sherwood or mares

[herman]

Keep the Mares, it's a better reg and they don't have any parts issues.

Then where are the diaphragm and exhaust valves I ordered 2 months ago?.....and yes the shop is a Mares dealer and they did order them.

 

[SeeWorld]

Can't speak for Mares ... BUT been a Sherwood Oasis diver for years. Never a problem. All I do is annual check up for the regs at my LDS.
Happy Shopping, SeeWorld

 

[imwright1985]

if you can personally care less between both of them for what you use then find out what has the easiest parts availibility for you or is easiest to find reasonable priced service in the area

 

[divenutny]

I have an old Magnum. Works great, very dependable. Not my primary reg, but it never let me down. If there is a regulator I would stay away from, it is Mares/Dacor. The parent company for Mares appears to have a business plan where they stop making parts for their regulators after they reach a certain age. You can find more on that topic by searching SB.

As stated in a prior response, dive with both of the regulars then decide on which reg you want to keep. You may want to consider the shops that will service the reg for you, unless you service them yourself. I had to change shops because every time I serviced my reg, the second stage would leak. I found another shop where one visit to the shop for a reg service was sufficient.

Have fun deciding

 

[Thalassamania]

It depends on how much diving you do. They are both good regulators, if I had to choose one to sit in the closet and be ready to go a few months later ... it'd be the Proton. The first stage is far less likely, IMHO, to take a set. Otherwise, dive 'em and decide.

 

[RAWalker]

Hi Ryan,
As I see it the Sherwood Maximus is one of the more reliable cold water regs and is well known as a bulletproof design. This is why they are commonly found as rentals.
I used one when I did my pool and open water checkout dives a few years back and it's performance is very good although there are plenty of newer regs that are better.
I did like the right angle connection at the second stage and the under the arm routing.
As you are local to me I know that parts and service are readily available for the Sherwood on our side of the valley.

 

[DiveGear4Less]

Another vote for Sherwood. They are workhorse regulators good for a variety of conditions.

 

[TN Traveler]

I have an old Magnum. Works great, very dependable. Not my primary reg, but it never let me down. If there is a regulator I would stay away from, it is Mares/Dacor. The parent company for Mares appears to have a business plan where they stop making parts for their regulators after they reach a certain age. You can find more on that topic by searching SB.

As stated in a prior response, dive with both of the regulars then decide on which reg you want to keep. You may want to consider the shops that will service the reg for you, unless you service them yourself. I had to change shops because every time I serviced my reg, the second stage would leak. I found another shop where one visit to the shop for a reg service was sufficient.

Have fun deciding

Another answer from someone who "thinks he heard" --- :depressed::depressed:

Mares still supports regulators made by them more than 20 years ago - in fact, most older Mares regs can be upgraded with the newest parts (Trimaterial poppets and seats).

Now the truth - Mares bought Dacor a couple of years ago. Dacor was bankrupt and had not been paying suppliers - so the suppliers discarded the Dacor tooling. Because of this, Mares could not get new parts for the older Dacor Regs, once the existing stock ran out. Mares offered a "trade in" program for older Dacor Regs - to try and ease the pain of older Dacor owners. For this, Mares has taken the heat - NOT FAIR!!! Mares made a bad business decision by buying Dacor - but did not intentionally stop making parts for Dacor regs - if you want to blame someone for this problem, direct your ire at the former Dacor executives who milked the company dry. Without Mares offer of "trade ins" Dacor folks would have just been totally left with unserviceable gear.

Now as far as Mares customer support - about 8-10 years ago, Mares did have a problem with parts supplies - but that has been fixed. There is no problem getting parts for any Mares regulators (except I think the MK II 2nd stage). If your LDS says he can't get parts - then he is behind on his account and on a "cash basis". ScubaToys services Mares ($49 for 1st and 2-2nds), with a 2 day turnaround - so I guess parts/service can be had.

Mares regs are solid performers and will outperform Sherwood - but I doubt you would push the limits on either. If you want to minimize dry mouth - the Mares metal bodied 2nds are great. Proton Metals are probably the easiest breathers on the market - but most techs won't tune them that tight - so, if you get "average" service, most regs breath the same.

The best advise given was to try both and buy the one YOU like the most.