Tank Enclosure

[Thalassamania]

We tested several enclosures in a tow tank, they had more drag than tanks and BC alone, and worst of all the inertia of the mass of water inside the enclosure resulted in a huge spike whenever the speed was changed.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I had a Wategil At Pak complete with fairing in the early 1980's. I dove it once or twice and was not impressed with the fairing. It was large, bulky and not, tapered at the aft end at all which did not help streamlining. Then again, the plate and wing itself was basically what a BP/wing is now, so it was already very low drag without the fairing.

 

[meesier42]

someone needs to ask Blair Mott. he was the Chief Diver for Jean-Michel's Ocean Adventure Society and he can definately answer any questions about it.

 

[oxyhacker]

Wow, I haven't seen closeups of the scooters before. The appear to be plain ol' Teknas with rocket pods grafted on, then sprayed silver, like props for a low budget sci-fi flick.

The tank shells were always more about appearance than function, and pretty much a dead end. I think the only reason JM has revived them is that they, and the suits, are a cheap and easy way to establish some visual continuity with the old Cousteau specials, without getting dragged back into court.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

This was the mid 1980's when everyone was still talking, so I don't think the court thing was an issue yet.

At the time I thought 130 cu ft in a comparatively small and light package was pretty cool. When you look at the plumbing and the hop wrapped tanks a fairing also makes sense to cover it all up and protect the hoop wrapped tanks and plumbing from damage - he streamlining is just an added bonus and/or cosmetic packaging.

 

[oxyhacker]

The post that started this thread was, I believe, referring to the current string of JM Cousteau "specials", as was my comment. Not sure when these were made, but it was not very long ago, and they certainly postdate JCs death and the lawsuits.

This was the mid 1980's when everyone was still talking, so I don't think the court thing was an issue yet.

At the time I thought 130 cu ft in a comparatively small and light package was pretty cool. When you look at the plumbing and the hop wrapped tanks a fairing also makes sense to cover it all up and protect the hoop wrapped tanks and plumbing from damage - he streamlining is just an added bonus and/or cosmetic packaging.

 

[rjack321]

And here is the scooter that goes with that set. The two pods on the side are for a cylinder in each pod.

This is so cool! Love the silver spraypaint on the red tekna! I wonder if Nemrod's seen this, he's got a Tekna to "convert" into the future so he can get into Team Zissou

 

[meesier42]

So I got this back from Blair Mott, he was the chief diver for JMC Ocean Adventures dive team. He asked me to post this up for him. Hopefully he can find a picture of the internals of their rigs.

"For the PBS series Jean- Miche Cousteaus’s Ocean Adventures the open circuit gear we used were Triple 30’s. This is a picture from the episode Sharks at Risk." -Blair Mott

 

[Luis H]

Interesting, I kind of like it, except for the color.
They are using wireless transmitter for pressure sensor, a direct inflator on the small wing type BC (no corrugated hose), and no octopus.

IMO, you have to keep in mind that for their purpose they want to look stream lined with no clutter. It needs to look good in front of a camera. During any filming they would probably have safety divers near by, so an alternate second would just add clutter.

Thanks for the picture.

 

[Luis H]

This is so cool! Love the silver spraypaint on the red tekna! I wonder if Nemrod's seen this, he's got a Tekna to "convert" into the future so he can get into Team Zissou

My guess is that Nemrod is very aware of this scooter. I have gone diving in a couple of occasions with both Nemrod and Ryan (the owner of that website with the Cousteau museum). I am willing to bet that they talked more than once about the scooters and I would also guess that Nemrod has also explored that web site.

It is very likely that Ryan has one of the largest (if not the largest) private collection of JY Cousteau equipment. He also has a large collection of his books and movies and is very knowledgeable on the subject.