My father has always had an affinity for “fish submarines.” In fact, he has been building them since the 1990’s. His first model started with an old glass fishing float. He used wood, paper, paint, bits of wire to craft it. As I recall, the sub’s rivets were those little plastic, googly eyes you can find in craft stores. It’s been on his studio shelf ever since. That model has inspired a number of full scale mechanical fish through the years — all built for various theme parks.
When we got our first CNC router, one of the first projects he tackled was another submarine model. This one is a half model and hangs in our shop bathroom.
This series will look at yet another fishy submarine — this one built for display in a corporate board room. As always, dad started with some sketches. The first sketch shows the entire sign as it will be seen from the front. He’s noted where we will insert some LED's and sculpt some sea life.
The sub itself will follow the pattern of his previous models. This time, however, the glass will be kept clear and he will sculpt a full interior. He established the proportions with this second sketch.
The interior, like the rest of the submarine will be combination of CNC work and a little hand sculpting.
Dad settled on a fishbowl for the glass viewing bulb. The sub will then be formed around the bowl. Our next instalment will discuss the routed pieces of the submarine.
