What to look for in a second-hand inspo?

Mary

After dilly dallying for some time I'm bitting the bullet and have booked a classic inspo course, I'm looking for a second hand classic as I really can't justify the cost of the vision.

Whilst I'll hopefully be able to drag an experienced friend or two to come and have a look at any I get close to buying, I'd be really grateful of advice in what to look for from the start and what sort of questions I should be asking.

Any pointers gratefully received

Mary

Niels Doorduijn

Mary,

The following comes to mind when buying a second hand inspo:

• Age. Older units have non-backlit handsets, a shorter manifolt (which does not easily allow for an ADV) & no ADV.
• Overall state. Don't worry too much about some scratches at the cover of the unit and the bottom, but look at the condition of the hoses, lungs, wing and t-pieces.
• Factor in the costs of buying three new cells. They only last about a year or so. If you look at the cells, you will see that they have a date code on it, whereby the letter is the month and the number is the year (D5 being April 2005)
• Size (obviously)
• I would not bother about a VR-3 link (but the opinions on that are divided to say the least)
• See whether it will pass the negative and possitive tests properly.
• Check the counterlungs by opening the counterlung-overlay. See whether the lungs are really in good shape (and not repaired)

Since you already booked a course, I would use the knowledge of your instructor as well and if possible, let him/her inspect the unit prior to buying.

If you live in Europe, getting a good second hand unit should be no problem.

Rgs,
Niels Doorduijn

Blomman

Focus on the handsets/electronics. Remove the black plastic cover of the handsets and check if you can find any cracks or moisture in the handsets. A full service of the handsets are expensive (maybe up to EUR 1000). I would also let an experienced inspodiver take the unit for a testdive to be sure it's working as it should.

// Blomman

narked@10m

hi there
just make sure it does good pos & neg test,also get service history from apd if the head has been serviced!!!!!a head service could cost cost you a lot of $$$$£££££ so check head ,wiring ,handsets carefully !!!! rest of unit is pretty basic to check.
regards pete

JonnyB

Get one with:
1. backlite displays
2. ADV.
3. Check the displays for cracks.

Also have it checked by AP or an instructor, for serial number and the general "healt" of the unit.

/Jonny

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Aquanaut

What you have to remember is that AP make 95% of the Inspiration so everything is replaceable. Its just the electronics that has the potential to get expensive.

I Have had my unit nearly four years and have been super careful with the handsets. I recently put the head in for a service as it had never been to AP and I have never had the battery box upgrade. No porblems ever.

Blow me, despite being carefull, AP found the start of cracks. So a minor £35 service turned out expensive.

Its probably happened while in the dainty hands of the baggage handlers.

I would check the handsets where the main cable enters the plastic of the handset.
I would also power up the handsets and look at the back lighting as this can fade or bits of it can fail over time.

I would also unplug the wires from the cells and look at the gold connections inside the white molex connectors. Some cells have leaked on people in the past and dark marks on the gold would point to this. A leaking cell could mean that the connector and wire have been damaged.

Open and close the mouthpiece.
Do a positive and a negative test
turn her on and listen for the soleniod fire

A mate who has a unit would be great to take along

Hey its not that bad - enjoy!!

AD_ward9

Mary,

You ask a good question, because second hand Inspos are offered regularly.

Check the overall state, that it has backlit handsets, is less than 4 years old, passes + and - pressure tests, and look out for:

1. Corrosion on the battery terminals. Requires factory replacement of battery box.
2. Cracks in handset. Take off the black covers to check the handset properly.
3. With the handset covers off, look for corrosion of the magnets on the switches: it tells you how well the unit has been washed and looked after. They should have no more than a thin film of rust over them.

After you buy it, get the regulators serviced, as well as send it back for a factory service. APD will then check it all over for you. Little things like the Molex connectors are cheap, and APD will replace them in a service if they are suspect, so do not worry about the small stuff.

Very strongly advise not to touch any Inspiration without the backlit handsets. Those early units are the worst death traps I have ever seen. Units after Sept 2000 are greatly improved.

Cheers,

Alex

Mary

Thanks for all the pointers, I guess I'll be more au fait with how to find all the relevent bits after my course next week (knowing where to look rather than reading the somewhat dry instructions in the manual and all that).

Unfortunately I won't be able to drag my instructor along to look at any units as I'm doing the course out in Sharm at tekstreme, but hopefully there are a couple of friendly faces who I aready know from here who might be able to give me a hand. One of them might have forgotten what a YBOD is actually supposed to look like though.

Regarding having a factory service what sort of price should I be looking at for this? (hoping desperatly that it's all ok of course).

Beanie

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