Pimp my JJ

Dr.Alex

Dr.Alex

Member
being a happy new owner of a new JJ I wanted to ask you what add-ons or modifications people,have made to theirs. Maybe this has been covered before...

I changed the OV to a Golem Shrimp and am getting a new HUD holder for that.

I have seen other add-ons, like a cave cover, different O2 MAV also with orifice.

I think the unit is quite perfect as it is now but just curious about anything others have done.

ATB,
Alex
 
Dr.Alex said:
being a happy new owner of a new JJ I wanted to ask you what add-ons or modifications people,have made to theirs. Maybe this has been covered before...

I changed the OV to a Golem Shrimp and am getting a new HUD holder for that.

I have seen other add-ons, like a cave cover, different O2 MAV also with orifice.

I think the unit is quite perfect as it is now but just curious about anything others have done.

ATB,
Alex
Click to expand...

Every CCR i have owned i have modified:

Inspo Classic: HUD, BOV, VR3inline SS back plate & Harnes, travel frame, Ali Box


KISS: SS Cl case, HUD, new BOV, Stand, Falcone ADV, Shearwater in line deco display, Cooper hoses


rEvo, Shearwatr HUD, Stand, BOV, KISS front mounted 02 add


Then i baught a JJ


It came with everything i always felt i needed on a CCR. I was fussy about the BOV in that i felt the GG Shrimp is a better unit than the JJ BOV but apart from that i havent needed to alter it


ATB

Mark
 
Michael Thornton said:
I am not a JJ Diver, but I will give you the same advice I give to everyone with a new rebreather [diver]. Dive it how it is. Put 50 hours on it and you might change your mind about what you do and do not like.
Click to expand...
Great advice (with edit)!

So I took my new JJ home. Popped it on the dining room table.

- Changed the backplate to a heavier SS one (saves on having to add lead)
- Changed the harness to a Zeagle on I had sitting about. (Can unclip one arm and spin out of the unit easy as pie)
- Pulled off the O2 add and popped a Pelagian valve on. (KISS diver from way back)

Then off to a cross over course and an 80m dive the week after. :naughty:

cheers

Andy
 
Mine is very close to stock. The only thing I've replaced so far is the backplate (6 mm Agir steel for weight) and the harness into a one-piece with a Harpa loop to make it adjustable. The SPGs are crap. Many complain about the hose routing but I'm fine with that. Having SPGs that can't tell the difference between 12 bar and 52 bar is less so. Got two shiny new Agir brass and glass ones that will replace the original ones tonight.
 
Johan Isaksson said:
Mine is very close to stock. The only thing I've replaced so far is the backplate (6 mm Agir steel for weight) and the harness into a one-piece with a Harpa loop to make it adjustable. The SPGs are crap. Many complain about the hose routing but I'm fine with that. Having SPGs that can't tell the difference between 12 bar and 52 bar is less so. Got two shiny new Agir brass and glass ones that will replace the original ones tonight.
Click to expand...

What makes you to think that SPG's are crap? Did you managed to break them?
My understanding they are used in JJ CCR because quality wise they are better than brass ones. They are not used because cheaper price etc.
Opposite way: Some of us has broke their brass ones. Could post here picture if you wish...
 
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Zuercher said:
What makes you to think that SPG's are crap? Did you managed to break them?
My understanding they are used in JJ CCR because quality wise they are better than brass ones. They are not used because cheaper price etc.
Opposite way: Some of us has broke their brass ones. Could post here picture if you wish...
Click to expand...

I have to agree the stock JJ ccr guages are not very Bling and have been itching to swap them out for Agir/halycon/ etc etc etc.

However Ive still got stock on my unit as they are working fine :)

Rob
 
Johan Isaksson said:
Mine is very close to stock. The only thing I've replaced so far is the backplate (6 mm Agir steel for weight) and the harness into a one-piece with a Harpa loop to make it adjustable. The SPGs are crap. Many complain about the hose routing but I'm fine with that. Having SPGs that can't tell the difference between 12 bar and 52 bar is less so. Got two shiny new Agir brass and glass ones that will replace the original ones tonight.
Click to expand...

You think they are less accurate than others? How do you know this? Did you connect another as comparison simultaneously or do you think the bezel is not easy to read accurately?
 
My O2 spg reads about 45 bar in the 55 to 15 bar range and then goes straight to 0. It's off by a good bit before then as well. My diluent SPG is slightly more accurate but not much. It's about 20% off in the 150 bar+ range and can't read lower than 20 bar if there's anything resembling pressure left in the tank. Checked against multiple spgs, digital fill whips etc. Buddys O2 developed a leak, not at the swivel but inside the housing and his diluent side is inaccurate.

I'm a lazy bastard and don't care one whit for appearances. I'm not particularly anal about performance either and if they performed even close to acceptable I'd keep them. They don't however. To me it seems unlikely that my buddy and I have managed to break all four of ours, especially since they're all malfunctioning in different ways, but of course it is possible. We do dive in fairly tough conditions temperature wise and I suppose the issue might stem from that. Since I haven't had any problems with brass and glass SPGs in the same conditions I'm changing mine.
 
0-50

I was under the impression that a SPG from 0-50 was not able to give an accurate reading anyway hense the red colour from 0-50..?

Rob
 
This is way beyond "not accurate" 70 bar reads at 45 on the spg, 45 reads as 45, 15 reads as 45 and after that it goes straight to zero instantly.
 
Johan Isaksson said:
My O2 spg reads about 45 bar in the 55 to 15 bar range and then goes straight to 0. It's off by a good bit before then as well. My diluent SPG is slightly more accurate but not much. It's about 20% off in the 150 bar+ range and can't read lower than 20 bar if there's anything resembling pressure left in the tank. Checked against multiple spgs, digital fill whips etc. Buddys O2 developed a leak, not at the swivel but inside the housing and his diluent side is inaccurate.

I'm a lazy bastard and don't care one whit for appearances. I'm not particularly anal about performance either and if they performed even close to acceptable I'd keep them. They don't however. To me it seems unlikely that my buddy and I have managed to break all four of ours, especially since they're all malfunctioning in different ways, but of course it is possible. We do dive in fairly tough conditions temperature wise and I suppose the issue might stem from that. Since I haven't had any problems with brass and glass SPGs in the same conditions I'm changing mine.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback.
I'll keep an eye out for variation when I change tanks and refill.
 
Dr.Alex said:
Thanks for the feedback.
I'll keep an eye out for variation when I change tanks and refill.
Click to expand...

Just to make it clear. I love my JJ. It suits me perfectly and even now the spgs are diveable on any dive as long as I keep ahead on fills. If I didnt have the bad habit of doing one last dive before topping up I'd have no issues.
 
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I've made quite a few changes to mine, some small and some large. All are really configuration changes and the main unit remains untouched.

Changed backplate and wing for Halcyon Evolve 40 and Halcyon one piece harness.

Lengthened the top bolt to allow the Halcyon harness to be used.

Added a disc of flat rubber on the backplate bolts, to stop galvanic corrosion and to retain the bolts better.

Put twin 7 litre cylinders on Faber 232 bar, valves up.

Swapped to Apeks TEK3 regulators but removed the environmental seal and over balance rod on the oxygen side.

Replaced the SPG's and hoses with glass black faced 2-inch SPG's and black braided 24-inch hoses, which I run like standard OC kit, down to left hip d-ring and the oxygen to a small d-ring on the light can.

Replaced BOV with Golem Shrimp and custom HUD holder.

Put a Scubapro one piece elbow on O2 solenoid feed to stop seawater getting in during head removal.

Changed both head o-rings to 140mm, so the head comes out easier.

Put a couple of layers of chamois to the can base for condensation absorption.

Removed OPV from DIL side.

Removed all LP manifolds with the TEK3's.

Moved the red silicone o-ring around the 3:1 manifold hoses to the loop hose to retain the HUD cable better than the standard two o-rings on there, so now have three to retain HUD cable.

Put shrinkwrap on HUD to provide strain relief to cable.

Fitted 3mm bungy to Predator controller and threaded my compass through it also.

Changed hose lengths to suit valves up configuration.

Made a small tail weight shaped like the stand for trim.

Put 25mm lead filled copper pipe and shrink wrap covered weights in tubes, plus I have a half sized set for fresh water.

Fitted flow stop to ADV, only for use in free flow situation, or if using Hypoxic Dil.

Fitted Scubapro one piece elbow on to ADV flow stop to improve hose routing and prevent a very slight hose kink.

Fitted Scubapro mouthpiece, which I opened out with a Dremel sanding disc.

Ran HUD cable inside short hose Cordura sleeve instead of outside.

Had one helicoil in battery compartment replaced with a custom stainless insert as it unscrewed when I did the first battery replacement. 9 still remain standard.

Replaced stainless rings on breathing hoses with cable ties.

Shortened lung OPV dump hose by about 50mm.

Moved tank straps around so they are protected by the wing and backplate and can not come undone without removing the backplate, lungs and wing.

I did play around briefly with a QC6 offboard dil system but have since removed it for simplicity's sake, which is what the JJ is based around.

Added Apeks Egress Cheater Reg with Omniswivel LP inflate nipple to pocket, so I can access onboard O2 via the MAV drive hose if ever needed. Breathes well at 6m.

In its current configuration, I've dived it with with the following tanks:

3 litre allys with valves down for my MOD 1 course.
3 litre steels with inline valves, valves up while travelling.
5.7 litre Luxfer allys with standard tank valves (hard to shut dil) valves up.
7 litre Faber steels with plugged manifold valves, valves up. This is my current and favorite configuration.
 
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Are you guys that are using the 40 evolve all using large cylinders, I.e larger than the 3Ls that ship with the unit? When I first got my unit I planned to do the same but thought the evolve was ridiculously oversized when using the small bottles so I've kept the JJ wing. I have deinverted and replaced the quirky harness with a one piece though.
 
Good question Dave. I'm now using inverted 7's with an Evolve though I think many use the wing with 3's.


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Is the Evolve bigger than the current JJ wing? I thought the newer wing was more compact than the older one they shipped so this could be, but maybe I recall that wrongly. I thought the evolve was not so huge and floaty but more compact. I only have an eclipse and cannot compare.
What is the advantage of the evolve over the standard JJ wing in your view?

I quite like the harness and backplate it came with - much better than my previous CCR, but I also have a halcyon harness and ali plate. The ali plate is probably useful when diving wet with a 3mm as I was negative w/o weights in 5 mm shorty.

Anyway thx for your comments.
A.

Hodge Close said:
Good question Dave. I'm now using inverted 7's with an Evolve though I think many use the wing with 3's.


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Click to expand...
 
The standard JJ harness is full with dangling straps. I prefer a clean one piece harness as i am sure most do The Halcyon Evolve has more lift in the "ass" area which could be an advantage and the inflator is shorter. It also dumps the air more efficient in my opinion.

The JJ CCR wing is not bad but for me the Evolve works better. I think both has about the same lift capacity but the Evolves is slightly "slimmer".
 
^^^ +1 to what Igor said.

I've dived my Evolve wing with 3 litre steels and the 7's and it works perfectly fine for both. You do have to be careful not to pinch the bottom of the bladder cover under the frame when you are putting the JJ down on a boat or bench.

I use my Stainless Halycon plate when at home with a drysuit but the ally Halcyon plate when travelling with a drysuit.
 
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