Scuba Tank Hooka rig

[Bushwacker]

Blue Heron expressed interest in “recipe” for subject rig, so here goes. Although you can spend big bucks and just buy an entire off-the shelf Kayak rig from Brownies (http://www.browniedive.com/kayak-diving-hose-kits) to use with an existing regulator, here’s how I did it at somewhat lower cost. Various pieces of the rig are shown in photos below. Since I already had a couple of scuba regulators, step one was to get an adapter to connect the 1st stage of regulator to the long air hose. I bought the 12” hose from the Kayak rig from Divers Direct for about $16 which attaches to the low pressure port (~150 psi) of 1st stage regulator with a male Quick Release Swivel (QRS) fittings on the other end (http://www.yachtdiver.com/brownies-parts.shtml). I also bought a couple of the $8 mating female QRS fittings and some brass fittings to connect it to a garden hose. (The dive shop guy said garden hose fittings work fine and I wanted hoses that could also be used with the “Cracker Air” gas engine powered rigs No Bones built many years ago.) I used the 2nd female fitting to connect a shop air hose to my tanks, which is real handy if you don’t have a shop air compressor or need some portable shop air! (I’ve run air tools and touch-up paint guns off that setup!) You can buy brass fittings from a dive shop to connect the hose directly to the regulator, but it’s nice to have that quick connect fitting when you’re hooking everything together on the boat because it eliminates problems with kinked hoses. I bought two 50’ 3/8” ID hoses with ½” straight thread fittings from the dive shop for about $70 ea. because I didn’t have time to order the bare hose and the crimp tools to install the end fittings. (You can order the same K3130 food grade high pressure hose for about half that price from http://www.hosexpress.com/pvc/SeriesK3130.htm, where Skip bought some longer hoses for his “Cracker Air” rig, but you’ll have to provide your own end fittings. The brass fittings are expensive! I spent about $70 at Lowes for 2 full sets of fittings, so if you can go directly from a 3/8” barbed hose fitting to the nylon garden hose fittings like Ken did you’ll save some $! It would also be cheaper to use the Brownies QRS fittings instead of the garden hose adapters, but there is no way to seal them up when the hose is disconnected, and I didn’t want moisture or critters getting in the hoses!)
My 2nd stage regulators weren’t rebuildable, so I bought a couple of used rebuilt regs from the dive shop with hoses with ½” fittings and also had them overhaul both first stages. One drawback of these type of rigs is that you don’t have a tank pressure gage as you do with a normal scuba rig, so you don’t know when you’re gonna run out of air until it gets hard to breathe! However an experienced diver knows that you can still get a couple of breaths if you just ascend a few feet, but I would want to carry a spare air bottle if using this rig deeper than about 25’! I found a good deal on some small pony tank pressure gages for $20 ea. at http://www.leisurepro.com/Prod/Categ...6/BLRPPGB.html (I see the price has gone up a bunch!), so we at least knew how much air we started with on each dive and estimate how much bottom time we’d have.
The last step was to get some garden hose female caps and make up some male PVC plugs to keep everything sealed up. The one drawback of the clear hoses is that algae can grow if they get moisture in them and they see daylight, so I keep ‘em in a bag to avoid that. Skip always flushes his out with vinegar if they’ve been stored very long, so I will probably do the same.
The innertube used is an Airhead Blast, with an ID/OD of 15”/48” and height of about 14”. The center hole is just big enough to hold 2 aluminum 80 CF tanks and it’s got plenty of flotation to hold the tanks and a dive float; the tough nylon cover provides a floor that supports the tanks and a tow strap.

Sorry for the long post but didn’t want to leave out important stuff. Obviously you need a diver certification card to get tanks filled and you should be an experienced scuba diver because this rig can kill you if you don’t know what you’re doing! We made an exception for Sandy because he promised to take a certification course, and besides, he knows just enough to be dangerous anyway! Fire away if any questions! Denny

[DonV]

"We made an exception for Sandy because he promised to take a certification course, and besides, he knows just enough to be dangerous anyway"

No truer word were ever spoken!!!! Just enough......

[gofastsandman]

Great post Denny!

I`ve had a safe drivers endorsement since `92. That was dive Sandy.....oh nevermind.

My central processing unit can not be serviced by mere mortals. Batteries not needed.

I know I am somewhat flippant and seemingly dangerous at times, but If your pilot has a heart attack, I`m bringing that puppy in on final.

The Scuba Club has nice prices for a ticket. Will call them this week.

Truth be told, with the current here, I doubt a buddy could do much but watch on a deeper reef dive.

I run 19 lbs of weight and a small air reserve in my snorkel vest. Enough to keep mental gremlins at rest. At under 30 ft. the dangers are fewer, but there.

Cool, calm, and collected are the 3 c`s. I will endevour to learn 5,6, and 7. Oh, 4 as well.

Cheers,
GFS

[DonV]

Good job Sandy!!!! Don't forget 'ol #4!!! We are all "mere mortals"!!

Oh yeah, the engine on my brother's plane, shall we say "quit running" at 6000', talking about "a check your laundry moment"!!!

"but If your pilot has a heart attack, I`m bringing that puppy in on final"........this is when "Depends" are worth their weight in gold!!

[gofastsandman]

@`92 my buddy Drew calls and asks if I want right seat over to the west coast. He flew corporate for Minton Groves. We took the Piper over and picked up the Queen Air.

Ah, a chance at flying a Beech twin. I could not have been happier. Well at 500 ft. off the deck commin`outta Tampa, smoke starts pouring out of the defroster vents. Not I just lit a ciggie smoke, but full on blinding white smoke.

Drew gets on the horn and very loudly relays this is 47 echo romeo requesting IMMEDIATE EMERGENCY COME AROUND. I thought to myself....hmmm Drew, you might want to work on your bedside manner there. He was focused only on the runway. I looked at the guages and saw some increases.....you`ve got to be kidding me.

Um, Drew, ah you do realize that if we lose power we will not make it back to the field.

Shut up I`m pilot in command. Ohhhhhk.

I am now looking around for fields and checking the guages.

Why don`t we check the list in reverse. We get to turn off the defroster.
Presto.

They gave us a courtesy hangar. Took the core out of the equation.

1 piece of copper pipe and 4 clamps on the logs.

Drew was buzzing cattle on the way home.