"Old" scuba gear

[DennisS]

My old one is a Conshelf XIV and my new ones are Scubapro MK10-G250s.

 

[tankboygreg]

I dive with a pair of IDI power fins from the 70's. They are still available from XS Scuba.

 

[erparamedic]

My regs, computer, BC, fins, booties, and snorkel are all 10 years old. My wetsuits, mask, weight belt and weights are all less than a year old.

I have no plans to upgrade any of my old stuff. I get my regs serviced regularly and have never had a problem.

 

[Adobo]

I dive a scubapro d300 primary and a g200b secondary (paired with mk 17s which are new). I know the d300 was made starting in the early 80s. So I suspect this unit is at least 20 years old.

This kit breathes better than my G250HP/S550 (paired with mk10s which are prolly 20+ years old). I think the difference is that the old second stages just breath better. The first stages I would guess are about on par.

 

[captain]

All of my regulators, masks, fins, tanks, knives and gauges are at least 20 years old.

 

[Bluey]

My primary, 1st and 2nd, as well as my octo are all my original purchase 22 years ago. Conshelf SE.

Guages were changed out due to incorrect storage, but everything else is original. Drove my LDS nuts when they attempted to find an adapter for my Air2. I had the original US Divers box with all the fittings, so I was able to produce the needed adapter, new out of the box.

At 200', it breathes as if you are on the surface (even inverted)

Yeah my Conshelf SE3 breaths dry in all positions and only slightly hard when inverted, yet I read reports of modern regs that breath hard and very wet when inverted! What's with that?

 

[spectrum]

I read reports of modern regs that breath hard and very wet when inverted! What's with that?

It's often the misinterpreded resut of having the lungs substantially lower in the water column than the second stage. This makes the diver pull aganst more inches of water to fill the lungs. The same is experienced when hanging plumb, head up at depth. Go head down and the breathing get lighter or may even free flow a little if delicately tuned.

Older second stages had diaphrams the size of cat food cans with a lot of mechanical advantage. More compact designs give up that advantage but try to compensate with other technology.

Pete

 

[Loneranger]

Still dive a conshelf 20 around 20 y/o.

 

[Jibeho]

My oldest stuff would be..
Sherwood 3600 Maximus about 12 years old
Dacor Turbo flex fins about 20 years old (semi-retired)
Dacor Vista mask 17 yeas old use every dive.
Full foot booties 22 years old use every dive.

All my other gear is new as in the past 4 years.

 

[Nemrod]

I still have my first Calypso from 1966 and it works just fine and I still dive it. I also have a Mistral from 1958 given me about 68 and it still gets dived. I have lot's of my original and still fully functional gear from the late 60s and early 70s. The so called vintage or "traditional" gear is actually much more sturdy than the modern plastic stuff. I have new gear and everything in between and a hole slew of 80s stuff. They are all fun to dive. I just bought a brand new Aqua Lung Legend to see what the fuss was over, it is not a very good regulator, does not breath well and seems cheaply made of thin plastic.

It is fun, I can dig back into my dive closet and pull out the exact items I used in 1968, 1973 etc. Some modern gear has just gone crazy in price and non functional design --example--these weird snorkels they make now for 60 dollars!!!! My latest young dive buddy refers to traditional gear as old school, yeah, maybe, but it is more funtional, more streamlined, more durable.

In this picture that is a circa late 60s sharskin 1/4 inch beavertail suit, early 80s Tekna T2100 second, circa 1973 Royal Aqua Master with Phoenix conversion, early 80s Seatec wing on a Hammer Head BP with new Mares X Vision and 1968 Voit weight belt, Luxfer aluminum 80, ScubaPro Super Jets. I am just about to be handed a slung 30 buddy bottle with 1980s Tekna T2100 regulator. The only reason I use that stupid Mares mask is that it has bifocals which are handy reading my buddies even more stupid dive computer console thingy. The console I am using is all rubber 70s ScubaPro mini universal with 1974 USD SPG and mid 80s Tekna super accurate 0-240 tell-tale depth guage and early 80s Princeton Tectonics mechanical pressure activated analog timer and old Ikelite compass on wrist. The Dacor whisle I found on the bottom a long time ago and the Tekna knife handle you can see is also from my 80s period---now I am in my eclectic period. N