Ida59

robertfondren · 4th July 2006, 10:24

How does one fill soviet cylinders( ie. for ida59,ida72, ida57, etc.) in the United States. Can they be hydro'ed , and filled @ lds? I am fascinated by the ida59, and hope to get a serviceable rig out of her, in some form or the other. (even if only as an scr, like valeri murkhin's). Any help appreciated!

**nigelh** · 4th July 2006, 12:06

I had to make a special adapter for my IDA64 to fill it but it was only a standard SAP fitting with a custom PTFE pad at the bottom as it sealed down there not on the shoulder. I mounted that on a DIN female to match the rest of my filling gear.

The cylinders are umpteen years out of test so until I can come up with a scheme to get them tested I fill them myself in private.

jaap · 4th July 2006, 12:12

Quote: (Originally Posted by robertfondren)

How does one fill soviet cylinders( ie. for ida59,ida72, ida57, etc.) in the United States. Can they be hydro'ed , and filled @ lds? I am fascinated by the ida59, and hope to get a serviceable rig out of her, in some form or the other. (even if only as an scr, like valeri murkhin's). Any help appreciated!

Well fortunately I live in Sweden so the filling bit is easy for me

I would guess that since the Russian tanks does not have any DOT stamps they would be illegal to fill. Also the standard Russian tankvalve has a fitting that happens to be the same as the Swedish O2-fitting (nice for me...). That would be a fitting called SMS-690. The smaller male fill ports on some Russisan Rebreather are 1/4"-R thread. That is what they are called over here at least. You can buy that sort of adapter in your local Russian-RB-friendly dive shop. If you don't have any such shop in your area its rather easy to have an adapter machined.

A word of warning, I do not like the Russian valves.

They have something that looks like a bakelite seal inside the valve. This part can easily start to leak when the valve is old. A very dangerous thing is that one can overtighten the valve when closing it so that the "bakelite" seal is shattered, failing violently. If no regulator is fitted this will be a very loud process draining the tank in a few seconds. Not som nice to have happen when you just filled the tank to 200 bar of Oxygen...

The tank thread is a small conical (19,8x1/14) one that is common in at least Sweden an Germany so its rather easy to change the valve to a more reliable one. Something like this for example: http://www.watersafetyshop.com/20012.html

Or simply to scrap the russian tanks and use some other small tank that is up for the job.

By the way, many small Russian O2 tanks are only rated to 150 bar.

The IDA-59 is nice, but a bit bulky on the front with the tanks and scrubber.

**Dave Sutton** · 5th July 2006, 03:08

Quikc reply, as I'm running back to back U-Boat dives and am on a borrowed connection.

No DOT hydro tests are EVER required in the USA for *any* diving cylinder unless it's carried FILLED, on FEDERALLY REGULATED HIGHWAYS by COMMON MOTOR CARRIER (truck freight). If all of those items are not true then the DOT has *zero* jurisdiction and no hydros are needed. Hydros are a scam and diveshops are just too dumb to understand that.

The thread is a common one, I'll look it up later but it's available. It's the same thread used on all European 02 bottles.

Dave Sutton

jaap · 5th July 2006, 10:13

Quote: (Originally Posted by Dave Sutton)

Quikc reply, as I'm running back to back U-Boat dives and am on a borrowed connection.

No DOT hydro tests are EVER required in the USA for *any* diving cylinder unless it's carried FILLED, on FEDERALLY REGULATED HIGHWAYS by COMMON MOTOR CARRIER (truck freight). If all of those items are not true then the DOT has *zero* jurisdiction and no hydros are needed. Hydros are a scam and diveshops are just too dumb to understand that.

The thread is a common one, I'll look it up later but it's available. It's the same thread used on all European 02 bottles.

Dave Sutton

Very interesting about the DOT-rules.

By the way the O2-fitting is unfortunately not standardized in Europe, so the Russian O2-fitting is not the same as in all European contries.

A list of some O2-"standars" in various countries:
http://www.watersafety.net/o2tipps/do2adap.htm

The list is not 100% correct so don't trust it to much.

robertfondren · 7th July 2006, 05:06

Thanks one and all, very helpful.

4th July 2006, 10:24	#1 (permalink)
robertfondren New Member Current Rebreather/s: Ray Other Rebreather/s: Not Bought Yet Ray Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: u.s.a. Posts: 88	Ida59 How does one fill soviet cylinders( ie. for ida59,ida72, ida57, etc.) in the United States. Can they be hydro'ed , and filled @ lds? I am fascinated by the ida59, and hope to get a serviceable rig out of her, in some form or the other. (even if only as an scr, like valeri murkhin's). Any help appreciated!
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4th July 2006, 12:06	#2 (permalink)
nigelh New member Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Vision Other CCR Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other CCR Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Brighton, Sussex, UK Posts: 883	Re: Ida59 I had to make a special adapter for my IDA64 to fill it but it was only a standard SAP fitting with a custom PTFE pad at the bottom as it sealed down there not on the shoulder. I mounted that on a DIN female to match the rest of my filling gear. The cylinders are umpteen years out of test so until I can come up with a scheme to get them tested I fill them myself in private. __________________ nigelh
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4th July 2006, 12:12	#3 (permalink)
jaap Normal people worry me Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other CCR RB80 / Clone Ray Other SCR Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Other CCR RB80 / Clone Ray Other SCR Home Build Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stockholm Sweden Posts: 473	Re: Ida59 Quote: (Originally Posted by robertfondren) How does one fill soviet cylinders( ie. for ida59,ida72, ida57, etc.) in the United States. Can they be hydro'ed , and filled @ lds? I am fascinated by the ida59, and hope to get a serviceable rig out of her, in some form or the other. (even if only as an scr, like valeri murkhin's). Any help appreciated! Well fortunately I live in Sweden so the filling bit is easy for me I would guess that since the Russian tanks does not have any DOT stamps they would be illegal to fill. Also the standard Russian tankvalve has a fitting that happens to be the same as the Swedish O2-fitting (nice for me...). That would be a fitting called SMS-690. The smaller male fill ports on some Russisan Rebreather are 1/4"-R thread. That is what they are called over here at least. You can buy that sort of adapter in your local Russian-RB-friendly dive shop. If you don't have any such shop in your area its rather easy to have an adapter machined. A word of warning, I do not like the Russian valves. They have something that looks like a bakelite seal inside the valve. This part can easily start to leak when the valve is old. A very dangerous thing is that one can overtighten the valve when closing it so that the "bakelite" seal is shattered, failing violently. If no regulator is fitted this will be a very loud process draining the tank in a few seconds. Not som nice to have happen when you just filled the tank to 200 bar of Oxygen... The tank thread is a small conical (19,8x1/14) one that is common in at least Sweden an Germany so its rather easy to change the valve to a more reliable one. Something like this for example: http://www.watersafetyshop.com/20012.html Or simply to scrap the russian tanks and use some other small tank that is up for the job. By the way, many small Russian O2 tanks are only rated to 150 bar. The IDA-59 is nice, but a bit bulky on the front with the tanks and scrubber.
(Offline)

5th July 2006, 03:08	#4 (permalink)
Dave Sutton Diveshop of Horrors Current Rebreather/s: Sport Kiss MK 15.X rEvo Other CCR Azimuth Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Evolution Megalodon rEvo Other CCR Azimuth Home Build Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Narragansett, Rhode Island and Hackettstown, New Jersey Posts: 2,907	Re: Ida59 Quikc reply, as I'm running back to back U-Boat dives and am on a borrowed connection. No DOT hydro tests are EVER required in the USA for any diving cylinder unless it's carried FILLED, on FEDERALLY REGULATED HIGHWAYS by COMMON MOTOR CARRIER (truck freight). If all of those items are not true then the DOT has zero jurisdiction and no hydros are needed. Hydros are a scam and diveshops are just too dumb to understand that. The thread is a common one, I'll look it up later but it's available. It's the same thread used on all European 02 bottles. Dave Sutton __________________ "Silent Diving with No Bubbles and No Politics".... www.nobubblediving.com
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5th July 2006, 10:13	#5 (permalink)
jaap Normal people worry me Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other CCR RB80 / Clone Ray Other SCR Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Other CCR RB80 / Clone Ray Other SCR Home Build Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stockholm Sweden Posts: 473	Re: Ida59 Quote: (Originally Posted by Dave Sutton) Quikc reply, as I'm running back to back U-Boat dives and am on a borrowed connection. No DOT hydro tests are EVER required in the USA for any diving cylinder unless it's carried FILLED, on FEDERALLY REGULATED HIGHWAYS by COMMON MOTOR CARRIER (truck freight). If all of those items are not true then the DOT has zero jurisdiction and no hydros are needed. Hydros are a scam and diveshops are just too dumb to understand that. The thread is a common one, I'll look it up later but it's available. It's the same thread used on all European 02 bottles. Dave Sutton Very interesting about the DOT-rules. By the way the O2-fitting is unfortunately not standardized in Europe, so the Russian O2-fitting is not the same as in all European contries. A list of some O2-"standars" in various countries: http://www.watersafety.net/o2tipps/do2adap.htm The list is not 100% correct so don't trust it to much.
(Offline)

7th July 2006, 05:06	#6 (permalink)
robertfondren New Member Current Rebreather/s: Ray Other Rebreather/s: Not Bought Yet Ray Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: u.s.a. Posts: 88	Re: Ida59 Thanks one and all, very helpful.
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