Used Scuba gear

[Nisso13]

I bought my Mares reg used in 2005 and still going strong. I bought it at our local dive shop, so can't comment on online buying.

thank you so much. happy for you. i think for my first Reg, i will go with new one. i like the Z2. thank you for your advice

 

[Julius SCHMIDT]

I've never bought new regs

SCUBAPRO REGULATOR X650 +MK11 LATER MODEL STERILIZED | eBay

and never had a problem

and my credit bill is empty

 

[Jackie Treehorn]

The only thing i've purchased used before were Fourth Element Artic undergarments with good pictures.

I'd buy a backplate used as well. That's about the limits of my trust.

 

[Julius SCHMIDT]

Trust is diving gear serviced by others buying second hand is knowledge used undergarments is sensational

 

[OTF]

I love used gear, I buy and dive tons of used gear.

Regs are the toughest thing to buy used. NOT because they're scary life support equipment that must be bought new and will kill you because someone else dived them first. But rather because they will almost certainly need servicing before you dive them, and the cost of getting them serviced (or your time+parts DIYing it) offsets the savings substantially compared to new ready-to-dive regs.

edit: i dive used undergarments. in fact i logged multiple dives on used undergarments that i didn't even wash first. sensational indeed.

 

[Julius SCHMIDT]

It has always been way over one year before any of my purchased used regs have required servicing

 

[Pressurehead]

I have only ever bought two used regulators , only because they came as full kits of gear at a good price, then sell what I don't want [eBay etc], kept one regulator, looked OK , the IP was good with no creep.
The regulator is an Aqualung Core [the only diaphragm regulator I own] had to look it up online for specs , the two 2nd stages breathe very well [did a shallow dive with it] , [ will I strip it ? Can't help myself]. came with a console with compass, SPG and i300 computer in good order, what to do, sell or keep?
This is all "Waffle", I WILL sell it, no question , and dive the regulators I have bought new [last year] or older ones [which I bought new] which I have service myself.
It's life support [Bingo].

 

[Neilwood]

I think the safe answer is, if you buy in the knowledge of the regs needing a service and take that into account price wise, then you can get a bargain.

If you buy used (without allowing for a service) you are taking a big gamble unless they come from a trusted source such as a friend (where you know their history and how they treat gear).

That said there are a lot of new regs out there where the high cost is down to bling and has no actual function. Apeks are one such manufacturer - a set of XTX 200 regs will set you back a pretty penny but an XTX 40 costs a lot less and functionally is very similar (but missing minor features).

 

[Zef]

I think the safe answer is, if you buy in the knowledge of the regs needing a service and take that into account price wise, then you can get a bargain.

If you buy used (without allowing for a service) you are taking a big gamble unless they come from a trusted source such as a friend (where you know their history and how they treat gear).

That said there are a lot of new regs out there where the high cost is down to bling and has no actual function. Apeks are one such manufacturer - a set of XTX 200 regs will set you back a pretty penny but an XTX 40 costs a lot less and functionally is very similar (but missing minor features).

I agree mostly with what you have stated, but there can be internal issues with a reg set that can't necessarily be easily resolved with a standard servicing/rebuild...and might need more extensive parts replacement. For some, particularly the DIYer who have established a way to obtain parts that may not be such a big issue but for others who have service done by a shop, it could cause costs to rise significantly and approximate that of a new reg set. For things like damaged HP orifices machined into the 1st stage body this could very easily approach or exceed the cost of new regulator when service fees along with parts costs are taken into consideration.

There is a monetary threshold, that when passed, even if it is less than the cost of "new", is not worth the savings when for "used". That threshold is very individual.

-Z

 

[Nisso13]

i think the main difference between me and you all is the fact that you know your stuff and can identify a good Reg. know what to do with it and so on... this will be my first Reg and i don't think i take any chance... i was very tempted to buy the SP MK25 used that i know is very reliable Reg for so low price , but than decided to go with new Z2 , have some dives and upgrade to what i need going forward . do you guys think it is a good choice ? i will probably not go deeper than 100F and dive maybe 25-50 dives a year... Thank you so much