What year is this and other Voit musings

[Nemrod]

What year is this?



I am trying to put this togther, I have the regulator (sorta) and the SnugPack and a blue mask (alas, not a Voit) and the Voit fins, depth guage and knife. It has to be sometime between 61 and maybe 64?

Did Voit ever offer a banjo and a spg?

My Navy project came with a plastic yoke knob, did the very last Navy units have the MR type plastic knob? Where they long or short yoke?

When did Voit begin selling the SnugPack since the pack on the cover above is clearly a SnugPack?

What year are you sporting this, uh, year?

Nem

[simonbeans]

This photo is from the 1962 Voit Catalog, Snug pack showed up in the 1960 catalog. Last year I can find a Navy is in the 1964 catalog.

[Nemrod]

That is a 50 Fathom in the photo BTW, thanks for the info.

Nem

[capn_tucker]

Interesting thing about the 50 Fathom being on the cover of the 1962 catalog is that it is nowhere to be found inside; already replaced by the Polaris.
You'd think they would've wanted someone using their latest and greatest instead. Go figure..

[1969ivan1]

It is a hot photo and very suggestive. That's why they used it I bet. I have that catalog myself and will probably never part with it.

[simonbeans]

Hopefully one of the Voit historians will respond to your questions, as I am definitely not one. However, thanks to Greg, I have a lot of Voit catalogs and here is what I found about the SPG:
Model S131 Underwater Pressure Gauge was available from Voit in 1962-1965. It was advertised as attaching to the side of the constant reserve valve (J). It also appears that the Voit double hose regulators, Navy being the last offered in 1964, had short yokes, thus I could not find a banjo being marketed by Voit. Interestingly, in 1966 Voit and Swimaster became a company that offered the Trieste as their double hose, but no SPG was available for it (or at least not through Voit/Swimaster) until 1970. Wasn't the Trieste being touted as having the capacity to mount an SPG? I didn't research beyond 1970.

Of particular interest, Voit did not offer any double hose regulators in 1965. They were marketing the Dolphin, the Titan and the Avalon, all single hose.

[simonbeans]

As to the yoke screw. All Voit regulators until 1964 has the metal "T-Shaped" screw. And the Navy, in particulator, keep the metal screw until it was discontinued in 1964. In 1964, Voit used a plastic yoke screw for the first time on their Dolphin (V103) single hose regulator. The Triestes seemed to all have plastic yoke screws.

[Greg Barlow]

Allan's info certainly looks correct to me. The original Dolphin (V101)actually had a metal yoke screw, though. It looks like plastic in the photos, but is actually a brass casting. The Dophin II had the familiar plastic yoke knob.

The original Dolphin's first stage was overly complicated, and was greatly simplified with the introduction of the Trieste and Titan II regs.

I am very suprised that Voit didn't offer a SPG with the standard 3/8" fitting until 1970. The design that they carried through the 70's was an attractive design, and quite small.

Greg

[simonbeans]

Thanks for the update and correction. You are the Voit "go to guy". I just have time to search around. Now, speaking of time. You should be off to school. I'll just watch the buses drive by and not have to organize lesson plans for the day. Retirement is soooooo sweeeeet.

[Greg Barlow]

Ahhh, school you say?!?! Ice and snow last night....There is a break for the wicked and weary...

Greg

[simonbeans]

Snow day??? The prayer of every kid and teacher in the world. Congrats.

[capn_tucker]

Allan's info certainly looks correct to me. The original Dolphin (V101)actually had a metal yoke screw, though. It looks like plastic in the photos, but is actually a brass casting. The Dophin II had the familiar plastic yoke knob.

The original Dolphin's first stage was overly complicated, and was greatly simplified with the introduction of the Trieste and Titan II regs.

I am very suprised that Voit didn't offer a SPG with the standard 3/8" fitting until 1970. The design that they carried through the 70's was an attractive design, and quite small.

Greg

I'll vouch for the Dolphin having a metal yoke knob; mine definitely is chrome plated brass. What's even more curious about Voit not offering an SPG until 1970, is that the earlier catalogs advertise the k and j-valves as being able to accept a submersible pressure gauge.
Maybe they conceded the SPG market to Sportsways and their Sea-Vue gauge; it was very popular back then..

[Nemrod]

Well, this Navy I have that is of course sporting a cherry 50 Fathom label had a short shiny chrome yoke, a shiny chrome body, a shiny chrome back can and a shiny chrome front can (smashed badly I might add) and it had the plastic yoke knob. Now, that does not mean that was standard, perhaps it was lost over the years and replaced, who could guess--or--did the last Navys have a plastic yoke knob.

You know, I have come to believe these companies were never well funded and just grabbed whatever they had at the moment, thus explaining a 50 Fathom on a 62 catalog after it had been replaced by the Polaris .

Nem

[captain]

Slightly off topic but Voit is still around. Mostly in rubber balls for all types of sports but also masks snorkels and duck feet.
When I had the dive shop my Voit/Swim Master rep was a guy from Lafayette, Louisiana named Kerny Leget. I contacted him a couple of years ago and he was still working for Voit.

Here is a link to some of their products for sale on amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_pg_1?ie= ... oit&page=1