Thank you Brett, yes you have made me give this situation another thought . You are right about having to remove a end cap and also the smell.Thank you members for being patient, i do have alot to learn about all the building aspects of a sub. Thank you for your input and time. Kurt Wisconsin
----- Original Message -----
From: Brett
Sent: zondag 21 april 2002 9:28
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Gathering Material to build mini sub
As said previously in carl's message the subject of using an epty or even a new propane tank for use as the hull of a sub has been thouroughly discussed here before, and the general concensus is that it would be better to build your own. If you check the archives on the website I am sure you will see the oodles of messages pertaining to this.
The reasons for this philosophy are numerous but I'll touch on some of the biggies.
First off, it can be bery difficult to know anything about the metalurgy of the tank this is very important because if it is a brittle metal it could cause some problems when put under pressure. Second, even though it seems you have the perfect shape all ready to go, if you plan on inserting reinforcement ribbing as you have stated that yoiu do, you still Have to cut the whole thing open in order to slide it in the end, and then you have to weld it back on.
If you are planning on using an old tank then your problems become even larger, first is the smell, withought a thourough sandblasting of the entire interior of the tank, the smell is permant and unbearable. Also with an old tank, determining the metalurgy can be next to impossible.
Lastly is cost. It is probably true that you could save a few bucks by going with a tank, but the difference is not so terribly significant to make it worth the while. You can easily buy a cylinder and two endcaps at whatever thickness you want with whatever sort of steel you might desire. When you do it this wayyou know everything about your sub and are put in control of more variables that relate to your safety.
It is possible to build a sub from a propane tank, and what still I believe it has been done before. Doing this though is more of a novel thing and can be a risky and displeasureful adventure. It is true that you for the use of wich you intend your sub for could probably use a propane tank as a sub hull, but it is a slightly risky venture and can be somewhat more troublesome that building your own hull. I would strongly recomend reading some of the archives on this subject matter as I am sure that unless you have your heart set on using a propane tank that you will be quickly converted.
Brett Pinkepank
Thank you Carl for responding ,if i was to use a propane tank as the hull for a shallow sub , that was reinforced with ribbing,what kind of max depth are we looking at. And why is this tank such a bad idea? This mini sub would be inland water sub and would never see deep depths. I do appericate your thoughts and ideas ,thank you. Kurt Frederic,Wisconsin
----- Original Message -----
From: Coalbunny
Sent: zaterdag 20 april 2002 6:56
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Gathering Material to build mini sub
LOL! Welcome to the group! Forget it! Not worth the trouble. We've
discussed this many times in here. Please do not be offended as most
(if not all) of us have had the same thoughts.
Carl
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