[ Home] [ ** UK MogStock 2009 - 29-31 May ** ] [ Playing with and improving the mog ] [ Restoring a '61 Unimog ]
[ Building a 3 seat hovercraft ] [ Entering Scrapheap Challenge ] [ Two large and stupid motorbikes ] [ EvilStock(tm) 2004 - the festival ] [ EvilStock 2(tm) 2007 ] [ UK MogStock 2006 ] [ UK MogStock 2008 ] [ Car related stuff ] [ Other random nonsense ] [ Pete's Projectile Projects ] [ Links ] [ email me - jim ATE foodfight.org.uk ][ Hover Home ][ Engine and Fan ] [ Building the craft (I) ] [ Building the craft (II) ] [ Putting it all together ] [ Yeah, it works ] [ It works better now! ] [ Making a trailer and crane ]
It's all very well having an engine and a fan frame, and a hull - they all need to be bolted together
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I've been waiting for the rain to stop for 2 1/2 weeks now. I've amused myself making the dashboard, making and fitting handles and then front tow hitch. Looks good. |
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We've just dropped the engine in and it's time to bolt it all together. This is all kind of in vain, as once it's together I'm going to take it apart and do the final painting, add the back seats and do a few other bits as well. |
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Looks very nice, the engine doesn't seem as big as I'd thought it would be. |
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It's all bolted together and pretty straight. Fuel tank and battery have been added, and lots of things tie-wrapped together. We initially thought the starter wasn't going to turn it all, but we just had a dodgy contact. It started and ran fantastically. The craft vibrated much less than we thought. So we revved it to 5.5K (limit is 8.5). Even without an exhaust it ran well, much smoother with some load than without. Look at the blur! |
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Our brave cameraman decided to go behind (was dared maybe?) and see if the skirt segment was inflating. Although none of the other segments are attached it did inflate some. The fans are attached at about 25-30 degrees, I'll up them soon. The resulting sandstorm may be marketed as a new facial treatment. |
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All the frames and the engine have been removed for painting. Now the skirt can go on (it's *not* hovering here :) it's on a dolly!), takes a little while. Everything that needs doing to skirt needs doing 78 times, gets a bit dull eventually. |
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This is what the skirt looks like from the bottom. You can see the height it will hover (roughly the amount the skirt hangs down below the main hul). |
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Perhaps people will stop thinking it's a speedboat (!?!?!?!?) now. |
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well, what can I say! |
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Perhaps not my best angle, but the craft looks good. |
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More done now, the exhausts are (loosely) attached, still need to do a little shaping on the ends, and add springs. I've added the fan guard as well, for entirely practical reasons - I had a pulley come off. Didn't actually come out very fast but, still, once bitten and all that. I think I've fixed the problem that caused it. |
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What can I say? Hovercraft wobble a lot, how else you going to hold your beer?? The cables irritate me a lot - I had a problem getting a long enough cable inner, it works fine but is 50cm too short for proper routing. |
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Just before we started it, proud father No. 1. |
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And here I am, proud father No. 2 - isn't she just soooooo cool! |