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First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 8:55 am
by Bryan
Luis, Herman and I have been working on this for a while. Lightweight aluminum rings contoured specifically for the Argonaut cans. Provides structural support and protection in the event of heavy impact. Not 100% sure what direction I'm going to go with this project so stay tuned for details. Luis will provide engineering data when he returns and gets caught up.
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Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 10:05 am
by ScubaLawyer
Luis showed me a prototype at SHF. I thought it looked great. I asked if he could pimp-my-Argonaut too. 8) Mark

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 11:42 am
by rhwestfall
after you smashed yours, i became very nervous of killing mine. As it was part of the initial campaign, I would be just sick if it met it's demise,,,,

These seem "interesting".

Keep up the brainstorming!

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 1:40 pm
by Bryan
My regulator fell while still attached to the cylinder from the bench and hit directly on the cans. Even metal cans would have been ruined from that height and from the direct impact. The Argonaut cans act as kind of a crumple zone and keep much of an impact from being transferred to the yoke, valve or body. The cans are not unique and it takes about 15 minutes to swap them out for another set of already prepped cans. With the modular design of the first and second stages I didn't even need to adjust the lever height or any other corrections when I swapped them out.
I have repaired more than one Phoenix equipped regulator in similar circumstances that not only lost the metal cans but also the yoke. If I would have thought to gather and keep the pieces that broke off my cans I'm convinced I could have glued them back together (not recommended) and been none the worse off.
The Armor rings would help in a situations where the regulator itself is dropped on hard surfaces or in overhead environments where impacting the cans is possible while diving.
Since they are aluminum they can be painted, anodized, powder coated or ceramic coated so it gives the Argonaut owner an opportunity to customize the look of their regulator if they so desire.
Still a work in progress.

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 2:24 pm
by ScubaLawyer
The sample Luis showed me was uncoated metal. Even then the silver color really "popped" and made the whole regulator look real snazzy. Gonna be another "gottahav." Mark

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2016 7:54 am
by Drado
Dove Luis' Kraken with the uncoated rings. They add a nice sort of bling to the reg itself - but are still surprisingly lightweight!

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Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2016 11:51 am
by ScubaLawyer
You guys look uber professional! I'm sure the other divers on your boat are jealous. Have fun. Mark

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2016 2:22 pm
by sitkadiver
Is it just me, or does this reg look somewhat Non-Mag-ish..........? hmmmmmmmm......

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2017 9:26 pm
by Benjamin
Noticed these are no longer available ...... well be hunting down rubber edge protector and put that on my Kraken .... Don't want my baby getting hurt .

Re: First Look.....Argonaut Armor

Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2017 10:17 pm
by Nemrod
Benjamin wrote:Noticed these are no longer available ...... well be hunting down rubber edge protector and put that on my Kraken .... Don't want my baby getting hurt .
Not sure about the edge protector? What do you have in mind? I have been known to overdo things because I too am particular. But at some point, and that is up to each of our OCD levels, it becomes a futile endeavor. I try to strike a balance, not sure very successful that way, but Bryan does offer new cans for a fair price if you damage a can.

I did manage to bust an edge off of my favorite Kraken in the Caymans when I dropped it, with some acceleration behind it, on the tile floor of our room. It only cracked a small sliver off and I continued to dive the regulator. Then when I got home I ordered a new can top from Bryan. Would a rubber edge protector have helped? Not sure. Other than this one misadventure my Kraken has so far proven quite sturdy. And that drop that cracked the edge off of the Kraken would likely have put a large, ugly dent into a brass can and might have required some reshaping to retain a seal on the main diaphragm to continue diving. It was a hard lick.

Nem