good choice mate,

Mares do decent regs, they are a bit more pricy as you probably know but that thats normal for anything italian! You should find that servicing is cheaper though as the mares service packs are usually standard for their range of regs. From what I hear they are a nice breathe.

As for the pony bottle, i dont use them as i have no need but it really depends on your confidence in your own ability under pressure. Side slung are easy to operate and locate in a hurry, however they are a pain in the ass strapped to your side. (Then uk divers dont generally worry about that as they carry enough kit to raise titanic). From a personal point of view i'd use the pony clipped to my tank, it's out of the way, less clutter and as long as it's rigged carefully and correctly you should have no operation difficulties. Some people just dont like the idea of it out of the way.

Posted By: NCFC4life, Jul 11, 12:10:44