I have had an MR-22 Abyss regulator since buying it used from my local dive shop owner in 2003. It has consistently had a problem with breathing wet in certain positions. For instance, if I am horizontal and rotate to my left, I will get water in the reg. Same with going head down: water in the reg. When I'm not in these positions, the Abyss is a joy to dive with -- effortless breathing and otherwise relaible. I've dived with it probably 60 times over the last 4 years. I just learned to simultaneously breathe in and spit out. Annoying, but workable. Obviously not optimal, however.
I have had the reg looked at multiple times, and have spent over $500 in efforts to fix this problem. Most recently, in February 2006, we discovered that the cap of the second stage had a crack around the edge. The local dive shop hypothesized that the crack was causing the wet breathing and rebuilt the thing, with new diaphragm and new cap from Mares. It still breathed wet on my August 2006 dive trip. In February 2007, I had it looked at by 2 different dive shops. The first said there was nothing wrong with it and they couldn't understand why it was breathing wet. The second found a hole on the side of the mouthpiece. I bought a new Seacure moldable mouthpiece, and was eager to see if that fixed the frustrating problem.
In Grand Cayman in March 2007, the problem seemed to be even worse! The reg was wet on rotate left, rotate right, AND head down. I tried out the octo [Aqualung -- no problems in the past], and IT breathed wet, too, and in all positions! Fearing an imminent catastrophic failure, and a possible first stage problem [both primary and octo seconds were wet now], I rented a regulator for the rest of the trip. I had it looked at again on my return home, and the dive shop could find no problem with either the first or second stages.
I just got back from a week in Cozumel, and didn't even bother to take the Abyss -- I used an Aeres ATMOS Sport. It was perfectly fine, but I realized how much easier the Abyss breathes in comparison.
While in Cozumel, a diver I met suggested I post to this board, saying he had had a similar wet-breathing issue with his Proton, and Mares stepped up to the plate and came to the rescue. So here's my question: can Mares fix this regulator? I'm prepared -- reluctantly -- to move on, but if I could get the Abyss working properly again, I'd much prefer that than the ATMOS.
This is my last ditch effort to rehabilitate not only my regulator, but also Mares's reputation, at least in my own mind and opinion. What do you think?
I have had the reg looked at multiple times, and have spent over $500 in efforts to fix this problem. Most recently, in February 2006, we discovered that the cap of the second stage had a crack around the edge. The local dive shop hypothesized that the crack was causing the wet breathing and rebuilt the thing, with new diaphragm and new cap from Mares. It still breathed wet on my August 2006 dive trip. In February 2007, I had it looked at by 2 different dive shops. The first said there was nothing wrong with it and they couldn't understand why it was breathing wet. The second found a hole on the side of the mouthpiece. I bought a new Seacure moldable mouthpiece, and was eager to see if that fixed the frustrating problem.
In Grand Cayman in March 2007, the problem seemed to be even worse! The reg was wet on rotate left, rotate right, AND head down. I tried out the octo [Aqualung -- no problems in the past], and IT breathed wet, too, and in all positions! Fearing an imminent catastrophic failure, and a possible first stage problem [both primary and octo seconds were wet now], I rented a regulator for the rest of the trip. I had it looked at again on my return home, and the dive shop could find no problem with either the first or second stages.
I just got back from a week in Cozumel, and didn't even bother to take the Abyss -- I used an Aeres ATMOS Sport. It was perfectly fine, but I realized how much easier the Abyss breathes in comparison.
While in Cozumel, a diver I met suggested I post to this board, saying he had had a similar wet-breathing issue with his Proton, and Mares stepped up to the plate and came to the rescue. So here's my question: can Mares fix this regulator? I'm prepared -- reluctantly -- to move on, but if I could get the Abyss working properly again, I'd much prefer that than the ATMOS.
This is my last ditch effort to rehabilitate not only my regulator, but also Mares's reputation, at least in my own mind and opinion. What do you think?
