Engel Akula

[salmon]

I have an Engel Akula that was previously owned (two other people I believe). It was never completely finished/working. I was able to get the internals working for the most part, but when I went to see how far off the trim was (I was told it never was trimmed), I found bubbles coming from many areas. One area is the bow thrusters that were installed as well as the bolts/screws on the dive plane mechanism. So, that is a bit of the background, I need to remove the "deck" portion that holds the bow plane retract. Has anyone done this? Any thoughts on how?

[JWLaRue]

Tom,

I think that the forward piston tank needs to be removed.....

Which would then allow access to the thruster and dive plane mechanisms?

-Jeff

[salmon]

Yes, thank you, I thought about that. It will probably go down that path. I was hoping somebody would say, oh just add xenochloronitrohemiwhatchamacallit (insert correct fluid) and the glue holding the deck down will release. Looking for the simple answer, fearing it is not there! LOL

[Guest]

What's it bonded in with, epoxy? Heat can release epoxy but obviously you need to be cautious, otherwise the problems will magnify!

[bigdave]

As Jeff said, I would remove the FWD piston and gain access to the front dry area.
It should be straight FWD job.
I would not attempt to remove the bonded inner deck.
If there was no way to gain access I would wick in some sealant around the leaks by applying a vacuum to the interior.
Thin CA works well for that. Or maybe locktite.
But I would not do it if access is possible. BD

[salmon]

I will accept the wisdom offered and remove the forward piston.

[bigdave]

Good luck.
BTW
If you ever come across some (xenochloronitrohemiwhatchamacallit)
Let me know. Sounds handy. . BD

[JWLaRue]

BD,

I'm pretty sure I've seen it on a shelf in Home Depot next to the Unobtanium.

-Jeff

[bigdave]

That would be so funny to go to HD and ask one of the clueless sales associates where they stock the Unobtainum.
OMG. BD

BTW Any SC members that work at HD I am sure you are not clueless.

[subdude]

BD, why bother? I get the same response when I ask them for something that they actually stock..........

[Larry Kuntz]

I asked for upsidaisium once, the guy looked on his computer for a while, then said "it's a special order item, check back later". CLUELESS

[salmon]

Bringing it back to the Akula, I braved the disassembly. This thing is engineered and the hands before me had done a pretty remarkable job on it.

It was not tough to free it up, it was tough working it out. That being said, success.


There is the bow thruster. A lot of air was coming out of both sides (and water in too). More than likely when it was shipped, some of the jostling around may have broken the seams around the openings at the bow. I remember Skip Assay talking about with forward motion that bow thrusters are useless for most subs, so out it must go (one less area to leak).



So, the damage was minimal and it came out pretty easy considering.


Now I need to apply some fiberglass on the inside. Suggestions?

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

Make a circular fiberglass cloth patch.
Radius of about 1/2" to 1" larger than the hole.
1/2" hole, I would use a 2.5" patch.

Clean the area where the patch will go on the inside of the hull.
If there is room, a dremel with a sanding drum or grinding disk.
Rough up the area to be patched.
Clean with alcohol after grinding.

Put masking tape on the outside over the hole to keep epoxy from getting on the outside of the hull.

Cut a large patch and a slight smaller patch that go over the hole.
Also cut two or three small patches that will fit in to the hole.

Time to get messy.
Mix a small amount of epoxy. (or what every the hull was made of)
Applying on the inside of hull, bush over the hole making sure to get in the hole and all of the sanded area. (you could tape of the inside area to limit the area to be covered.
Apply epoxy to the small cloth pieces to go inside the hole.
Then the large patch followed up by the smaller patch.
Apply and center over the hole.
Work it to remove any and all bubbles.

Place the hull with the hole down and centered/level so the epoxy does not run all over.
Let cure. (what ever the epoxy instructions say)

Remove the outside tape and then the inside tape if used.

After full cure, grind, fill or sand the outside of the hull to shape where the hole has been filled.
If needed you can add body filler to finish off the hole if it is still low.
===========
I have filled holes using fiber glass cloth and CA glue.
Use small amounts to build up as CA glue can get rather hot and could crack the hull.
===========

It all sounds complicated and time consuming.
This is probably a 15 minute job once you have all the materials.

I have also been using Gorilla Glue to fill holes in my end caps as I remove through hull control rod seal fittings or removing holes drilled in the wrong place.
It is tough stuff and if you trim it before it completely cures (17 hours or so) you can make the sanding a grinding part less.
I would use glass cloth on the inside of hull and forget the small hole fillers.
==================
Now to hear from the experts on glass hole filling.

[JWLaRue]

The only two things I would add to Ralph's advice are:

• use several layers of medium cloth for the large inside patch. Since the hull is the pressure vessel, you want to ensure that the patch holds, and
• once the cloth patches cure, use an epoxy + filler mixture to fill the outside hull. Those Engel hulls are nice and thick!

-Jeff

[salmon]

Thank you!
I guess my shopping list is marine grade epoxy, medium and fine cloth. What about safety? Do I need a mask? Gloves?
Grinding it out, I will need a respirator, yes?