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[PSUBS-MAILIST] Lathe Size

Glen,
To machine all the round parts for a K-350 you would need a lathe with a swing of 26 inches. That's if you were planning to turn the conning tower, conning tower reinforcing ring and hatch cover. That's a pretty big machine. Actually too big to machine the smaller parts you'll need.
If you have another shop do the machining on the conning tower, reinforcing collar, the hatch cover and the front viewport, the largest parts you'll have to machine are the battery pods. A 14 inch lathe will turn them. If you farm them out also, the next smaller parts are the viewports. As so it goes on. If you get a gap bed lathe that will let you turn some bigger diameters like the front viewport and maybe the hatch cover if your gap is big enough but no gap is long enough for the conning tower.
What lathe you buy depends on your budget, the space you have to keep it, how familiar you are with machining, how much you want to do yourself and what equipment you can find at a good price. On average I'd recommend a K-350 builder buy a lathe with a 14 inch swing. If you have room for it, get a engine lathe, not a bench lathe. An engine lathe (floor model) is a heavier machine and will do a better job on things like viewports where you have to remove a lot of material. The length is up to you. If you do the battery pods as the print shows, it doesn't take a long lathe. If you rather turn the whole pod, get a lathe long enough.
Usually, buy the longest lathe available that you have room to keep. You pay more for an engine lathe then a bench lathe, and more if it has a larger swing, but not a lot more if it has a longer bed. I'd shop for a used machine with some life left in it. You don't need to invest in a new machine for the couple of hundred hours your going to use it. Try it first so your not buying junk either. If your not sure what to look for find someone to look at it with you. If you get some tooling with it, all the better. 

Happy hunting,
Dan H.
----- Original Message ----- From: "glen brown" <glenbrown@vodamail.co.za> 
To: <personal_submersibles@psubs.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2008 5:52 AM
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Re: The Dry Divers



Hi James
I have purchased the K350 plans and plan to start building as soon as possible.I am pressently researching lathes I hope someone could give advice on swing over bed size and size between centres that i would need for building 
the K350.Thanks for all your advice.
ps the dry divers sub manipulator ball valve idea could be worth considering but being a comercial diver for many years i have seen ball valves fail countless times due to something as small as a grain of sand getting stuck in the seals .As for the mechanics of the manipulator i think the same concept as a device used to lift fish out of the water by there lower jaw after being cauht by a fisherman could work. 
All the best from South Africa
Glen Brown
----- Original Message ----- From: "James Frankland" <james@guernseysubmarine.com> 
To: <personal_submersibles@psubs.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2008 9:39 AM
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Re: The Dry Divers


Hi all.
Can someone send me the link again for the dry divers cue ball arm thing people are talking about. I must have missed the email with the link on so i havent actually seen it. 

Thanks
James

----- Original Message -----
From: Brian Cox [mailto:ojaivalleybeefarm@dslextreme.com]
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Sent: Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:01:58 -0700
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Re: The Dry Divers

Jay,
          Do you know how they made the seal on that cue ball?  You're
right about machining stainless, but not impossible.

Brian
 -----Original Message-----
 From: owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org
[mailto:owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org]On Behalf Of Jay K. Jeffries
 Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2008 4:55 PM
 To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
 Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Re: The Dry Divers


 The cue ball was handy and readily adoptable for the first manipulator.
Cue balls were originally made from ivory, then nitro cellulose (the first
plastic but a touchy explosive they found out), and then plastic.  A ball
valve will have a limited range of motion due to its standoff from the hull 
and will be difficult to work with due to the large diameter hole through
the middle.  Stainless steel would be great for the ball but may be
difficult to machine for the home machinist.

 R/Jay



 Respectfully,

 Jay K. Jeffries

 Andros Is., Bahamas



 Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish.

     - Euripides (484 BC - 406 BC)



 From: owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org
[mailto:owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org] On Behalf Of Brian Cox
 Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2008 7:34 PM
 To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
 Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Re: The Dry Divers



 I want one too !    I don't get the cue ball part,  wouldn't you have to
have a hole thru the cue ball?   What are cue balls made of ?  ceramic?
What about using a ball valve or simply machine a large stainless sphere and 
put a hole thru it.



 Brian
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603-529-1100
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