Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Children's author needs expert advice

[irox <irox@ix.netcom.com>]

My last message to this thread bounced.  Reposting...


 
Hi,

use it will use a SCUBA tank, but how that tank is filled will
determine if the 10 year old lives or dies after the first dive.
With BOB and similar submarines, the pilot will breath air in
the SCUBA bottle, if the air is contaminated with toxic compounds,
the pilot gets sick and dies.
 
SCUBA tanks are not shipped full (if it fell off a train with
a full SCUBA tank, the tank might rupture and cause loss of
live as all the energy used to compress the gas escapes.  So
the tank needs filled for the submersible to work.

One thought I had was, you could take a submersible pilot course,
like this one and learn lots of what it's like to be in small sub:
http://www.psubs.org/ads/CSS/

Also, try to get a shot of the submersible you want to use in
the book.  I think there are several places/resorts that rent
out BOBs.

Of course, if you took the K250 pilot course and rented a BOB,
you've have more submersible piloting experience than many people
on this list. ;-)

As for lifting it, I'm sure some levers/pulleys/extra-hands
could help.  But the heavier the sub is, the hard it is to
launch and move.  How much can a 10 year boy lift with
damaging what he's lifting?  I'm sure the 90lbs BOB could be
moved in a wheel barrow by a couple of kids.

Cheers,
  Ian.

>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Barbara O'Connor <oconnor.barbara@gmail.com>
>>Sent: Aug 13, 2008 3:33 PM
>>To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
>>Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Children's author needs expert advice
>>
>>Ian: That BOB is pretty cool looking! But with the Silent Runner, doesn't it
>>just use a scuba tank? Obviously, I know nothing about subs. :-)
>>Maybe the kid could round up all the neighborhood kids to get the sub onto a
>>cart of some kind? Use a pulley to lift it?
>>
>>On Wed, Aug 13, 2008 at 1:02 PM, irox <irox@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Hi Barabara,
>>>
>>> thanks for researching your topic, I know as a small child
>>> stories with believable technical merit where just as exciting,
>>> if not more so, than the pure fantasy stories.
>>>
>>> One of the big factors is weight, and moving the submersible
>>> around.  I submersible I believe could be handled by a group
>>> of young children would be something like the BOB (Breather
>>> Observation Bubble), which weights in at round 90lbs and is
>>> probably one of the lightest "submersibles" around:
>>>
>>>
>>> http://www.diseno-art.com/encyclopedia/vehicles/watercraft/sport_submersibles/BOB.html
>>>
>>> Other submersibles will rather heavy for somebody (child
>>> or adult) to move alone.
>>>
>>> Other issues, where does the child get compressed gas
>>> to operate the submersible, in the case of BOB, this has
>>> to be a human breathable (compressed air from the gas
>>> station will probably be toxic due to exhaust and oil
>>> contamination).
>>>
>>> Good Luck!
>>>  Ian.
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> >From: Barbara O'Connor <oconnor.barbara@gmail.com>
>>> >Sent: Aug 13, 2008 11:19 AM
>>> >To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
>>> >Subject: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Children's author needs expert advice
>>> >
>>> >I write books for children aged 8 to 12.
>>> >I am currently beginning a book that centers around a 10 or 11 year old
>>> boy
>>> >who finds a submarine kit (it was in a crate that fell off a train).
>>> >
>>> >I need some advice from the experts:
>>> >
>>> >Would it be believable that a young boy could build a small submarine from
>>> a
>>> >kit?
>>> >
>>> >Could the kit be very simple - something like the Silent Runner?
>>> >
>>> >Would he have access to all the tools and parts needed?
>>> >
>>> >Where would he have to build it - a barn? a garage?
>>> >
>>> >Once built, could he maneuver it (on a wagon or cart?) to a nearby pond or
>>> >lake?
>>> >
>>> >Any ideas or suggestions welcome and appreciated.
>>> >
>>> >Barbara O'Connor
>>> >www.barboconnor.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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