Hi all;
I’m looking for some way to simulate bubbles from submarines in an underwater diorama. It’s small scale, so I the effect will most likely not be true to scale, but I seem to recall reading an article in an old FSM where the author used tiny glass balls or something similar. I’ve looked at beads from the craft store, but of course they all have holes in them which just aren’t going to work (and they are too big for the most part). Any ideas or suggestions? Thanks…
Actually, I did the same thing recently…and found that some of those little packets of Silica gel (the ones that come in packages and say Do Not Eat) have clear beads in them…Some of the "beany baby’ knock-offs also have clear plastic beads in them. Yes, I confess, one of my daughters beanies was sacrificed… [xx(]
Jeff
When I was working aerospace structural applications we used tiny glass spheres known as “mircoballons” for a variety of applications including structural compsite resin filler. They impart a milky appearance to the resin when thouroughly mixed, but with tailored mixing and “stringing” it might be possible to get a cavitation or wake effect.
Check out: http://www.conservationresources.com/Main/section_36/section36_03.htm
You can do a google search and find many more products.
Another possibility is Fumed silica known by the trade name CAB-O-SIL
Jeff, you KILLED a Beanie Baby? Oh, man, you’re gonna burn in you know where for that one! [:D]
Jeff if your wife or daughter found out what you did… well lets say this in 3 words “Dead man walking”
Unless the boat had just submerged why would there be bubbles? No air leaves a submarine unless of course there was a hole in the boat, then you would have a different thing altogether.[:D] The trapped air under the fairwater and decks on a early diesel or nuke boat with decks or a FBM’s missle deck would not be a factor after the initial dive. Bubbles coming from a submerged boat is really not accurate so why attempt it much less kill a doll to do it…[V]
I read in the book “Red Scorpion” (an account of the USS Rasher in WW II) of a trail of bubbles streaming from a leaky air flask that allowed a Japanese ASW force to follow it for over two days before the Rasher finally shook them. It can happen.
Ok, ok…the Beanie wasn’t a total loss, let’s just say it was “minor surgery”. Sheesh…bunch of hardcore manly model-building types getting on my case about beanie-baby surgery…It’s not like it was the Jerry Garcia bear or anything…it was a cheap knock-off from Burger King.
Remind me never to tell you about the ‘Tickle me Elmo’ doll and the wood chipper in my back yard… [%-)] Bet you didn’t know that Tickle me Elmo makes a screaming noise when it’s run through a chipper…muwhahahaha…
Jeff
Jeff-good thing you didn’t try that with the “Tickle me Pit Bull”. Woulda hurt!
Dan
The Beanie-Baby-bubble burst long ago, so go ahead, sacrifice one for a good cause. Also, you might try Sheperd Paine’s book: How to Build Dioramas: 2nd Edition
http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=KA12136
Jeff
To all thoose with a hang up on beenie babbies 
if only you would have used a barney doll maybe the world would be a more peaceful place. i wish i could have been there to assist you in sending elmo to his long overdue demise!
Hurt-me-Elmo.
I can see the independent film now. “When Good Modelers Do Bad Things To Stuffed Toys,” coming out on direct-to-video and a discount rack near you!
Ok, I confess…I did it!!!
If you’ve ever heard a wood chipper…you’ll know that it makes that distinctive brrrrrrpppp sound when something’s run through it…
I distinctly heard, “la-la-la, la-la-la, Elmo’s BRRRRRRRRPPPPPPP”
Twisted, huh? I was searching the house for Barney but I think he was rushed into the dinosaur protection program…
One day…
Jeff
how about this combine Barbie with a M-80 now that girl will have an explosive personality Bmwahahahaha
I recently had to go through the terrible event of transfusing a Barney and a Barbie. They lived(only to be incinerated when a silver-salute was strapped to its back and…oh come on do I have to spell it out for you!!!)
Wait, how did we come from underwater bubbles to incinerating barbie-barny mutations?!?!
You guys are sick SOBs lol. back on topic, sure it may not be realistic, but it’s kinda cool to see little bubbles, just reaffirming that it’s underwater. in my biology class we used little glass beads during a lab. they were just like little spheres. Maybe you could use bbs painted silver, although i’m not sure how that would look…
Good grief…do you want me to send you a dissected beanie?
Jeff
No, my friend disected the Barney, I just put it out of it’s misery.