-> I've got an old Dacor pressure gauge that I bought used quite a few
-> years ago. It seems to work ok, but every time it goes into the
-> water, even on the most shallow dives, the face fills up. I've had it
-> worked on by a dive shop recently, but it just keeps leaking.
-> Is this a potentially dangerous situation or not? I always use a J-
-> valve, so super accuracy and reliability aren't necessary.
Ahem, I think you know the answer to this one.  The pressure reserved by
a J-valve won't even allow a normal safety stop.  It's old, old
technology meant for a time long gone.  What we know about decompression
sickness these days makes the air available through a reserve worth very
little in anything but an extreme emergency.
Yes, a guage which you can't rely on is important.  As for potentially
dangerous, well, it depends on what you you do when it fails and where
you are.  If you have plenty of air at the time of failure and you
ascend immediately, ending your diving for the day, it's OK.  If not,
you're pushing you luck.
Lee
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