New DA Aqua-Master owner has questions

[owensct]

Hi All,

I just acquired a DA Aqua-Master that I plan to re-build to dive and I had a few questions:

1. Any of you live/dive vintage on the Island of Oahu or know of anyone who does?

2. I have read on the forum that you need the AM with long yoke to add the Banjo for an SPG. From what I can tell the regulator I have was manufactured in the mid to late 60’s, how can I tell if I have that one?

It appears to be in good shape, the mouthpiece was OK, but the hoses were shot, (see pictures). I have read about the phoenix mod, but I’m not ready to go that route yet, at least not until I determine if DH diving is for me, and I justify the cost of the reg plus the cost of the rebuild parts to my accountant, (wife)

3. I am going to dive 3000 psi AL with it, I have read on the forum that I should consider replacing the original yoke with a heavy duty one. Can I use a yoke off a modern single hose or to I have to get one specifically geared for the AM?

4. My normal single hose regulators consist of an Aqualung Conshelf SES and an Aqualung Legend. What kind of breathing performance can I anticipate with the AM in comparison to my two single hose regs?

5. My interest in DH is threefold, I like the idea of diving with a piece of history, the rear bubble exhaust, (I’m into underwater photography) and I want to dive less equipment intensive, (read bulky) gear I’m ditching the octo, BC, etc etc in favor of mask, fins, Hawaiian backpack, (The picture is the one I have), AL80, reg and SPG.
Less gear + less cleanup = more frequent diving

6. I am planning on buying the following for the rebuild:
New hoses, new duckbill, band clamp ring, new wagon wheel/valve combo, Aqua-Master Platinum rebuild kit and two stage diaphragm. Too much, too little, something else I need?

Any ideas, thoughts and suggestion to a (soon to be) new DH diver is greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Gordon

 

[Luis H]

That is the short yoke. I think Bryan at VDH has some long yokes for it. Many have searched for alternate yokes that will fit it, but they all require some machining and most heavy ones will not accommodate the banjo either.
You can use either yoke at 3000 psi. It has been done for many years. Just make sure when you connect it it is snug and secured.

The parts list looks good. Definitely not too much...

I would also add a hookah adapter port. You will want it at least to put an IP gauge and check and adjust the IP. There are alternate ways to adjust the IP, but with an IP gauge it will let you know if everything is working well.

There are definitely NAVED members in Hawaii, but I am not sure in which Islands. You should post at VDH and VSS. You will find the members there.

Nice looking regulator. Great looking label.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[herman]

Welcome to the addictive world of vintage diving. Luis covered the reg well so I will add a little other info. First off, there is no reason you can not dive your modern gear with just the backpack. To get you started and ease you into diving without all the extra stuff, why not start diving with just the backpack and your modern reg as is, then you can remove the octo and LP inflator if you choose. Master the art of no BC diving before adding the DH to the mix. You should get with your buddy and practice buddy breathing before removing your octo, remember the octo is for them not you. It is also possible to use an octo on the hooka port with the hooka port adapter Luis suggested. That way your non vintage buddy has the security of an octo. Tucked away, they are not that big of a pain.

There are a couple of differences worth noting when diving a DH reg. First off, reg position on the body is important. Unlike a single hose reg that can be placed anywhere and still perform normally, a DH most be lower on the back, between the shoulder blades and it must stay as close to the back as possible to perform at it's best. In addition it's breathing resistance will change as you change positions in the water, adjusted properly, if you are flat and level the reg will breath well, as you go head down it will breath harder, go head up it will breath easier. Roll on your back and it will likely freeflow. This is normal and you need to learn to manage it. It takes a little getting use to but once you get the hang of it, I don't find it a big deal. The DA is an unbalanced diaphram stage which means it's IP will vary with tank pressure so breathing resistance will also vary with tank pressure. It will breath harder with a full tank and become easier as the tank pressure drops, again, different than you are use to but still easy to deal with. The addition of a Phoenix or converting it to a Royal AM (easy to do) will remove this issue.
Good luck with the DA and welcome to vintage diving.

 

[halocline]

You might start looking around for a RAM nozzle; they appear from time to time at a reasonable price. I found that both my DAs had some annoying IP creep, one was much worse than the other, but it made it difficult for me to tune them well. The RAM nozzle uses a much better seat and has more stable IP, plus much less IP drop during inhalation. I personally noticed a big difference and probably would not dive the DA nearly as much as I dive my converted RAM.

I think it's a good idea to start with what you have, once you get the idea that you like it, I don't think you'd ever regret buying a phoenix. It solves all the IP stability, yoke, and attachment issues at once.

 

[Slonda828]

I would recommend that you go to Vintage Double Hose for all your questions. Luis, Matt, and I all frequent that forum and it is a better source of information that some of the stuff that gets put out here (although the above posts are great). Congrats on your regulator purchase

Matt, a little jewelry polish and an architect's eraser will get rid of any IP creep that is not a result of a totally trashed seat or a dinged volcano orifice. None of my unbalanced first stages creep after that treatment.

 

[Nemrod]

The forum at Vintage Double Hose is your best bet.

I have converted all of my DA Aqua Masters to a RAM nozzle. I was fortunate in that I had a couple of spares to do so with. I think for the next year, I am going back to basics, banjo, heavy yoke, my best round label RAM (or my RAM Voit Navy), will be what I dive at SD this year if I get to go. I have never been a big fan of the DA, they can be tuned to breath quite well, compared to your Legend inhalation will generally be rather stiff, exhalation will be better. A RAM can be tuned with a little knowledge (easily learned) to breath (overall) as well as modern regs like the Legend.

Order more than one duckbill. Like several.

Good luck with your new twin hose.

N

 

[SwimJim]

One more thing not on the list. Vintage Double Hose has the manuals on CD. I'd get that and look through it carefully before pulling the first C - clip.

 

[owensct]

All,

Thanks for all the useful information

1. I will join the forum at VDH as suggested

2. I will be diving the backpack with my modern gear first before trying the DH, if for no other reason than the fact that it will be a bit before I can fork out the monies for the rebuild parts :depressed: and I have no intention of waiting that long to go diving again

3. I downloaded the manuals last week and have been reading through the material

Now for my follow-up question, with all the reading I have been doing, one of the first things that crossed my mind was upgrading the DA to a RAM by replacing the DA nozzle with a RAM nozzle. So the next obvious question is where does one find such a beast? Are there any other Aqualung regs that utilized the same nozzle as the RAM, like a early single hose? Does anyone have a RAM nozzle they want to sell?


Cheers,

Gordon

 

[Slonda828]

This topic has been covered at (nudge, nudge ):

Vintage Double Hose

 

[halocline]

Matt, a little jewelry polish and an architect's eraser will get rid of any IP creep that is not a result of a totally trashed seat or a dinged volcano orifice. None of my unbalanced first stages creep after that treatment.

Well, you had better luck than I did. I used micromesh, which is really good stuff, several grits, and it's worked GREAT on pistons for MK20s (known creepers) and even touching up a MK10 piston. I found with the DA nozzle that no matter what I did, the seats were very finicky and I could never get rock solid IP. Once I got the RAM nozzle (which I also polished a little with micromesh) the problem was totally solved, and the flow is better due to the much smaller IP drop.

The DA is really a good place to start, because they're not that expensive and once you catch the double hose bug, you can upgrade with the phoenix and have a truly great reg.