Post by surflung on Apr 24, 2015 5:38:40 GMT -8
Dirt Cheap Snark III Project
- I purchased this V2 Nemrod Snark III regulator a year ago for $50. It had no hoses, paint was bad on the label, and the plating was flaking off the front can. Below is the same reg in good working condition.
- Front can condition is actually very good... No corrosion to speak of. The flaking of the plating makes it look worse than it is.
- Back can condition is actually beautiful... Perfect chrome and not a scratch.
First There Was Procrastination...
- This regulator sat on the shelf for a year because I didn't get around to working on it, wasn't interested in it, too much new to learn, lack of a parts source, etc. I had lots of excuses. The recent Fix-Up that me and RichMistral did on his Mistral inspired me to take a different approach. SeaHunt Jerry had told us to tank test the regulator before digging into it... "No sense disturbing the high pressure seat if it is sealing properly". We did that, it was fine, and we got that reg up and running with just a new diaphragm and hoses.
- So, I thought to try the same approach with this Nemrod V2 Snark III. Opening the cans was difficult as the old diaphragm had practically glued the two halves together. But once they were apart, the insides looked good... zero corrosion. I cleaned it up, mounted it to a tank, gently turned on the air... Everything seemed fine. Pressed the lever a few times... Air came on and shut off when the lever was released.
- I sprayed some soapy water on the parts and there were no leaks except on the inside of the can... coming out of the threads of the retainer for the high pressure diaphragm. So, some dis-assembly required...
- Disassembled the 1st stage nozzle... Orifice and seat look clean and new. Phenolic gasket was in good condition. BTW - the mechanism looks near identical to a DAAM nozzle.
- Disassembled the 1st stage diaphragm... A-Ha! The gasket material appears to have been paper. It was degraded, torn, rippled, etc... No wonder it leaked. Again, the similarity to a DAAM is dramatic. The diameter of the H.P diaphragm and gaskets is identical. I found a good DAAM phenolic gasket in my leftover parts and it fit perfectly. I cleaned up the original Snark III H.P. diaphragm to get all of the paper gasket remnants off and leave a smooth surface to seal. Then reassembled and tank tested... No leaks.
- I had to replace a cotter key on the lever that contacts the diaphragm. Cost me 11 cents.
- I already had a new silicone diaphragm I got from Rob Studnicka at The Scuba Museum... Single Stage Voit diaphragms fit Snark III regs perfectly... So I installed that.
- I also had a set of original DA Aqua Master rubber hoses w/hose clamps and new wagon wheel valves.
- Re-Assembled the whole thing and tank tested it. No leaks and it breathes real nice!
- Total out-of-pocket cost: $50.11... Now THAT's a Dirt Cheap Snark III!
Assumptions and Precautions...
- I didn't want to get into adjusting and fine tuning because I'm not a Snark III expert. Instead, I assumed the regulator was probably in good working condition before it got old. So, if my dis-assembly and re-assembly could return things to original position, it should be pretty close to the same adjustment.
- The phenolic gasket for the 1st stage nozzle is a certain thickness... Thicker than DA AquaMAster gaskets. That thickness dictates how far in the nozzle will screw and the tension carried by the mushroom plunger. So, I used the same original Nemrod gasket (DAAM gaskets will fit but you would need more than one stacked on top of each other to get the same thickness as the original Nemrod gasket.)
- The gasket for the 1st stage H.P. diaphragm is about the same thickness as the phenolic gasket from a DAAM. So that one I assumed would not affect the tension of the diaphragm spring.
- The H.P. diaphragm actually consists of a neoprene disk identical in diameter to the DA Aqua Master. I couldn't tell if the thickness was the same because it also had two neoprene rings stacked on it... All three were stuck together and I figured it was better to just leave them that way... A diaphragm thickness change could change the tension on the spring... changing the I.P. setting. So, I re-used the original H.P. diaphragm and rubber rings assembly... Just screwed it all back together with the new phenolic gasket.
- I don't know what the I.P. pressure is set at right now but, the regulator is working properly and breathes easily. Good enough for me... At least for now.
- Exhaust air on this regulator exits through a large mushroom valve instead of a duckbill. I did not try to remove that mushroom for fear of damaging it. I gently sprayed it top and bottom with food grade silicone lubricant. It seems to be in good condition but no sense risking damage by dis-assembling it.
- I purchased this V2 Nemrod Snark III regulator a year ago for $50. It had no hoses, paint was bad on the label, and the plating was flaking off the front can. Below is the same reg in good working condition.
- Front can condition is actually very good... No corrosion to speak of. The flaking of the plating makes it look worse than it is.
- Back can condition is actually beautiful... Perfect chrome and not a scratch.
First There Was Procrastination...
- This regulator sat on the shelf for a year because I didn't get around to working on it, wasn't interested in it, too much new to learn, lack of a parts source, etc. I had lots of excuses. The recent Fix-Up that me and RichMistral did on his Mistral inspired me to take a different approach. SeaHunt Jerry had told us to tank test the regulator before digging into it... "No sense disturbing the high pressure seat if it is sealing properly". We did that, it was fine, and we got that reg up and running with just a new diaphragm and hoses.
- So, I thought to try the same approach with this Nemrod V2 Snark III. Opening the cans was difficult as the old diaphragm had practically glued the two halves together. But once they were apart, the insides looked good... zero corrosion. I cleaned it up, mounted it to a tank, gently turned on the air... Everything seemed fine. Pressed the lever a few times... Air came on and shut off when the lever was released.
- I sprayed some soapy water on the parts and there were no leaks except on the inside of the can... coming out of the threads of the retainer for the high pressure diaphragm. So, some dis-assembly required...
- Disassembled the 1st stage nozzle... Orifice and seat look clean and new. Phenolic gasket was in good condition. BTW - the mechanism looks near identical to a DAAM nozzle.
- Disassembled the 1st stage diaphragm... A-Ha! The gasket material appears to have been paper. It was degraded, torn, rippled, etc... No wonder it leaked. Again, the similarity to a DAAM is dramatic. The diameter of the H.P diaphragm and gaskets is identical. I found a good DAAM phenolic gasket in my leftover parts and it fit perfectly. I cleaned up the original Snark III H.P. diaphragm to get all of the paper gasket remnants off and leave a smooth surface to seal. Then reassembled and tank tested... No leaks.
- I had to replace a cotter key on the lever that contacts the diaphragm. Cost me 11 cents.
- I already had a new silicone diaphragm I got from Rob Studnicka at The Scuba Museum... Single Stage Voit diaphragms fit Snark III regs perfectly... So I installed that.
- I also had a set of original DA Aqua Master rubber hoses w/hose clamps and new wagon wheel valves.
- Re-Assembled the whole thing and tank tested it. No leaks and it breathes real nice!
- Total out-of-pocket cost: $50.11... Now THAT's a Dirt Cheap Snark III!
Assumptions and Precautions...
- I didn't want to get into adjusting and fine tuning because I'm not a Snark III expert. Instead, I assumed the regulator was probably in good working condition before it got old. So, if my dis-assembly and re-assembly could return things to original position, it should be pretty close to the same adjustment.
- The phenolic gasket for the 1st stage nozzle is a certain thickness... Thicker than DA AquaMAster gaskets. That thickness dictates how far in the nozzle will screw and the tension carried by the mushroom plunger. So, I used the same original Nemrod gasket (DAAM gaskets will fit but you would need more than one stacked on top of each other to get the same thickness as the original Nemrod gasket.)
- The gasket for the 1st stage H.P. diaphragm is about the same thickness as the phenolic gasket from a DAAM. So that one I assumed would not affect the tension of the diaphragm spring.
- The H.P. diaphragm actually consists of a neoprene disk identical in diameter to the DA Aqua Master. I couldn't tell if the thickness was the same because it also had two neoprene rings stacked on it... All three were stuck together and I figured it was better to just leave them that way... A diaphragm thickness change could change the tension on the spring... changing the I.P. setting. So, I re-used the original H.P. diaphragm and rubber rings assembly... Just screwed it all back together with the new phenolic gasket.
- I don't know what the I.P. pressure is set at right now but, the regulator is working properly and breathes easily. Good enough for me... At least for now.
- Exhaust air on this regulator exits through a large mushroom valve instead of a duckbill. I did not try to remove that mushroom for fear of damaging it. I gently sprayed it top and bottom with food grade silicone lubricant. It seems to be in good condition but no sense risking damage by dis-assembling it.
