Missing Submarine Lost on Titanic Expedition Made with Simple Parts

The submarine that's gone missing trying to explore the Titanic was, partly, comprised of simple, store-bought parts ... but it's unclear if that has anything to do with its disappearance.

OceanGate Expeditions' underwater vessel, dubbed Titan, has been under the microscope and featured on news programs ... which dove into its construction, its technology and efficacy -- and all three seemed to be fairly solid, at the time.

What caught the eye of journalists then -- and what's certainly being scrutinized now -- is the fact this submersible features a lot of gadgets and gizmos built using very basic consumer products ... like game controllers, one-push buttons and home monitors you could buy at any electronics store, like Best Buy.

With that said, other key elements of the sub -- including the exterior and all its air pressure tech -- seemed to be top-notch, with designs and contributions from institutions like Boeing and NASA. At least, that's what OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush once told CBS News.

In fact, Rush gave a tour of this thing, and when the journo asked him if some of this stuff was MacGyver-y ... he rebuked that characterization, even though it sure felt that way.

Of course, the sub's components are getting a double-take now, because it's been missing for 2 days. As we've reported, it lost communication with its support team a couple hours into the expedition, and it didn't return to the surface at its scheduled time. Now, authorities have launched a full search and rescue.

The U.S. Coast Guard has launched a full search and rescue for the vessel with 5 passengers onboard, including OceanGate's honcho and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Shahzada Dawood, Suleman Dawood and Hamish Harding ... these men were researchers, businessmen and explorers, respectively.

Again, there's no evidence at this point the makeshift elements of the sub have anything to do with it going missing. By all accounts, Titan and other OceanGate subs have carried out several successful voyages over the years ... including ones to the Titanic.

While the fact Titan has yet to be found might sound discouraging, reports have indicated it's actually capable of supporting life for up to 96 hours ... so there's still time, technically.