How to preserve rubber in vintage gear?

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Joris Vd

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Location
Belgium
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Hello guys,

I'm slowly but surely building up a collection of old regulators and I have been restoring them to their former glory.
I have several regulators from the 60s where the rubber is still in perfect condition and others seem to crack and dry out pretty easily.

The main question is what are the best ways to preserve old rubber as much as possible?
 
I use silicone grease and knead it into the part or if its bad seal saver works great
 
Agree with everything above. In addition, ozone is a killer. It is everywhere in small concentrations but time makes it add up. If your stuff is out in the open then it is getting an unhealthy exposure.

Put your goodies into a ziplock bag (you can get big one) and flood it with argon or nitrogen. Keep the bag out of the sun.
 
I always rinse with fresh water plus the other things mentioned. Most of my stuff from the 60s and 70s is almost as good as new except I have failed to conserve very many black rubber regulator mouthpieces.
 
The problem with hoses, etc. from the early 1960s is that in order to get the neoprene colored, clay was used. Thus the gray or yellow hoses of Voit or USD perished. It is an extremely rare original hose that is in usable condition. That is why hoses were some of the first items to be reproduced. Check with vintage scuba companies for great reproductions.
 
I) Wash and clean - I prefer Dove soap
2) Air dry
3) Spray with silicone- NOT on Glass- Normal Silicone -- (I have not used food grade Silicone)
4) Do not handle unless for use
5) Store in cool dry place - out of sun light
6) Long term storage- air tight box - (War surplus 50 cal Ammo Box )
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I located "The Mask" article . This was first printed in my dedicated column "The way it was" in the now defunct national dive magazine Discover diving about 25 or so years ago. It was indeed the way it was ...if a tool didn't exist we made it .: if it cost over a dollar we made it...the genesis of diving ...the days of yesteryear

For your dive reading-- and a little "the way it was..."

'The Mask,
One of the great pioneer divers of all times was the late Charlie Sturgil. "The Old Walrus," as he was affectionately known, started his diving career in 1929 in the frigid waters off Northern California where he hunted for abalone by a method he described as "feeling for abalone." He would dive on a reef, feel until he found an abalone and pry it off, without the use of mask, fins, snorkel or thermal protection.
Charlie began diving with a mask using a Japanese mask in the late 1930s which was loaned to him by his good friend Bill O'Conner. A few years later after the end of WW 11, Charlie, a master tool and die maker and an inventor of sorts, developed the necessary tooling to produce masks on a semi-custom basis for himself and a few close friends. I consider myself very fortunate to have been included in the latter category.
In early years during the genesis of recreational diving the masks were either too large, too small, too stiff or after a few dives, would rapidly deteriorate into a gummy, sticky mess. This did not make for comfortable diving! After using a number of the masks of that era,the Japanese imports, and the American made Sea Net, I decided it was time to contact Charlie to ask him if he could make one of his custom masks for me.
After checking my meager finances, found I could possibly afford one of Charlie's masks, so I gave him a call. "Sure, Sammy, I'd be happy to make a mask for you, come on over", Charlie replied to my request. Within moments I was off to the temple of Southern California diving, Charlie Sturgil's garage.
I was met by this jovial hunk of a man with his infectious, ever-present smile. "Hey ya, Sammy" was always his cordial greeting. Alter a few moments of catching up on the diving scene it, was time to get to work. "Sammy, I'm now making two masks; the original for $6.00 and a new oval model for $8.00", Charlie explained. After considerable soul searching and penny counting, I opted for what I felt I could afford, the original round mask for $6.00.
Now, Charlie's garage was something to behold. It appeared to be in total disarray, and the best way to describe it would be the day after a big sale in a bargain basement. Diving equipment in various stages of repairs, pieces of metal, lengths of stainless rods scattered about... Omnipresent was the huge metal turret lathe and miscellaneous metal working machines. But to Charlie, it was his arena, it was where he excelled in turning these seemingly scrap pieces of metal into custom spear points, spear shafts, yes, even masks.
Charlie knew the location, size, shape and type of everything in his garage. His storage system was logical and certainly workable, but it still defies the imagination how he managed to find anything, let alone make anything, but he did.
Charlie went to work with the speed and skill of a emergency room surgeon. He immediately uncovered a length of 5 inch O.D. soft rubber World War 11, surplus firehose, from which he cut a 4 inch piece. He placed the piece of rubber hose in the wooden mold and proceeded to his trusty bench grinder where he slowly cut a 1/8 inch wide, 3/32 deep groove all around the edge for the glass. This was followed by the rough contouring for the forehead, cheeks, and upper lip. He then went to his metal rack and withdrew a piece of 3/4 x 16 inch 22 gauge stainless steel, which he placed in his specially constructed mold and carefully, yet skillfully, forced the stainless steel around the mold forming it into a familiar round mask shape. His next step was to form the band evenly and smoothly around the mold creating the lip for the compression hand with light rapid laps of a hammer. Using silver solder, the welding process of the era, he soldered the tabs for the strap and the compression screw tabs to complete the band. A piece of pre-cut 1/3 inch glass, the same kind used for window glass, was taken from the shelf and fit into the groove; the compression band placed around the mask and the compression screw tightened.
At last, the mask was assembled. My own custom Sturgil mask! Charlie proceeded to take some cursory measurements of my then youthful face, and returned to the grinding wheel, skillfully grinding a little here, a little there, another trial fit, a little more grinding. Finally, a perfect fit. A final hand finish with fine sandpaper, attaching of the strap, cut from a truck inner tube, and I was the proud possessor of a real genuine Charlie Sturgil Original Style Diving Mask.
This occurred many years ago when diving as well as life was much simpler, a time when pride in workmanship and ownership were at a premium. Charlie made almost 40 of these one of a kind custom dive masks, however only three are known to have survived the rigors of our disposable society, mine, Alex Pierce's of Toronto, Canada and Charlie's widow's Laura's mask which now on loan and rests in a Southern California museum. And indeed they are museum pieces... the three remaining masks are all almost seventy years old and represent an era which was experienced by only a precious few and which will never be experienced again upon this earth.
Charlie has reverend position in the fraternity of diving pioneers; he won the world's second Spearfishing contest in 1950 with a pole spear, was a LA County Underwater Instructor and serendipity developed much of the spearfishing and SCUBA equipment which has become mainstream in todays diving.
I will never forget Charlie, nor will anyone who ever knew him.... nor will there ever be another mask like a Sturgil Mask.
Dr Samuel Miller,111
(Copyright Dr. Samuel Miller,111 & Dr. Samuel Miller,IV and Lee/CCnews/TPR; may not be used with out permission of author and Lee/CCnews)
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post script;
Charlie passed on November 15 1984, 34 years ago- long before many of you were born or were engaged in this noble activity. His devoted wife Laura passed on a few years ago at the age of 90.

If Charlie knew you and liked you he always addressed you in the familiar; Ie Sammy, Bobbie, Jimmie,--Those he didn't have great admiration or didn't know well it was formal Sam, Bob or Jim.

A little about Charlie Sturgil...
Charlie along with team mates the late Bud Abernathy and Freddie Kittles of the SoCal Skin Divers team won the 1951 International Spearfishing meet. Bud and Freddie used a Sturgil modified Champion Arabletes with Sturgil points. Charlie used his trusty legendary pole spear. Charlie Sturgil was the only person in the history of spearfishing competition to win an international meet with a pole spear.

The Fathomiers spearfishing club has been presenting the "Charlie Sturgil Pole Spear Spearfishing meet" for about 30 years...It came full circle when Charlie's grand daughter, Laura Lee Gonta won the meet several years ago using one of grandfather Charlie's legendary pole spears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There were only 40 mask made and only 40 who were privileged to dive with one-- I am the only survivor of that privileged tribe...only three mask remain...
Mine only because I have keep it stored in a 50 Cal Ammo box all these years.
One sold 10 years ago for $1500.00--now its value ?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SDM
 
After simply (soap, not detergent, use Woolite or baby shampoo if you can 't find ivory flakes or other soap) cleaning and drying, use your choice of ArmorAll (I prefer the original white) or other "protectant" especially if UV exposure will be a problem. A silicon grease or oil is fine if it won't collect dirt, i.e. internally. And a trick that a WW2 frogman taught me: Just dust it with plain TALC. Plain talc, not cornstarch, not scented, etc. The talc fills in the surface pores on the rubber and prevents oxygen from getting in to rot it. I've had talc'ed spares stay new for 20 years and uncoated ones rot in five, side by side. DO also store the gear in the "super" SpaceBags or Ziploc bags if you can. The SpaceBags are more impervious to oxygen. And if you're storing things for a longer term, buy "oxygen absorber" packets (Amazon, etc.) and throw them in the bag before sealing it. No oxygen in bag? Then the rubber is stored in a non-corrosive nitrogen atmosphere!
 
@Rred

You apparently have some professional experienced- Thank you for taking the time to post
I must invest in some "oxygen absorber" packets.

I have my mask and homemade snorkel stored in a 50 cal ammo box and in several other Ammo/rocket boxes I have some very rare first edition 100 or more year old dive books and documents-- any suggestions?

Sam Miller, 111
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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