Exploding SPG gauge faces?

[Scuba J7]

I’ll take a guess at a few issues.

I’m pretty sure it was mentioned, but the plastic of the time wasn’t up to the job. So if the housing used plastic there was probably a high rate of failure.

Second thing I noticed is that gauge cost $25, which was a lot at the time and it wasn’t considered a necessary piece of equipment since everyone was accustomed to using j valves at the time. So I think cost was a factor as well.

The SPG was introduced to the American diver in 1954 via a number of advertisements in Skin Diver Magazine (SDM.)

It was a new device to the American dive community, but the SPG had originally been developed, introduced and used extensively by the great French SCUBA diver, Instructor, author Yves le Prieur in 1934 (for all of your who declare they began diving before the SPG)

In 1954 the Mar Mac SPG slowly appeared on the shelves of the pioneer SoCal dive shops and a few scattered centers of diving primarily in the metropolitan areas of NY city and Chicago. It's acceptance as a diving accessory by the divers was guarded, but as all new devices of diving it was slowly accepted by a select few.

Then reports of a number of problems began surfacing...

The Mar Mac had three distinct problems

1
2
3

Yes, it was the reason divers every where are recommended (taught?) still to this day are turn the SPG face away when turning on the air supply
SDM

 

[Texasguy]

I always point my AI PDC away from me when I power up my tank.

I pay others to open my tank valves, one cannot be too careful.

 

[The Chairman]

I pay others to open my tank valves, one cannot be too careful.

It's probably way more dangerous to be standing downwind of me when I pass my personal gas. Just sayin'.