Dacor Pacer XL regulator leak??

[Interceptor]

I have a Dacor Pacer XL primary that lets a small amount of air out the bottom 2 holes while at the surface (I haven't tried it underwater) . It's just enough that when I close the tank valve the pressure slowly drops to zero. Is this normal or does it need service?

 

[DA Aquamaster]

This is not normal and indicates some type of service is needed. The air is leaking past the low pressure seat in the second stage but this could be due to 2 separate issues.

The low pressure seat in the second stage may have developed an excessive seating groove and created a situation where the spring pressure holding the seat against the orifice is no longer adequate to seal the airflow completely. This can be adjusted by increasing the spring pressure.

This is often needed with a finely tuned second stage a few dives after it has been serviced as the seat takes an initial set that is not always fully anticipated and compensated for by the technician.

However if this has occurred several months or even years after the service was performed, it can still be corrected in many cases by adjusting the spring pressure but only at the expense of higher cracking efforts. In this case an annual service is a far better way to go as the reg has some obvious age or use related problems that may not be limited to just the second stage seat.

The other possibility is that the high pressure seat in the first stage is failing with the result that the intermediate pressure is slowly (or sometimes not so slowly) creeping upward to the point that the excess pressue overcomes the second stage spring pressure and causes air to leak past the low pressure seat in second stage. Same symptom but a different cause.

Adjusting the second stage in this case will not cure this problem as the IP will continue to creep up until the second stage again freeflows. A high pressure seat failure also tends to be progressive and the problem will get worse fairly quickly in most cases so an annual service is essential for safe diving.

If the second stage begins the slight freeflow immediately after the reg is pressurized, the second stage is probably at fault (or the HP seat is in really bad shape). If the second stage freeflow does not begin for several seconds to a minute or so after the reg is pressurized, then the hp seat is most likely at fault.

 

[rescuediver009]

This can be easily narrowed down by putting an IP gauge on the reg. Nothing to difficult. Then will be able to tell whether ther reg needs work or not. Good luckfinding parts for a Dacor!!

 

[DA Aquamaster]

This can be easily narrowed down by putting an IP gauge on the reg. Nothing to difficult. Then will be able to tell whether ther reg needs work or not. Good luckfinding parts for a Dacor!!

This presumes the average diver has ready access to an IP gauge. If they don't, determining when the leak starts is a more practical diagnostic solution.

I do agree on the Dacor parts concern but it is not entirely bad news yet.

The bad news is that Mares appears to be fairly rapidly phasing out parts support for Dacor regs since they acquired Dacor. At this point we can only get parts for the relatively new first stages such as the Eagle, Fury, and Quantum. We can no longer get parts for the 960 or older first stages like the 900, 600, 360, etc.

I suspect what will continue to happen is that existing parts stocks for Dacor regs will be used up and then Mares will continue what appears to be a practice of deciding not to make new production runs of annual service parts for Dacor regs.

The semi-good news is that there still remains a limited supply of parts on dealer shelves so parts for many regs should be available for a little while for some of the older first stages. Also in a pinch, and with proper care and preventive maintenance, 4-5 years between annual services is not unheard of for a first stage, particularly a piston first stage. So get the reg serviced annually until you can't find parts and then you can still probably plan on 3-5 years more service life from the first stage.

The good news is that older second stages like the XL are pretty generic. The o-rings are pretty long lived and could be found from third party sources if needed. The low pressure seat is the big replacement item but it is also standard and a seat for a Scubapro R190/R390 or US Divers/Aqualung Aquarius and Conshelf 12 thru 22 will do the job just fine and both those companies are well known for supporting their regs for decades. The seat can also normally be flipped over to get another year of service out of it.

All of this is less than ideal and won't make the factory rep or an attorney happy but does present an alternative to turning the reg into a paper weight.

 

[Interceptor]

Thanks for the info. I thought Dacor was a good brand and am disappointed to see it die. I have a 950 1st stage which appears in good condition and is functional, just has the small leak. As far as I can tell the top of the reg is slotted and can be unscrewed. The bottom has two small holes and two on the side which are not drilled through - maybe for some special tool?

Anybody know the dissassembly procedure?4

 

[rescuediver009]

Slot on top for a falthead screwdriver.
Holes on bottom for apin wrench (not really a speacialty tool, very common)

If it is a leak, your LDS may be able to fix it with an o-ring. Service may be a problem.
If I recall, some dealers still have Dacor parts in stock.

 

[TColJeep]

I do tech repairs for a shop in NY. I've been going nuts trying to find a HP poppet / soft seat for an old Dacor 1st stage. If any one has a line on a shop with spare parts available I'd appreciate a heads up. My customer refuses to part with it and thinks I'm feeding him a line to get him to purchase a new Reg.

Thanks...