Kirby 77 operating instructions First Use of Your Kirby Morgan Diving Helmet

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Kirby Morgan 77

The diver must be tended at the surface at all times by a trained, qualified commercial diving tender. Never dive without a qualified tender holding your diving hose.

The diving control station can be at the surface, in a diving bell, or in a submerged habitat. The diving control station is the center of the air/gas supply, com- munications with the diver, and diving procedures. The station can be as simple as a tender with a set of “phones” (communication amplifier), or as complex as a control van in the midst of a saturation system.

WARNING

All diving always involves the risk of decompression sickness. Omitted de- compression due to loss of gas supply or other accidents can cause serious injury or death. The use of the Kirby Morgan helmets or masks cannot prevent this type of injury.

KMDSI manufactures a complete Air Control System, the KMACS 5™ with integrated communications and pneumofathometer. This portable system can be operated on either a high pressure air supply or on a low pressure compressor. The Air Control System has a specially designed high pressure regulator that re- duces high pressure air and provides an adequate flow to support divers to a depth of 130 fsw (40 msw)

The helmet demand regulator and side block assem- blies have been designed to operate with a supply pressure from 130 p.s.i.g. (8.8 bar) to 225 p.s.i.g. (16 bar) over ambient pressure. This wide operating range allows flexibility when using various gas sup- ply systems.

WARNING

High pressure supply regulators and as- sociated piping systems for surface sup- plied diving with Kirby Morgan helmets and masks must be capable of delivering a minimum of 3.2 acfm to the diver at depth. Only systems that can deliver the required gas flow should be used.

For maximum breathing performance it is desirable to maintain an over bottom supply pressure in ac- cordance with the low-pressure and high-pressure supply tables found in Chapter 2 of this manual. With the many different gas supply console configurations in use, it is important to ensure that the gas supply system used, is capable of supplying the helmet with the necessary pressure and flow of gas to allow the diver to work safely and efficiently.

There are also detailed checklists for the set-up and maintenance of your helmet on the Dive Lab web site at www.divelab.com.

3.3 First Use of Your Kirby Morgan Diving Helmet

When you first receive your Kirby Morgan diving helmet, carefully unpack it and examine it for any damage that may have occurred during shipment. Use the inspection sheet provided to ensure that no damage has occurred. The purchaser must contact the freight carrier and/or the KMDSI dealer if the helmet has been damaged in shipment.

Early production of the REX 77 helmet had a much different surface finish than what is found on current production runs.

Earlier helmets shells and components were finished using a combination of glass and Stainless Steel beads; this gave a dull or flat looking surface finish. Later shipments have a surface finish with a much smoother and almost shiny appearance. Although the parts are not shiny, the surface finish is very smooth. A Scotch-Brite®, (or similar non metallic), scouring pad will remove buildup of unwanted surface depos- its on both older, and newer REX 77 helmets. It can also be used to give the main helmet components on newer helmets, a satin (brushed ) finish.

Be sure to complete the enclosed warranty card and return it to KMDSI immediately. No warranty claims will be honored without a correctly com- pleted warranty card on file at KMDSI.

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© Copyright 1970-2008 Kirby Morgan Dive Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Document #080626002

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Contents Kirby Morgan IntroductionDesign Purpose First Use of Your Kirby Morgan Diving Helmet Head Cushion Initial Adjustments to Your HelmetRing Neck dam Stepped Split Pull Strap Trimming the Neck DamAdjusting the Neck Pad Trimming the neck damPre Dress-In Procedure Pre-Dive Visual InspectionCheck Moving Parts Clean Face PortPreparing the Helmet for Diving Check CommunicationsEmergency Gas System EGS Diver donning a complete bail-out systemDiver’s body. Never allow the umbilical Kirby Morgan Kirby Morgan Kirby Morgan Setting Up to Dive Flushing Out the UmbilicalKirby Morgan Opening the Breathing Gas Supply to the Helmet Fogging PreventionAssist the diver while dressing and when Kirby Morgan Donning The Kirby Morgan HelmetTender must always be present to Ever the diver has his helmet on his headKirby Morgan Kirby Morgan Kirby Morgan Testing the Breathing System Sealing Integrity CheckRemoving the Helmet Diving Procedures Inhalation Resistance Emergency ProceduresFlooding Gas Flow StopsKirby Morgan Demand Regulator Free Flow Removing the Helmet Post Dive ProceduresRemoving the Equipment Storage of the Helmet Between Dives