Re: HP, weight and visability

[Ray Keefer <Ray.Keefer@eng.Sun.COM>]

Hi Sean,

> 1) Inner pressure hull with an outer hull(thin one) as the protector. The soft > ballast would be located between these with ambient pressure meaning the > thinner hull need not withstand pressure.

An idea I have toyed with is to build a pressure hull complete with internal
ribbing. Then weld light weight ribbing external to that. To this light weight
ribbing I would seal and bolt the ballast tank outer shellthus creating a
double hull configuration that I can take apart for accessing. The air tight
seal would be accomplished by some kind of caulking compound.

> I was
> also under the impression that in order to be certified, a sub must have an
> inner hull that wasn't made of fiberglass. Am I wrong?

It's the pressure hull that needs to be metal. Whether that's internal or
not is up to you and your design.


> >Military subs 
> >have different design requirements than manned submersibles and you 
> >should steer away using military sub ideas, which don't work well for 
> >small manned submersibles.
> I wasn't intentionally using the military standards. I was using the
> requirement of an inner hull.
> 
> >The Ballast tanks on my two-man dry submersible, which has a 
> >1000'operating depth and is rated A1 Manned Submersible by the ABS, are 
> >for and aft external to the pressure hull, and independantly valved.  My 
> >ballast are only 3/16" thick and work just fine.
> Is there an inner hull? If so, what is it made of? My main ballast tanks are
> external. I was simply trying to make the best of the two hull requirement.
> Are your ballast tanks reinforced? What size are they? Did you design it and
> build it yourself or did you purchase it? What type of thrusters and how big
> are they? What is the thickness of your main hull? Any idea where the
> acrylic came from on your sub?
> 
> >Richard Hess
> 
> Thanks Richard. I would be very interested in knowing any information you
> could give me about your sub. Where are you in the country? Talk to you soon,
> Sean
>