Vintage SCUBA Diving anyone?

[Charlie Noble]

Can anyone else see the photos that I posted in post #18?

 

[Bugguy]

Can anyone else see the photos that I posted in post #18?

Yep

 

[JC225]

I grew up with a father that was really into Jacques Cousteau and I remember never missing the show growing up. I ended up getting certified and later working at our local dive shop for several years. I was of course exposed to several generations of gear including my fathers original "U.S. Divers DA regulator and twin 80's."
I meanwhile, own and was diving with a "Draegar rebreather" and always told him to try it but could never get my him to budge on his classic gear. I would tell him to try the new technology and he would just say there just say "there's nothing wrong with this technology!"

 

[Bugguy]

I grew up in the dbl. hose era on the Middle Coast. In this thread #12 I have a picture of the USD DA I keep up to spec. My go-to single is the then top-of-the-line ScubaPro Air I w/ a Poseidon Cyclon 100 octopus. As for twin 80's, now, that would be hernia time.

For fun, I have a batch of Mike Nelson (Lloyd Bridges) Sea Hunt CD's to remind me of back when.

 

[JC225]

We were a ScubaPro dealer and of course carried some other brands as well but hands down ScubaPro was the big name in the shop. The quality was second to none and we never had to worry about gear issues. One of my friends used an "Air 1" and would have parted with a organ before that reg! I was raised on U.S. Divers and loved that gear. I had the classic tanks, some of the later regs and I even had one of the ABS triple tank systems. It's sad because I don't think once the company sold it was ever the same. Some people love the new "Aqua Lung" gear and swear by it but it just didn't feel like the real thing.

I still use Rocket Fins and love them!

 

[Charlie Noble]

It’s been a little over two years since this thread has seen any action, so here are a few pictures from some Caribbean dives, as well as a dive last summer in Ohio.

 

[Bugguy]

These days any current double hose pictures are appreciated.

I had a bad experience several years ago in of all places , the Georgia Aquarium diving with the whale sharks. I was cleared a week before, after a major non-invasive cardiac procedure and started to hyperventilate at 30'. Out of an abundance of caution (I hate this buzz phrase), I aborted my dive. No problem, but I haven't has an opportunity dive since. I'd really need to invest some time in getting back in shape to dive again. Snorkel... absolutely, but hold off diving.

Me, third from right...

 

[Charlie Noble]

These days any current double hose pictures are appreciated.

I had a bad experience several years ago in of all places , the Georgia Aquarium diving with the whale sharks. I was cleared a week before, after a major non-invasive cardiac procedure and started to hyperventilate at 30'. Out of an abundance of caution (I hate this buzz phrase), I aborted my dive. No problem, but I haven't has an opportunity dive since. I'd really need to invest some time in getting back in shape to dive again. Snorkel... absolutely, but hold off diving.

Me, third from right...

View attachment 437025

I hate that you had to abort the dive, but you made a good call. I’ve always wanted to dive the GA Aquarium, but have never gotten around to it. I have dived The Living Seas aquarium at Disney Epcot. That was an incredible experience.

As a side note, I’m now in the process of formatting a course to start teaching vintage scuba techniques along with the double hose reg. So many good skills have been lost to the agencies trying to overly simplify the training in an effort to move more people through the programs. As my classes form, that should provide more vintage scuba photos.

 

[draws]

Preparing to dive on the New Hampshire coastline in 1964. In 1/4" neoprene wetsuit for the cold Atlantic.

 

[Bugguy]

Preparing to dive on the New Hampshire coastline in 1964. In 1/4" neoprene wetsuit for the cold Atlantic.

My wife (future at the time) and I dove on the Smith Moore in 110' in Lake Superior... 42 degrees. w/ 1/4" wetsuit (no dry suit). It was below freezing in Munising MI and my gear was in the van overnight . My primary regulator froze on the bottom. Fortunately, my octopus (Poseidon Cyklon 300) worked fine. I credit good training for an exceptional dive! ...and then there's ice diving with fire rescue in Wisconsin... another story.