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PERSONAL TRANSPORT: GROUND, WATER, AIR
Floating sun lounger. Personal transport
Directory / Personal transport: land, water, air It is hardly necessary to prove to anyone what benefits water swimming brings to human health - much more than even the recognized jogging. But when running, when you get tired, you can stop and rest. When swimming, only those few who know how to lie on the water can afford this. Therefore, the majority simply do not dare to swim far (which, in general, is correct). But attachment to the shore reduces interest in such a useful recreational event, to say the least - a type of outdoor activity! In addition, many people simply do not know how to swim, and over the years it becomes more and more difficult to learn this - the psychological factor also affects (it's too late) and the fear of water increases. So what - will you order such people to give up swimming? In no case! To do this, I want to propose an idea embodied in a tested simple design, which I called "aquaplan". The complex is designed both for intensive swimming even for people who cannot swim, and for recreation on the water with a secure fixation of the swimmer's body in the "lying on his back" position. The design of the "aquaplane" is quite simple and allows you to make a kit with your own hands, not only for craftsmen, but also for the fairer sex. But it's better to work together, because there are operations that are traditionally performed by women's hands (for example, sewing a cover), and there are those that require men's hands (in particular, working with metal). Before proceeding with the manufacture of details and elements of the "aquaplane", it is worth understanding some of the features of maintaining buoyancy by a person.
As you know, some people are able to freely, without tension, lie on the water on their backs and relax. This is especially true for obese people. But for most swimmers, to stay on the surface of the water, you must make efforts and make supportive movements with your arms and legs, straining your neck as well. The thing is that the body of an ordinary person has a very small, moreover, "asymmetric" buoyancy. The main float of the body is its chest, where there is air in the lungs. But the legs and head are heavier than water and therefore sink. This means that a number of measures must be taken to balance the buoyancy of all parts of the body, and besides, the head must also be given a margin of buoyancy - the face must be above the surface of the water. To achieve this, it is necessary to have at least two supporting floats: a pillow float (it will support the head) and a seat float (it will prevent the legs from sinking). To increase stability, as well as the comfort of swimming, and most importantly, for the freedom of manipulating hands, it is not bad to have floats-armrests on the sides. By the names of the floats, you can already guess that you need to make something similar to a deck chair, only floating. Now let's get down to business. First you need to make four separate floats. The most suitable material for them is polystyrene (both in terms of availability, cost and ease of processing). You can also buy it in building materials stores, or even use foam lining from the factory packaging of household appliances, which is thrown away as unnecessary, cutting out suitable fragments from it. You can also make floats from polyurethane foam, after selecting suitable forms for them and filling them out. The shapes of the floats can be simple, in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped. But if you intend to swim fast, try to keep the floats (especially the "cushion") in a streamlined shape. The approximate volume of the float-cushion is about 3 liters (3 dm3), the rest - 1,5 liters each. In addition, it would be nice to make a small recess in the float-pillow on top - a nest-lodgment for the head so that it does not roll sideways. It is not difficult to cut blanks from a piece with a knife, but it is better with a hacksaw blade from a metal saw. You can grind edges and edges not only on emery, but also with an ordinary vegetable grater. If a single piece of foam is not available, the float can be glued together with any nitro glue from separate pieces.
If possible, then you can make two or three sets of floats, different in size. Then one "floating sun lounger" can be used by people with different weights or alone - but "lightly dressed" or in a wetsuit. Looking ahead, I will say that the optimal volumes (sizes) of floats are such that when swimming on a "aquaplane" the head is above the water level, the body is under water at the very surface, and the outstretched legs are at a depth of 30 - 35 cm. Now we need to somehow provide a mutual connection between the floats. There are several ways to ensure this, for example, belts. But, in my opinion, it is best to do this with a fabric cover, as in a regular deck chair. Almost any fabric is suitable, including not very strong ones - after all, unlike the "land" version of a deck chair in a "aquaplan", heavy loads (for example, body weight) will not act on it either in water or on land. It is only desirable that the fabric be bright and not very thick, so that it does not get very wet, making the structure heavier in water, and dries faster in the air. The length of the cover is from the top of the head to the knees. Taking into account the folds for pockets for fabric floats, a person with a height of 170 cm will need a little more than two meters. Web width - 450 mm. The last size is taken from the calculation: 400 mm - the width of the body at the level of the shoulder blades and 25 mm each - under the bends on both sides. If there is no solid two-meter piece of fabric, then the cover can (and even needs to) be sewn from pieces of material, but not thick, since when stitching them on a typewriter, four layers of fabric will have to be sewn. Otherwise, it will be necessary to sew the pieces by hand, when the quality of the seams turns out to be worse, and the work takes longer. First of all, whether it is a whole panel or pieces, we will turn the fabric on both sides by 25 mm and stitch it. In addition to the fact that the fabric will not fray along the edges, this will also give it additional longitudinal strength. Now with the wide end of the fabric you need to wrap the foam seat and mark the place where you want to make a seam. Having measured a small margin (20 mm) and bending it, sew the edge to the panel. Get a pocket for the seat. If there is a fear that the float may fall out of the pocket, then insert a cord or elastic band into its edge folds, making a pair of small swept cuts near the transverse seam on both sides. Repeat the same operation on the other end of the cover with a float-pillow. Further, stepping back from the cushion seam by 180 mm, we sew an additional piece of fabric 350 mm long with transverse seams to the main fabric over its entire width. Stepping back from the seams inward by 60 mm, we will make two more transverse lines. Thus we get a large pocket and two drawstrings. The fastening belts and leashes of the armrest floats will subsequently be inserted into the drawstrings. And in the pocket you can put polyethylene "air" softening pads (they also pack household appliances, and then throw them away). Gaskets will protect the swimmer's back from accidental contact with the bottom in shallow water. For the armrest floats, separate covers are sewn in the form of tubes, the ends of which are also tightened. Cords are passed through the covers, the ends of which are tied to belts. To do this, the belts should be provided with rings near the edge of the cover or make appropriate holes here. An underwater paddle is a separate, but also the main part of the swimming kit. It will help to quickly overcome a significant amount of water, like flippers, for example, whales or tail - fish. The oar blade is made of a thin, light, but rather rigid material. It is important that the paddle has buoyancy, at least zero. The most affordable and suitable for my poor choice was a sheet of plywood 5 - 6 mm thick with dimensions of 900x400 mm, which corresponds to the maximum overall dimensions of the finished blade. Therefore, it is worth immediately being careful when performing the procurement operation - sawing the workpiece out of a sheet of plywood. To do this, it would be nice to moisten the cut lines on both sides with water, and cut with a fine-toothed hacksaw. The final shape of the blade is in the form of an isosceles trapezoid, one base of which is 100 mm larger than the other. But you can make the sides rounded.
To make the plywood blade water-resistant, it must be impregnated with hot drying oil. To do this, drying oil must be heated in a "water bath". "Bath" is prepared as follows: a jar of drying oil is placed in another larger jar (you can also put it in a saucepan), into which a little water (two fingers' worth) is first poured. Put the containers on a slow fire and heat the water (but not to a boil). Having removed the dishes from the stove (without removing the cans of drying oil from the water), apply hot drying oil on the surface of the blade with a brush. But especially carefully it is necessary to impregnate its edges (end sides). After drying the first layer, heating the drying oil again, apply the second layer. After that, the entire blade must be coated with waterproof paint - for example, based on latex. The next stage is the manufacture of leg mounts to the blade. The sensations and impressions of swimming on the "aquaplane" largely depend on how reliable, and most importantly, how comfortable the fastening will be. In the process of developing the design, I made and tested several options for fastenings, both for bare feet and in shoes. I offer readers not the easiest of them, but, I think, the most reliable, which I call "beach". The basis of this fastening is a small platform 100 mm wide and the same length (from the back of the heel to the middle of the foot), made of a metal (stainless steel or duralumin) plate 1,5 - 2 mm thick. It is clear that there should be two platforms (as well as mounts) in the kit - for each leg. The base platforms are hingedly connected to the blade - with the help of ordinary suitable card loops for the window. At the same time, one half-loop is attached to the base with aluminum rivets, and the other half-loop is screwed to the blade with M4 bolts with countersunk heads and wide washers under the nuts. At the same time, the holes in the plywood are also saturated with heated drying oil, and the bolts are also dipped into it before wrapping. The hinges are also covered with drying oil, except for the hinges themselves, which are then lubricated. Further, two soles are cut out of the same plywood according to the shape and size of the foot of a particular swimmer: one for the left foot, the other for the right. If the paddle is intended for general use, then the size of the soles can be taken according to the 43 - 44th shoe size, although swimming with such an oar will not be equally convenient for everyone. The soles are fastened with the back to the bases with M4 bolts with countersunk heads, and the heads are recessed into the sole, and the nuts are screwed under the bases. If the bolt shafts are long, then they are cut flush with the nuts.
Wooden linings are fastened to the front of the sole from below with four screws with countersunk heads, wrapped from above. In shape, they repeat this part of the sole. The height of the pads corresponds to the sum of the thicknesses of the loop and the metal plate. Belts or ski bindings pass under the plywood soles from below. For them, it will be necessary to pre-cut a transverse groove in the lining. The plywood sole and the wooden lining should be oiled and painted before installation, as well as the oar blade. On this, the manufacture of the "aquaplane" is completed. But before you go on a "long" voyage, you should test it in shallow water. You can put on a float on the shore. Putting on the shoulder straps first, they fasten the chest strap, and after adjusting the floats-armrests, they also fasten the waist belt. The same operation can be performed in shallow water. If the volumes of the floats are chosen correctly, then the swimmer, lying on his back, should hover in the position: the head is above the water, and the pelvis is 100-150 mm below the shoulders, the legs are slightly bent at the knees. In this position, the swimmer can move freely, making strokes with his hands. If everything is in order with the floats of the sun lounger, fasten an underwater paddle to your feet. Without sailing far from the shore, master the movements of the legs for paddling. It is necessary to learn how to swim on an "aquaplane", like, for example, riding a bicycle, but it is easier and faster to master it. I wish you a pleasant sailing! I assure you: you will get a lot of new sensations, including the feeling of weightlessness. Author: Yu.Antonov
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