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posted November 08, 2003 12:19 AM
Interesting what you can find when you look... I decided to see if I could find any info on some of the weapons systems I used to work on in the Navy:
Poseidon -
Poseidon C3
On 18 January 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced in a special message to the Congress that his administration proposed to develop a new missile for the FBM System POSEIDON. The POSEIDON C3 was to be 74 in. in diameter as compared to the 54 in. POLARIS. It was to be 3 ft longer than the 31 ft A3 and approximately 30,000 lb heavier. Despite this increase in size, the growth potential of the ballistic missile submarine launching system was to enable POSEIDON to fit into the same 16 launch tubes that carried POLARIS; modifications to the launch tubes and a new fire control system for the more complex MIRV targeting problem were to be required. POSEIDON was to carry twice the payload of the POLARIS A3 with significantly-improved accuracy.
The Poseidon C3 was a two-stage solid propellant missile with a length of 34.1 ft. 74 in. diameter with a range of approximately 2500 nm, weight of approximately 65,000 lb. The ES (forward of the SS) is 72 in. in diameter which separates from the booster. It is equipped with the missile all inertial guidance system, a solid-propellant gas generator PBCS and RVs. This provides maneuvering of the ES and ejection of reentry vehicles into ballistics trajectories to individual targets, MIRVs. Both rocket motors have fiberglass cases, with single movable nozzles. The second stage motor had six thrust termination ports (thrusting forward) which are activated at ES separation. Multiple individual-targeted small reentry vehicles (Mk 3) were developed as the POSEIDON payload.
The POSEIDON C3 could carry up to 14 of the small Mk 3 RVs. These could be targeted bodies and could be targeted independently in the MIRV mode. Trajectory loft options were available, and the range could be extended by off-loading portions of the payload. The Post Boost Control System (PBCS), colloquially known as the "Bus," gave a large attack The increased accuracy and flexibility of the weapon system would permit its use against a broader spectrum of possible targets and give added insurance of penetration of enemy defenses. As envisioned at that time, POSEIDON was to increase the system and force effectiveness of the FBM System by a factor of eight. This revolutionary multiple target per missile concept changed the course of national policy, strategic force structures, targeting doctrines, and operational planning. It also altered the quantitative and qualitative strategic balance.
Apart from the much-increased size and weight, the main difference between the POLARIS A3 and the POSEIDON C3 was the latter's capability of delivering reentry vehicles to single or multiple targets. Thus the principal area of development involved flight of the ES with the guidance system and reentry vehicles after they had separated from the booster. The ES's solid-propellant gas generator and associated steering capability allowed the guidance system to maneuver the ES and to eject reentry vehicles into ballistic trajectories to individual aim points.
Development of propulsion for C3 was undertaken by a joint venture of Hercules, Inc., and Thiokol Chemical Corporation. Both stages now had fiberglass cases. The first stage used a composite propellant and the second stage propellant was a double base. The C3 rocket motors were the first in the FBM program to feature single-movable nozzles actuated by a gas generator and by hydraulic power units.
Other work centered on the development of an advanced all-inertial guidance system. Initial evaluations of a stellar-inertial guidance system were conducted in early 1966. Advanced development of a Mk 4 stellar-inertial guidance system was started in 1968. This effort was of an essential element of a new operational capability which became fully matured in the TRIDENT I and II.
Lockheed entered a 1 year Concept Design Phase (CDP) from February 1965 to February 1966. In March 1966, full-scale engineering development (FSED) began. However it was not until 12 March 1968 that a contract was executed. The Navy awarded Lockheed Missiles & Space Company, Inc. (LMSC) a $456.1 million cost-plus-incentive fee contract for development and production of the POSEIDON missile system. The contract represents one of the first awards made by the Navy Department providing for total operational system development and production (OSDP).
The contract called for 25 development (C3X) type flights to be followed by 5 Production Evaluation Missile (PEM) flights from an SSBN. The first C3X was launched from a flatpad at Cape Kennedy on 16 August 1968 several hours before the first Minuteman III launch. In view of the initial success of the development flights, the test plan was modified to 20 development flights versus 25. The PEMs remained at 5. Of these 20 flights, 13 were complete successes and 7 were failures. The last C3X flight was on 29 June 1970. This was followed on 17 July 1970 by the firsts submerged launch of a POSEIDON PEM successfully conducted from the USS James Madison (SSBN-627). The firing was observed by a Russian ship, LAPTEV, whose crew was unsuccessful in attempts to recover closure plate segments from the water after launch of the missile. The remaining 4 PEMs were also successfully launched from the SSBN-627.
Finally on 31 March 1971, the USS James Madison (SSBN-627) deployed from Charleston, South Carolina, for operational patrol with 16 tactical POSEIDON C3 missiles. Deployment of the USS James Madison (SSBN-627) introduced the POSEIDON missile into the nation's arsenal of operational deterrent weapons and brought to successful fruition the development program announced in January 1965 for a successor weapon system to POLARIS. POSEIDON incorporated substantial improvements in accuracy and resistance to counter-measures over previous generations of missiles, but its principal advantage was in its flexibility, which provided a capacity for delivery for multiple warheads, widely spaced, on separate targets over a variety of target footprints.
Trident -
The TRIDENT I (C-4) is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) developed to replace the Poseidon missile in existing strategic missile submarines and to arm the OHIO class SSBNs. Today it is carried by the eight OHIO class submarines operating in the Pacific. The C-4 missile was first deployed in 1979.
The TRIDENT C-4 is a long-range, multiple-warhead missile that is launched from submerged submarines. Depending upon the number of warheads carried, it has almost double the range of the previous Poseidon missile. The C-4 is a three-stage solid fuel missile which is powered only during the initial phases of flight. When the third stage is exhausted the missile follows a ballistic trajectory. When the first stage motor ignites and aerospike extends from the missile's nose, cutting the friction of the air flowing past the missile, thus extending its range. The third stage includes the bus that aims and dispenses the warheads at separate targets.
The missile's manufacturer, Lockheed Missiles and Space company, achieved the increase in range without a commensurate increase in physical dimensions over the Poseidon missile through several technological advances. Those advances were made in several key areas, including propulsion, microelectronics and the weight-saving material area. Missile range is controlled by trajectory shaping with Generalized Energy Management Steering [GEMS). In addition, TRIDENT I uses an "aerospike" to increase its aerodynamic performance. The spike is attached to the front end of the missile and telescopes into position after launch.
The first TRIDENT missile was launched from a flat pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 18, 1977. The missile was first deployed at sea aboard the USS Francis Scott Key (SSBN 657) in October, 1979. In February of 1995, Florida successfully launched 6 TRIDENT missiles in rapid succession. TRIDENT subs carry 24 of the missiles. Each can be independently targeted.
To achieve a 4000 nm range [ versus the 2500 nm range of the POSEIDON C3] the Trident I (C4) is a three-stage solid-propellant missile with basically the same envelope dimension as a C3 (e.g., 34.1 ft in length and 74 in. in diameter), limited by the space available in a POSEIDON SSBN launch tube. There was a weight increase to approximately 73,000 lb. There was an increase in the C4's Nose Fairing [NF] envelope, compared to C3, to allow introduction of a solid propellant Third Stage [TS] booster in the center of the ES/NF. Each of the three stages has a boost rocket motor with advanced propellants, improved case materials, and a single lightweight movable nozzle with a TVC system of lightweight gas-hydraulic design.
Boost velocity control is achieved by burning all boost propulsion stages to burnout, shaping the trajectory to use all the energy, without thrust termination. This method is termed generalized energy management steering (GEMS). The ES is powered by a solid-propellant PBCS. Miniaturizing and repackaging missile electronic components also contributed to reduced package sizes, weights, and calibration, thereby allowing more volume for propulsion.
In the missile electronics, improved system accuracy was achieved by incorporating a stellar-inertial guidance concept, by improving the Navigation and Fire Control systems, and by more accurate control of reentry vehicle separation. Inert weights were reduced with structures fabricated from composite graphite-epoxy materials which represent 40 percent weight saving compared to similar structures made from aluminum.
The largest contribution to attaining the range increase goal came from incorporating a third boost propulsion stage. To fit within the same cylinder as the POSEIDON this third stage motor was to be mounted in the center of the post-boost vehicle with the reentry vehicles carried around the third stage.
The strategy adopted to achieve the remainder of the range goal was to pursue range gaining technologies in the following general ways all in parallel: decrease inert weight throughout the entire missile, increase the volume available for propulsive energy, and increase the usable energy per unit volume. This strategy resulted in efforts directed to developing a smaller and lighter guidance system, lightweight missile structures, low volume and lightweight electrical and electronic components, smaller or lighter post-boost control system, an aerospike to reduce boost phase aerodynamic drag and, most importantly, higher performance rocket motors. In order to withstand reentry heating at long ranges and higher ballistic coefficients, new protection materials needed to be developed for the reentry vehicles.
The range extension dictates for weight reduction were complicated by the unique reentry vehicle placement around the third stage which made thrust termination difficult to engineer. And in introducing a third stage of boost propulsion and making maximum use of the available launch tube volume, the missile nose shape became so much blunter that aerodynamic drag during boost could have significantly detracted from meeting the range increase goal. It therefore became important to reduce boost phase drag.
A deployable aerospike, extended shortly after launch, was incorporated to reduce the frontal drag of the C4 NF by approximately 50 percent. The aerospike is self-contained and requires no functional interface input from other missile subsystems. A small solid propellant gas generator provides the energy to extend and lock the aerospike into position. Its ignition is triggered by acceleration of the missile on ejection from the submarine. This unique feature, utilized for the first time on a ballistic missile, was adopted to offset the aerodynamic drag and performance degradation of the unusually blunt nose fairing. A concentrated effort to reduce the Mk 4 reentry vehicle weight as much as possible was also conducted.
The remaining major technical challenge to achieving the range increase objective was the development of solid propellant rocket motors incorporating technological advancements in both propellants and inert components. In recognition of the importance in the throat, carbon-carbon entrance and exit segments and either carbon or graphite cloth phenolic in other areas. An omnidirectional flexible joint enables movement required for thrust vector control.
Reentry system design objectives included more than doubling the maximum range at which the reentry vehicle with its high ballistic coefficient (weight-to-drag ratio) could reliably withstand reentry heating without significant weight increase. The major technical issues involved in meeting this objective were those of materials technology. Several alternative design concepts for the nosetip, heatshield, and substrate materials were examined in parallel during the early stages of development. A highly successful supplemental flight test program carried out in 1974 and 1975 with surplus Atlas and Minuteman missiles helped in the early selection of materials and design concepts.
The reentry body has a tape-wrapped carbon phenolic (TWCP) heatshield bonded to a thin-wall aluminum substrate for the shell and a graphite nosetip. The TWCP is similar to material previously used by the Air Force for reentry bodies, but with the carbon particles eliminated. It is made from a carbonized rayon cloth, wrapped on a mandrel, and cured in a female mold. The TWCP ablates during a reentry, leaving at least a minimum amount of cool material intact to impact. The graphite is a fine-grain graphite, especially developed for strong and uniform properties. So critical was graphite quality, and so difficult to inspect the end product, that a separate factory, a computer controlled facility, was built for its exclusive production where processes could be completed controlled.
Warhead -
Lockheed Martin Space Systems ends 23-year production run of Navy Trident missile Mk4 reentry system hardware
SUNNYVALE, CA, July 11, 2000 -- Lockheed Martin Space Systems -- Missiles & Space Operations, Sunnyvale, CA, recently completed a 23-year production run of Mk4 reentry body assembly hardware kits used to house nuclear warheads in the Trident I C4 and Trident II D5 submarine launched ballistic missile arsenal.
The Mk4 reentry system, developed jointly in the early 1970's by the Navy Strategic Systems Programs and the Department of Energy (DOE), is specifically designed to house the missile's W76 nuclear warhead. Additionally, it provides thermal protection for the warhead from the harsh reentry environment while ensuring accurate delivery of the payload to its intended target. The first W76/Mk4 reentry body entered the nation's nuclear stockpile in 1979, and today comprises the largest percentage of any strategic weapon in the US nuclear inventory.
"The Mk4 reentry body is the mainstay of our nation's nuclear deterrent," said Duke Williams, Space Systems chief systems engineer for Navy Reentry Systems. "It has proven to be one of the safest and most reliable weapons in our nuclear arsenal."
Missiles & Space received the first Mk4 production contract in 1976 and full-rate manufacturing began in 1977. Since that time, Missiles & Space has manufactured more than 5,000 Mk4 reentry body assembly kits for the U.S. and U.K. Navies. Each Trident missile carries multiple W76/Mk4 reentry bodies. The W76/Mk4 reentry body is assembled at the DOE PANTEX facility from hardware supplied by Missiles & Space, including the reentry body aeroshell, RF subsystem, nose-tip and complete release assembly.
Current Department of Defense plans call for the W76/Mk4 reentry body to support FBM operations until 2040. To meet this service life requirement, the Navy and DOE are planning a life extension program for the W76/Mk4. This program, slated to start early this decade, is projected to be complete around 2020. To support this effort, Missiles & Space will retain all Mk4 production tooling and most manufacturing capabilities.
In addition, Missiles & Space continues to be the Navy's prime system integrator for strategic reentry systems, participating in such activities as component and system aging studies, low-cost replacement materials development, aero-thermodynamic analytical tool development, reentry plasma prediction and mitigation technology studies, and advanced navigation, guidance and control technology development.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems -- Missiles & Space Operations, Sunnyvale, CA, has more than 40-years of experience in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, test and support of strategic missile reentry systems for the U.S. Navy and Air Force.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, headquartered in Denver, CO, is one of the major operating units of the world's largest defense contractor, Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT). Space Systems is a global leader in the design, development, test and production of space launch systems, ground systems, scientific spacecraft, satellites for commercial and government customers, fleet ballistic missiles and missile defense systems.
W76-0/Mk4
The W76/Mk4 reentry body assembly (RBA) on Trident I (C4) and Trident II (D5) strategic weapon systems are a key component of the Nation's strategic deterrent force designed and produced between 1972 and 1987. Meeting this mission will require that the W76/Mk4 RBA be deployed well beyond its original service life of 20 years. W76 refurbishment, scheduled to begin in FY'07, will include re-qualifying the pit, replacing the primary high-explosive, secondary refurbishment, a new arming, fuzing and firing (AF&F) system, and a new gas transfer system.
The first W76 Enhanced Fidelity Instrumented-A (EFI-A) Reentry Body (RB) and Type 2G High Fidelity Flight Test Unit were successfully flown in February 1999. Sandia was the project integrator for development, building, and qualification of the flight test units. The EFI-A experiment provided valuable data using a newly designed, state-of-the-art telemetry system. The data has increased our understanding of the missile/RB interactions, internal RB shock/vibration environments, and RB dynamic behavior. The EFI-A was the first W76 flight test body to collect first-stage ignition data.
A life extension study was conducted during 1999 for the W76/Mk4 Reentry Body Assembly by Sandia, Los Alamos, DOE, Navy Strategic Systems Programs, US Strategic Command, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space, and ITT Industries. The study identified design options, production and certification plans, and cost estimates. Sandia's conceptual design for the replacement Arming, Fuzing, and Firing (AF&F) subsystem was expected to come close to meeting the important goal of costing one-quarter of the W88/Mk5 AF&F cost.
In 1999 the MC4380 Neutron Generator and its MC4378 Timer, MC4705 Voltage Bar, MC4148 Rod, MC4437 Current Stack, and MC4277 Neutron Tube were qualified for use in the Navy's W76 weapon system. This culminated a multi-year development effort which included the transfer of production capability from the Pinellas Plant to Sandia. This is the first weaponized neutron generator to employ a focused ion-beam neutron tube for higher reliability, the first produced at Sandia, and the first Sandia component with radiation hardness requirements to be qualified without underground testing.
The US Navy W76-0/Mk4 Joint Test Assembly (JTA) redesign achieved First Production Unit status in August 2001, following a successful development flight test in February 2000. The redesign replaced sunset technology components in the existing 20-year-old JTA, which is used to test the continued conformance of a denuclearized version of the War Reserve (WR) warhead. The new JTA collects significantly more state-of-health and critical performance data from onboard the Reentry Body (RB), as part of the core surveillance program. Aging concerns, the non-availability of replacement components used in original designs, and a desire to modernize nuclear safety features requires a refurbishment of the W76/Mk4 RBA for it to meet the extended service life. This should be accomplished in a planned, methodological manner to prevent possible weapon downtime and the total consumption of the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) nuclear weapons complex capacity that could occur if a critical problem were identified. The US Navy Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) requested and the Nuclear Weapons Council Standing and Safety Committee (NWCSSC) approved a joint Department of Defense (DOD)/DOE Phase 6.2/6.2A Study, which was initiated on 19 October 1998. The study was conducted under the W76/Mk4 Project Officers Group (POG). The results of the study were briefed by the W76/Mk4 POG to the NWCSSC on 8 December 1999 and to the Nuclear Weapons Council (NWC) on 13 March 2000.
Study ground rules included the following:
* Modernize nuclear detonation safety features (to Mk5-like interface)
* Consider W76/Mk4 on Trident II (D5) only
* Current W76/Mk4 Military Characteristics (MCs) and Stockpile-To-Sequence (STS) were baseline
* Plan for a one-time refurbishment process (DOD and NNSA)
* Plan for total stockpile quantities reflected in the current Long Range Planning Assessment (LRPA)
* Production duration goal of 10 years or less
* Goal for a post-refurbishment life extension of 30 years
Emphasis was placed on meeting performance requirements over the extended life and minimizing the cost of necessary refurbishment.
The drivers for refurbishment are fourfold:
1. The W76/Mk4 is the most critical element of our nation's strategic deterrent and cannot be allowed to be degraded by a serious aging problem;
2. The W76/Mk4 Dual Revalidation Program has shown that even though components are aging gracefully, there are some negative changes;
3. The Stockpile Surveillance Program cannot predict failures; rather, it only detects them when they appear and when it may be too late to prevent degradation; and
4. The Navy has expressed the desire to retain an average system age of no more than 30 years, compatible with life extension of the Trident Weapon system.
The POG-recommended refurbishment option meets the life extension requirements for the W76/Mk4, while enhancing surety and providing increased targeting flexibility and effectiveness. Careful examination of technical, certification, and compatibility issues have identified no unacceptable program risks. DOD and NNSA costs have been identified to the degree appropriate for this phase of the program. Based on these factors, the POG recommended refurbishment of the W76/Mk4 beginning on 1 April 2000.
In 2002 the W76-1/Mk4A Life Extension Program successfully completed its second year of development engineering, achieving several significant milestones:
* Numerous reviews, including the Customer Requirements Review, and the Arming, Fuzing, and Firing Subsystem and Joint Test Assembly Conceptual Design Reviews.
* Completion of two reentry body Model Validation Tests and our first Joint Ground Test in support of structural and thermal model validation and environmental specification.
* Delivery of our first flight test bodies in support of the Demonstration and Shakedown Operation Navy flight test in FY03.
The MC4380A Neutron Generator was designed and qualified for the W76-0/Mk4 Trident warheads to provide additional margin in radiation environments. This intensive two-year project successfully supported the stockpile needs without the benefit of underground tests. The effort began in August 2000 and was completed in April 2002, followed by completion of the first production unit in May 2002 and delivery of the first units to the Navy and the UK in the summer of 2002.
The W76-1 Arming and Fuzing Subsystem (AFS) integrates radar, flight computer, and diagnostics in a single compact assembly. The design met aggressive cost goals through use of commercial off- the-shelf parts, innovative packaging, and automated production processes. The AFS is part of the W76-1 Arming, Fuzing, and Firing system, and tested in the Navy FCET-30 flight test. The project team delivered the first two AFS flight test units on schedule.
posted November 08, 2003 08:44 AM
I have to go to a museum to see my gear. All analog - syncros and servos. Ever had to clean brake dust out of yer computer. For all of that, the MK113 fcs ROCKED! I'd rather go to sea with it than with the new BSY-1 systems. You dont have to warm start, reboot a syncro!
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If you love your bike, set it free. If it comes back to you....you probably highsided.
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Posts: One MEEEEEELLION
posted November 08, 2003 08:03 PM
GreenGlen - Mk113? Did you have the Mk78 Analyzer with the DIB? If you were on a FBM, y'all had the capability of patching into one of the DGBCs for computing the fire control solution.
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82 Gpz750, 84 Ninja 900, 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy Big Bore Kit), *another* 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy custom stroke crank 1341cc motor), 2004 ZZR1200, 2005 ZX10R, 2007 ZX14, 2008 Concours 14, 2014 Versys 650, 2014 Yamaha WR450F, 2015 Ninja H2
the new COTS stuff was getting to be really useful though, they could do everything on a MAC that the entire ssn fcs would do...in a regular sized powermac box...
the only issue is that it wasn't bomb-proof.... hehe
that and the monitors' degauss functions were known to wipe uyk harddrives from 10ft away.........
a long cold bumpy transit in to yokosuka with no ears...... *sigh* much puking was heard.....
posted November 09, 2003 03:06 PM
Yup, we had to timeshare one of yer computers. Everytime we went to BSM, we lost all digital functionality, cause the MK78 was a dumb terminal.
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If you love your bike, set it free. If it comes back to you....you probably highsided.
posted November 09, 2003 03:09 PM
Oh, and the program it ran was crap. I wouldn't trust it to track the stern of the boat. The only thing we used it for was an accurate bearing rate, which was hard to get with the analog gear. One we had a good bearing rate, the rest was easy.
____________
If you love your bike, set it free. If it comes back to you....you probably highsided.
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posted November 09, 2003 03:22 PM
*nods* I would agree with all of the above. Feh, what can you say. A FBM definately was not out there to shoot torpedos. When I was on the Woodrow Wilson, we did the initial proof-of-concept for MOSS. That was a neat old boat, still had all the piping and stuff in place for the ASTOR 4FZ alarm system. ____________
82 Gpz750, 84 Ninja 900, 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy Big Bore Kit), *another* 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy custom stroke crank 1341cc motor), 2004 ZZR1200, 2005 ZX10R, 2007 ZX14, 2008 Concours 14, 2014 Versys 650, 2014 Yamaha WR450F, 2015 Ninja H2
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Posts: One MEEEEEELLION
posted November 10, 2003 06:07 AM
And since it was a Mare Island boat, was a deep diver. ____________
82 Gpz750, 84 Ninja 900, 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy Big Bore Kit), *another* 2000 ZX12R (Muzzy custom stroke crank 1341cc motor), 2004 ZZR1200, 2005 ZX10R, 2007 ZX14, 2008 Concours 14, 2014 Versys 650, 2014 Yamaha WR450F, 2015 Ninja H2
posted November 10, 2003 10:50 AM
MOSS was a REALLY cool idea, it just never worked worth a crap. The boats were just too dang noisy to be able to fade away while the moss circled. I remember the 4FZ system, it was in our one lineer diagrams and I had no idea what it was for. One time while I was troubleshooting some isolation transformers I needed to get a signal from control to the torpedo room. I remembered the 4FZ wire that ran right by the transformer. My plan was to put 12volts on the wire and find the other end in control and use it to send my test signals. Well, about a heartbeat after I hooked the juice to it this piercing wailing sounds throughout the boat and I didn't corrolate the two. I ran to control and the COW and OOD are freaking out, having no idea what the hell alarm that is, no one in control at the time had ever heard it. Finally the leading IC man comes hauling ass into control wanting to know whos been screwing with the AN/WIC stack and set off the 4FZ. OH - THATS what a 4FZ is!!! I ran down and unhooked the juice - no more alarm!
Anyway, enough of old home week.
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If you love your bike, set it free. If it comes back to you....you probably highsided.
posted November 11, 2003 10:55 PM
i say we come together as a community and pool our $$ to buy one. then we point it at kawi headquarters with a list of demands describing the perfect sportbike. if they dont build it within a year and sell it for $10,000, we launch! WHO'S WITH ME?!?
quote:i say we come together as a community and pool our $$ to buy one. then we point it at kawi headquarters with a list of demands describing the perfect sportbike. if they dont build it within a year and sell it for $10,000, we launch! WHO'S WITH ME?!?
Yes, but in order to avoid capture, we should make the same demand to all the bike manufacturers
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We First make our habits and then our habits make us.
wheeeee alarms are fun.....they make it nearly impossible to cover your tracks ;P
eh glenn?
you know what alarms i hated? some idiot, in their infinite wisdom, decided to use an ultrasonic probe as a bilge level detection system.....geeee, let's seee, it depends on the airgap in the end of hte probe being a certain width...when covered in oily water and sludge...
granted a float switch not much better, but you could fix a float switch by cleaning it, once the probes were screwed up, they were done. apparently being right on the trigger's edge made them burn up.
the other nice thing was the drain pump control switch in the BCP....rated for a half amp or so....control current due to voltage drop from back end of boat tripled the normal current......took us 2 years of intermittent pump starting on its own before we finally tracked it down....wire had melted off, and was laying where it was supposed to be, but occasionally would arc to ground and provide the momentary current path......and voila motor started. VERY disconcerting when you are standing next to or working under the thing......."hey what a$$hole started the drain pump?!?!?!" made even worse by the fact that it would usually do it when the priming pump started, and stop with it (it had melted into the priming pump wires too......)
as far as getting manufacturers to build abike...what about a gp bike too, we need something other thanhonda and ducati on podium...
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posted November 13, 2003 07:55 PM
Holy shit! My favorite thing was the leak in the fan room that would flood the COB's office every time we took a down angle after snorkeling.
posted November 14, 2003 06:18 AM
That would be FT, skimmer!
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If you love your bike, set it free. If it comes back to you....you probably highsided.
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posted November 08, 2003 12:19 AM
Edited By: 
That was the time to go up to the galley and order runny eggs. 
posted November 11, 2003 09:53 PM
