[PSUBS-MAILIST] DSV Aquatic update

[Jon Wallace via Personal_Submersibles]

Moved the submarine yesterday (Monday 5/28) from the original 1979 steel trailer to the new aluminum trailer.  Working alone, it took me 8 hours to build the gantry, lift the sub, and swap out the trailers.  No issues however and it all went pretty smoothly.  I have to admit I was a bit nervous about lifting the sub on wood beams, but I had used an online calculator (http://forestryforum.com/members/donp/beamclc_ctrpointload.htm) to determine timber sizes and it turned out to be accurate.  If there was any deflection in the beams it certainly was not noticeable to the naked eye.
The submarine is completely stripped and is as light as it is ever going to get.  I have no idea what the actual weight is but I calculated approximately 2500 pounds based upon the amount of steel in the various parts (main cylinder, heads, conning tower, battery pods, etc).  I decided to split that weight between two beams rather than just one so I could use lighter material.  Each beam was created from laminating two 2x10x10 full dimensional planks purchased from a local saw mill which provided a full 4x10x10 beam.  Posts were created by laminating two 2x6x10 planks together to provide full 4x6x10 material.  Lots of bracing here, there, and everywhere.  Looks ugly, but is very solid.
I used two 2-ton "come along" manual winches attached to the fore and aft lifting rings then lifted/lowered equally between the two winches.  Once free hanging, the sub did sway a bit since I had to lean on it to get to the winches.  This also made me nervous since too much swaying could bring the gantry down but I was easily able to counter and damper the small sway.  I probably would not have done this on a windy day.
The old and new trailers are the same height so I only needed to lift the sub about four inches so that it was free of the c-channel that it rests inside.  Then it was simply a matter of pulling the old trailer out from underneath, backing the new trailer underneath with proper placement, then lowering the sub back down.  Happy to have the sub on a road worthy trailer now.
Videos uploaded for your viewing pleasure
Episode 3 - Trailer Swap - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLbbFUlKHkU
Episode 2 - More Trailer Mods - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4d0nzWIgYo
Episode 1 - Fender Repair - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh3d5BI1vig

   
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