Atomic Regulators - which one?

[Roggen]

Hi! I am going to purchase an Atomic Regulator soon. I can get a good deal on an M1 (about same price as Z2 with env. seal and 1st stage swivel), but my LDS says they don't sell alot of them, rather more of the Z2's and B2's.

I was just wondering if there was anything wrong with the M1's (dislikes) compared to the other 2 mentioned.

[rox@ucf11]

hmm i will let others explain it in more detail but I think The M1's are geared towards tech diving (not to say you coundt use it for rec diving as well) the Z2's have brass (which will last you 200 years.) The B2's and M1's are Titanium (will last you 2000 years.) I believe they are all enviromentally sealed not sure though.

[fireflock]

The M1 is designed for a wider variety of conditions (cold water, higher O2 concentrations) and is probably the favorite in the Atomic line for a lot of divers. The M1 also has the wide exhaust T, which you can get as an upgrade on the others.

The B2 has the hose swivel at the second stage which a lot of people really like.

The real value for the money is in the Z2 without the rotating turret.

If you have decided to go with the rotating turret and seal, and you don't want the hose swivel, then spring for the M1.

If the hose swivel is your thing, the B2 would be for you.

M1 probably has the best resale value, especially if you get DIN.

Rich

[K9Pig]

IMHO I'd go with the M1. This reg gives you the most versitility (bang for the BUCK). The M1 is I think cheaper than the B2. Just decide what type of diving you will be doing now and the future. I own the M1 and love it.
K9

[Roggen]

I predominantly dive cold water (Great Lakes) with water temps ranging from upper 30's to mid 50's, sometimes into the 60's. While I am recreational right now, I plan on tech diving sometime in the future to start diving the deeper wrecks that we have.

It sounds like the M1 should fit my needs, though I am not sure why it is not a popular seller at my LDS.

Thanks for the replies.

[BSea]

Originally Posted by Roggen

I predominantly dive cold water (Great Lakes) with water temps ranging from upper 30's to mid 50's, sometimes into the 60's. While I am recreational right now, I plan on tech diving sometime in the future to start diving the deeper wrecks that we have.

It sounds like the M1 should fit my needs, though I am not sure why it is not a popular seller at my LDS.

Thanks for the replies.

I think the B2 is more widely recognized, but really, they are almost the same regulator. Both have chrome plated brass 1st stages, The M1 comes standard as a sealed reg, and as an option on the B2. The parts kits are identical for all Atomic regs, so they are all basically the same.

1 thing the M1 has over the B2,Z2,T2, & ST1, is that it is designed for higher O2 useage. So for stage bottles with higher than 50% O2, an M1 would be a better choice. The reason is that the M1 doesn't use titanium in the 2nd stage. Titanium can react to high O2, and that's the reason it is used by more tec divers than rec divers.

Actually based on where you dive, I'm also surprised the M1 doesn't sell better than the B2. And since you can get it at a good price, then that's what I'd do. I personally have a B2 with the environmental seal. I don't hink you can go wrong with an Atomic reg.

[Jipps]

If you plan on doing the tech diving in the future go ahead and go with the M1 that way you can use higher oxygen levels.

[aggie99]

Is there any talk of Atomic coming out with a M2? Why did they upgrade all of their other models and not this one?

[BSea]

Originally Posted by aggie99

Is there any talk of Atomic coming out with a M2? Why did they upgrade all of their other models and not this one?

I thinkthe M1 is a newer model. Like the ST1. I don't know when they'll come out with a new M1 (M2).

[Roggen]

I was wondering the same thing about the M1. Thanks BSea!