Why not more titanium?

[Albion]

In saltwater, brass fittings are not acceptable. So SS is not an option, it's a requirement.

Thats why so many propellors are made of Bronze (an alloy of brass) not Stainless steel!!!!!!!!!!

St Steel sucks in salt water, it isnt as resistant as brass. That said all my clips are st stl these days but i do make sure to rinse them. My old brass suicide clips only require rinsing because of the St stl springs which is the weakest link in any clip.

 

[jagfish]

Other than rockets, aircraft and some highly corrosive chemical processing equiptment Ti is overkill and overly expensive. In diving equiptment it's just sales hype.

Captain

Hype and overkill...

Where would capitalizm be without these?

 

[archman]

Other than rockets, aircraft and some highly corrosive chemical processing equiptment Ti is overkill and overly expensive. In diving equiptment it's just sales hype.
Captain

Ever compared the weight of a titanium vs. non-titanium 1st stage? I have, and it makes me sick.

As for knives, the majority of divers rarely (if ever) clean them properly. After a while you're gonna have to sit down and break out the steel wool or dremel. With titanium alloy knives, you're not gonna have to do that probably within your lifetime. It's one less hassle to deal with. Your knife is also at least a third lighter.

You'll see titanium in thousands of consumer applications now, mostly for the weight savings over steel. The outdoor recreation industry is swamped with the stuff, and people have been pleased with their purchases. Most high performance equipment utilizes it now, if not polycarbonate. Often both.

 

[jagfish]

LOL
I was actually given a titanium drinking flask for camping, even a Ti cup to match...

You're right, it's making it way into all kinds of stuff and it could possibly be said that the transition into diving is slower compared to the relative benefits offerred compared to other activities where titanium might currently be utilized more.

 

[Kennedydive]

My experiences with titanium at work are that it is lighter than SS and depending on the Grade can be stronger. We use Grade 2 when we want something stronger than aluminum and resist corrosion. It falls between SS and ALUM in strength. Grade 5 or 6AL-4V is much stronger than SS. Grade 5 TI will yield at around 120,000 psi and break at 130,000 psi. SS will yield at 30,000-45,000 psi and break around 70,000 psi. This means SS will bend before it breaks where as TI has little room from its yield and it's ultimate. We have a pressure housing that we are taking to 8000 meters made from this grade. It is more expensive to buy Ti than SS but marginally and now that the SS prices have skyrocketed, it may be closer still. The problem we have incurred is that many machinists are not familiar with it, the books say you are to machine at slow speeds with lots of liquid so the time in which it takes to machine something is now more man hours, and you ruin milling bits in doing so. As a company we have not welded the stuff because we do not know if any of our welding companies know how to, are certified to, or what damage heat from welding does to the material strength. For example 6061-T6 aluminum will turn to 6061-T0 in the heat affected zones due to welding significantly reducing the strength in these areas.
Jason

 

[Walter]

Ti knives IMO are far superior to SS knives for saltwater use.

No arguments, but why pay more money than necessary for something that is likely to be lost? Knives are disposable items.

Ever compared the weight of a titanium vs. non-titanium 1st stage?

Yes, While the titanium is much lighter than the brass, the brass is still extremely light. The brass regulator is not heavy, so the weight savings is unnecessary. If the brass 1st stage were fairly heavy, it would mean dropping some lead. No advantage to titanium over brass in regulators, especially if you're using mixes with more that 40% O2.

I am not aware of a use for titanium in diving where I wouldn't consider brass or stainless the better choice.

 

[jumbo]

Knives are disposable! You hit a good point, I believe that eliminating an expensive knife and understanding that knives are disposable you are less likely to fixate on it if you drop it. This is a major concern is if you’re heavily narced and involved in decompression diving where every minute is precious.

The odds of cutting yourself lose and maintaining a cool and composed state could be low. And I’ve read accounts of divers dropping their knife in a shipwreck and fixating or struggling to recover it, all the while committing themselves to more decompression than they were prepared to handle; and ending up in major trouble.

This practice is not applicable to everyone; but personally I carry a $10 spyderco replica and a pair of stainless steel shears that I bought for $15 at a hardware store, and I would more than happily donate either one of those to the ocean gods if necessary. I try and think of them as a one time use tool, any more uses is just a bonus.

The only time titanium regulators would be advantageous to brass would be considering traveling weight restrictions on luggage, and saving a few pounds could make for an easier trip. But for the cost of a Ti reg, you could just pay the over weight fee of your luggage.


JUMBO

 

[deadend]

No arguments, but why pay more money than necessary for something that is likely to be lost? Knives are disposable items.



Where do you dive? I'd like to come pick up a few of your knives. I've never lost a knife. I've lost plenty of other s%^t though. I wouldn't be heartbroken if I did, just haven't ever been that unfortunate. I use a knife to kill fish mostly and have cut myself out of mono more times than I can count. If I had to bring some cheap shears down that would be more crap I don't need. I've never cut or poked myself or anyone/thing else either.

 

[archman]

I'll have to say I've never lost a knife either. I only buy models with superior sheath systems, though. My students, however are always dropping their knives all over the place. Don't swim underneath them!

The lightweight regulator components are specifically marketed for airline travelers. That's where the titanium components really shine.

 

[jonnythan]

How much less does a titanium reg weigh than a brass one?