Din or A-Clamp??

[northerner]

Hi,

Fairly new to diving with 38 dives (all warm water I'm afraid... ) and intend to go the whole hog and get full dive kit for both me and my wife. We already have wetsuits, booties, masks so are after BC's, regs, fins etc...

We're off to the dive show next month and are planning to hammer the credit cards there (currently trawling the web to get a feel for what we want and prices).

My first (of many!) questions is what type of connection would be best to go for on the regs?? I see lots of people saying the din is the way to go.... What is the reason for this??? Are A-Clamp type fittings second rate/not as common (this is the only type of connection I've seen up to now...)???

Any help would be much appreciated...

Graham

[Scuttler]

Essentially DIN is a more secure fitting. It screws into the valve.

A-Clamps are more common but increasingly I have noticed more and more DIN.

If you want to use a 300bar cylinder then A-Clamp is not an option.

In the long run if you envisage Twinset diving/Technical diving then go straight for DIN as it's more cost effective as you wont have to change first stages at a later date.

If all you'll ever do is holiday diving and the odd bimble (which I presume is what you do as you have a wetsuit but no drysuit???) then can't see anything majorly wrong with A-Clamp. IIRC there is little or no difference in pricing for the First stages but 300bar cylinders are more expensive and a lot heavier.

Just my 2p worth.

[ardhill]

If you are intending to stay in the warm water, then I would have thought that you should be more interested in what tanks are normally supplied at the dive locations.

I don't do Warm Water, but don't they normally use A-Clamp in most places?

[Scuttler]

Originally Posted by ardhill

I don't do Warm Water, but don't they normally use A-Clamp in most places?

That's certainly my experience

[northerner]

Originally Posted by Scuttler

Essentially DIN is a more secure fitting. It screws into the valve.

A-Clamps are more common but increasingly I have noticed more and more DIN.

If you want to use a 300bar cylinder then A-Clamp is not an option.

In the long run if you envisage Twinset diving/Technical diving then go straight for DIN as it's more cost effective as you wont have to change first stages at a later date.

If all you'll ever do is holiday diving and the odd bimble (which I presume is what you do as you have a wetsuit but no drysuit???) then can't see anything majorly wrong with A-Clamp. IIRC there is little or no difference in pricing for the First stages but 300bar cylinders are more expensive and a lot heavier.

Just my 2p worth.

Thanks for the quick reply (and ardhill). We've only done 'holiday diving' up to now but we'll be migrating to Sydney in a couple of months and definitely intend to dive regularly in Sydney/NSW. I think we should be able to get away with wetsuits/semi dry for most of the year, perhaps needing dry suits in winter...

Not sure if things are different down under in this respect? If din is common(ish) then I guess this would be the best bet - is it easy to convert between the two??

Cheers,

Graham

[Woz]

If you are off to the dive show then I would arrange to meet up with someone here off YD. I think Digger is offering a tour of the show in exchange for a pint, as will a few people. Traditionally we meet in the bar at 1pm but I'm sure someone will show you round and find out what you want to buy.

DIN. Dead easy to use a DIN-A clamp but a PITA to go A-clamp DIN if you don't have an insert handy.

[uwila]

As already mentioned, DIN is a more secure fixing. I would recommend it - you can always get a DIN to A-clamp adapter if you're worried that you won't be able to dive at some far-away exotic location. Most dive operations have cylinder valves which are DIN, but srcew in 'doughnuts' convert the valve for A-clamp use, so both types are supported.

[Scuttler]

Originally Posted by northerner

Thanks for the quick reply (and ardhill). We've only done 'holiday diving' up to now but we'll be migrating to Sydney in a couple of months and definitely intend to dive regularly in Sydney/NSW. I think we should be able to get away with wetsuits/semi dry for most of the year, perhaps needing dry suits in winter...

Not sure if things are different down under in this respect? If din is common(ish) then I guess this would be the best bet - is it easy to convert between the two??

Cheers,

Graham

If you have a DIN first stage then most modern cylinders have a removable insert to convert from A-Clamp to DIN. If the cylinder you have cannot be converted then you have a choice, change the valve (£28 roughly) or buy a DIN to A-Clamp convertor.

If you have an A-Clamp first stage and want to use it on a DIN cylinder then I think you're b*ggered......I might be wrong but I have not see a A-Clamp to DIN convertor.


Oops....Uwila beat me to it

[frosty the snowman]

Din are more difficult to incorrectly fit, you're less likely to blow an o ring and the top of your cylinder is less likely to tangle your SMB line or any other string. An adapter is pretty cheap but most new cylinders I've seen can cater for both systems. I would tend to go for DIN.

[northerner]

Originally Posted by Scuttler

If you have a DIN first stage then most modern cylinders have a removable insert to convert from A-Clamp to DIN. If the cylinder you have cannot be converted then you have a choice, change the valve (£28 roughly) or buy a DIN to A-Clamp convertor.

If you have an A-Clamp first stage and want to use it on a DIN cylinder then I think you're b*ggered......I might be wrong but I have not see a A-Clamp to DIN convertor.


Oops....Uwila beat me to it

Thanks everyone, Scuttler and uwila - that makes alot more sense now. Didn't realise that the removable part effectively made it a din tank. Had to remove and replace a couple on last trip as the o-ring had gone. Makes perfect sense now!!

DIN it is then...

Graham