Gentlemen,
The renderings were cute but, now it's time to get down to more serious design considerations. I have posted a cutaway CAD drawing of my proposed ballast and air systems on my Frappr page
I do not know why three of them posted but, they are all the same.
Here is where I would like critical review and input. What you see here is a bit of several of you here and there, so you will recognize your work when you see it! :), this is my interpretation at this point, and here are the numbers.
I ended up with 2,341 lbs (36.58 cubic feet) in total of reserve buoyancy or 46% of displacement. My reasoning is that this boat will be used in the ocean, in open water even though the planned area is quite shallow. Also, I tried to use existing structure to best benefit.
The drawing does not show major structural members, frames or baffles for clarity. I did not show HP air routing but did show the routing for the tank vents. I ended up with six valves and vents, any suggestions for simplification of this would be greatly appreciated.
One thing about building a model whether real or in cyberspace, is the opportunity to see the problems and I found one based on Bill Akins observation about the cockpit size. It turns out that I did not leave enough room to mount the hatch! My hatch manufacturer has discontinued the 21" (free opening) so I will have to use a 24" which requires 30.5" rough opening! I have several options but, it's nice actually have a model.
Thanks
Joe