Tool list for reg service

[Slamfire]

I finished Vance Harlow's first thorough read thru. Now I'll start scrounging up basic tools. I already have common tools like good wrench set, hex keys, adjustable wrenches, etc. I included in the list items from the common tools category that I don't already have.

Would you guys please look through the list and let me know if this is adequate for a beginner? Please point out things that I may be missing or that may be superfluous. Thanks.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I would get the crowfoot wrenches and a decent 3/8 microtorque wrench. I also have an untrasonic cleaner ( mine was 150 or so) with heat, a magnahelic gauge or gauges ( these are really cheap like 10-15 bucks) I have one in inches and one in millibars. I;d also add a non marring faced hammer. A soft jawed vise and some small wire brushes.

 

[Zung]

If you have a yoke MK10, you need the yoke nut socket. I haven't seen a crawfoot that fits in or around the yoke.

You also need 2 torque wrenches: a 22 ft.-lbs 3/8" for the yoke nut, and a 35 in.-lbs 1/4" for the turret retainer.

The HP o-ring tool kit could make your life less miserable, even though the residents gurus here don't like it. In particular with the MK10 where the groove is very close to the outside and the o-ring keeps falling off unless you find a creative way to plug it. My current plan, yet untested, is to use a chopstick with a tie wrap at the end. But then the tool is only 18 bucks.

An ultrasonic cleaner is really nice. I paid 30$ for mine at a local supermarket.

Oh, and a meter (yard) or so of 1/4" hose and a ruler make a fine manometer.

 

[redacted]

Many of the special tools do have a work-around if you are not in a hurry. I'd go with a vise and forget the 1st stage holder. The multitool is nice but a strap wench with a rivet through the strap can be used on the ambient chamber and bent nose pliers will work as the pin spanner for the HP set retainer. You can make your own yoke nut socket - just use a dremel tool to cut away everything that doesn't fit. I have heard of some making their own bullet tool and other who get away with just inserting the piston with no special tool. I have a magnehelic but still prefer the sink full of water. An IP gauge is a must but an automotive compression gauge with an adapter works fine. An ultra-sonic cleaner is great on old nasty regs but not really necessary on clean regs. I like the scubatools pick set but other prefer brass.

 

[Slamfire]

If you have a yoke MK10, you need the yoke nut socket. I haven't seen a crawfoot that fits in or around the yoke.

All DIN now. The last Mk10 was converted and tested a few weeks ago.

You also need 2 torque wrenches: a 22 ft.-lbs 3/8" for the yoke nut, and a 35 in.-lbs 1/4" for the turret retainer.

Today I got the ft-lbs torque wrench. I think it'll be hard to accurately use it to torque 35 in-lbs. This one, though, is $165. Are all these accurate, microtorque wrenches this expensive?

I'd go with a vise and forget the 1st stage holder.

I was thinking of just buying regular bolts for stage holders.

I have heard of some making their own bullet tool and other who get away with just inserting the piston with no special tool.

I was going to make a bullet myself, but then I saw it's only $6, so I can easily bundle it up with the rest of the order.

I have a magnehelic but still prefer the sink full of water.

I want to do the at least the first round with the sink full of water method. The book was great and teaches you a whole lot about regs. So it is not a waste of time by any means. But the truth is, I still do not know how far into servicing regs I want to go. For this first tryout I want to keep things simple and avoid getting in too deep with specialized equipment that may have slightly less time-efficient alternatives that are still perfectly viable.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Today I got the ft-lbs torque wrench. I think it'll be hard to accurately use it to torque 35 in-lbs. This one, though, is $165. Are all these accurate, microtorque wrenches this expensive?

I purchased a used 0-300 in.-lbs. 3/8-inch drive CDI dial torque wrench on Ebay for about $60. It works well. Properly calibrated, a similar torque wrench should meet your reg assembly needs.

For my newer, relatively clean Apeks regs, I found that I didn't need a heated ultrasonic cleaner. Depending on the reg part, I used either mild dish soap or short vinegar baths followed by copious water rinses. I was happy with the results.

I didn't bother with purchasing a magnehelic gauge. I use the bucket-o-water method for guesstimating cracking pressure.

You don't need a fancy, shmancy i.p. gauge that costs an arm and a leg. I bought an inexpensive (less than $20) one that works just fine for reg overhauls.

 

[Zung]

... Today I got the ft-lbs torque wrench. I think it'll be hard to accurately use it to torque 35 in-lbs. This one, though, is $165. Are all these accurate, microtorque wrenches this expensive?...

Since you already have the other one, just buy a cheap 1/4" click-type for $20 and calibrate it yourself.

 

[redacted]

I was thinking of just buying regular bolts for stage holders.

A regular bolt is steel while the regulator is brass. If you ever have to put more pressure on that connection than it can take, the regulator loses.

Mk10s are fine in a vise or even just stood on so body is fixed while the din retainer is loosened and tightened. I use an old HP hose screwed into my Mk2s. At least that is brass on brass with an o-ring to absorb some of the force.

 

[Zung]

+1
Standing with a foot on the reg body works wonderful: I no longer use a vise!

 

[Slamfire]

Very interesting. I'll try the hoses and foot method. I probably still have a leaky hose(s) laying around. Thanks guys.