I got all my parts from B&H today. Im quite proud of the deal I got, everything in this picture cost me $290! The 8" dome alone was $450 before it was discontinued.
I had no idea the pieces would be so huge, from the pictures I saw, the port openings looked to be about 5". I can actually fit my entire camera with flash transmitter inside the lens port. I decided to jump ship on the previous box I had planned on using. The piece with the blue tape is what I'll use for my camera housing. There is a flat port for macro work, and a domed port for wide angle, both are designed to attach where the blue tape is. I put the blue tape there to protect the machined finish.
I'll probably be shooting upside down most often since the flash transmitter needs to be visible to the flashes.
The edge of the ring in the picture above will be machined flat and a radial pattern of threaded holes will be tapped. I'll use silicone sealant and bolts to permantly afix a rear cover.
One problem is the fact that my flash is not shoe mounted, I need an extension cord. I'll probably buy a replacement 580ex hot shoe, I've heard of people buying just the shoe when it breaks off. The other side I'll have to see what I can find, perhaps a broken camera on ebay. There may be a third party extension cord available too, the canon one is too big.
After cutting off the threaded ring with my table saw, I used a left over piece of granite from my bathroom counter and some sand paper to sand the sealing surface flat.
LCD Side View
I routered an 8" diameter groove, 1/4" deep in a square piece of 3/4" plexiglass. The port fits inside this groove. This will prevent any shear force on the silicone sealant, provide more surface area for the silicone, and create more of a labyrinth seal makeing it less prone to leak. I decided not to drill and tap holes to hold the plexiglass cover in place, the silicone should be strong enough.
Once the silicone was cured, I used a router to trim the edges. I bent a piece of plate aluminum to match the curvature of the port, and welded some square tubing to make a handle.
Top view
Lens side view
The hose clamps are used to hold the handles to the port, and to hold the two weight bags at the bottom of the port. Im using two 3lb weights with no camera or lens in the housing.
The biggest lens I'm likely to use, the Simga 12-24
Album 1 Carmel 2006-06
Depth of 30 feet, no flash, 1/50 sec. f/5 ISO1600, Canon digital rebel 18mm (with kit lens)
