Mossback Mark 3 and Mossback Mark 5 Regulators Revisited

[SeaRat]

Jul 31, 2023 5:13:46 GMT -8 antique diver said:

Wore me out just thinking about a hike with doubles.

What is a Mossback Mark 3? Photo please.

Well, the Mossback Mark 3 is a converted DA Aquamaster with a very special first stage, one by Mossback. Here it is on a dive I made in the North Santiam River.

DSC00286 by John Ratliff, on Flickr
Photo by Sid Macken

This was our Vintage Scuba Community's answer to the Pheonix and its subsequent regulator by VDH. It was created by Ol' Mossback. Ol' Mossback is Michael Story, who created the Mossback Mark 3. As shown, I'm still using it, and apparently there are very few that have been made, making it one of the rarest of the double hose regulators. It has both LP and HP ports in a very new first stage that is attached to my DA Aquamaster second stage and boxes.

Here's a thread where we discuss some of this.

vintagescuba.proboards.com/thread/5909/mossback-dacor-first-stage-body

Here are more photos of this unique, wonderful regulator.

IMG_1167 by John Ratliff, on Flickr

IMG_2495 by John Ratliff, on Flickr

I had extensive discussions with Michael Story about his creating of the Mossback DHR Mk5, which would be a brand new design for a double hose regulator. I was doing some work on the mouthpiece (a Failure Modes and Effects Analysis), for his new design. He had drawings for the new regulator, which I do not have permission yet to show. It would have been a breakthrough regulator, better than the Kraken, and with a patented air reservoir in the first stage.

I will try to get in touch with Michael later today via his last e-mail.

John

[SeaRat]

I did get in touch with Michael Story, and he said that he’s doing okay, but still getting over his wife’s loss late last year. He had been working off and on with the new Mossback Mark 5 regulator, up until his wife’s passing. He has two working models, and has overcome a couple of problems with one of them. I asked whether I could show you the outside case photo, and rather than that, Michael sent me four photos that are of the prototypes of this new double hose regulator. Because of that, I split the above posts off from the “My Dive” to create a new thread on the Mossback regulators (Mark 3 that I have, and the Mark 5 in prototype development). That development has been very slow, and so it is not currently being actively pursued. But this is a very interesting development. Here are those four photos of what Ol’ Mossback refers to as the Sea Wolf regulator..

SeaWolf DHR 2 by John Ratliff, on Flickr

SeaWolf DHR 4 by John Ratliff, on Flickr

SewaWolf DHR 3 by John Ratliff, on Flickr

SeaWolf DHR by John Ratliff, on Flickr

John