From the information available about the sale of
Needlefish, photos, and comments, I am of the opinion that Needlefish does not
work. I likely share this opinion with many in the PSUB community, friend,
or no friend to Mr. Gifford.
I in no way mean to discredit Bill, afterall, he
has at least built something, but I do believe that his handling of Needlefish
could have been done differently. If it works, prove it. Photos,
documents, test dive results....something. If he has attempted to sail or
dive it and has simply found there are problems with it's design, come clean
with that fact to the PSUB community. If we all weren't reasonably
intelligent, we wouldn't be here. It would be a shame if Bill was to lose
credibility within the PSUB community as a result of the sale of
Needlefish. We can all stand to learn as much about what DOESN'T work as
what does. If Bill were to fully document the problems with Needlefish,
where the design and construction went wrong, that would be an extremely
valuable learning tool for many. Unfortunately, Bill has to pay the price
for that tool. Is it any wonder so many of us are "designing to death" our
PSUBS ? We want them to work, we can not afford for them not to.
Needlefish, to me, is a reminder of that.
An extremely expensive lesson ?
No doubt. A wasted effort ? Not if Bill shares his knowledge
concerning the design and construction of Needlefish. A real possibility
that someone could get killed in a sub with design flaws ? You bet.
I know which one I would have a hard time living with.........in my
opinion. I just hope he is completely up front with any potential
buyers. It doesn't do any of us any good to read on the front
page:
"Man gets killed in home made
submarine"
....Now, back to the drawing board for
me.
Myles.
|