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Hi Brent. Good pics. What type of paint was used on George's subs? I see
where the rust has gotten pretty bad in some spots, and I wonder if it's caused
by simple lack of maintenance, or not enough protection in the first place.
Heavy zinc paint stands up well if maintained properly. Where two components are
bolted together, there are several solutions to prevent rust. Delrin disks,
bushings inside the bolt holes, judicious painting of all exposed parts,
stainless, anodes, and lots of other ideas/methods are easy solutions.
I designed my sub so I can dis-assemble it quickly and easily for
maintenance/repair. I should be able to strip it down to the bare hull and
re-assemble it in a day, with minimal tools. That way I will be able to get it
clean after dives, and touch-up any paint that needs it, without having to sit
in the shop for a week. I like the idea of putting plastic/nylon bushings in the
bolt holes. Stainless bolts and nylon/stainless washers, so the potential for
rust is lessened. There are some places where I'll be using brass bolts with
stainless nuts, and some places where I'll use lead bolts with stainless nuts. I
have some parts that need to be very strong, and others that are designed to
break-away if needed. Brass fasteners are good in some spots because they may
need to be drilled out for removal. Here's a quick sketch of one place where
it's needed.
Because the fairing covers the mounting tab, I'll be welding a stainless
nut onto the bottom of the tab. The brass bolt head can be cut/ground off if
need be to remove the fairing. The nylon bushing keeps the different metals from
corroding together, and once the brass bolt head is gone, the bushing and
fairing can be lifted off. Then some vise grips will pull out the brass bolt, or
if needed, drill out the bolt because it's soft. This of course will only be
necessary if I don't maintain that particular connection and allow it to get
crusty.
Spare bushings, washers, brass bolts, etc are just a few things to carry
along in the field for repairs/maintenance. I want to be able to repair this
thing with a minimum of tools when I'm out some where remote. Frank
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