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Post by hardhatdiver on Apr 28, 2012 8:18:17 GMT -8
Picked a Dacor Nautilus awhile back and was only going to use it as a display. After reading John's (SeaRat) very informative post on diving this unit I may just decide to dive it. I also found someone on Ebay selling copies of the manual for it. Has anyone else here used it?
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Post by nikeajax on Apr 28, 2012 9:25:48 GMT -8
Hmmmm? I ain't never heard of such such a creature, but that don't mean nutin'! I did find this:  SIGH, the guests are here, gotta go! Jaybird |
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Post by SeaRat on Apr 28, 2012 11:29:07 GMT -8
Hardhatdiver, it's funny that you would name this thread, "Nautilus, no not the submarine" because in a way, the Dacor Nautilus is a submarine. It uses the same concept of a submarine's sealed ballast to establish a buoyancy, and not let it change with depth. It is a unique concept that only Dacor used for a BC. Every unit was numbered, and dealers were required to go through a short course with anyone who bought them. Once the bottom valve is closed, and the neutral buoyancy achieved, as you descend the regulator on the inflation hose adds air to the unit to equalize it with depth. When you then ascend, the overpressure relief valve on the unit's top will bleed off excess pressure when it gets to about 5 psig over ambient. All this is done without changing the buoyancy of the unit, because it is in essence a "hull". To change buoyancy, you need to open the bottom valve to allow water either to enter or exit the unit as air is either released or added to the unit. Then, on the surface, you can open the bottom valve and blow all the water out of the unit for over 50 pounds of buoyancy on your back, which is great for swimming on your back on the surface.
More later.
John
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Post by SeaRat on Apr 28, 2012 13:19:00 GMT -8
The Nautilus also has one other nice feature; weight storage in line with the cylinder. It has a weight chamber for custom weights (four pounds each) for a capacity of 16 pounds of weight. However, mine did not come with the weights, so I use regular weight belt weights of 3 pounds each which also fit into the chamber. I do have a weight mold for these weights, but have not taken the initiative to actually melt the fishing weights I have to make some yet. Maybe this year...
John
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Post by hardhatdiver on Apr 28, 2012 15:00:10 GMT -8
John, Mine came with three of the four original weights. Weight Intergrated BC's, a new thing ,,,,NOT. It's funny how new ideas aren't always new. I don't think the new divers realize how we keep barrowing from the past. New Dry Snorkels - old ping pong ball snorkel. I have a old Cressi-sub double snorkel mask that has dry valves on them, a better design then the ping pong ball. I see the spring fin straps are back too. A couple years back Aqua Lung even resurrected the double hose regulator for a little while. What's next, horse and wagons. Alittle slow, but they get great gas mileage.  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2012 15:25:36 GMT -8
Back in the early to mid 60's, before BC's, Mar-Vel had a Hawaiian backpack that had integrated weight tubes on the sides..........Their catalog front page showed this thing.........
There was also a do it your self modification to the back plate made by Sea-Craft Ind. that added two weight tubes ( 2 @ 17" x 1.25" steel conduit pipes) to each side edge of the back plate.......1/8 inch spring pins at the bottom held the lead weights in (used d cell flashlight battery to make molds from plaster and then spray aluminum paint on the inside before each pour.....you needed to make two or three molds as the hot lead wore the plaster out pretty fast)
It was called a Weight Pak...........
However, I still prefer to carry weights around my waist on a belt........just like I prefer a 1911 to any wiz bang on the market today.
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Post by SeaRat on Apr 28, 2012 15:44:07 GMT -8
Here is a photo of me in the water using the Nautilus with a Sportsways Hydro Twin two-hose regulator. (That's not my dog in the background  )  Here's a photo of the Dacor Nautilus floating with about 16 pounds of weight (some on the belt) at High Rocks on the Clackamas River.  Oldmossback, I have one of those paks with the weight-integration in it, and used it last year. I'll try for some photos later. John |
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Post by hardhatdiver on Apr 28, 2012 15:45:19 GMT -8
Model 1911? That's modern, I'm shooting a Ruger Vaquero and a Cimarron colt replica. Six shooters. ;D
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Post by nikeajax on Apr 29, 2012 8:13:48 GMT -8
Derned whippersnapers! Remington, 1858 Army model, think yer so smart with yer fancy cartridges, I'll learn ya...  Okay, back to our regularly scheduled program: I wasn't sure exactly what this thing was, now that I realize it's purely a buoyancy device. I thought perhaps it was something like the USD-1. So, ideally, Dacor would have mated this up with their Olympic? Jaybird |
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drado
Pro Diver
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Post by drado on Apr 29, 2012 9:33:57 GMT -8
Although I had previously seen photos of the Nautilus before, it stayed more within my consciousness after receiving my 2nd ed. copy of Fred Robert's vintage equipment diver's bible "Basic Scuba"  Interestingly, even though its on the cover, seeing as the book was written in 1961, and the reprint made in 1979, the Nautilus isn't even discussed in it  |
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Post by nikeajax on Apr 29, 2012 10:04:34 GMT -8
Geez Ed, way to spoil the book for me  Huh, I have that one too: I always thought it was kind of an odd cover at that, I guess it's kinda like having a Corvette or something, "With the New Dacor Nautilus, you'll have to beat the hot scuba-babes off with a stick..." "Hey baby, wanna try my Nautilus..." Jaybird |
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Post by SeaRat on May 2, 2012 17:40:41 GMT -8
Back in the early to mid 60's, before BC's, Mar-Vel had a Hawaiian backpack that had integrated weight tubes on the sides..........Their catalog front page showed this thing......... There was also a do it your self modification to the back plate made by Sea-Craft Ind. that added two weight tubes ( 2 @ 17" x 1.25" steel conduit pipes) to each side edge of the back plate.......1/8 inch spring pins at the bottom held the lead weights in (used d cell flashlight battery to make molds from plaster and then spray aluminum paint on the inside before each pour.....you needed to make two or three molds as the hot lead wore the plaster out pretty fast) It was called a Weight Pak........... However, I still prefer to carry weights around my waist on a belt........just like I prefer a 1911 to any wiz bang on the market today. Oldmossback, Here's the weight-integrated backpack I have, although I took the Hawaiian backpack style plastic hooks off and am now using the nylon straps (I got thicker with age).    I think it holds either 16 or 18 pounds of two-pound, cylindrical weights. John |
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Post by SeaRat on May 6, 2012 18:09:35 GMT -8
Here are more photos of the Dacor Nautilus:  These photos show the complete system, with a Dacor Pacer 900 being used with the system. Originally the Nautilus was made for the Dacor Olympic regulator, but the Pacer actually fits the system better. The cylinder being used is a USD steel 58 cubic foot cylinder, which is a bit too short for the system. It is made for a steel 72 or a AL 80, but they must be without the tank boot or the weight system may hang up.     This is the automatic regulator which keeps the system pressurized correctly with increasing depth. If you ascend with the bottom valve closed, the excess air pressure simply vents from the top (or bottom) valve. But the buoyancy does not change with depth or ascent if the bottom valve is closed. I am in need of a second pressure balancing regulator for my other Dacor Nautilus. If anyone recognizes this regulator (see the last photo), and has one available, please PM me about it. John |
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Post by SeaRat on May 6, 2012 18:15:38 GMT -8
Here are some more with some close-ups:     These are not the correct weights for this system. But I have found that 3 pound, thinner weights do fit into the weight channel. Because of this, I have not yet used the mold I have for making the Dacor 4 pound weights. So with this setup, I can use 12 pounds of weight; with the Dacor weights, there should be up to 16 pounds available for weights (Dacor also product plastic spacers for using less than 16 pounds, but I have not seen any of these). I have used the waist strap for extra weights too, to get me to the 22 pounds I currently use. I feel that dropping 12 pounds will get me to the surface with no problem. John |
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Post by SeaRat on Jun 3, 2012 20:51:14 GMT -8
I dove my older Nautilus today at High Rocks on the Clackamas River near Portland, Oregon with my Scubapro AIR I regulator too. I wanted my more modern gear because it was my first dive with a new Henderson wet suit. I almost dove this wet suit yesterday, but when I put it on it was binding my neck too much for comfort. I cut down the neck this morning, and dove it today. It was great! No more struggling into and out of a 12 year-old, non-stretch neoprene that was getting tighter and tighter, even though I did not gain weight.
The Nautilus performed very well in heavy current. I re-commissioned one of my 80 cubic foot AL tanks to mate with the Nautilus. I don't have the Nautilus' special regulator on it (which pressurizes the ballast tank as you dive), so I need to leave the bottom valve open as I descend. Other than that, it worked extremely well. I had a weight belt on too, with 12 pounds in the Nautilus and wearing 12-14 pounds on my weight belt, the dive went very well.
Initially, I dove the upper pool, then went in a circle to the deeper area. Then I again swam upstream against a heavy current to see the wrecked SUV in the upstream area of the pool. It was more uncovered than last year, with the gravel only going up part way on the wheels on the left side (right side covered by boulders and gravel). The bumper was visible, but the license plate appears to have been torn off the vehicle.
At one point, my weight belt was too loose and I needed to unbuckle it to adjust the clip and make it tighter. The weight belt was an old, wire buckle system with an adjustable end piece.
This was a really memorable dive, because for the second time I came face-to-face with a large white sturgeon. Last year, I only saw the six-foot sturgeon for about three seconds. This year, it was a larger fish, probably 8-10 feet long. It also wasn't spooked by me. I came upon it, and it simply continued facing into the current as I went under it. My head was within 6 inches of the tail of this large fish. I stopped, held onto a rock in the current, and watched. It saw me turn around, and moved out of visible range up-current. I continued holding onto the rock, and sure enough the sturgeon had turned around and came back to look at me again. It was really a large fish, longer then me holding onto the rock. It passed me closely, then turned and again swam up-currend for the last time. I held onto the rock to see if it would come back for probably five more minutes, but it did not.
I let go, went downstream and exited on the rocks after blowing the Nautilus free of water.
Wow, what a dive.
John
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