The Beast From the Depths, The US Divers DA Navy Approved Scuba Regulator. (The Attack of 1950's Scuba Part II)

US Divers/Aqua-Lung "DA Navy Approved" Two-Stage Double Hose Scuba Regulator (circa 1957).

Attempted detail of label showing trace elements of original yellow paint.  I have seen DA Navy Approved Regulators with blue labels as well.

Yoke side.  The band clamp that is shown in this photo is a modern replacement for the box clips that hold the two halves of the regulator together.  I have the original box clips, but using the band clamp is so much easier, esp., when a regulator needs to be taken apart and adjusted, etc.

     This post is part two of my installments on 1950's Scuba Regulators.  I explored this topic on my post about my circa 1958 US Divers/Aqua-Lung "Aqua-Master" regulator.  Today I bring you the regulator that came before that one.  To say this one is the difference between night and day, the difference between driving a Ford Model-T and a '69 Mustang Mach-1.  

     The US Divers DA Navy Approved Scuba Regulator was one or two steps up in the production model of Scuba Regulators.  Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Emile Gagnan developed the modern Scuba regulator in Occupied France during the Second World War.  This regulator was made a short 12 years since the end of the War and Scuba Diving was just starting to gain traction in the sport world.  The Navy Approved was not far removed from it's original Aqua-Lung lineage.   The US Divers Co. was the American branch of the French company La Spirotechnique.  Jacques-Yves Cousteau coined the term "Aqua-Lung" for English speakers, because the original French term would not have translated well.

    How the DA Navy Approved Regulator differs from the original Aqua-Lung Regulator(s) that proceeded it?, I honestly don't know?  I'm guessing that part of the difference might be in production variations?  I do know the difference on the Navy Approved and the Aqua-Master that came after it, more on that later.

    Diving this regulator...it is a beast!  Or at least the few times I have taken this one underwater.  It does take some lung effort at times.  I liken it to a Dacor Dart single hose regulator that a friend on the Vintage Scuba Forum describes as a "Jack Lalanne lung work out machine".  It can be difficult at times.  In all honesty, if I am on a short shallow dive it is not that bad.  I have not had this one down below 40 feet yet.  I recall one time when I was on a longer dive with a dive bud and I a number of small issues pop up at once.  My mask needed to be cleared, I was getting cold and I had somehow got some water in my mouth. All of these little things at once added up in me needed a bit more air than this regulator could give me at that time.  As a result, it took me some effort to get my breath back and feel comfortable.  

    Will I dive this one again?...yes.  In defence of this regulator...it still has it's original diaphragm which was made around 1957 (assuming it is the original?).  When this was new, that would have been a night and day difference.  As it stands now, the 60 some year old rubber is not nearly as pliable as it should be.  I can buy a new silicone replacement, but I just don't want to spend $40 on that right now.  I might in the future though.  When this was new, there was little to judge it by and just being able to stay underwater was a novel concept to many.  After all the US Navy used this regulator, hence the marketing ploy by US Divers to name it "Navy Approved".  

    This regulator was in production from around circa 1955-1957.  In 1958 US Divers debuted the "Aqua-Master" regulator as a successor to the Navy Approved.  The Aqua-Master has a Venturi  that is aimed at the intake hose.  To say this is so much easier to breath from can't be stated enough!!!  Back to the Model-T to a '69 Mustang Mach-1 comparison.  

    The Navy Approved was a stepping stone in Scuba evolution.  They are starting to gain interest in the Vintage Scuba Crowd.  Not sure I will see many being dove, but there are a few here and there that have been brought back to dividable condition.  

     I found my Navy Approved regulator at a local Dive Shop for around $20.  It was missing it's hoses and mouthpiece.  To say it needed to be rebuilt in an understatement.  I had to take it apart (which took some effort) clean years of corrosion, find replacement parts.  The first stage nozzle needed to be replaced, the rubber disc that seals the second stage had turned to Bakelite and had to be literally chipped and dug out of it's seat.  And once I got all the parts I needed, and got them all put together, adjusting the intermediate pressure was a nightmare!!!  There are two screws that need to be in sync to get it right, that is a pain in the bum to put it lightly!!!  On the Aqua-Master that replaced the Navy Approved they got it right and there is only one adjustment screw.  

    Enough of complaining and whining. Getting this one back to dividable shape gave me a sense of accomplishment.  And I still probably need to adjust this one a bit more?, it might actually turn out to be a fun diver for shallow water playing around?

Line up of mid-late 1950's US Divers/Aqua-Lung Regulators.  DA Navy Approved on left, Aqua-Master in middle wand Mistral on the right.