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Case
Here is how the Mk15 travels. This is the original
military transportation case. It is a little on the heavy side but it
protects the unit while in transit.
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Open
With the case open you can see the unit inside.
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Unit
Here is the rig set up on my workbench ready to be
dissected.
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Cover Off
With the cover off you can see the inside of the rig. It
is very crowded in here. The most distinctive items of the Mk15 are the
spherical tanks used to hold the breathing gas. These spheres are
composite. The top one holds the diluent gas - Air or tri-mix usually.
The bottom one holds the O2.
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Spheres
Here is a close up of the spheres in the case with their
regulators attached. The black cylinder in between the spheres is the
electronics pod.
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Regulator
Each sphere has it's own regulator. One of my first
projects with this unit was to improve the hose routing. The black line
in the top port is the HP line running to the pressure gauge. You can
see in the image above that they run into the side of the case. They
pressed against the side of the case making it difficult to close. I
wasn't worried about the hose wearing through. Under the black flex-o
is a braided stainless steel line. I was more concerned about the line
wearing the case.
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Swivel
With the addition of a swivel, I was able to improve the
hose routing.
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Electronics Pod
With the Spheres removed the electronics pod (black is
clearly visible. The two indentations for the spheres are color coded
so you don't mix them up.
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Solenoid
The red item in the middle of the picture is the
solenoid. When the electronics determine that O2 needs to be added to
the loop, the solenoid fires and delivers O2 into the breathing loop.
The Silver cylinder behind the solenoid is the collection tube. O2
flows through a tiny orifice into this tube. When the solenoid fires it
dumps a slug of O2 into the loop. This prevents the addition of too
much O2.
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Chassis
Here is the inside of the chassis with most of the
components removed.
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Counter Weight
This is a close-up of the counter weight at the top of
the rig. Backmounted rebreathers tend to be butt heavy because the
counterlung is located at the top of the rig and the spheres,
electronics and plumbing are at the bottom. This weight helps to
restore proper trim.
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O2 Plumbing
This image shows the plumbing for the O2 side.
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Plumbing, Diluent
This image shows the plumbing for the diluent.
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