Hey Guys,
I wanted to build a hovercraft from a long time so I built one from Peter's design... Most of the build video is done by peter so wont go into much details however, I will try to cover the details that may have been left out...
I am using a EMax MT1806 2280kv motor for hovering as it provides more than 450g of thrust with a 6030 prop:
I mounted this motor straight onto a ruler stick (paint stick from walmart) - ruler markings make it easy for aligning everything however, I have included detailed measurements and alignment references in my plans... Here is how it looks:
I did a hover test at this stage and it works very well... I am hovering at about 3/4 throttle - using a EMax MT1806 2280kv motor...
I next did a hover test with putting approximate final weight and it still hovered well at 50% throttle so has plenty of power!
Once it passed the hover test I went ahead and glued the pusher motor on another piece of ruler stick (again, included the marking in plans). For the motor stick support I simply used a 1" pink foam from home depot. If you dont have the 1" pink foam, I have included templates for DTF - cut out 4 pieces and laminate them together...
Because the thurst tube is big, I have made tabs in vertical stabilizer for straight alignment within the tube as well as one of the tabs goes into the frame to keep it straight... As there is not much surface to glue, the tube tends to lean on one side and can be damaged by the prop. To fix this, I went ahead and used some barbecue skewers - put 1 skewer thru each side of the tube and it goes into the frame for support. Put some hot glue to secure skewers in place. The holes in tube and frame for skewers are both marked in the plans!
Finally, attached the cabin and made a hatch to access all the electronics and batteries. Used a sharpie to quickly draw the windows and whola! here is how it looks:
Peter has put plans for base plates only so I thought I would go ahead and "fill in the blanks". I am attaching the PDF file here for anyone who would like to build one - its a lot of fun!! It will go together really quickly...
Download Plans Here: Hovercraft Full Plan
Note: The side pieces of cabin glue as "A-fold" (pieces go under the top panel) and the front piece is "B-fold" (piece goes on top of side and top panels) - see pictures above for reference...
Hovering Specs:
Motor: Emax MT1806 2280kv brushless (check for matching length mounting screws)
ESC: Hobbyking 12A
Prop: 6 x 3 EMP (could also use 5x4.5x3 or 6x4E APC prop)
Pusher Specs:
Motor: ntm1200kv (could use 900-1200kv 400 size motors - ~50-60g)
ESC: Turnigy Plush 25A with BEC
Prop: GWS 8x4x3 (could use up to 9" props)
Misc:
Foam: You could use $tree foam board or 6mm foam (In this case, MPF preferred for making tubes as it bends well)
Skirt: Hefty Extra Strong Garbage Bag 30Gal.
1x 9g servo
Yardstick or paint mixing wooden sticks for motor mounts (From Walmart or Lowe's or Home Depot)
Double sided tape if you want to service the skirt in future
1" thick Painter's tape to attach the skirt
Strong Duct Tape or Strapping tape (double sided tape goes on this to avoid damaging the paper when servicing)
2mm wooden dowels/barbecue skewers for aligning pusher tube...
Conclusions:
It is a really easy build with just few pieces to cut out. You can slide this on multiple terrains including water (yet to be tested) but should be a lot of fun with freinds and family...
Additional notes:
-> A nice addition to this would be to use a ESC with reverse function on the pusher motor (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__91040__Turnigy_Seaplane_40A_Brushless_ESC_w_Reverse_Function.html)
-> You could connect both ESCs with a Y-connector and plug it into the throttle channel so that they both start at same time. Another way would be to connect both motors on different swtiches to be able to control them individually (comes in handy when going over water)... I use a futaba 14sg radio so in this video I show how to set up this radio if you want to connect your motors to different swtiches:
Other ways of doing this would be to connect the hover motor to aux channel and assign a 3-way switch. Dial in your mixes, low-med-high settings at different positions and still control them variably to your liking...
Hope this article and the plans help... Have fun building!
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I have also used as low as 1000-1300mah batteries...
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What kind of hover time do you have with a 2200 mah battery?
Tim
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Both motors dont take much amps either so I would say anywhere from 6-9min is what I get...
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here's a video of it working:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJzkfovoDDA
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They are a lot of fun and quite easy to build. I didn't measure much, just went with Peter's ideas. For the pusher I used a 1806 motor with a 5x3 prop and its super fast. My hover motor and prop are probably too big, but it hums away quietly and does the job.
For the pusher I put it on a servo so you get thrust vectoring instead of a rudder. It seems to work great.
I did try it on water but was disappointed with the results. It tended to 'bobble' around and never really came clear of the surface all the way round, so there was always some drag. On a road, gravel or short grass it is fine.
I used a 2200mA pretty central or a 1000mA up front. - See more at: http://www.flitetest.com/articles/peter-s-hovercraft-with-plans#sthash.IChdlYGA.dpuf
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