Re: Evinrude Aquanaut?

[theodore]

I had one of these as a kid, and loved it. Mine had the full face mask that extended down to your chin, so you could breathe through your nose and mouth. Since the mask was constantly flooded with fresh air, it would never fog up. I think I once saw a version that had only a partial face mask, with a mouthpiece to breathe through.

Engine parts are probably still available as lawn boy parts. Compressor parts will be very hard to find. Whenever you see a parts machine, snap it up. the compressors were rugged and very reliable. Take good are of the masks, belts, and hoses. They will be very hard to find in good condition.

I later replaced mine with my current machine, a Brownies Third Lung.

Years ago, a writer for the Miami Herald spoke about his, and experiencing narcosis, or "rapture of the deep" when using it. He would go down to the bottom for great lengths of time, while his father waited in the boat above, near the floating, running machine. About every 30 minutes, dad would pull the machine near the boat, and refuel it while it was running. Problem was, he spilled much of the fuel over the rocking machine, and lots of the fumes got pumped down to the boy below.