Breakdown regulator for travel?

[dulinor]

I'm laying out my gear for an upcoming trip and am once again looking at the regulator situation. When I first started diving with my own gear the regulator set was treated like it was made of spun sugar - carefully coiled up, packed, wrapped in soft stuff and taken in the carry-on.

After running into some issues with my secondary last trip and whipping it off and putting a loaner on with no issues, I'm wondering if people detach the hoses from the 1st/2nd stages for travel. Seems like things would fit much more compactly that way. (Putting port covers back on the first.) I

I wouldn't have a torque wrench, etc. for re-attaching but doesn't seem like that's the typical standard anyway.

I'm sure I can make it work either way, but wanted to see what others are doing.

 

[Lorenzoid]

No, I don't break down my regs. That seems like a lot of effort to me for little benefit.

Although I know it's common for people to put regs in their carry-on bag or a separate "reg bag" that some airlines will consider an allowable "personal item" rather than a "carry-on" bag, I pack my regs in my checked bag, wrapped between a wetsuit and clothes. I used to baby mine, too, but I have been persuaded by comments in other threads on this topic that regs are pretty robust. So long as they're packed securely, I think they will be fine. As for the possibility of theft that some people seem concerned about, I find it hard to imagine an airline employee walking out at the end of his shift with my reg set under his jacket; they would much rather steal small items that can easily be sold. I can't carry on ALL my dive gear, so I only carry on small, valuable and/or personal items, such as my computer, mask, camera and expensive lights. The rest goes in the checked bag.

 

[dulinor]

I've been taking via checked bag lately as well (although if there's room, why not carry on?) More for the "what do I not want to be without if they miss my luggage. I was on a boat once where the couple had the airlines lose their luggage and didn't get it back before departure.

Either way though, I feel like the whole setup would be more compact if it's not all assembled. I coil the 2nd stages around the 1st, but the first sticks up like a tower - makes the assembly pretty awkward. If I take it apart it all fits more tightly.

 

[uncfnp]

No because I see no benefit in it. I still have to pack the same amount and it will weight the same. Only adds extra steps packing and setting up at arrival. And increass the risk of something forgotten or lost during travel.

 

[Snoweman]

I do not break mine down. I keep it in my carry on, and wrap the hoses around the outside edge of the bag - much like you would with a spare belt in a packed bag. My BCD gets folded up and put in the center of the bag, and then the other items (Nautilus radio, mask, etc) get put in where they will fit. The other compartment of the carry on gets my rash guards, some shirts, shorts, undies and bathroom kit.

 

[JohnnyC]

Nah. I pack them in a reg bag. I use packing cubes because it's much easier for the TSA monkies to pull out cubes and still have some semblance of organization than the usual explosion of personal items that you often see at the secondary screening bench.

Brass regs show black on the x-ray machine, so they're often pulled out for inspection. It's just logistically easier to have them in a separate reg bag. The hose o-rings on the first stage end are static. They're not designed to move, so taking regs apart at the firs stage on a regular basis will most likely lead to premature o-ring failure. Using a reg bag keeps them neat and tidy without having to disassemble them.

 

[jgttrey]

I use packing cubes too. Works great and weighs nothing.

I have a hard time imagining a situation where space would be so critical that I felt it necessary to break down my regulators. Just coil them up in a cube and, if you're really tight, stuff the voids with t-shirts or something.

I also prefer to function check my gear before I leave and then give it a visual when I arrive. I avoid having to monkey with it if possible. Jumping off a boat for a blue water dive the first morning with a bunch of regulators from which I had removed and replaced every connection just to travel - no matter how easy it is - would have me worried about busting a dive because some o-ring got pinched or whatever.

If you're going to do it though....

Back when I used to have to reconfigure the same sets of regs when going between singles, doubles and sidemount (now I have more gear), I used to have to move hoses around a lot. In addition to taking some cell phone snaps, get some port plugs of contrasting finish. If you remove hoses from say a black finished first stage, use chromed port plugs to temporarily fill the ports. When you arrive and reassemble you'll spend less time puzzling over which ports you had the hoses in. Particularly helpful if you have multiple first stages that are configured differently.

 

[dulinor]

OK, I'm convinced. The basic argument of "don't mess with it too much, it increases the chances of problems" is pretty compelling.

I do think I need a new regulator bag if I'm going to do that (or cubes, which I have) - the one I have (Oceanic Standard Regulator bag, now discontinued) barely closes over a vertical first stage. There's then a ton of empty space inside.

 

[jgttrey]

Google Amazon for packing cubes. I've not found any need for padded regulator bags. They add a ton of bulk and weight for no good reason.

 

[JamesBon92007]

I also spread it around the inside of the carry-on, avoiding any tight bends or curves. First I stuff my foot pockets of my fins with booties, gloves, underwear, socks, etc, put in the fins, and fill any voids with rolled-up tee shirts, shorts, etc. Soon I expect to be putting my backwing in the carry-on too but that might mean no clothes. If I'm also bringing a checked bag I bring a small crescent wrench and allen wrench (for port plugs) plus an all-in-one screwdriver just in case I need to make a change on on octopus or inflator hose etc. Unfortunately they just reduced the carry-on size by two inches so the backwing might not fit after all. My mask goes wherever it fits without getting squished (deformed) and I take care not to deform the mouthpiece on the second stage. I try to stay at places with a washing machine so I don't need to bring much clothing.