Tue Aug 08, 2006 7:36 pm
Nemrod rubber is usually very good. The hoses are secured with unattractive, but very good stainless steel clamps. The covers can be preserved with some automotive rubber protector which will lubricate the rubber and make it easier to take off. Should they tear you can just remove the clamps and use very heavy cable ties. An Aqua Lung dealer might be able to get the new Mistral clamps which would look okay. The protectors tend to hold sea water and are more for appearances than anything else. I have seen racing bike inner tubes cut as rings and used as covers. Large hose clamps found at hardware stores actually look very good, if you want to go that way.
I have a new Snark III and my 20 year old son has a new Snark III Silver. He won't use anything else.They are excellent regulators. Twin tank one piece manifolds and single J valves are often on ebay and there is a pressure gauge there now. It attaches to the HP port on the back. There are two sizes of HP fittings used by Nemrod and the one on ebay may require an adapter.
The third stage is just a LP pressure release. If it leaks you can usually just screw it down, or at least that worked on mine. There may be a way to adapt that to an LP line, but I would have to bow to someone elses expertise on that one. LP blow off's protect upstream demand valves. However, attaching it to a combination octapus/BDC filler would serve the purpose and provide the diver with a more conventional rig.
Original tanks, I believe were actually intended to be fire extinguisher bottles, and have a unique base that eliminates the need for a boot. Nemrod did use more conventional tanks too.