The Biber would have a much greater draft I
would think, and much shorter length than the houseboat. Still, if you
used a cable or extended tongue as has been described in past
posts....
As for the truck, it
sounds like a dually 1-ton that is commonly used to haul horse trailers,
fifth-wheel trailers, etc. Probably had a 460ci big block and heavy duty
4-speed gearbox. Plenty of power.
If I were going to build a "big sub" the size of a Biber or
perhaps even a little bigger in terms of beam, I would go a step further
if my plan was to launch and recover.
I would look for a used 2-1/2 ton International Loadstar or
similar truck with diesel and 5-speed twin axle gearbox. Trucks like
these are easily found in the classified ads of just about any big city
newspaper for very cheap. No doubt it will have lots of miles on the
odometer; but rebuild the braking system, replace axle/universal/and carrier
bearings, repair and flush the cooling system, ignition tuneup, lube job, and
replace fluids. You might also look at the steering components.
With lots of miles, the tie-rod ends, idler-arm/pittman arm, and kingpins
should be looked at and replaced if needed. For around $5K, you should
end up with a nice hauler.
Do some bodywork, and a cool paintjob while you're at
it. Yeah! A nice flame job and chrome exhaust stacks behind the
cab. And do not forget "SEA LORD" in gold foil on the outside door
panels.
I would also look for a trailer the likes of which is used
by Contracters to haul a bulldozer/backhoe behind a dumptruck. You know,
one of those lowboy tri-axle type trailers.
Thing is, you don't need anything new. The only thing
you will be using the rig for is to launch and recover your big 'ol
sub.
BTW, you got somewhere to park this
thing?
Shipmates,
I have often asked
myself this question: What is the largest and heaviest
psub I
could build and still launch from a standard public launch site, with
a
standard truck? I was in Tempe, AZ last week, and here is what I saw.
I saw a guy launch a 7-ton houseboat from a 30-foot trailer using a
Ford 350
pickup truck (with four instead of two wheels on the rear
axle). The trailer
had three axles located in the center of the
trailer, and the truck launched
the boat with no power problems at all.
Piece of cake.
Seven tons is the weight of the German WWII
Biber midget submarine, so I was
sort of impressed that COTS (commercial
off the shelf) equipment could handle
that.
Doug
Farrow