@AddDude23 Check out "The Subcommittee" website for kits. There are a number of companies that sell them now, but I doubt any will have rockets (too dangerous). Some have torpedoes that work. Mine was made from Home Depot PVC pipe (scratch built) and evolved over 10 years as a testbed for new ideas kind of a "Gee, what would happen if we added this???"
Thanks! Running it was like a NASA moon shot. Lots of prep work for a 25 min. run. Still when the ballast, dive planes, sail planes, torpedoes & rockets were working it was awesome! You could be Michael Phelps and you couldn't outrun that thing when the throttle was wide open.
Thanks! Actually, there are no blueprints. I produced everything through experimentation and prototyping. It's all stored in my mind. The torpedoes were aluminum cigar tubes and the tail cone was turned on a lathe to about .001 accuracy. The drive was a servo motor that turned a driveshaft w. a reversing gear that reversed the direction of an outer tube. Props were cut down toy props and batteries mini nicads. A button switch turned it on when blown from the torpedo tube by gas pressure.
Why thank you! It was an idea that sort of got out of hand and continued growing over several years. I was lucky to have friends with video cameras during the best test runs.
The adjustable ballast tanks use 5 vdc valves and R-134 (freon) gas that is used in auto air conditioning systems. That fills the tanks and a second set of valves vent the tanks so the sub will sink. I use a converter box on the RC receiver that takes one channel and converts it to 8 switched outputs (on/off) so I can control the valves and more...
The body is made out of schedule 40 PVC pipe sold by Home Depot. Make sure you have a lot of ventilation if you drill or accidentally melt the stuff since it outgasses. The stuff is impervious to water and seals up really well.
There are two videos, one just shows the sub going through its paces, submerging and running under water, and opening the missile doors. The second video shows the missile being launched, which was pretty dramatic. Watch both videos to get the full effect of what it could do.
Yes, it fires the rocket(s) 4 of them actually. It can do it either fully submerged and "hovering" or on the surface. The guidance system on the rockets sucked, though and they went anywhere they wanted to go.
Hey, it was fun to play with as an adult! Running it was like preparing for a NASA moon shot. Lots of work for very little run time but awesome fun when it worked right!
Actually, it sort of evolved over about 12 years. It started out as a wooden boat that accidentally was pushed underwater by a motor that was too powerful. We dried it out and decided to make the thing into a sub by adding fins and it worked. We then re-made it out of plumbing PVC from home depot and it evolved from there.
Thanks for the suggestion. It used a conventional RS-540 motor and moved pretty fast on that. When I built it we didn't have brushless motors. Actually too much speed in a submarine isn't a good thing since they tend to crash into the mud and get stuck and are hard to find (been there, done that!).
Hi, thanks! It was a one-off I made from Home Depot plumbing parts (PVC) if you can imagine that. The rockets were Estes C-60 boosters. The gearbox spun two counter-rotating props (in-line) giving it a forward speed of about 5 mph. The whole thing was pretty dangerous, in hindsight I'm lucky to be alive.
That was pretty cool. I like the long antenna idea. That way you can submerge and still keep track of it. Put a mini cam in it now that would even cooler :D
Yep, video would be cool, but the water is pretty murky. I was thinking about putting a Lego NXT in it and having the computer run the sub but needed some way to get it to do acoustic mapping. Lots of ideas but no time to do them.
It's a static diver. Two ballast tanks, two torpedoes, 4 estes rockets, and inline counter rotating props like a torpedo. Oh, and the sail planes work also. In short, she's a working sub.
do you have to build them or can you buy them?
AddDude23 1 year ago
@AddDude23 Check out "The Subcommittee" website for kits. There are a number of companies that sell them now, but I doubt any will have rockets (too dangerous). Some have torpedoes that work. Mine was made from Home Depot PVC pipe (scratch built) and evolved over 10 years as a testbed for new ideas kind of a "Gee, what would happen if we added this???"
WildBillK54 1 year ago
good job
PakaBubi 2 years ago
Thanks! Running it was like a NASA moon shot. Lots of prep work for a 25 min. run. Still when the ballast, dive planes, sail planes, torpedoes & rockets were working it was awesome! You could be Michael Phelps and you couldn't outrun that thing when the throttle was wide open.
WildBillK54 2 years ago
No, actually the video was recorded 15 years ago and so the video is what it is, sorry.
WildBillK54 2 years ago
You mentioned torpedoes...
Is there a blueprint for them, or did you make them yourself? Thanks in advance.
BTW nice sub!
seinfeldfan411 3 years ago
Thanks! Actually, there are no blueprints. I produced everything through experimentation and prototyping. It's all stored in my mind. The torpedoes were aluminum cigar tubes and the tail cone was turned on a lathe to about .001 accuracy. The drive was a servo motor that turned a driveshaft w. a reversing gear that reversed the direction of an outer tube. Props were cut down toy props and batteries mini nicads. A button switch turned it on when blown from the torpedo tube by gas pressure.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
Thanks. I'm thinking of building my own submarine, and torpedoes would be awesome additions!
seinfeldfan411 3 years ago
Yeah, as a friend of mine in the service used to say "There are only two classes of vehicles; there are submarines and there are targets."
WildBillK54 3 years ago
I have to say one thing you are one incredibly creative and genuine person 5 stars due to creativity and impressive engineering!
Krimzon07 3 years ago
Why thank you! It was an idea that sort of got out of hand and continued growing over several years. I was lucky to have friends with video cameras during the best test runs.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
The adjustable ballast tanks use 5 vdc valves and R-134 (freon) gas that is used in auto air conditioning systems. That fills the tanks and a second set of valves vent the tanks so the sub will sink. I use a converter box on the RC receiver that takes one channel and converts it to 8 switched outputs (on/off) so I can control the valves and more...
WildBillK54 3 years ago
The body is made out of schedule 40 PVC pipe sold by Home Depot. Make sure you have a lot of ventilation if you drill or accidentally melt the stuff since it outgasses. The stuff is impervious to water and seals up really well.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
There are two videos, one just shows the sub going through its paces, submerging and running under water, and opening the missile doors. The second video shows the missile being launched, which was pretty dramatic. Watch both videos to get the full effect of what it could do.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
bboorriinngg!!!
tylsta 3 years ago
did it fire a rocket!?
az099900aaz 3 years ago
Yes, it fires the rocket(s) 4 of them actually. It can do it either fully submerged and "hovering" or on the surface. The guidance system on the rockets sucked, though and they went anywhere they wanted to go.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
calling from california here, what state are you in ??
roudy1689 3 years ago
I live in Florida. Since this video the lake's gotten completely overgrown & there's no sailing anymore. Bummer.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
What would i've given to play with this amazing submarine as a child...
TheBigTittyTwister 3 years ago
Hey, it was fun to play with as an adult! Running it was like preparing for a NASA moon shot. Lots of work for very little run time but awesome fun when it worked right!
WildBillK54 3 years ago
Thanks! it was a labor of love to build.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
Actually, it sort of evolved over about 12 years. It started out as a wooden boat that accidentally was pushed underwater by a motor that was too powerful. We dried it out and decided to make the thing into a sub by adding fins and it worked. We then re-made it out of plumbing PVC from home depot and it evolved from there.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
Thanks for the suggestion. It used a conventional RS-540 motor and moved pretty fast on that. When I built it we didn't have brushless motors. Actually too much speed in a submarine isn't a good thing since they tend to crash into the mud and get stuck and are hard to find (been there, done that!).
WildBillK54 3 years ago
Amazing! Did you build this from scratch? Are you selling it? If so, how much? Especially one of these that can fire rockets.
smartass1101 3 years ago
Hi, thanks! It was a one-off I made from Home Depot plumbing parts (PVC) if you can imagine that. The rockets were Estes C-60 boosters. The gearbox spun two counter-rotating props (in-line) giving it a forward speed of about 5 mph. The whole thing was pretty dangerous, in hindsight I'm lucky to be alive.
WildBillK54 3 years ago
That was pretty cool. I like the long antenna idea. That way you can submerge and still keep track of it. Put a mini cam in it now that would even cooler :D
vexviper 4 years ago
Yep, video would be cool, but the water is pretty murky. I was thinking about putting a Lego NXT in it and having the computer run the sub but needed some way to get it to do acoustic mapping. Lots of ideas but no time to do them.
WildBillK54 4 years ago
Nice loadout lol. Very nice job. Scrathcbuilt you say more details please?
Is it dynamic or static?
Looks pretty dern good.
GreenAce92 4 years ago
It's a static diver. Two ballast tanks, two torpedoes, 4 estes rockets, and inline counter rotating props like a torpedo. Oh, and the sail planes work also. In short, she's a working sub.
WildBillK54 4 years ago