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I'll have to see if I can find any pictures of Les K's sub MBT bottom caps. At on time I was thinking of making new seamless FRP MBT's much like Dan H's but use the FRP MBT's that I have now as the shape for the molds for the tops and then add the bow light assembly holder and bottom curved in cap. But if I want to keep the sub looking mostly original then I was thinking of just adding a piece of flat FRP 3/16" or 1/4" thick sheet or painted aluminum to the MBT bottom and then cut out the center area and bolt and seal it in place. This will likely be much harder then it sounds with all the parts that make up the MBT's supports, the claw, lights and what not getting in the way. The other option I've been thinking thru for some time now is inflatable pontoons attached to the outer part of the tangle guards made by a local company that makes special welding machines for Zodiac and above ground pool lining companies. The trick is having enough high volume relief valves to let out air as you assend if you need to blow them at depth. I was mostly going to use them at the surface for better surface stability and some wave protection. To make this idea work I think I will need well designed spring loaded metal or FRP casings for the pontoons to retract into when not inflated. But if I can figure this system out I would expect it would be a great safety feature to have. In most cases where you would need to use the drop weight you could just inflate the pontoons. Also if they are large and strong enough then you could use them to lift your sub even if it's full of water inside the pressure hull. Regards, Brent Hartwig From: ShellyDalg@aol.com Date: Wed, 2 Jul 2008 13:54:06 -0400 Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Not the Brook's K-250 To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org Hi Brent and thanks for the well wishes. ( Jay and other guys as well,
Thanks.)
I agree with your putting a motor on your rudder. It gives you a LOT more
control, and if a side motor or related system goes out, that one motor can run
a long time on the available battery power. Although I also have two side
motors, I don't expect to use them that often. Mostly just for "up-close"
maneuvering or maybe a full throttle (4 motor) burst to avoid a collision.
A nice addition would be a horizontal rudder back there too. Lots of work
but would make a good dive plane.
On the MBT tank bottoms....I would think it's a good thing. If for
some reason you got into a steep dive, it may be impossible to blow the tank.
I've noticed most of the K boats have bottoms on the tanks. Les K. added bottoms
to his and he had a nice wedge shaped shroud/hole on the bottom. I don't think
he ever had a problem with them before adding the bottoms, but it just seems to
make sense.
I know some of the tanks are FRP and it's probably fine, but I would use
steel as a first choice. A dented tank would be better than a cracked tank.
Jim out here in San Diego, Calif. is building a big K boat and will use
FRP for main tanks, and it does flex some so maybe a collision isn't that big a
deal. I wonder if it would be worth while to add a layer of wire mesh
embedded into the FRP so if a collision did occur, the tank would stay
mostly intact. Anyway, good luck on your re-fit. Frank
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