Lost $200 on a used Kirby Morgan that looked fine in photos

Bought a used KM 37 off a Facebook group. Seller had good rep, lots of pics. Got it in the mail, the exhaust valve was cracked. Took it to my local shop, they said $400 to rebuild it. I could have rented a decent one for 3 months with that cash. Anyone else get burned buying used gear online?

2 comments

2 Comments

martin.vera17h ago

My buddy Steve bought a used KM 18 off eBay last year. He's a commercial diver up in Port Townsend, not me, I just do recreational stuff. The photos looked perfect, seller had like 50 positive reviews. Steve got it in the mail and the first time he pressurized it underwater the cheek seal just started hissing air like crazy. His local shop said it was a $350 job to replace the whole face seal and clean out some corrosion inside the regulator. He ended up selling it for parts on Craigslist and lost almost everything he paid. It's a bummer because you think you're getting a deal but the repair costs can eat you alive.

aaron6774h ago

Same thing happened to my cousin with a used Apeks reg he found on Facebook Marketplace @martin.vera - looked mint in the pics but the internal o-rings were shot and the shop bill was almost double what he paid for it.