Later on we put a lanyard connected to the kill switch in the dash.

Fit a 2 x 4 between the sides to form a dash board.This is a good time to attach the throttle cable to either the dash or the side strips. Next clamp and glue the 3/4' stringers to the top. The 1/8' plywood bends easily to conform to the shape. Start by laying out the basic shape with a marking pen and screwing 3/4' stock to the line. You can adjust by putting small shims under the motor mounts if needed. Check for at least 1/8' clearance all around. The motor should be bolted down securely.

Now is a good time to trial fit the prop and hub to the motor to make sure it runs true inside the duct. By now the foam is hard so you can cut the bottom of the duct with a sabre saw to conform with the openings in the hull for lift air. It's a good idea to paint a white band at the tips for safety's sake. Once it is balanced give it a couple coats of paint to preserve it. Most props are pretty close when they arrive so it is not an undaunted task. Hang the prop on a rod held in a vise to see which blade is heavier than the other. Once you get it smooth you MUST balance it to avoid vibration. Once you have the tip clearance set you can begin to sand the blades with a power sander and finish by hand. Be very careful when removing tip material, it's easy to cutoff but hard to put back. A duct is most efficient when the prop fits closely inside the duct. You can save a lot of money by finishing your prop your self.įirst slide the prop onto the crank without the hub to see if it fits inside the duct without binding. You can buy the prop two ways, either finished or unfinished. Step 4: Underside of the Hull Is Now Complete When you take it apart the plastic will pull of easily as it will not stick to the fiberglass I ran the vacuum for about two hours and did a great job. If it won't pull a vacuum check for leaks in the tape. Turn it on and watch the vacuum pull it down to the floor. Cover the blanket with a larger piece of plastic sheeting and tape it down to the floor all around the edges Make a small slit in the plastic and plug in the vacuum hose from your shop vac. This way the blanket won't stick to the fiberglass. First cover the freshly epoxied fiberglass with a layer of thin plastic sheet. Don't let this scare you it is really quite easy. A simple vacuum blanket pulls everything down tight. It is important to get all the air bubbles out before it dries. This can get a little messy if you are not careful. The entire underside is covered with fiberglass cloth and epoxy. The underside of the hull must be waterproof. It would be a great Father and Son project. The skirt is the heart of this thing and we didn't want to save penny's on something this critical. Although it busted our $500 budget we decided to purchase their materials kit which included all the epoxy,fiberglass, screws, and glue. The only parts we needed to buy from Universal Hovercraft were the Plans, propeller, propeller hub, and the skirt material. Most of the materials could be found at the local builders supply. This one directs approximately 1/3 of the thrust air to provide both lift and inflating the skirt. Most hovercraft use a separate motor for lift and thrust. We liked it because it only uses one motor. We bought the plans for their UH10F craft. We had an old 10 HP Briggs horizontal shaft electric start engine from an old riding mower that looked like it would fit the bill. Knowing absolutely nothing about hovercraft we researched the web on the subject and found the Universal Hovercraft website to be the best source. We decided on a hovercraft after watching a TV special. I was looking for a project that my Grandson and I could build.

Recreational hovercraft for sale