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I had a couple Emails asking why I said Christolube was probably a better
bet for anyone who didn't need large quantities.
Most lubes used on SCUBA gear are second hand, "borrowed" products - that
is to say, rather than having a custom lube formulated, the  gear
manufacturers just look at what is already available and pick the one
closest to what they think they need. Two of the most popular silcones
recommended by most of the SCUBA manufact. for example, Dow 111 and No.7,
are actually described in the Dow literature as a non-hardening sealant and
a release agent.

In the early days of SCUBA, most of the reg manufacturers just said to use
"food grade silicone grease", but eventually found that some grades worked
better than others, and made more specific recommendations, such as No. 7
for dynamic seals and 111 for static seals/spec kitting.
We seem to be coming to the same point now with the O2 lubes. Up to now
everyone has just been using any O2 safe lube they can lay their hands on
figuring it was a lot better than nothing. But, as the gear manufacturers
get involved, we are seeing some research done to find the optimum
products.
Just about all of them - including Sherwood, Seaquest, USD and SP - have
specified Christolube. So that would seem to make Christolube the safer
bet.

While we're on lube, can anyone tell me what the right grade of Krytox is
for use in regs? It comes in several grades, and I notice the stuff Randy
is selling is the vacuum grade. While it is really expensive stuff, and
Randy's price is a bargain if you need that grade and that much, there is
an general purpose grade that sells for half as much  - only $16 for a 2oz
tube.


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