Alan
Regular Diver
Posts: 11
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Post by Alan on Jun 5, 2022 10:16:12 GMT -8
Hello every one,
I rejoined here after a great many years of absence. Life and work got in the way.
Way back in the early 2000's I was on a mission to rebuild or remake some of the Scubapro Test Dive team twin sets that were photographed in the 78-82 Catalogs. It was a long, expensive and time consuming endeavor but finally accomplished by 2005. The hardest pieces to the puzzle were not so much the regulators,(contrary to popular belief) but the original 72 Steel tanks (especially the black epoxy ones) the twin band assembly's and finally, the hardest of all were the original twin brass chrome plated three part manifolds only made from 79-83. And according to one of the late great Scubapro Engineers (Sam Ichikawa) they were hand made in Italy, bench tested to 20,000 psi and cost a sh*t ton of money to manufacture. (Once Dick Bonin found out just exactly how much they cost to make and the manpower that went into them he ordered production halted). I got the impression that many things they made went under the radar of management.
Does any know of a photo platform I can use to upload the images I took for these sets? I tried here and the restrictions are just too tight.
Thanks,
Alan
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Post by james1979 on Jun 5, 2022 10:26:11 GMT -8
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Post by nikeajax on Jun 5, 2022 11:39:55 GMT -8
...And according to one of the late great Scubapro Engineers (Sam Ichikawa) they were hand made in Italy, bench tested to 20,000 psi and cost a sh*t ton of money to manufacture... Thanks, Alan Hi Alan, welcome back  Errr-ahhh, 20,000-psi sounds perversely high, what was the point: that goes beyond gilding the lily  JB |
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Post by SeaRat on Jun 5, 2022 16:12:08 GMT -8
Alan, A hearty "Welcome Back" from Oregon too. I happen to have one of those original manifolds, and mine is a twin post manifold:  fullsizeoutput_29b4 by John Ratliff, on Flickr I picked it up at my LDS, and rebuilt it, including new tubes on the end.  IMG_1697 by John Ratliff, on Flickr  IMG_1696 by John Ratliff, on Flickr Tested to 20,000 psi, WOW! I think Scubapro was asked for this type of manifold for cave diving. John |
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Alan
Regular Diver
Posts: 11
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Post by Alan on Jun 16, 2022 8:07:06 GMT -8
Hello John! Sorry for taking so long to reply... crazy days at work.
I agree on the test pressure at 20,000 psi being excessive, but it was done during initial bench testing in Italy with prototypes.. and from what I know of Scubapro back then... they did just because they could. And that came from Sam Ichikawa.
They were asked for this specifically for Cave and deep Wreck diving. So...if you can find one and rebuild it (well done on this one you shot in the photos) then believe me, they are like gold dust, Imo.
Some thing else you all will be interested to know is when they started developing the Pilot second stage, the team went to Florida to try them out. Sam took one and buried it in the sand for two days... really deep. When the tide came up it was submerged and obviously tide went out etc. They came back and dug it up, then was put on a test rig and dived that same day with out cleaning. Apparently working like new!
I have a dealer price sheet from the late 70s - 83 and looked up the cost of a fully assembled twin set with this manifold (and they came in two versions, reserve and none reserve).. including the Scubparo epoxy covered steel 72s... for back then, it would have been eye watering.
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Alan
Regular Diver
Posts: 11
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Post by Alan on Jun 16, 2022 8:09:59 GMT -8
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Post by vance on Jun 18, 2022 15:44:36 GMT -8
We all know posting photos is a challenge on the board. Every new member has the same issues, but those who care enough to continue with us figure it out eventually (hopefully with our help and support)! Kudos!
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Post by snark3 on Jun 19, 2022 4:40:02 GMT -8
I still have to open 2 windows, one with the directions and one for the thread I'm trying to upload a pic to
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Post by captainconor on Jul 24, 2022 13:30:18 GMT -8
Alan,
The manifold you show is similar to the manifold on the twin 64 cub ft. tank set from La Spirotechnique in early 70,s. I dived with this setup for years in the Club Med. where I was an instructor. It had the manifold on top and a joined twin boot set on base with no bands around the tanks. Harness went from a clamp around tank necks to a ring attached to the boot. Great setup!!
I have been using, and still use my old Scubapro pilot regulator since mid 70's. I am pretty much finished with diving now and have about 2 pilot and 3 or 4 air 1 second stages which I may sell. Do you know anyone who wants these??
Safe diving
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Post by SeaRat on Jul 24, 2022 14:30:00 GMT -8
Alan, The manifold you show is similar to the manifold on the twin 64 cub ft. tank set from La Spirotechnique in early 70,s. I dived with this setup for years in the Club Med. where I was an instructor. It had the manifold on top and a joined twin boot set on base with no bands around the tanks. Harness went from a clamp around tank necks to a ring attached to the boot. Great setup!! I have been using, and still use my old Scubapro pilot regulator since mid 70's. I am pretty much finished with diving now and have about 2 pilot and 3 or 4 air 1 second stages which I may sell. Do you know anyone who wants these?? Safe diving The Scubapro Pilot second stage is perhaps the best-breathing second stage ever developed. If any of you vintage divers haven’t got one, this may be a great time to do so. We have another thread here that has the complete service manual from Scubapro, written by the designer, Tony Christianson. I would highly encourage you to get one if you don’t have one, and actually dive it. vintagescuba.proboards.com/thread/4963/scubapro-pilot-regulator-cameJohn |
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Post by vance on Jul 24, 2022 15:00:21 GMT -8
....I have been using, and still use my old Scubapro pilot regulator since mid 70's. I am pretty much finished with diving now and have about 2 pilot and 3 or 4 air 1 second stages which I may sell. Do you know anyone who wants these?? Safe diving Hi, and welcome to the board. If you joined mainly to determine the value of your items and to sell them, please post to the "for sale" area. We can help you determine what a fair price would be, and there might be members interested in buying them. I see you have already been there with another item. Please read the technical section for instructions for posting photos. We cannot host photos, so you will need a photo service like Imgur or Flickr. If you would like to participate in the forum beyond selling your items, we are always interested in hearing about our member's experiences, stories, and vintage equipment. This board is a repository of history, personal experiences, technical information, etc. concerning the beginnings of scuba. Cheers, Phil vintagescuba.proboards.com/board/8/tech-support |
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Post by captainconor on Jul 25, 2022 5:39:32 GMT -8
Phil,
Thanks for your comment. I certainly did not join just to value my vintage equipment and will certainly place them on the "For Sale" page later. I was just interested after seeing the photo of the twin set with an Air 1 and Pilot reg.
I started diving with the BSAC (British Sub Aqua Club) in Belfast in 1967, quickly qualified as an Instructor and worked as an Instructor with the Club Mediterranee in the 70's, followed by working in Aqaba, Jordan in a dive center there then worked as watersports instructor for the late King Hussein. Overall I spent 11 years with the Royal Yachts in Aqaba and then started, with a partner a PADI 5 star Dive Center in Brisbane Australia. Moved on from full time as a PADI Course Director and until my retirement last year worked as Captains on large Superyachts and of course kept diving as we spent time on these yachts cruising in out of the way spots, Indonesia, Cuba, New Zealand etc. I still use my battered Scubapro Pilot reg after all these years which I keep in immaculate working order.
I did use a Spirotchnique Alise regulator in the 80.s which was superb. I havent seen much publicity on this reg though it was really small and could come over right or left shoulder.
Anyhow I am really pleased to have found this site and will delve into it more
Conor
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Post by nikeajax on Jul 25, 2022 7:40:16 GMT -8
Alan, is that your gear, or did you borrow the images? As a professional graphic artist I noticed them because of the white background that was used: just curious  My favorite place to shoot my gear is on my studio floor with natural lighting, I can get very bold/dramatic shadows: I always use a tripod too... Jaybird |
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My favorite place to shoot my gear is on my studio floor with natural lighting, I can get very bold/dramatic shadows: I always use a tripod too...