Wasted $450 on a used Kirby Morgan band mask that needed new seals immediately

Snagged a KM-17 off Craigslist from a guy in Galveston who said it was "just serviced" but the face seal crumbled on the first dive last week. Had to drop another $200 at Dive-Tex just to get it leak free after I already paid for the thing. Any of you guys ever get burned buying secondhand gear online?

3 comments

3 Comments

tarabell1mo ago

Man that seller probably thought "just serviced" meant he wiped the spit off the mouthpiece. I got a used ScubaPro regulator from eBay once that looked pristine in the photos but had a cracked second stage housing that flooded on the first breath underwater. Never again buying anything critical secondhand without asking for a video of it holding pressure or at least a recent inspection stamp. At least band masks are built like tanks so once you fixed the seals you basically got a new mask for half price. Still sucks dropping extra cash on something that was supposed to be ready to go.

laura_schmidt821mo ago

Wait, your regulator flooded on the first breath? That's terrifying. How did you not panic and spit the whole thing out? I had a friend who bought a used MK25 and the first time he dove it the seat wouldn't seal, he got a mouthful of water and almost choked before he could switch to his octo. People who sell broken breathing gear should be banned from every dive forum, honestly.

wendy1311mo ago

Ha yeah I used to think I was being smart saving money buying used gear. Then I got a "barely used" reg that freeflowed on descent and nearly blew my ears out. Changed my whole tune after that. Now I just save up longer and buy new for anything life support related.