12ltr Cylinder?

[adam200564]

Hello all,

So after over 3 1/2 years of diving with my local club I have decided to stop being so stingy and buy my own kit!!!

Regs/BC are sorted so all that leaves is the simple (or so I thought) Cylinder.

I have decided that a 12ltr cylinder is the size that I require but other than that I am unsure exactly of what other options there are? Beaver or Faber or Heiser/ MDE valve or not/232 or 300bar/O2 Clean any other specs etc etc

So I guess this leads onto my final question where is the best (cheapest) place to pick up such a cylinder (I live in Basingstoke at the moment so somewhere fairly close would be great or what about via the internet (p&p might be a bit steep though))

Thank you in advance for reading and for your insightful comments

Cheers

Adam

[sean0801]

go-dive, kent diving, divers warehouse all do cylinders as loss leaders. probably go dive will be the cheapest, but check them all out and watch the postage costs

[jim oldham]

Tall, or dumpy?
If you are of diminutive stature, a dumpy may suit you better, but a lot of people prefer a tall 12L. Then again, if you are built like the proverbial brick out building, a 12L tall would also be useful for future twinning up. Twin 12L dumpies aren't that common.
I don't think you'll get much disagreement about getting an MDE valve, but what about an H valve? Choice, choice, choice.
Trying to decide you future diving isn't easy, but you can always use a 12L for bimbles and training.
Jim.

[ardhill]

Originally Posted by adam200564

I am unsure exactly of what other options there are? Beaver or Faber or Heiser/ MDE valve or not/232 or 300bar/O2 Clean any other specs etc etc

Beaver are longer than Fabers, so can help trim you out. But if you are shorter stature, then maybe not. The Beaver tanks are often cheaper than the Faber, but the Beaver valves are a bit tight in my opinion. I 'think' Heisers are of the longer type also.

232bar is standard, a 300bar will give you more gas in your tank, but will cost more and will be a lot heavier. Does your club have a compressor, if so does it pump to 300bar - that may be a consideration also.

O2 clean - if all you are breathing is air, then don't bother as it is of no use to you. If you want to go to Nitrox and don't have a membrane or continuous blending station, then you will need to get the tank O2 cleaned, but this can be done at any time - even a year or more on if you aren't using Nitrox now.

If you want cheap, then you can't be too picky about the valve - just get whatever is in the tank.

[zepp]

A 12ltr, standard with an MDE valve or similar is a good bet. DONT go for a cheap valve, they WILL give you problems. You should be looking at paying no more than £115 and have a look at the manufacture date, you dont want one that has stood in a shop for 12 months as you will have to get it tested 12 months earlier!

[Little Pete]

If you are of diminutive stature, a dumpy may suit you better, but a lot of people prefer a tall 12L.

AAAAHHH hideous dumpies

I am of most diminutive stature at 5'4" and small build (as many people will attest to) and I really don't like dumpy 12s. They sit so far down your back you never feel as if they're secure and they're just fat and orrid

I use ECS twin 12s now (same size as Heisers) but I would say a standard size 12L will do you fine.

[Phil Laughton]

Hi Adam,
Where to buy a new cylinder:
Try the Dive Show at the NEC this weekend.
Happy Diving

Phil

Originally Posted by adam200564

Hello all,

So after over 3 1/2 years of diving with my local club I have decided to stop being so stingy and buy my own kit!!!

Regs/BC are sorted so all that leaves is the simple (or so I thought) Cylinder.

I have decided that a 12ltr cylinder is the size that I require but other than that I am unsure exactly of what other options there are? Beaver or Faber or Heiser/ MDE valve or not/232 or 300bar/O2 Clean any other specs etc etc

So I guess this leads onto my final question where is the best (cheapest) place to pick up such a cylinder (I live in Basingstoke at the moment so somewhere fairly close would be great or what about via the internet (p&p might be a bit steep though))

Thank you in advance for reading and for your insightful comments

Cheers

Adam

[frosty the snowman]

I used to think that dumpy 12s were a good idea, epecially when diving from a RIB as I didn't get pushed forward when sitting on the tubes or bash my head on the valve when I looked up, but I now think they're a bit of a pain because some BCs or wings which have 2 cylinder straps have the straps set too far apart to hold a dumpy unless you take the boot off and some shops won't fill bootless cylinders. An ordinary sized 12 is a better bet IMHO.

[wilbo]

Originally Posted by zepp

A 12ltr, standard with an MDE valve or similar is a good bet. DONT go for a cheap valve, they WILL give you problems. You should be looking at paying no more than £115 and have a look at the manufacture date, you dont want one that has stood in a shop for 12 months as you will have to get it tested 12 months earlier!

What Zep says..

a tall Faber 12 232 with MDE manifold is what sir requires - unless sir is an umpa lumpah - in which case a dumpy might suit better.

The dive show would be a good opportunity to pick one up cheap.. Now I know there is a dive show happening soon.. I wonder when.. (scratches chin)

[Paul Hildreth]

If you're not able to go to NEC for the dive show, I'd recommend GoDive. I bought a 15L Faber from them last year (March 2005), cheap, fast delivery. Have a look on their website. I got mine for somewhere in the region of £105 including delivery costs!


Paul