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Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Newbie alert! (me)

Wow DJ,

Sounds like a neat experience. Do you have any pictures? The web site would
love some.

Regards,
Ray

> Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2002 14:05:54 -0800 (PST)
> From: DCI Games <dcigames@yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Newbie alert! (me) 
> To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
> 
> I dont know why this stupid email wont put my name as
> Dj, but oh well, my name is Dj McCullough. I currently
> live in Tracy, Ca. Its about an hour east of san fran.
> i just moved down here to be with my bride 2 be. 
> 
> as for my 13 year old's "submarine", imagine a 50
> gallon drum with the side cut out <this was the
> bottom, so i could climb in and out while it was under
> water>. the front of the oil drum had been removed,
> and a inch thick plexiglass window put in it's place.
> i forget how we sealed it :). it had a big piece of
> steel beam welded to the front and back on the bottom
> to keep the thing right side up, as well as a kid's
> size lawn chair more or less screwed and glued in just
> above the water line. we had 200 feet of garden hose
> connected to this thing, with a decient air pump
> running on the shore. Propullsion was almost
> accomplished by my grandfather's trolling motor and a
> couple of , i think 10 ah 12 v batteries. the motor
> had a bicycle sprocket welded to it around it, with a
> bicycle chain up to .. something , i think it was a
> power wheels steering wheel. <and the squeeky horn
> still worked :)> the two high mounted balast tanks
> werent much more than some kind of metal tube with the
> ends welded off. I used garden hose on off spiget
> style valve to control the venting of the air, and
> another to turn on and off the air to fill the balast
> tanks with air. It also featured fins to keep the
> rather unstable shape going in a straight line. 
> 
> I took a 110 camera with me and took pictures of the
> .. rather murky water in Siskiyou lake, in siskiyou
> county, ca. The sub putted around a bit. My best
> friend, grandfather and i kept in contact with these
> crappy little radio shack walkytalkies. The hose that
> connected me to the air supply had rather prominant
> metal ribbing, we ended up using that as a carrier for
> the walkytalky signal. I ended up staying down about
> 15 minutes, got some great pictures. I had one of a
> trout that stopped in front of my window and looked at
> me like i was an idiot. I remember radioing up to my
> best friend, "Hey robin... i think i was just mocked
> by a fish." I was just getting ready to bring my
> "TubSub" as we named it, back up, when something hit
> me.. or i hit something, disabled the balast tank on
> my right side. it started slowly loosing its stored
> air and the sub started rolling a bit, and sinking. I
> tried just pumping air into the tank at full blast,
> hoping i could out run the air leak, but, couldnt. I
> bailed out after putting my camera in a ziplock baggy
> and swam to shore. we dragged the sub back with the
> air line. We never figured out what happened, but when
> we looked at the balast tank, the infernal thing's
> blow valve was missing. all the air in the world
> wouldnt stay in the tank if it just let it right back
> out. My grandfather and i worked on another sub, but
> it ultimatly never got finished as he passed away.
> 
> anyone else done something similar? 
> 
> 
> 
> --- Michael Holt <mholt@richmond.edu> wrote:
> > DCI Games wrote:
> > > 
> > > I just wanted to say HI to everyone here. I myself
> > am
> > > a Computer tech, aspiring submariner :) i also
> > have
> > > horrible spelling so please bear with me. I am by
> > no
> > > means an electrical engineer nor am i well versed
> > in
> > > hydrodynamics, but i do know enough probably just
> > to
> > > get meself in trouble.
> > 
> > Many of us use that one: "...but I do know enough to
> > 
> > get myself in trouble."  You have come to the right
> > place. 
> > 
> >  I've been designing a submarine
> > > since i was in the 5th grade and my favoriate
> > teacher,
> > > my science teacher got me interested. I havent
> > really
> > > built it, nor do i have the means at the moment. i
> > Did
> > > built a 50 galon drum submarine (with compresed
> > air
> > > and other feeds from shore) when i was 13.. i had
> > to
> > > bail out at about 20 feet when it wouldnt come up
> > <was
> > > an ambient.. thing> 
> > 
> > This marks you as a certain kind of person.  You're 
> > not alone, and some of us have done the same things.
> > Please talk more about what you built, so we can 
> > compare notes. 
> > 
> > > Everysince then, i knew i was in
> > > love. I have read the archives through, every faq
> > i
> > > could find, etc, preparing for the day when i have
> > > alot of extra cash and someplace i can actually
> > build
> > > something :) I apologize about being so long
> > winded in
> > > my intro.
> > 
> > Welcome to the list!
> > 
> > Talk about the sub you want to build.  Where are
> > you?
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Mike
> 
> 
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