SP MK7/Air 1 Service - Experience with EBayer 'warm water jack'

[Alfred from Newfoundland]

Folks

I would like to get my ScubaPro MK7 with Air 1 second stage serviced as I am getting back into SCUBA after a long hiatus. There is no longer factory support so normal dive shops cannot provide this service but I have come across a “ScubaPro expert” who sells a a lot of SP regs on EBay and he assured me that he can fully service my regulator. He goes by the handle WarmWaterJack. Does anyone have any experience with him? My plans are for shallow water (60’ or less) open water diving on air only so nothing particularly technical or difficult.
what has your experience been?

 

[lexvil]

Any particular reason you want to stick with these?

 

[Open Ocean Diver]

I had a bad experience, he wouldn’t refund my money for an item he sold with a misleading description. Thankfully PayPal investigated along with eBay in my favour.

 

[rhwestfall]

Expanding on @lexvil comment, that particular stage (MK-7 "Honker") is pretty uncommon, proprietary components, discontinued, etc. It is somewhat a novelty, where other "vintage" designs are pretty much common, and parts can usually be sourced.

For what you are likely to spend on service, something like a MK-5 or MK-10 will be much friendlier to deal with....

The Air-1 is also a somewhat "unicorn" these days. Something like a 109/156 or 108Hp are really the ones that are easiest to keep going if vintage is your thing. There are no replacement parts available for the Air-1 (D-series service kit has some pieces), so keeping it going will be a challenge.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

If you just want to get back to diving with decent gear as cheaply as possible, look into Deep6 and HOG. You can likely buy new of both for not much more than servicing those old ones.

What you have are more collectors items now than serviceable regs.

 

[Yawana-Dive]

I’ve bought a couple of regs from WarmWaterJack and he’s legitimate.

 

[halocline]

Folks

I would like to get my ScubaPro MK7 with Air 1 second stage serviced as I am getting back into SCUBA after a long hiatus.

I don't know the guy you are referring to, but rsingler on this forum is an expert certified SP tech that is very familiar with those regs. The MK7 is basically a MK5 with the honker feature, and as long as that side of it still works, the seat and o-rings for the working part of the reg are absolutely available. One thing about the MK7, there were a few generations; they all had integral yokes cast or machined into the body. The earlier ones had light yokes that are not recommended for 3000 PSI tanks, and as such are best used as paperweights. The later ones have the full strength yoke which will work on any modern yoke tank valve.

The air1 is basically a D series poppet/lever arrangement, and those poppets are readily available. I think rsingler has a stash of assorted parts for those regs, like springs and aspirators. If the diaphragm is not torn on yours, I'm sure it can be returned to service.

Lets say, though, that for whatever reason your regs can't be brought back to life, you can come pretty close by getting a MK5 and D300, which are very similar regs and among the best performing 1st and 2nd stage ever made. Couv or rsingler could hep you in that regard as well.

 

[rhwestfall]

@rsingler and @couv have Pilot/Air1/D-series experience and I believe couv has mk-7 experience that may aid you in the idea of continued use if they are willing to share.

I think rsingler also did a "tutorial" here on the mk-7....

 

[rx7diver]

The MK7 is basically a MK5 with the honker feature, and as long as that side of it still works, the seat and o-rings for the working part of the reg are absolutely available. One thing about the MK7, there were a few generations; they all had integral yokes cast or machined into the body. The earlier ones had light yokes that are not recommended for 3000 PSI tanks, and as such are best used as paperweights. The later ones have the full strength yoke which will work on any modern yoke tank valve.

+1. If you can service a Mk 5 or Mk 10, you can service a Mk 7.

Re: "The earlier ones had light yokes that are not recommended for 3000 PSI tanks, and as such are best used as paperweights." Old-school steel 72's (2,250 psig + 10%), especially, or modern LP steel cylinders (2,400 psig + 10%) work well with the earlier Mk 7 regs. Make sure the K-valve is a standard (i.e., non-DIN convertible) valve--so it isn't too thick.

ETA: I just looked: Vintage Double Hose shows a Mk 7 service kit, and also shows a service kit and a Viton O-ring kit for a Mk 5.

rx7diver

 

[halocline]

Old-school steel 72's (2,250 psig + 10%), especially, or modern LP steel cylinders (2,400 psig + 10%) work well with the earlier Mk 7 regs.

rx7diver

Agreed about the LP72s, but the modern LP tanks are typically filled to 2640 PSI and I wouldn't trust the early lighter yokes on those. They might work, and then again some famous vintage divers supposedly used really light yokes on overfilled tanks (I heard somewhere Cousteau did that) but I wouldn't recommend it. I just think it's simpler for most modern divers who are renting tanks, maybe traveling on dive vacations, to avoid the light yokes. There are plenty of great low cost regs with heavy yokes.

Awap, a former SB member who is a real MK7 fan, has a drawer full of light yoke models he would use as paperweights if he only had any important papers to keep in place.