Item:
ON10067

Original U.S. Pre-WWII 2nd Version Diving Helmet Set by Snead & Co of Jersey City c.1935

Item Description

Original Items. One Set Only. Under water exploration has long been one of man's greatest dreams and around the 1920's the SNEAD IRONWORKS COMPANY of Jersey City decided to enter this New World. Pearl divers have been around for many hundreds of years but sustained underwater diving whilst actually breathing was almost a pipe dream. Hard Hat diving was so complicated and hazardous but SNEAD came out with a simpler way using what is best described as a "Diving Bell" method. The apparatus was first offered in their 1933 Catalog, and a set consisted of an Iron helmet, a hand operated bellows for pumping air down to the diver and a pair of heavy tie on iron under shoes to help combat the body's natural bouyancy.

The original 1st Version helmet was cast in two pieces, which were then caulked and bolted together. This had a tendency to leak, so the 2nd version was cast in one piece.

Not intended for deep diving, but certainly capable of perhaps 100 feet depending on flexible hose length. A lot of TREASURE was found in very shallow water over the years if we could get to the bottom and see clearly.

The helmet is large, iron and heavy (56 lbs) and basically looks like a space helmet with a TV screen in the front. From the top extends a rubber hose, not present, that wanders its way up to the surface and joins to a hand cranked bellows/compressor that when the pick-axe handle style lever, also absent, moves from side to side generating an air supply down to the diver. Our example has all the main features however the pick-ax style handle and the flexible hose are absent. We even have the tie on weighted under shoes!

Straight our of storage from a Military Installation, obsolete by WWII this set was perhaps one of the first steps on the ladder to successful under water exploration be it Military or just to find Treasure. Nearly 100 years old technology has come a very long way since then. Ready to display, early Diving Helmet, hand operated bellows/compressor and diving shoes.

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