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Next Full size craft

So who else has got a full size hovercraft in the works?

26 comments
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Jan 10, 2008. 7:56 PMLoveofchaos says:
Ive made 2 hovercrafts before. the first one was probably 1 1/2'X3' and the second one was probably 1 1/2'X4 1/2'. contrary to all that I had expected, the little one which was made from 1/4" wood, masking tape and visqueen worked much better than the one with duct tape and stronger, although the ductape one will support heavier weights. _ My brothers on the Smaller. And the larger is running. (Sorry for the bad quality on the small one, it was from a cell phone while it was moving.)
Jan 9, 2008. 5:49 PMskooterzkustoms says:
look into arrowprop.com good prices and props for everything
May 28, 2007. 11:43 AMlimpnjim says:
Im new here so gimme a brake. lol. i was looking at the hovercraft plans and feel i to can make a screaming death machine. all i have to work with is a 12.5 hp 18.5 hp and a 3.5 hp side pully motor. im planning to use a blade from a 4ft box fan for lift and a large blade from a a/c condenser for push.to handle the extra weigth. im thinking 5/8 marine plywood. I live at the coastal plains of texas and the swamps make a good place to run into trouble. just one thing bothers me. will the craft rise high enough to go go over a alligator? it seems to bother me that it could be a problematic. its the little things that bring us joy. as far as my skills. i have 30 yrs in maintenance and contruction plus almost every tool there is. soon i hope to add a recipe for home made wine if anyone wants it thanks to all
May 28, 2007. 9:42 PMjtobako says:
You are going to need more than a box fan (even at 18.5 horsepower). Try an airplane propeller-they are made to move air better at high rpm. The hight of your skirt and how much air you are blowing out (how high the skirt rises above the ground) will determine clearance.
Jun 17, 2007. 3:24 PMvince q says:
where could i get a prop on the cheep?
Dec 29, 2007. 7:30 PMfortneja says:
Universal Hovercraft sells purpose-built hovercraft propellors. They can be pricy, but you can save a lot by just buying the rough-cut prop, and finishing it yourself. That's what I did with my full-size craft, and it works great. Here's the link: props
Jun 17, 2007. 11:24 PMjtobako says:
You could start at the local (small) airport, ask where repairs are done, then ask them if they have any that don't qualify for aircraft but should be safe for what you are doing. I believe that props have a (legal) life measured in hours of flight, but would have plenty of life left for a hovercraft (18 hp v. 100+ hp). If that doesn't appeal, you could make one
Jun 17, 2007. 11:25 PMjtobako says:
forgot the link : )

Prop tutorial
Jun 21, 2007. 11:55 AMvince q says:
they don't make airplane props under 4 ft. but i found some for relatively large RC planes that will work.
Dec 25, 2007. 8:54 AMfortneja says:
I built a UH-10f (plans can be found here).

My hovercraft is the size of a small car, and seats one person, maybe two if they're small. It uses a single 10 hp horizontal shaft engine with a diversion box to create lift. The rest of the power goes to thrust. It is powerful enough to blow you over at 5 feet, so no issues with power. I will post an instructable about it soon.
Dec 29, 2007. 7:24 PMfortneja says:
Well, here's the website I made for it. It only covers about half of the whole project, but it's something to take a look at while I work on the Instructable...
Sep 26, 2007. 3:55 PMlimpnjim says:
i have seen on junkyard wars a squirrel cage fan used for lift and push i just cant find one for mine. i have the motor, body, and all the rest. i also have 2 36in 4blade fans out of attic fan boxes. so the hunt is on againlol.
Sep 26, 2007. 4:41 PMGoodhart says:
Hmm, even at 500 HP squirrel cage do you think that is the best way to go?
Dec 25, 2007. 10:53 AMNachoMahma says:
. SC motors and SC fans are not the same.
Dec 25, 2007. 3:34 PMGoodhart says:
Ok, yeah made a bit of a blunder there....
Jun 21, 2007. 6:20 PMbrainiac says:
im working on the blue prints for a single eletric engine. iv had this in mind for so long
Jun 21, 2007. 6:21 PMbrainiac says:
right now im makeing a lego modile
Jun 20, 2007. 8:54 PMvince q says:
I'm in the process of drafting plans for a two person, car sized hover craft. When I'm done I'll post them as a forum to get some feed back before i invest too much money. all of your help would be appreciated.
Jun 3, 2007. 9:10 PMzmatt says:
If i had a bit more money to play with id like to my friend has a Chevrolet 305 engine he wants to do something with haha that would power quite a big hovercraft.
Jun 18, 2007. 7:49 AMKiteman says:
With a big heavy engine, surely it would make more sense to build a fan-boat?
Jun 18, 2007. 9:10 AMzmatt says:
Yeah it would probably
Jun 3, 2007. 8:01 PMgmm4life says:
I was planning on making one this weekend, and I should get my camera fixed by then. I'm going to try and make it as compact as possible, and in a circular shape. Hopefully it'll be cheap and easy to make. My target cost is somewhere under $100. Not quite sure how that's gonna turn out, but I'm hoping for the best.
Apr 2, 2007. 6:16 AMhedgiehog says:
I know, i'm too cheap to buy them or bother making them, I make most things from junk around my house.
Apr 1, 2007. 8:32 AMhedgiehog says:
I'm in the planning stages of building a large hovercraft, but not an 8' long one. I'm trying to work out if i can make it bike powered. No gas or batteries needed!

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