It is with great pleasure that the CEDU Recognize and Present the "Honors of the Association"  Award to the following two individuals for outstanding achievement in the Design, Construction and Use of HomeBuilt Closed Circuit Rebreathing Apparatuses.

        Without instruction, coaching, reverse engineering or plagiarism, the the above named individuals have designed, built, dived, and shared their enthusiasm and dive toys with friends, family, and the world at large.
 

Rude Dog

While with the California Classic Equipment Divers at the College of Engineering, Wilmington, California,  on Sat 28 April 2001, Rude Dog presented his First HomeBuilt Oxygen Rebreather.

The unit work flawlessly.   Rude Dog's Rebreather is more sophisticated than the FEOR, for it has an Automatic Demand Oxygen Addition System.  Though more advanced in function,  the unit was actually constructed using the most basic hand tooling, (no Lathe or Milling machine was used in its construction)!   There are No O-ring seals as all water tight connections were made using HoseClamps.  Splinter-free (well mostly splinter-free),  plywood backplate was used to mount the unit and act as attachment points for the body harness.
And the "Always-in-the-Mouth, Always-Open" biteblock was a perfect fit.

Congratulations Rude Dog on an Outstanding Job Well Done!
 

Rude Dog

Demand Oxygen Addition, Non-DSV, Axial Scrubber

Underwater at College of Oceaneering, California

 

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... and who would believe that on this same weekend,    on the East Coast of the U.S.,    another Homebuilder was in the water test diving his unit. It was an  incredible coincidence of timing.

Swamp Fox

The Swamp Fox's involvement in rebreathers and diving predates the CEDU.   It was an honor when the CEDU was contacted with requests about the FEOR, as it had rekindled a rebreathing spark in this Wild Diving Animal that had been dormant for quite some time.

Though originally wanting to make a FEOR type rebreather, Swamp Fox was encouraged  to remake this Pendulum Type rebreather which he first Designed and Actually Used  "While Exploring Siphons in Cave Systems" as a graduate student. (A few years ago.)

Today Swamp Fox has the technology to produce whatever he chooses.  It is greatly appreciated that he remade this more primitive Closed Circuit Pendulum Style Oxygen Rebreather.     It is a historical moment, recapitulated.     It also is a wonderful demonstration of how different problems can, and have been, solved.

The Pendulum style has No one-way directional valving.  The scrubber is placed in-line between the mouthpiece and counterlung.  With each breath, a volume of gas should make two passes through the scrubber during its journey back and forth between your lungs and the counterlung.    It is important to have the mouthpiece as close to the scrubber canister as possible, keeping to a minimum the amount of gas that never reaches the scrubber chemistry at all.  This so called "dead space" can/will experience a build up of carbon dioxide.  Pendulum style oxygen rebreathers have been used operationally in war.   ("The Italian Navy Decima Mas severely dented the pride of the Royal Navy in December 1941 when they slipped into Alexandria Harbor and crippled (sank) two British Battleships, The Valiant and The Queen Elizabeth."  Equipment used at the time included a pendulum style oxygen rebreather.)

Swamp Fox, Thank You for sharing your current contribution, your past experiences, and your unending enthusiasm for life.
 

  the Swamp Fox
 

"Pendulum" design O2 Rebreather, with HWB Counterlung
(HWB = Hot Water Bottle)
(Oxygen Pressure Valve was Removed and Plugged before Diving.)

Underwater at the Field Expedient Testing Facility
somewhere in the swamps of North Carolina.

        The Swamp Fox has a long history of "Grey Operations".   As a lad, his Unofficial Marine Mammal Program  included teaching "Seals"  in Littoral Warfare.  This one was taught  to Seek Out, Search For, Identify and Retreive infiltrating enemy "Blue Claw Crabs" from Chesapeake Bay.

A previous receipient of the CEDU Honors of The Association.
 
 

 

        Please note that all items seen on  these pages that come into contact with high pressure oxygen have been Oxygen Cleaned, Oxygen Converted, Oxygen Compatible or Designed for Oxygen use.
        You will be in for a rude awakening if you connect a scuba first stage to a high pressure oxygen tank; the rubber/nitrile o-ring(s),  internal lubricating grease, moving potentially spark generating parts,  and other contaminants are all potential sources of heat / inigition / fuel which can have catastrophic consequences in a high pressure oxygen environment.
        Building Rebreathers are a fun hobby, but it can also be fatal even before you make it to the pond.

OSHA States:
         "Compressed oxygen cannot be used in a device designed for compressed air because minute amounts of oil or other foreign matter in the device components can cause an explosion."  In fact, 30 CFR 11 prohibits certification of any device designed to permit interchangeable use of oxygen and air.
        It is an accepted safety rule that:  OXYGEN NEVER BE USED IN A DEVICE UNLESS IT IS SPECIFICALLY  DESIGNED FOR THAT PURPOSE.