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Discussion of diving methods and equipment available prior to the development of BCDs beyond the horse collar. This forum is dedicated to the pre-1970 diving.
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Greg Barlow
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First Name: Greg
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I'm ah gonna' fix this here leakin' scuba regulator....

Fri Feb 10, 2017 7:20 pm

After having rebuilt hundreds of regulators over a forty year time span, I thought that I had seen it all.... A few weeks ago, Rob asked me if I could rebuild a downstream valve Voit 50 Fathom that was slated for use at the upcoming Sea Hunt event. I agreed, and began the process of disassembling the unit. This particular example had the upgraded parts that Voit developed early in the production run.

Normally, I remove the HP volcano orifice using compressed air, while blocking the opening with an unused pencil eraser. This technique has worked well for me, and others that I have shared it with. This particular one was determined to remain steadfast. Using a bright light, and magnification, I was surprised to see a whitish substance protruding from the orifice, along with the outside circumference of the removable part. I soaked the entire valve body in hot water for about 30 minutes, and tried the compressed air method once again. I ended up having to use 2,000psi to break the seal, when it normally takes no more than150psi to do so.

As you can see from the photos, a previous owner had literally glued the seat in place. My guess is that they thought the source of leakage was due to the interface between the part and body. Originally, Voit used two phenolic washers to create a seal. Today, I use one nylon seal that has the same thickness as the combined phenolic washers. This reg didn't have any seals other than the adhesive.

Needless to say, this was not a fix....

BTW, the regulator is rebuilt, and after a gorgeous paint job by our very own Roger, it is ready for Silver Springs.
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Greg Barlow
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IANTD Full Cave
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SurfLung
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Re: I'm ah gonna' fix this here leakin' scuba regulator....

Tue Feb 14, 2017 10:30 am

- Thanks for that informative post Greg. I have two VCR2s and I used your advice to get them set up with the big port pointing into the hose but I didn't dare get into the HP seat and orifice... I was under the impression the HP seat is a bugger to get it to seal again if you take it apart. They are working well so I left them alone. Its good to know it can be done.
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