Even though this idea didn't generate enough interest to become a group project, it was interesting enough to me to keep on working.

So here is a brief recap and an update.

The Idea is to construct a Cow headed sea monster boat for the Milk Carton boat race. What would be cooler then to have this boat/sculpture submerge and rise from the lake. So I set out to test if it was feasible.

The test revealed major stability problems and some other minor glitches. But the addition of outriggers and multiple buoyancy zones solved the major issue.

So here is where I am at right now. I have four buoyancy zones (front, back and the two sides) each controlled with a valve. Using that control I can balance the sinking fairly well. Currently I cannot get it to sink more then two feet below the surface, the wood frame floats enough of my weight to cancel it out. I'll probably have to settle for only completely submerging at the start using a drop ballast (rock and sand) and only partially submerging at the end.

So now I'm on to propulsion. My current thought is a fish tail. Without getting into the all the small details that a truly efficient tail propulsion system would require, all I'm going to try is attaching a nice looking tail to a long piece of PVC tube and pull the middle of the tube from side to side. PVC seems to have enough flex and spring to give the tail a really nice shape in motion. Some foot operated levers, some pulleys and wire rope should be enough to test.

I've decided that the sculpture of the monster will also be made from plastic milk jugs. I'll have to find something better then a soldering iron and and old gas grill but those will work for now.

I have a bike to donate to a group project, and let me know if I should be saving milk jugs.

I don't need a bike for this. But I have some other Ideas.

No need for milk cartons as I've got a source that can get me 15-20 a day.

But thanks.

I would so be there helping you work on this.

I wish you were here to help. Actually I wish you were her to help with some sound stuff.

Sound?? This project gets bigger with every update.

So today I rigged up the pedal frame and wired up the PVC pipe for my tail. That stuff is really springy. I'll have to see just how it behaves in the water.

But that brought up the next problem - The Tail Fin. Now I really want to use the plastic milk jugs. So my first thought was to cut up and form a couple of jugs into the tail. For some strange reason my sister took both of the irons with her to a soccer tournament in South Dakota so that major plan got spiked for the day. But I knew I'd need some sort of plastic welding rig for other parts and I'd need the ability to add some support material in places. So I tried to construct a quick and dirty rig. A bit of copper tube and a Bernzomatic actually works.

All I did was pinch off one end of the tube to give me what I thought would be a good bead size. Then I used the scraps from the cut up milk jug and fed them in the other end. Once I got enough material melted just feeding in the scrap was enough to get the bead flowing. The copper retained enough heat to allow for acceptable runs between reheating. Using that I welded up a sheet of dragon scales about 2' x 2'. Playing a propane torch over it I was able to relax it enough to accept an underlying curved shape. (note it really wants to stick so it is probably best to use some baking paper). The edges of the scales tended to stick also, but I was able to pry them apart (I don't want the sculpture to have air pockets).

Well I doubt I'll get to this again until Sunday as I'm headed to the cabin I work on this weekend.

Not for this. A couple of girls in the neighborhood are in a Band. I noticed that when using other bands PAs (something they are bound to be doing a lot for a bit) the high end gets really muted out. I thought a couple arrays of cheap piezoelectric speakers could help them out a bit (there is a big drop over 4k and Piezos don't need crossovers.)

http://halfdemondoll.com/?mpf=frame&

holy cow!! (literally).

where have I been?
i hadnt heard of any "bessie the loch monster" - but i'd love to pitch in if you need any help.
i have an industrial hot air gun that might work a little nicer if you need it.

That gun could be a big help when.
What I'd really like is a good working sketch of a Cow Headed Sea Monster.
Some things to confider:
I don't know if my current tail propulsion system will work, but if it doesn't I can still use the idea for steering. So as it is right now the tail would be about 6'-8' long. I also thought I could use some sort of flippers as oared steering or propulsion. As a final backup I'd go with an internal hidden paddle wheel. So the body would have to accommodate the operator and/or the paddle wheel.
I'd like to minimize the height as much as possible. The less I have to sink to get the effect the better. However the head will almost have to remain above the waterline so I can get air to re-float (and breathe). I would have no problem if the head could raise and lower. Sort of stretch out to race.
I'm using cut up milk jugs for the body construction. I want the dragon scales to obviously be from milk jugs to that shape should be echoed. For at least the tail and possibly the neck and flippers the scales will have to be able to move. I'm planning on creating rings of scales and using rubber bands or such to hold the shape.

Thanks.