Mares-bcd/dragon-at.. Out of work!!

[Sisi]

I bought a BCD (Mares-Dragon-AT) from Acquazzurra (an authorized Mares dealer in Rome) and came back to Turkey (my home country) and had my first dive.. BUT It was out of work!! the BCD inflated but could not deflate in the horizontal position.. I was so scared to learn this defect while ascenting from minus 15 meters to 13.. I found myself floating upwards and emergency valve did not work either!! While being drifted upwards for about 4 to 5 meters, I found the end of emergency valve and pulled it up and it deflated!
I called and emailed the dealer in Rome for a couple of weeks BUT i received no response back!! till an Italian friend of mine called in and talked to them in Italian.. Now I am in touch with Mares/Istanbul/Turkey. AND The BCD from Mares, Acquazzurra-Roma is out of work and does not function according to Mares- Turkey technical service's report.

The technical department in Mares-Istanbul requires the inner mechanism of BCD Atrium Dragon with all its wires and hoses as there had been an oxidation problem in the BCD and such a problem is fatal and urgent for repair.

The technician in Mares-Istanbul has written to Mares (main branch) but still waiting for response and it has been a quite while with no response back.

I dont think I will trust that BCD even if it is repaired!! and my thrust in MARES?? unfortunately NO!!

Do you have any suggestions or can you provide some help with it??

THANKS

Sisi

 

[zoranb]

Hello,
If I understand correcty, you bought a BCD in Rome. Did you buy a new one, or a used one?
If you bought (or were told you are buying) a new one, then there should be no oxidation on the inner mechanism.
If they sold you a used one, without telling you, you should have asked for a refund.

There will always be oxidation on the inner mechanism, but it shouldn't hinder operation.

My Dragon, sometimes just vents more slowly, espacially in the horizontal position, but it does vent.
When you say "I found myself floating upwards and emergency valve did not work either!!", what emergency valve are you refering to?

 

[Sisi]

I bought a new bcd, not a used one. The problem is that I bought it when I was in Italy and now I am in Turkey. Mares Turkey cannot repair my bcd and since i bought it from another country they cannot refund or change it.

AND Mares Italy [the shop I bought the bcd–Acquazzurra] does not answer by request that i would like to return the bcd.. they keep saying that they will get in touch with me soon but it has been more than six months now and no one contacted with me..

So i will never ever buy a Mares equipment again.

I do appreciate if you offer any advice or help on this.

Thanks,

Sisi.

Hello,
If I understand correcty, you bought a BCD in Rome. Did you buy a new one, or a used one?
If you bought (or were told you are buying) a new one, then there should be no oxidation on the inner mechanism.
If they sold you a used one, without telling you, you should have asked for a refund.

There will always be oxidation on the inner mechanism, but it shouldn't hinder operation.

My Dragon, sometimes just vents more slowly, espacially in the horizontal position, but it does vent.
When you say "I found myself floating upwards and emergency valve did not work either!!", what emergency valve are you refering to?

 

[zoranb]

I see. Well, when you purchase an item in the EU, the warranty extends to all of EU countries for the 1st year, and only to the country where the item was purchased for the second year.

As the BCD was purchased new, it's up to Mares Turkey to allow the BCD to be repaired in Turkey under warranty conditions. YOu have two options:

1. Have the BCD repaired in Turkey without warranty, and at your cost
2. Ship the BCD to Italy to be repaired under warranty.


Again, as I said in my previous post before you do anything TEST to see that the defect is actually there. My Dragon vents significantly slower than a BCD with a manual dump valve. When venting in the vertical position I can "hear" the air venting out as it is close to my ear. But in a horizontal position, the air can't be heard (or seen), so either have your buddy see the bubbles venting from the rear vent, or put your finger just above the vent holes and "feel" the bubbles coming out.

If your buddy can see, or you can feel the bubbles coming out, the AirTrim Works, but just slower, and it just takes some getting used to the fact that you have to believe the air is venting even though you don't operate the valve itself.

If the BCD does not vent at all in the horizontal position, but does in the vertical position on the right shoulder, then the AirTrim does work, but the rear port has detached from the hose inside the jacket, which is something you might even try to fix yourself.

If the right shoulder vent does not release air when the bottom button is pressed (all the way pressed), then the AirTrim is faulty and should be serviced by Mares.

Did you try venting the BCD when not in water? Infalte the BCD and cover the shoulder vent top hole with a finger. See if air is coming out on the back vent. Remeber that the BCD needs to be connected to the inflation hose and the tank, to dump air! The AirTrim system Works only if the system is pressureized, both for inflation (duh!) and for dumping air, as the pressure is what openes the dump valves!

Z