Servicing your own regs/BCD

[1RUSTYRIG]

Anyone out there, that isn't 'formally' trained, servicing their own gear? If so, what reference manuals, videos, etc did you use?

I am getting kinda worn down on paying the LDS to replace O-rings at a ridiculous rate (I just picked up my regs and BCD for $320 on the annual service) :shocked2:

Time to start doing it myself. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Looking for resources to include places to purchase replacements parts.

Cheers!
Kevin

 

[Jim Lapenta]

What gear cost $320 to get serviced. How many regs? Under warranty? I'll be doing 4 regs, 2 BPW setups, and a jacket bc next week. Cost- 120 bucks. Yes I do service my own. Spent 200 on tools, manuals are free if you know where to look, and I did take a factory course when I worked for a shop. Kits for may are available. As for books Oxyhackers reg servicing and Scubatools regulator savy are great resources.

 

[redacted]

Anyone out there, that isn't 'formally' trained, servicing their own gear? If so, what reference manuals, videos, etc did you use?

I am getting kinda worn down on paying the LDS to replace O-rings at a ridiculous rate (I just picked up my regs and BCD for $320 on the annual service) :shocked2:

Time to start doing it myself. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Looking for resources to include places to purchase replacements parts.

Cheers!
Kevin

I guess they used K-Y jelly rather than Christolube. OUCH.

A great reference to get started is SCUBA REGULATOR MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR by Vance Harlow

Even if you change your mind about DIY, it is worth the $50 just to know more about your gear. While servicing regs is failrly easy if you have reasonable mechanical abilities, it is not for everyone. What kind of regs are you talking about and what makes you think you will be able to service them?

 

[halocline]

I strongly recommend it, servicing my own gear has really increased my enjoyment of diving. One nice thing is I have confidence that my reg was serviced correctly, and I can fix little problems that occasionally come up. Even if it cost more to service my own gear I would do it.

Regulators are pretty simple devices (most are, anyhow). It's not too hard to learn how to work on them, if you have some innate mechanical ability and some patience.

 

[Couv]

Kevin,

Welcome to the DIY club.

First decide if your regulator really needs servicing.....see this thread:
Regulator checklist and inspection

Here are a few links to questions similar to yours:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/250105-regulator-self-service.html

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/266719-scubatools-dual-drive-adjusting-tool-scubapro-balanced-chamber-tool.html

And here is my standard cut and paste advice:

Both service manuals usually discussed here are great ; Vance Harlow's "SCUBA Regulator Maintenance …." http://www.airspeedpress.com/newregbook.html and the Scuba Tools book, "Regulator Savvy" http://www.scubatools.com/ are well worth the money. I own both and recommend getting one of each. If you are dead set on getting only one, then Vance's is a little more suitable for the DIY guy while the ScubaTools book is more suitable for the shop worker. ScubaTools has some pretty decent tools too, so if you order from there pay a few extra bucks and get the bullets, spanners, etc that you need with your first order and save on shipping. After just one or two seasons of servicing your own gear, you will have recovered your investment.

​

Here are a couple of websites with tons of regulator specific manuals:

Regulator manuals

http://www.frogkick.dk/manuals/

Good luck,

Couv

 

[TSandM]

For servicing your BC, I highly recommend Tobin's wonderful inflator tool.. Of course, Tobin has a bunch of clever gadgets to make a diver's life easier!

 

[1RUSTYRIG]

Thanks for all the responses guys. I pretty much made up my mind to start servicing my own gear long before this bill but the responses here have gone a long way to reinforce the decision.

To answer the common question the bill was for:
4x Zeagle regs (2x DS-V and 2 Envoy)
1 Sherwood Outback BC

The regs are about 6 years old now and the BCD is 5.

 

[1RUSTYRIG]

and what makes you think you will be able to service them?

I guess I would say that I am smarter than the average bear? If I take it apart and self service and it fails I can switch to one of the now gold plated models to ascend

 

[1RUSTYRIG]

For servicing your BC, I highly recommend Tobin's wonderful inflator tool.. Of course, Tobin has a bunch of clever gadgets to make a diver's life easier!

I just noticed the multi-quote function but I am too lazy to go back and edit my posts.

I like that tool but I have the sherwood BCD tool already in the tool box. That one seems like it would do the trick though (and at a much cheaper cost!)

 

[redacted]

I guess I would say that I am smarter than the average bear? If I take it apart and self service and it fails I can switch to one of the now gold plated models to ascend

Well, there are folks who call AAA to get a tire changed - they need to stay away from regs. I have always enjoyed (and been fairly successful) tackling mechanical tasks so regs were just a natural when the professionals repeatedly disappointed me.

With a few exceptions, errors when you service a reg are not dangerous as they render the reg obviously unusable. The main exception is over or under tightening a connection. Follow torque specs and perform hand checks on all accessible connections.

The price your shop charged for 4 regulator kits and a BCD was not at all unreasonable. Yet, that is a lot of $$ for what was likely unnecessary service. The really nice thing about DIY is that you know your tech is every bit as concerned as you are with doing a quality job.