If you dive with an Apeks XL4, XL4+, or Ocea regulator, this is five minutes well spent. Apeks and its distributor HEAD Watersports have issued a voluntary safety recall on second stages and octopuses made between April 2025 and April 2026.
Affected serial numbers run 250402212 to 260402893 — worth checking before your next dive past 45 metres.
The issue: a mould defect in the spindle assembly. In testing, affected units fell short of the EN 250 safety standard, and past 45 metres, the fault can restrict how much gas actually reaches you. No incidents have been reported. This is precautionary. At depth, precautionary is still worth taking seriously.
Check Your Serial Number
Check your serial number, laser-marked on the second-stage body: 250402212 to 260402893. Inside that range, stop diving it and take it to an authorised Apeks dealer, free inspection and repair. Outside that range, you're fine.
Sold, lent, or gifted a regulator recently? Pass this along, since it's not something anyone would notice just looking at it on the surface.
Image credit: A generic scuba regulator second stage (not the recalled model)