Am I pessimist? Nah, you have to think there to be something in the glass to begin with!!! I am of the firm belief that there is a hole in the bottom of the glass, and that all the water drained out!
My training and experience within the aircraft industry has taught me to leave nothing to chance. That includes, letting pilots play with buttons in the cockpit, for they ALWAYS BREAK SOMETHING!!!!! leaving me something else to repair. and I have enough to do without their assistance!!
When one deals with life support equipment, your approach is totally different. It is not IF something will break, but rather WHEN something will break, and it always does!!! So, one must view all mechanical things in that light. My approach then, is to set myself up for the FEWEST failures, and leave as little to chance as possible.
As for being cheap, that is just genetics, and can not be helped. My nose has been rubbed down by the application of said appendage to the grindstone!
Although I know viton are supposed to be more durable, my understanding is they are a bit of overkill for scuba, especially if you service your gear regularly. And then there is the point brought up by Bama that they get kinda toxic when they go poof.
Amtrosie, isn't it true that viton is not the common material for o-rings in aircraft applications, even in the presence of 100% O2? I thought I read that it is more common to see EPDM?