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Hi Vance. You are right about being heavy on top, but when I take the total
weight of 8500 lbs, with the top half at 742 lbs, hatch and tube at 165 lbs. and
hinges ( a guess here, not made yet ) at another 50 lbs, the center of gravity
is really quite low.
I don't know yet how much freeboard I'll have, but expect to see about 18
inches from the hatch to the water's surface.
If I can add an inflatable ballast bag to the bottom, to be used only when
at the surface, I may be able to add another 6 inches or more to that.
Although too much will make it unstable at the surface.
I have made some trade-offs on the windows, and although the drawing
doesn't show it in proper scale, the main window at 20 inch gives great vision
both up front and down.
The two 12 inch windows set side by side and angled up allows me and the
passenger to see ahead, up slightly, and has pretty good side vision too.
The interior of the hull is surprisingly roomy, and when I sit inside, it
seems very comfortable.
One of the trade-offs was that I don't have a window directly in front when
I'm alone and sitting in the middle.
I've tried all the configurations possible with the three windows, and this
arrangement gives the best overall vision.
Too bad us little guys can't make a clear acrylic hull! That would really
be the closest to deep scuba while staying dry.
Thanks for the advice/suggestion.
I'll bring some sketches and progress pics to the convention ( along with
about a thousand questions! )
See ya there. Frank D. Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL.com. |