Fifteen Minute, Self-propelled hovercraft

This instructable coves how to build a hovercraft out of a foam tray, cardboard, and some other household items.

Step 1 Materials

For this project you need:
A foam meat tray (smaller is better)
Some non-corrugated cardboard (I used the kind in Kudos bar boxes)
A small 1.5 volt DC motor
A propeller that can attatch to the motor (I used one from an old RadioShack kit)
A nine volt battery
A nine volt battery snap
Scissors
A glue gun
A craft knife
Tape

Comments

[matthew dale]

awsom

[zero.x.red]

hey, my fans starts to spin really slow after 10 sec... any idea to why?

[RunsWithExplosives]

Your propeller could be too big or too heavy.

[Tommyhzy]

I think that your fan spin because you (removed by community request) put the motor a little angled, thus producing angular thrust. You cold either try moving the motor more towards the middle of the craft, or un-angling the motor.

[Dr. No]

Maybe your battery is low?

[optimist123]

how fast does it go

[Castle Seige]

Does the motor voltage affect how good it hovers?

[Dr. No]

I only tried it with one motor, but I'm guessing it would.

[Skleck911]

[Skleck911]

would it be possible to use flat styrofoam rather than the meat tray? Thanks{{{

}}}

[Venemot]

Actually a flat styrofoam is much butter if you tape a plastic sheet to it .it should be a bit loose....in the centre stick the plastic to the styrofoam plate with the help of screws and a metal strip( tin wil do the trick) but remember to add a fey holes close to the metal strip....this make a good air cusion in the middle.....i am going to try this model.....i have made my designs....just waiting to buy a few of the stuff.....actually i am looking for a moter for the downward thrust.....and i am sure that the motor used in computer cpu's for cooling parts will work best.....

[Dr. No]

Flat styromfoam might work, just make sure it's not warped or the air will escape through the gaps between the styrofoam and the ground.

[..Dylan..]

Hey. I'm building a hovercraft in school. We're using two motors? What do you suggest that I do?

[Venemot]

For the fan for the downward thrust you should use the one that are used in computer cpu's for cooling down parts.........you can easily screw and tape it to the tray after making a hole for it......and for the vertical thruster you can easily use dc motor.......if you want to make a rc hovercraft you can make flaps like those used for setting the direction of air in car ac's and connect them to a moter.......

[MayolaTikaka2]

get to meat trays put the small tray over the other use match sticks between the trays with a space of about 1/2 a centimetre make a hole on the bigger tray then u finished the hvercraft produces more thrust

[goider]

just put them side by side

[dextina]

you just helped save my butt!

[sarim123]

me too

[Animador3d]

Eeemmm no offence..but ... Did you wrote this book?

http://www.klutz.com/catalog/product/3110

I mean...you can understand why is easy to asume that at least , you bought it...right?
otherwise very detailed instructable

[Dr. No]

None taken, I will admit that is pretty much identical. If anyone owns a copy of the book, would they be kind enough to check the publishing date? While I didn't publish this until '06, I built the original model in 2004. In case anyone didn't know, klutz has an unfortunate history of "borrowing" ideas from independent makers.

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/02/sad_day_for_makers_unauthorized_boo.html

[codongolev]

I know my engineering class made almost identical ones. I'm sure it's a common design.

[emmapoodle]

Amazon says the publication date is 2003. 

[teabaron]

would a usb hard drive motor work for this?

[mabster]

Wasn't this by klutz? it seems like you just took it out of their battery science book

[Nicola Tesla]

i'm going to do this with a hair dryer fan

[RunsWithExplosives]

Wouldn't it be easier to just add a small switch instead of moving the wires every time?

[kcls]

I did it! I made one but I added a small rocker switch to the side. cool Instructable!

[TheEvilRobot]

do you need a propeller?

[livesteamfan]

I'm thinking of making something bigger with a gas engine. I have an old car I don't use and it has a small 4 cylinder engine in it. Think this design would work in a larger scale? Also, what is a Kudos bar?

[a918bmxr]

a kudos bar is basically a chewy bar

[Tape-structable]

I would love to see a bigger scale hover craft. It might just work, with the right things. I'm not very well at that stuff so dont take my advice. Are you planning on riding in it, if you attempted?

[livesteamfan]

Of course I would ride it. I wonder what the police would say if I took it out on the road, depending on if it can do the speed limit of 40mph.

[Gonazar]

Sorry to rain on your parade, but I just want to point out that hovercrafts on a large scale are rather difficult for a DIY project, I've done quite a bit of research on them, and probably the biggest problem is finding a motor+fan system that can push enough air out to counter the weight of person and motor, also the propulsion motor as well. It's totally possible, I've seen some good ones, but hitting 40 isn't that feasible.

[livesteamfan]

What if I was to use a V-twin, 16hp engine for the lift engine and have one of my mechanic friends make 2 fans to move air and then just use my 4 cylinder as the propulsion engine? I can get a big piece of wood that I can attach the tarp/ballon thing to and have an aluminum support frame made up along with supports for bothe engine and the gas tank. I was thinking a single 20-30 gallon tank towards the front along with a chair or two to counter the weight of the engine in the back. Think that might work? I don't care if I'm wasting my time, I have nothing better to do.

[jimmy dean]

I'm actually in the process building one now. The 16hp engine should definitely be enough for the hovering part, I've seen people use .5 horsepower electric leaf blowers and they were strong enough to lift two people. Just wondering, how do you plan on using the 16 hp engine to blow air in? Are you going to do it like this instructable, are you going to point the fan straight down or are you going to use a centrifugal fan? Also, where do you plan on putting the hover engine? In the middle or on one side?

[livesteamfan]

I was thinking of having a horizontal shaft engine with a pully that would drive two different fans via a belt drive off of the engine. I'm not too sure of the locoation yet, but I'm think towards the back in front of the other one but before the chairs which would be somewhere in the middle.

[jaketheman987]

its kinda like a rice crispy treat but without the marshmallow stuff and more of a carmel/chocolate "paste" and then usually with some kind of candy on top like mini eminems or some peanut butter for snicker kind. depends on the kind you get. There good though!

[Jonny Katana]

I just imagined a Kudos bar topped with tiny white rappers. Thank you for the laugh :P

[puke503]

hahaha that is cool

[mrdepo96]

what if you put a cut down bicycle tube around the inside of the foam tray? at a low pressure, it would probably hold air much better. (you would need a better motor) :)