Gentleman builds his own mini-submarine for harvesting sea cucumbers (photo)

Photo: REUTERS

A worker paints a single-seater submarine designed by Zhang Wuyi and his fellow engineers at a shipyard in Wuhan, Hubei province May 7, 2012. Zhang, a 37-year-old local farmer, who is interested in scientific inventions, has made six miniature submarines with several fellow engineers, one of which was sold to a businessman in Dalian at a price of 100,000 yuan ($15,855) last October. The submarines, mainly designed for harvesting aquatic products, such as sea cucumber, have a diving depth of 20-30 metres, and can travel for 10 hours, local media reported.

• [Art]

  Do you sit exposed in front ( like the painter) in scuba gear or is the occupant entirely enclosed inside the sub?

  • [Preston Sturges]

    I’m guessing enclosed since it has a conning tower.

• [Mark Dow]

  All these years waiting for jetpacks when everyone could have an affordable submarine.
  Mine will be black, with airbrushed flames and recessed blue LEDs on the bottom.

• [Mark Dow]

  All these years waiting for jetpacks when everyone could have an affordable submarine.
  Mine will be black, with airbrushed flames and recessed blue LEDs on the bottom.

  • [Art]

     But where would you put those slick, chromed rims?

    • [Mark Dow]

      Sea cucumber picking robot arms.

• [mike pearson]

  I’ve got friends in the underwater harvesting biz, and I’m not seeing any features in this fancy propane tank that would make their job any easier. Me thinks that someone is pulling your leg on the end use of this thing.

  • [awjt]

     Exactly.  Sea cucumbers?…. RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHTTTTTTTTTTT.

• [Layne]

  Also, ”painting a single-seater submarine” sounds like a really specific definition of wanking… 

  • [Preston Sturges]

    Polishing the torpedo

• [Erik Sayle]

  Well, its a nice gadget for making sea cucumbers extinct. Spoke to a scuba diver who has dove along Chinas coast. As one might imagine, the Chinese will eat anything and have done so near their country. 

  • [niktemadur]

    Prince Phillip of the UK, in one of a long list of extraordinary public gaffes:

    “If it has four legs and isn’t a table,
    if it flies and isn’t an airplane,
    if it swims and isn’t a submarine,
    the Chinese will eat it”.

    BTW, I’ve eaten sea cucumber.  It’s good, but the squishy texture may be a bit disturbing for most palates, mine included.

    • [Antinous / Moderator]

      If it has four legs and isn’t a table,
      if it flies and isn’t an airplane,
      if it swims and isn’t a submarine,
      the Chinese will eat it.

      That very statement was made to me by the Chinese coworker who included jellyfish when she ordered the menu our work banquet.

  • [Hypnosis Downloads]

    Althought I doubt it’ll be as effective in making any marine creature go extinct as the inventions created by Western people – like large fishing trawlers that have factories on them to can the fish right away… And one could argue that Chinese don’t nearly throw away as much food as Western nations.

• [francoisroux]

  Jackass spoiled sea cucumber for me for ever, I’ve never eaten it and never will….