offshorediver.com

M O M I T S   D i v e   H a t   C o l l e c t i o n

The Museum Of Man In The Sea has a nice hat collection. Lots of hats you're not likely to see anywhere else. Some of the info is a little sketchy; everything seen at the museum is related here. If you know one of the less well described hats, drop us an email relating what you know so it can be added to this page.

 

 

 

Aquadyne DMC-7

 

 

 

 

Morse Diving Equipment

Boston

 

 

 

?   

 

 

 

 

US Divers Com Hat

 

 

 

 

 

B & K Diving Systems

Jacksonville, FL.

 

 

 

 

 

Widolf mask

 

 

 

 

 

Aquadyne DMC-4 Bandmask 1969

 

 

 

 

Kirby Morgan

Clamshell #5

 

 

 

Comfo

Respirator

 

 

 

David Clark Co.

Model 2002

Ex-space helmet

Worcester, Mass.

Below:

Pics from Richard Mayfield of a Clark hat rigged with rebreather for semi-closed circuit gas diving offshore, possibly around 1969. Says it sucked.

Archie Wiess, Gerald Vincent

Pete Fitzmorris, Dick Ransome, Archie Weiss

Pete Fitzmorris, Frenchie Collins, Archie Wiess

Says Mayfield:

     Dove the Clark hat way back when I was a Taylor diver, also the other one with the flip up faceplate. These were originally from the Gemini Space Program and were space helmets converted to diving helmets. They were awful to dive ( too light ) and the exhaust valve was always getting hung up on everything and damaged. They even had one rigged up for surface gas as a semi closed circuit (see 3 pics above). But those were the times when Taylor was given every new piece of equipment to try out so the manufacturers could claim Taylor endorses it.
     I don' t have many details, I think it was around 1969 in the GOM off the side of a Brown & Root barge on the back deck of a tug or workboat although I don't remember why. I think we we working at +300' because from stand by to your dive and waterstops and chamber time was right at 22 hrs. total for everything, By the time the previous diver had completed his dive and waterstops and it was your turn you were already tired then it was your turn to dive. "Those were the good ole daze." Oh yeah John Luck and I were machinists also, so we were always making exhaust valve stems for the hats, they were easy to damage. They also had a weird jock system with pulleys and weights front and back. The rear weight on the jock was under the scrubber canister and was really uncomfortable all because the hat was so light. Eventually we gave up on it.

Thanks,
Richard Mayfield

 

 

 

Westinghouse, Oceanic Division

Experimental helmet from the mid 1960's

Semi-closed mixed gas

 

 

 

NCSL

Naval Coastal Systems Laboratory

Panama City, Fl.

 

 

 

These are just the demand hats.

Usual suspects for the rest; Desco, Miller-Dunne, USN Mk 27, etc... Even a Swindell in a fish tank

with the bottom cut out so you, too, can experience deep sea diving.

Complete with odor and small leak.

 

See issue #3 of Offshore Diver Magazine for the rest of the Museum.

 

Picture credits: all Offshore Diver Magazine 2007

offshorediver.com would like to thank MOMITS Director D Houghton for his hospitality.

 

The Museum Of Man In The Sea, Panama City Beach, Fl.

(850) 235-4101

momits@bellsouth.net

 

contents of this page are copyrighted material in the custodianship of offshorediver.com

and remain the property of their contributors unless credited otherwise