Scubapro MK 5 zombie apocalypse 'survival guide'.

[scubafanatic]

OK, it's now the year 2014, the MK 5 went out-of-production decades ago, but luckily VDH at least has after-market 1st-stage service kits, so it's the hard parts' that vanished long ago from the supply chain. So, of the 'hard parts' that could potentially be subject to 'wear', I'm assuming the main spring and the piston would be the 2 critical parts ? Are there any other parts besides those 2 parts that would be mission-critical ? (I've scrounged up a couple spare pistons and main springs and SS swivel bolts, anything else I should be looking for ? )

I'm not looking for 4 or 5 LP port turrets, or DIN adapters (would be cool to find DIN adapters though!) as those are in too high a demand and won't ever surface back into the market place, just good old basic 'critical' components.

 

[jwelburn]

The I've seen yoke nuts get damaged by getting knocked off of trucks, low walls, etc while the reg is still attached to a tank. You can carefully sand down the seating surface to get it to seat properly again, but it could possibly get damaged enough to warrant replacement I guess.

*Slightly off topic... I'm looking for a new piston for a mk5 right now because the one I just got had corroded all the way through the LP side and leaks right through the plunger. Any hints on where to find a new one?

 

[redacted]

The "universal" din and yoke retainers will work in a Mk5. In order to torque then properly, you need to add about 1mm of spacers (I use brass washers) between the body and the end of the retainer. I also use the saddle from the Mk20/25 and cut away enough plastic so it does not bind. If you have to use the Mk5 saddle, you might have tom be a bit more precise with the spacer thickness. While I have a stash of SS turret retainers, I have only used one on my granddaughter's rig. Mine are all still brass.

There seems to be plenty of parts in the junk yard for MK5. Light yoke Mk7s are a good parts source for piston, spring, and seat retainers. Ambient chambers are good to have also as some of these regs were put up wet over 20 years ago. For a few years I was grabbing "good buys" on ebay and probably have enough Mk5s and spare parts to last another life-time. Most of them look their age but still work great with no need for proprietary service parts.

 

[scubafanatic]

The I've seen yoke nuts get damaged by getting knocked off of trucks, low walls, etc while the reg is still attached to a tank. You can carefully sand down the seating surface to get it to seat properly again, but it could possibly get damaged enough to warrant replacement I guess.

*Slightly off topic... I'm looking for a new piston for a mk5 right now because the one I just got had corroded all the way through the LP side and leaks right through the plunger. Any hints on where to find a new one?

The E-Bay seller "bigfoot-daisy' was recently selling those pistons.

---------- Post added July 1st, 2014 at 12:17 AM ----------

The "universal" din and yoke retainers will work in a Mk5. In order to torque then properly, you need to add about 1mm of spacers (I use brass washers) between the body and the end of the retainer. I also use the saddle from the Mk20/25 and cut away enough plastic so it does not bind. If you have to use the Mk5 saddle, you might have tom be a bit more precise with the spacer thickness. While I have a stash of SS turret retainers, I have only used one on my granddaughter's rig. Mine are all still brass.

There seems to be plenty of parts in the junk yard for MK5. Light yoke Mk7s are a good parts source for piston, spring, and seat retainers. Ambient chambers are good to have also as some of these regs were put up wet over 20 years ago. For a few years I was grabbing "good buys" on ebay and probably have enough Mk5s and spare parts to last another life-time. Most of them look their age but still work great with no need for proprietary service parts.

I'm new to MK 5 ownership, so I'm only recently acquiring MK 5 components for the future when things REALLY dry up parts-wise, I'm probably OK now for a long time into the future. I'll admit I have no 'spare' "seat retainers though, I've never seen anyone selling those on E-Bay.

 

[redacted]

The E-Bay seller "bigfoot-daisy' was recently selling those pistons.

---------- Post added July 1st, 2014 at 12:17 AM ----------



I'm new to MK 5 ownership, so I'm only recently acquiring MK 5 components for the future when things REALLY dry up parts-wise, I'm probably OK now for a long time into the future. I'll admit I have no 'spare' "seat retainers though, I've never seen anyone selling those on E-Bay.

Unfortunately, most of the parts sellers are pretty proud of their merchandise. I prefer to buy complete regulators (when the $$ is right) or large lots of mixed parts and take my chances that it will include useful parts. So far, I have been quite satisfied

---------- Post added July 1st, 2014 at 10:10 AM ----------

The I've seen yoke nuts get damaged by getting knocked off of trucks, low walls, etc while the reg is still attached to a tank. You can carefully sand down the seating surface to get it to seat properly again, but it could possibly get damaged enough to warrant replacement I guess.

*Slightly off topic... I'm looking for a new piston for a mk5 right now because the one I just got had corroded all the way through the LP side and leaks right through the plunger. Any hints on where to find a new one?

Those pistons are stainless steel so something more is going on there than simple corrosion. It might be cheaper to just go shopping for another Mk5.

 

[scubafanatic]

Unfortunately, most of the parts sellers are pretty proud of their merchandise. I prefer to buy complete regulators (when the $$ is right) or large lots of mixed parts and take my chances that it will include useful parts. So far, I have been quite satisfied

---------- Post added July 1st, 2014 at 10:10 AM ----------



Those pistons are stainless steel so something more is going on there than simple corrosion. It might be cheaper to just go shopping for another Mk5.

Sometimes it's hard to put a value on parts, especially discontinued 'mission-critical' parts. I've felt I've paid reasonable prices for what I've scrounged up at places like E-Bay. I'm trying to avoid buying 20 lbs of junk to extract 1 lbs of good/relevant parts, I'm also not really into major fixer-uppers, I prefer the regs 'dove only on Sundays by a little old lady' that require little, if any, reconditioning, and I'm willing to pay more for that, but I don't work on my regs myself so I can understand why your approach works for you and my approach works for me.