Doublehose database

[vintagefrank]

Hi!

I need your help! Did I forget any regulator? Please have a look at
www.scubacollector.de/html/doublehose_database.html

and tell me what to improve.

Thanks a lot
frank

[YankDownUnder]

Vintage Frank,

I looked at your site...

The Heinke you called a 'Venturi Jet' is really the Heinke MkIII. The MkIV is the same, but has a by-pass lever on it. The by-pass was a way of clearing hoses and was operated by a lanyard attached to the lever. The Heinke MkIII was my first regulator and I dive one now. It has an up stream venturied demand valve and a diaphagmatic reduction valve. The rear exhaust valve is a cart wheel type in the hose near the can. The mouth piece is V shaped for better drainage. It was made in 1961, of cast machined bronze with a hard rubber front can and assembled with screws. It was chromed and had a black wrinkle finish. It has an HP port and the pressure gauge was calibrated in Atmospheres (120). Breathing is superb. The British used the word 'aqua lung' to refer to all scuba before the term scuba became popular. These regulators were known as 'twin hose demand valves'.

The last in the Heinke series was the Merlin, also called the MkV and Mk VI, which continued in production when Siebe Gorman bought out Heinke. You can see Siebe Gorman models using Heinke parts, particularly the mouth pieces. Their address was: C.E. Heinke & Co. Ltd., 87 Grange Road, Bermondsey, London SE1. They provided complete rigs with single or double tanks. The doubles were carried inverted for decanting. The tanks were painted grey with black and white top quarters, the British compressed air marking. Back pack harnesses were secured with a pull pin release. Heinke also made scuba daggers, Hans Hass masks and fins, as well as dry suits. They were a conventional helmet diving equipment manufacturer and dated back to the late 1800s.

I can send pictures of my Heinke MkIII and of my collection on disc, if you will send me a mailing address to ([e-mail]) . I will let others more knowledgable than I, help with other entries on your site.

You are doing a great job!

[DavidRitchieWilson]

Just to add a little to the information about Heinke. I have one of their catalogues, featuring the "Mark 2 demand valve regulator unit". Hans Hass fins are pictured here:

www.skindivinghistory.com/mfg_retailers/h/Hans_Hass/index.html

and there are six pictures of a Hans Hass mask, which went for $67 on eBay, here:

cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230109608321&ru=http%3A%2F%

In addition to the mask, fins and underwater knives, the Heinke catalogue also featured a snorkel, underwater compass, watertight gloves and webbing "fin adjusters".

As for "underwater suits", three models bore Heinke's name. The "Delta" was a dry suit made from black rubber on a stockinette base. The "Dolphin" was a wet suit, made from green (men's) or white (women's) rubber on stockinette. Neoprene wasn't the only wet suit material around in the 1950s! The third model was the Siebe-Heinke Dip Suit, a dry suit made from unlined rubber like the American So-Lo Marx Skooba Totes dry suit. Further details about these suits at:

users.iglide.net/mrbodean/heinke-delta-4.pdf
users.iglide.net/mrbodean/heinke-dolphin-3.pdf
users.iglide.net/mrbodean/siebe-heinke-2.pdf

Finally, keep up the good work on your database! There's quite a lot of information about early American diving equipment manufacturers around, thanks to such contributions as the Skin Diving History site at

www.skindivinghistory.com/mfg_retailers.html

There's not nearly enough about the history of diving equipment manufacture here in Europe, particularly when it comes to the former socialist countries. Your website goes some way towards redressing the balance.

[vintagefrank]

Hi David,

thanks a lot for your help!!!! Have sent you an email these minutes.

so long
frank