I know Kirby Morgan stuff pretty well - just like Bill said, it's a "commercial" thing.
Kirby Morgan is best known for it's Superlite diving helmets - a sort of "next step up" from full-faced masks... Imagine a full-face mask with a hard helmet over the entire head of the diver, which keeps the diver's head totally dry. Inside is usually a complete communications system, most often full duplex (so that the diver and the topside support can argue simultaneously
) and presumably a warm, dry diver. Most often the diver is also using surface-supplied gasses, which is to say that there's no limit in gas supply. Consequently, the diver and topside are usually connected via a wire (rather than wireless, which typically doesn't work well underwater). The gas hose, wire, (and usually a strain relief rope, as well as other hoses to supply gasses for underwater welding) are all tied together in what the commercial divers call an "umbilical." Typically, there is usually a small "bailout" bottle worn by the diver, too, often back-mounted and upside-down so it's super-easy for the diver to manipulate his valve.
All of these perceived advantages come at a price - aside from the typical $10k - $12k pricetag of the "hat" (the helmet), the large, bouyant chamber around the diver's head precludes that he has to wear a lot of weight - which Kirby Morgan minimizes by making the helmets really heavy. Topside, the rig is quite substantial to carry, and really requires topside personnel to attach it to the diver's suit using a collar system. Additionally, the diver usually has to stay in an upright "standing" position, as any other position will often flood the helmet. More often than not, a hat diver minimizes horizontal swimming, if at all, and it's not uncommon to see "hat" divers forgoing fins altogether.
Unfortunately, "hat" diving is a safety requirement in many burning/cutting/welding situations, and almost always a requirement in the petroleum industry, working on offshore oil rigs and such. It can also be a requirement in some other industries like nuclear power, dams and powerplants, dry dock facilities, and the like. If I'm not mistaken, I believe the governing agency with regard to that style of diving is OSHA.
My company avoids hat diving - we feel we get better results using simpler, more streamlined gear and neutral bouyancy in situations that will allow for it... Although we do have one guy that works for us who is completely hat equipped for those situations that are mandated by OSHA.
Kirby Morgan's "Superlite" helmets' roots can be traced back to the original "Mark V" diving helmet, which is the all-copper (and sometimes brass) traditional vintage diving helmet that most people use largely for display in their homes or at the local diver's bar.
Interestingly, to the best of my knowledge, the "Mark V" is STILL being hand-crafted by ONE guy in Florida. They are fully functional, but usually sold only for display purposes... And pretty pricey, since he only makes a few a year, by hand. He is a several-generation Greek-American Abalone (sponge) diver who chose to make the gear rather than try to make his living in the natural sponge industry.
Several years ago Kirby Morgan attempted to touch on the recreational dive industry by making available their second-stage regulators that are normally only equipped on their helmets. From there, they designed (or perhaps had designed) a first stage reg, and then made available a plastic second stage body so as to attract more divers with a lighter, more modern-appearing second stage.
Like many non-consumer oriented companies, Kirby Morgan does not change regulator designs annually - their mentality, which is probably pretty accurate, is that they got it right the first time when they designed their regs, and only make minor changes (if at all) on a bi-decade basis or longer. Consequently, a Kirby Morgan regulator tends to be robust, unchanging, traditional, solid and proven.
That said, the comparison of the HOG regs is a bit like comparing a brand new Hyundai Tiburon or a Mitsubishi Eclipse to a '67 Hemi 'Cuda. Or test-driving a new Ford F-150 after driving a new Kenworth. Not to imply that one is necessarily better than the other, it's just an odd comparison, as each has it's advantages and the different classes make comparison impossible.
That said, my divers all use different regulator systems, so we see the good, the bad, and the ugly. Those most serious about doing a lot of diving in contaminated, silty waters often gravitate toward the Apeks XTX50/XTX50/DS4 setup, although those that feel that it's worth the price for hose routing often go on up to an XTX100/XTX50 setup. These regs are dry-sealed and pretty bulletproof, while still maintaining the comfort and neutral bouyancy of composite regs (typically referred to as "recreational-style"). That those on the team that are doing the most diving are all diving internally-identical regulators should say something... It at least makes in-the-field repairs and "swaps" a seamless process.
These new HOG regs are a virtually identical design to many of the Apeks stuff, although I see that their first stages are unsealed, creating an entry point for water and silt and muck... So they wouldn't do well in the contaminated (or cold) waters that we typically dive. I'm also not a fan of "turret" designs, which always seem to be in the wrong position, and utilize a high-pressure o-ring, which is an enormous, catastrophic failure point in a life support system. Because of this, my company certainly won't be purchasing any - aside from the life support issue (for which we always have a backup plan), a failed first stage could cost us tens of thousands of dollars in the field - or at least the "grounding" of an otherwise capable diver.
The HOG second stages appear to be clones of the Apeks line, so we may try some of them out... A tough sell for us, though, since we already know and love our Apeks second stages.
