How to take apart a Stabilizer
Most regulators simply unscrew apart in the middle, but Stabilizers are
made to be rather difficult to disassemble (thus keeping most people from
messing around with the internals, and possibly damaging the unit). To
take apart a Stab, you'll need to find a 3/8-24 machine screw, a pair of
3/8-24 nuts and a washer. Start by removing the set screw in the bottom
of the Stab (just use a hex wrench to unscrew it all the way out). Thread
the two nuts onto the machine screw and then thread it into the bottom
of the Stab with the washer between the Stab and the lower nut. Now use
a pair of wrenches to hold the machine screw in place and tighten the lower
nut tightly against the washer. Then screw the other nut down to lock the
lower nut in place. Now, hold on tight to the Stab in one hand and use
the wrench on the head of a machine screw - the thread is a standard right-hand
thread. You'll then be able to pull out the bottom plug and then the internal
parts.
Here's all the internal parts that you can get at now - the piston,
piston spring and spring plate. The end plug shows how the machine screw
and nuts are attached.
Note that instead of having a hole in the side of the regulator for
an overpressure relief (like the Automag regulator), the Stab has the relief
valve integrated into the piston itself. The yellow lines point to the
relief holes. The piston has been drilled through the center from the bottom
(right side), and a set screw at the bottom of the piston holds a spring
and relief valve in place.
The Stab can be taken apart further (note the brass valve plug in the
picture), but I didn't feel like figuring out how just yet. Perhaps later
when I'm in a more destructive mood. From what Terry at G3 tells
me, the two halves do unscrew, but you need a lot of force to do it...