually.

The fix is to replace the seat, which is pretty quick.

A Mares dealer will replace these for free.

Regarding the hiss from the first stage, a suggestion is to hook it up to a tank, and place the first stage under water. The bubbles don't lie.

All the best, James

[911_abuser]

im gonna look for that little card that came with the octo. thanks for the info.

fernando.

[FLL Diver]

This is pretty common with the Axis'. Mine would have to be adjusted every couple of months to stop the leak.

Do a search here. I recall a thread that mentioned that new valve seats were available for the Axis that would permanently stop this problem.

Marc

[Greg Barlow]

It's actually not the seat material, it is the crown in the second stage valve. Mares used a new design in the Axis that used a synthetic material rather than their old standby, chrome plated brass. A number of these developed the annoying leak that you are describing. They were actually from the early production runs, so the chances are that yours was manufactured earlier than what you believe.

Mares offers a free retrofit kit for these particular ones. It has a light green crown rather than the white one originally fitted. This allows a tech to instantly determine that it has undergone the change. Contact your nearest dealer and have them make the switch. The Mares service flyer specifies to replace the crown and seat from the kit. They should adjust the cracking effort to 1.25-1.4" and adjust the intermediate first stage pressure to 138-142psi for best funtioning with the Axis second stage.

Fdog's advice on submerging the entire unit is correct. If you let me know where the bubbles are appearing from I can most likely tell you the problem.

The Axis is an extremely simple reg to service. It is almost identical to the classic downstream valve designs that are produced by ScubaPro, Oceanic, and a host of other manufacturers. They don't offer the very low cracking effort of an adjustable second stage, but are rock solid when properly maintained. I, along with many of my dive buddies use the MR12 Axis as deco regs. The second stage can be easily disassembled underwater if need be, and still offers easy breathing all the way down to 130'. While the R2 first stage is also available, I prefer the MR12 due to my dives often being made in colder waters. Another great plus is like the ScubaPro MK2/190, they are a tremendous value.

Greg

[fdog]

Thanks for the clarification of seat vs crown replacement. All I knew was that green was good!

I had been eying using my MR12 as a stage reg, as you speak of. What mix do you limit yours to? Is that oxygen cleaned? I would assume that you oxygen clean your own reg(s), but is this something a dealer could, or would, do? (not sure about the compatability of the internals)

Thanks!

All the best, James

[Greg Barlow]

Thanks for the clarification of seat vs crown replacement. All I knew was that green was good!

I had been eying using my MR12 as a stage reg, as you speak of. What mix do you limit yours to? Is that oxygen cleaned? I would assume that you oxygen clean your own reg(s), but is this something a dealer could, or would, do? (not sure about the compatability of the internals)

Thanks!

All the best, James

James,

The regs that I use for deco purposes (up to 100%) are dedicated only to that purpose. I do oxygen clean both the first and second stage, but it is actually only the first stage that you must be overly concerned with. The second stage has such low pressures compared to the first that the compression heating issues really aren't worth worrying about.

Unless you can find a dealer that handles technical diving and its gear, then they most likely will not feel comfortable in prepping regs for oxygen service. Generally, all synthetic materials are replaced with those which are less likely to combust under the possible heat issues. The only lubes to be used are those designed for such service.

Greg

[fdog]

Greg:

Thanks for the points. I hadn't considered the MR12 as a stage reg, mostly because of doubts in the 50%+ range. Looks like my backup/loaner will have a new job in life.

I'll be sniffing around for a reliable dealer.

All the best, James