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  • Project Progress Report

    On Sunday we made some progress on the transducers as well as the fish.


    The 3 sections of the fish (tow - 8"; transducer array - 8", and fin - 6") were cut. The best cuts are obtained by using a chop saw. All sections are made of 2 & 3/8" white delrin.


    The wings are made of 1/4" white delrin and are 4" x 10" (2 sections are required). They were cut using a table saw. The two sections are cut in the middle to allow the two sections to slide into each other creating 4 wings.


    The transducers (after testing) were wired together and soldered; all exposed leads were coated with liquid electrical tape; and the wires were then grouped together using shrink tubing. The transducers were then glued together in an array using clear PVC solvent and glue. Per Dan's instructions, we glued them on a flat surface (bottom of tranducer down) and we also placed the sides against another flat surface. Rather than holding them together while they dried, I used some elastic shock cord (parachute cord) and tied them around the sides against a straigt edge (actually it was an exacto kit box (you'll see it in the photo). It worked great!!!!


    We could not locate any underwater connectors, but found an aluminum locking connector (male and female) used on airplanes. Dan used a trailer connector, but I preferred something a little more robust and something that locked the cable together. Unfortantely, the cost was more ... $40.


    Dan's design called for 14 or 16 gauge aluminum, we went with the 1/4" delrin which is much, much stronger ... and much, much more $$$. This will allow us to use one piece of tubing rather than two (outer and inner) per Dan's original design. We are going to have the tail section cut on a table saw this week and verify the need for only one piece of tubing on the tail section.


    Over the next week, I hope to have the Delrin nose cone and fish section connectors trimmed to size on a lathe. Dan used PVC piping rather than Delrin and by doing so was able to use smaller PVC pipe for the section connectors (glued togther). We opted to put some solid Delrin round stock on a lathe so that if one of the pieces became damaged, we could simply replace the damaged section with a spare. Out sections will use flush nuts/bolts as opposed to glue.


    I took some photos of the transducer wiring, the fins and the fish sections (prior to any cutting). If anyone is interested in seeing them, let me know and I'll try to post them. Presently, they are BIG files and I have to figure out how to reduce them.


    I asked Garrett to join the list and do a write up on how he tested the transducers since he used a method completely differnt than Dan's. I should note that not everyone will have access to an O-Scope which is needed for this test.


    So far, so good. Going quicker than expected and no screw-ups.


    Patrick

  • #2
    Re: Transducer Photo




    [img]../images/Transducers1x.jpg[/img]


    I'll give this a try ...

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Transducer Photo #2




      [img]../images/Transducers2x.jpg[/img]


      This is a shot after all the shrink wrap was done. Nice work Garrett!!!!

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Fish Sections




        [img]../images/Fish Sections1x.jpg[/img]


        This photo shows the three sections of the fish which includes an 8" tow section, and 8" transducer array section, and a 6" tail section. We used 2 3/8" white delrin pipe. It was cut on a chop saw ... band saws do NOT make near as clean (straight) a cut.


        Patrick

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Tail Section




          [img]../images/Wings1x.jpg[/img]


          This photo shows the 2 wing sections with center cuts. We used 1/4" white delrin flat stock. We also used a router to soften the edges (cannot be seen).


          Patrick

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Tail Section




            [img]../images/Wings2x.jpg[/img]


            This photo shows the 2 wing sections that when placed on top of each other makes the "tail section".


            Tools used ... table saw and router (to soften edges).


            Patrick

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Transducer Photo #2

              I should mention that the Lowrance PD-W 192 kHz (20 degree beam) transducers come with ears that must be removed to bond the transducers together.


              You might be able to see the marks on the top of the transducers where the ears were cut off.


              I did this by putting them in a vice (do not clamp hard for obvious reasons) and used a small hack saw to cut them off. I also tried a Dremel tool, but it was slow and did not do as good as a job.


              Patrick

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Fish Sections




                [img]../images/Fish Sections1x1.jpg[/img]


                Try it again ...

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Fish Sections

                  For some reason beyond me this photo is not coming through.


                  If you are interested, you can view it on the Yahoo page.


                  Time to get some sleep.


                  Patrick

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Fish Sections




                    [img]../images/FishSections1x.jpg[/img]


                    The sections ...

                    Comment

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