Unidentified Laying Objects

ULOs are objects that people have at home but do not know their origin or purpose!

I created this page to ask readers of my web to send in unusual objects in the field of rebreathers or diving equipment so that they can be identified. Over the past few years, this has succeeded repeatedly. The results are often interesting or show new systems that might otherwise have fallen into oblivion.

So send a good photo of your object and I will post it if unknown on this page for identification by readers!

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Reaction 1:

Check out the right diver. He is wearing a almost similar mouthpiece. On the shown mouthpiece there is another connection on the front. That connection seems to be designed for a regular regulator…..

This information thanks to Dick Rinkes Netherlands, thanks Dick!

Reaction 2:

The first is a Spiro mouthpiece adapter for use with early wired diver to surface comms equipment. The adapter was held firmly against the mouth using the strap. Two options were for either a single hose or twin hose SCUBA regulator. As supplied the rubber ends were sealed and you had to cut off the seals to suit what type of regulator used. The design was not very popular with twin hoses as it was pretty hard to clear the mouthpiece (Iain thanks)

Reaction 3:

Hello  Jan Willem, This is Don Russell here in California USA.  Good to hear from you at Christmas .  I’m always amazed whenever I  visit your site it is always Totally  different .  In Regards to that strange  La Spiro technique Mouth Piece you  have in your ULO Pile .    Yours   is  Obviously for an early    French Double hose reg. The 1st models that used those Screw on Hose connections  were made for the Military  CG-45 Regs.    They had 25 mm hose ends . The Civilian type of   Horns and hose ends  were 20 mm   . They were   clamped on with  those  1/4″ metal band clamps with the small square   piece with  about a 1/4″  square hole in the middle.     Strange last night I was digging around  through some  stuff  that I had piled up    in a corner for a couple a years .   I found one of those Rubber  mouth Pieces that looks  just the same but   it doesn’t have the metal  Hose   end fittings in it . I don’t think mine was ever used .  Mine was made by a different Co.  called SOUND WAVE SYSTEM INC.  USA   I studied it for a while.    It   is a mouth Piece that Straps on to your face and  has an Air chamber  in front of   the divers lips. The Air Chamber   acts like a Microphone underwater.  When using     that type of unit it allows   divers to   Talk underwater  for a short distance .  Sound  does travel underwater   for  a little ways .  Actually Whales and  many other animals    communicate for great distances underwater . Some Whales   can communicate  with  other whales  Many miles  apart     ,with their Songs    I just put my  Unit up to my lips and talked into it . It worked   Very well and it sounded like I was talking into a Microphone. They   were invented many years ago, by  who I don’t know  Probably Gagnan or Cousteau? This one has 4 different Patent #’s  on it. USA, British,  French, and Italian.  Yours is probably the 1st mo.  of the devise.  It’s actually pretty incredible , It works Great!  The sound Chamber really Amplifies   the   Voice.  I’m sure it would allow the user to   communicate with  other divers  several feet away.   I saw a Sportsways mask sell on ebay  about 2 weeks ago .   It also had a   large Chamber   around the mouth area .  Usually for a  Purge  valve but it was Very large. I’m sure it was for underwater comunication  like these units.   The one I have    has the Cut outs for Double hose regs. plus it has the port in front for a single hose   mouth piece.  So  my guess is that  it was probably  invented in the early  1960’s.    I’ve been    looking around your site today to   try to find  that info you had up on the Italian   Poseidon  Pirelli  Re breathers .       Also  if you have any kicking around in your old spare  parts    box. ?   I could use a couple of the small 1/2″  rectangular  metal pieces with the 1/4″ square  hole in  them   for the old  style   1/4″ wide metal hose clamps .. They actually used the same type  of clamps  on the Poseidon  Masks  on the  metal  Snorkel  tube   with the  Red Cork float on top . If   you   have a  couple of those funky looking  old style clamp parts or  if you know who might  let me know   . I could easily make some new ones but I’d rather have a couple Crusty funky looking old  ones to  match my  1940’s CG-45 reg.   
Anyhow   Jan Willem  – you take Care   my Friend ,  Don Russell
THANKS DON, VERY INTERESTING, could you please send me the patent numbers on your Mouthpiece?

Pascal Goursand identified this rebreather as PO68 made by the French Fenzy Company, see oxygen rebreather database

Ciao Janwillem Bech,  I’ve found an old Italian marine who used it for his  job; they pleasure it because was almost small and  comfortable: it is a Pirelli ARO (auto respiratore ad  ossigeno = rebreather), 1960 age, all non-magnetic,  because it is used by marines for work around the mine (around explosive mines underwater red.)  ;  best regards     Alessandro  Sent to me 24/09/03

This rebreather is identified by Pascal Goursaud.
This rebreather is the French Oxymixgers 78 made in 1978 by la Spirotechnique (now OPS part of Aqualung Corp.) The rebreather was used by the submarine pilots of “the Commando Hubert”troops. It is a closed circuit oxygen rebreather combined with a semiclosed nitrox rebreather. The unit works like the common LAR VII and is the predesessor of the Mixgers.

The tag on this rebreather in the UDT museum is incorrect. This rebreather is identified as po68 made by Fenzy in France As you can see the tag is not ok. So not Draeger.

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