I have recently come into possession of my dad's old (25ish years) sherwood blizzard regulator and its octo. I want to keep on using these regulators as my new primary regulator and octo because of sentimental reasons. The problem is that I have recently contacted a dive shop and they talked to their tech about if they could service them, but they haven't been serviced as far as i know in those 25 years, they told me that they most likely could service the second stage but the first stage is to old that they didn't have parts for it and cautioned me against using it because the diaphragm could just stop working and not let any more air through. As far as I know is that they have been in actual use for a few years when they were first bought and then again in the last 2 years when i got certified and talked him into diving with me. Here is my question what does everyone think about diving these regulators even though they are so old and have not been serviced in all that time. I am willing to buy a new first stage if that is what is needed to dive them again but what does everyone recommend?
Old Sherwood Blizzard Regulator
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They are full of crap. There is no diaphragm in the first stage.
It is a piston first stage and you can still get kits for the Sherwood first stages.
Also if that reg would fail it would fail open and free flow. It would deliver more air than you could handle. But if you are certified you should have been taught how to breathe off of a free flowing reg.
I'd hook them up to tank, buy a 20 dollar intermediate pressure gauge and check the IP. It should be in the 125 -145 range. If it is and it is not creeping up gradually over 145, but is actually dropping a bit when you inhale and then coming back up and staying there, guess what? It doesn't need serviced!
It's working as it should. The second stage may indeed need a new seat but you can still get parts for those as well.
Tell your shop to look here for them. Sherwood Reg Service Kit - 4000-17 - Northeast Scuba Supply Store
Those are work horse regs that are simple to service and should last many more years. Find a different shop that services Sherwood gear.
I have to add that I would check the hoses. Those may be dry rotted. Are they still flexible? Or stiff and rigid. If there are any hose protectors get rid of them and check under em. If the hoses look kinda marginal buy new hoses.
It is a piston first stage and you can still get kits for the Sherwood first stages.
Also if that reg would fail it would fail open and free flow. It would deliver more air than you could handle. But if you are certified you should have been taught how to breathe off of a free flowing reg.
I'd hook them up to tank, buy a 20 dollar intermediate pressure gauge and check the IP. It should be in the 125 -145 range. If it is and it is not creeping up gradually over 145, but is actually dropping a bit when you inhale and then coming back up and staying there, guess what? It doesn't need serviced!
It's working as it should. The second stage may indeed need a new seat but you can still get parts for those as well.
Tell your shop to look here for them. Sherwood Reg Service Kit - 4000-17 - Northeast Scuba Supply Store
Those are work horse regs that are simple to service and should last many more years. Find a different shop that services Sherwood gear.
I have to add that I would check the hoses. Those may be dry rotted. Are they still flexible? Or stiff and rigid. If there are any hose protectors get rid of them and check under em. If the hoses look kinda marginal buy new hoses.
Pic is kinda dark and I can't see the first stage. But I had a set like that. The ones I had were of the same vintage. I put a kit in them and sold them to guy who uses them cleaning pools and boat hulls. He;s been diving them for over four years now and to my knowledge has had no issues. Nor has he had them serviced because they work. Those are also good regs to learn servicing yourself. The manual can be found here
http://www.frogkick.dk/manuals/sherwood/
The tools are mostly stuff you likely have in your garage.
http://www.frogkick.dk/manuals/sherwood/
The tools are mostly stuff you likely have in your garage.
K
KeithG
Guest
those look just like mine! as jim indicated, there is no reason to scrap them.
the shop may be correct about buying "parts" for the first stage. but that does not mean they can not buy "kits". kits and parts are different.
a service kit consists of the complete set of items that are routinely replaced due to wear (think windshield wiper). kits are readily available. "parts" refers to the rest of the pieces that do not wear out (think windshield).
the first stage does have a "part" (the piston) that can be damaged by poor service. Sherwood recommends piston replacement when this happens. i believe the "oldest" style pistons can no longer be purchased from sherwood. but you can purchase complete working first stages with fully functional pistons for under $100 on ebay.
find a different shop that knows how to service the reg and put them to good use.
the shop may be correct about buying "parts" for the first stage. but that does not mean they can not buy "kits". kits and parts are different.
a service kit consists of the complete set of items that are routinely replaced due to wear (think windshield wiper). kits are readily available. "parts" refers to the rest of the pieces that do not wear out (think windshield).
the first stage does have a "part" (the piston) that can be damaged by poor service. Sherwood recommends piston replacement when this happens. i believe the "oldest" style pistons can no longer be purchased from sherwood. but you can purchase complete working first stages with fully functional pistons for under $100 on ebay.
find a different shop that knows how to service the reg and put them to good use.
ams511
Contributor
Compared to my old Magnums yours are newer. LOL. Your first stage is a balanced "flow-by" piston regulator. Sherwoods are unique because they use a "dry-bleed" system where a bit of air is leaked into the ambient chamber and keeps it dry. Two advantages to this system is that the parts are inexpensive (you can use generics) and the ambient chamber is sealed without needing costly lube. The one main disadvantage is that the filter that bleeds the air into the ambient chamber could become blocked (usually by bad service) and would need to be replaced. In older versions this filter was press fitted into the piston requiring a new piston (expensive) if the filter becomes blocked. The rumor on Scubaboard (I have not verified this) is that Sherwood is no longer making this part. So if your piston needs replacement you are stuck unless you find a dealer with some old-stock pistons. There was a thread a while back where people were wondering if old pistons can be brought back to life, but I am not sure if anyone has successfully done it. The newer models of Sherwood first stages moved the filter to body of the regulator so a plugged filter no longer requires a piston change but I have heard the part is expensive. The newest style first stage supposedly uses a foam filter for the dry bleed.
Some people complain bitterly about the way Sherwoods breath. I have used both the Magnum and the Maximus and while not the best breathers they are no worse than other regulators with downstream seconds. This makes me wonder if the people complaining are diving with plugged filters.
Some people complain bitterly about the way Sherwoods breath. I have used both the Magnum and the Maximus and while not the best breathers they are no worse than other regulators with downstream seconds. This makes me wonder if the people complaining are diving with plugged filters.
I got the same setup thrown in with some more stuff on eBay. Figured I'd see if I could get them serviced. Local Dive Shop said no problem with servicing. They are now my backup regs. You should have no problem getting them serviced or using them.
Jim
Jim
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They are super reliable work horse regs. I used that first stage for golf ball diving for years with no real work on it, just put a little grease on the piston o-ring. I did hundreds of hours of use on that first stage with no issues. To be honest, take a good look at the second stages. they are old and plastic and can eventually crack- just keep an eye on them. i prefer even older second stages.. ones made of brass which will never crack..
Yoyodyne-88
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My Sherwoods have been serviced twice in 25 years, just because. Never had a problem, and I have no issues 'breathing' them.
I want to thank everyone who replied to this and I'm glad to hear I can keep diving these awesome regs, I guess my next question is if I need to take special care of them because they are older or just treat them with the care I do with my current set and keep them clean and happy?
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