aqualung aquarius

[Jolinator]

hey guys, ive got an old aqualung aquarius reg it was my dads, anyway im just wondering if you guys know were i could find a service manual, and tell me your general opinions about this reg obviously its not going to breathe as well as the modern regs, however im just wondering if the second stage is better than the second stage on my 2002 srb5300 sherwood magnum, as i love the oldschool look and metal reg, i was thinking about swapping it over,

also lastly someone told me that some of the titan parts fit inside these for overhauls, anyone out there with one of these regs able to shed some light?

also what era is this reg 1970?,



cheers guys and all the best in the future

 

[herman]

Welcome to the board

I have a parts breakdown and some dissambled photos of the reg. Not much to servicing it really..... take apart, clean, replace Orings, replace filter, reassemble and set IP by turning big screw at the end. Titan parts will not fit except maybe the filter and retainer ring. A Titan is a diaphram reg, the Aquarius is a piston reg. There are 4 O rings in it and one HP seat. If the seat is OK (it can be turned over if the back side is still good), the orings are pretty common parts. The second stage is a basic down stream valve reg. Seats and Oring are fairly common. If the diaphram is still good it is pretty easy to get back in service. If tuned a bit it can be made to breath OK but don't expect anything great. Looks like this one could stand some cleaning. You will be amazed what a soak in a 50/50 mix of white vinegar and water will do for it. A ultrasonic cleaner will help a lot more.

 

[Jolinator]

thanks heaps mate, only 21 so still learning, yep it does need a clean i just finished servicing the sherwood magnum, which was easy, and will definatly chuck this into the ultrasonic cleaner 50/50 mix with a touch of soap., got an ip gauge so thats no worrys, tell you the truth im probly going to retire the first stage, but how would the second stage compare to one of the plastic sherwood magnums the ones with the flexible diaphram cover, not much difference?, the diaphram in the second stage is still perfect so i was just gonna clean it up and change the mouthpeice over, the second stage valve seat after 20 years still has hardly an indent on it, but i will flip that over aswell, on the inside of the second stage it seams to have what looks like a small spoon, maybe to catch moisture on exhalation? thanks for the diagram mate

 

[Luis H]

The second stage is a very simple well design second stage. The only down side of it is that the volcano orifice can not be independently adjusted. The only adjustment is in the seat retainer nut. This adjustment controls the lever height. Since the orifice is not adjustable you can’t really adjust the spring force closing the seat and therefore the actual breathing resistance.

The best way to reduce the breathing resistance is therefore to increase the first stage IP. Overall, you should be able to adjust to be a decent breathing regulator.

If you need a complete service manual for either the first or second stage, I can probably email you a PDF file with it. Send me a PM with your email address.

That Aquarius was around in the early 70’s. It is a non-balanced, but easily adjustable piston first stage.

 

[herman]

The "spoon" in the mouthpiece hole is a venturi assist to make it breath easier. To add a little to Luis, if you really want to play around with the breathing resistance you can hunt around and find springs of different strengths and swap them out until you find one that suits you. If you need to improve it just a little, increasing the IP of the first stage a few PSI will help. You do need to be careful doing it but it's not rocket science either. If your going to mess with the springs you will want a way to measure the breathing resistance and exhause resistance. Check this thread for a simple, cheap but accurate meter for testing regs. http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/do-yourself-diy/218961-diy-regulator-test-flow-panel.html

 

[sowtondevil]

The second stage is a very simple well design second stage. The only down side of it is that the volcano orifice can not be independently adjusted. The only adjustment is in the seat retainer nut. This adjustment controls the lever height. Since the orifice is not adjustable you can’t really adjust the spring force closing the seat and therefore the actual breathing resistance.

The best way to reduce the breathing resistance is therefore to increase the first stage IP. Overall, you should be able to adjust to be a decent breathing regulator.

If you need a complete service manual for either the first or second stage, I can probably email you a PDF file with it. Send me a PM with your email address.

That Aquarius was around in the early 70’s. It is a non-balanced, but easily adjustable piston first stage.

I have just obtained a rebuild kit for both 1st & 2nd stage of my 1978 Aqualung Aquarius reg. I would love to have a copy of the service manuals. Are you able to email me copies?

 

[Luis H]

I have just obtained a rebuild kit for both 1st & 2nd stage of my 1978 Aqualung Aquarius reg. I would love to have a copy of the service manuals. Are you able to email me copies?

Even better, you can download the US Divers (Aqua Lung) manuals for all their vintage regulators at the website below. I am not sure if you need to sign in, but it is very easy to do so.

Vintage Double Hose • View topic - Catalogs/Manuals/Articles/Reports etc

You do need to follow the links and pick which manuals or catalogs you need. Look under the US Divers early manuals.

Good luck

 

[Wayward Son]

I had an Aquarius for my 1st reg in the early 70's, dove it for 3 years or so. Never had any complaints about it.

 

[Wayward Son]

made some 200+ dives on it it with no service, as I recall it was a solid, basic reg. Dunno if it has enough ports on it for the modern diver though

 

[Slonda828]

I have one too and dive it often. I like the fact that I could rebuilt it on the dive boat with a leatherman and an o-ring pick. You have to admire its simplicity. My girlfriend like the unbalanced design when she was learning as it helped her pay attention to her remaining gas supply. Once that reg gets down to about 500 PSI you know it is time to go. If you buy a 1978 and later model they have 3 LP and 1 HP port on them so you can do everything except dive dry. The Aquarius is the regulator that got me into servicing regulators, so I am admittedly a tiny bit partial. That's why I designed the rebuild kit for it !