Contact info/ vintage gear?

[Ghostycjc97]

Hey, This is my first post so please bear with me. I have some old Dacor (and US Diver) regulators (late 70s) and sense I am just a starting diver, I don't have the money to get new regulators. I am aware that Mare bought Dacor so my question is does anyone have the contact information for Mare customer service? Or know anywhere I can get the service parts for these old regulators? Thank you guys.

Respectfully,

Colt

 

[diversteve]

You probably won't find parts anymore. Mares let all the Dacor molds be destroyed - probably a decade? ago or close to it.
I sold my 900's around 20002? when I could no longer find someone to service them - or parts.

PM [user]herman[/user] here on SB - he probably knows something about them.

You can get Dacor seats at Northeast Scuba Supply but John won't work on them.

Call Airtech in Raleigh also, since your Dacor regs are pre-1998 they don't work on them but might know someone.Contact Us

I'm pretty sure they can service your US Divers reg though - after they merged (renamed?) into Aqualung they are still supported. From what I understand some of the parts are currently still in use - I don't follow Aqualung since I don't own any.

It would help if you can ID/list the models you have as someone may know of other options to get the USD reg serviced.

Or try selling your Pacers on eBay - they regularly sell there for around $30/stage or a little more if you have a set.
Might get enough to buy something new - or gently used - from this decade.

I realize money is tight but if you figure the cost of service at $40-60 or so per stage plus the cost of parts, if you're servicing 2 you might do better to just buy new. Leisurepro.com has regs starting around $175-200. So does Divers Supply. And most other online scuba retailers. Check the closeouts on Scubatoys.com also, if they have any demos for sale, they may have been sitting in the showcase and never wet. I bought a Zeagle 1st stage from them once for $60 with the warranty paperwork still in the box - at the time it retailed for around $150. Add a $100 second and it's a functional backup for me.

 

[Ghostycjc97]

Thank you so much. I will reach out to all these contacts. I am 18 (got open water certified last weekend and nitrox today) and received them from my grandfather as he can no longer dive due to health problems. Sorry about any incorrect information as I am still very new at this.

I have....
1st stage: Dacor Balanced Olypmic (x2)
1st stage: US Diver Conshelf XII (x1)
1st stage: Aqua Lung Aquarious (x1)
2nd stage: Dacor Olympic 400 (x3)
2nd stage: US Diver Conshelf XII (x2)
2nd stage: Aqua lung Aquarious (x1)

Thanks again. I've been going crazy trying to find parts but at least I'll know now that there might not be any parts left.

 

[diversteve]

The Conshelf's are serviceable unless they're too badly corroded or something is cracked. Probably the Aquarius also - I don't know them.

Someone on the board is probably going to post here that they're still using their Conshelf's now - they're pretty bulletproof. I believe most of the modern Aqualung regs descended from it.

If your grandfather was using them recently, they're probably OK. If not,the hoses might be dry-rotted in addition to all the other potential problems.

One other consideration is tank PSI which has increased since that era. Some of those older model tank yokes were only rated for tank pressures in the mid-high 2000's so you wouldn't want to hook them up to a modern 3000PSI+ HP tank as it might explode.

Try selling the pieces you don't want here after you have them sorted out. http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/trips-and-marketplace-vintage-equipment-diving/ Or post in the Vintage forum for more info about what you've got also.

I'm a mod so I can move this thread there also if you'd prefer.

 

[herman]

Thank you so much. I will reach out to all these contacts. I am 18 (got open water certified last weekend and nitrox today) and received them from my grandfather as he can no longer dive due to health problems. Sorry about any incorrect information as I am still very new at this.

I have....
1st stage: Dacor Balanced Olypmic (x2)
1st stage: US Diver Conshelf XII (x1)
1st stage: Aqua Lung Aquarious (x1)
2nd stage: Dacor Olympic 400 (x3)
2nd stage: US Diver Conshelf XII (x2)
2nd stage: Aqua lung Aquarious (x1)

Thanks again. I've been going crazy trying to find parts but at least I'll know now that there might not be any parts left.

Welcome to the board and diving.

Your Dacor first stages (I am guessing they are 400s since the second stage says so) are unfortunately scrap brass, unless you DIY, repair is almost impossible to find and frankly I would worry about it if someone offers too.....exactly were are they getting parts.?? Wish I had better news there.
On the other hand, the Conshelf first is about as good as they get, they are rock solid and a proven reg. Parts are easily available and getting service is no problem. Off hand I forget the number of ports on the XII but assuming you have enough LP ports, you are good. The Aquarious depends on the model. The older version is serviceable (only DIY, aftermarket parts are available but a LDS will likely not service it) but if it's the newer model, it is no problem to get serviced.

The second are all good as far as parts are concerned, even the Dacor uses common "standard" parts so getting the parts are not a problem. Your LDS might not want to but still you can get parts. They are good seconds by the way. The USD/AL seconds are not a problem as long as you don't have any cracked cases. Any AL dealer should not have an issue servicing them.

I will add that you may well run into some "that old junk is not serviceable " or "it's dangerous" from a less than honest....or less knowledgeable dive shop. Not all are that way but like any thing else you need to understand what you have or know your information provider well.

Just curios, what part of NC are you in? I am in the Raleigh area, if we are close, be happy to look over the stuff and give you my opinion.

 

[Greg Barlow]

You probably won't find parts anymore. Mares let all the Dacor molds be destroyed - probably a decade? ago or close to it.

This is not an accurate statement. Dacor had outside vendors producing their parts, and Mares would had to have invested a huge amount of money in order to have produced the parts. The last decade that Dacor was in business as a separate entity was not the high point in their history. Their final series of regulators were overly complex, and their ANSTI results were lackluster. Dacor was simply headed for bankruptcy when Head Sports (Mares) acquired it. It wasn't a wise business move for Head in the long run. A lack of proper R&D following Sam Davidson's death was the main reason for the company's demise. Their last line of excellent regulators was the Pacer line, in my opinion.

Greg Barlow

 

[diversteve]

This is not an accurate statement. Dacor had outside vendors producing their parts, and Mares would had to have invested a huge amount of money in order to have produced the parts. The last decade that Dacor was in business as a separate entity was not the high point in their history. Their final series of regulators were overly complex, and their ANSTI results were lackluster. Dacor was simply headed for bankruptcy when Head Sports (Mares) acquired it. It wasn't a wise business move for Head in the long run. A lack of proper R&D following Sam Davidson's death was the main reason for the company's demise. Their last line of excellent regulators was the Pacer line, in my opinion.

Greg Barlow

Thanks for the update. Someone had posted once that Mares let the molds be scrapped rather than paying to have them shipped back (from those vendors?) so that's what I was basing that on. The only reason I took notice was because I had a 900XL once.