Hovercraft Designs

Hovercraft Designs

first hovercraft test

Compare______________________________________________

The Hovercraft $49.99 Wilf Hardy The Hovercraft - Giclee Print

Hovercraft $34.99 English School Hovercraft - Giclee Print

Compare______________________________________________

Towable 2-person Space Attack Sit-in Inflatable $179.99 This sit-in towable raft features a unique bottom design with spheres that helps elevate it above the water surface for a 'hovercraft' feel. This Space Attack inflatable offers extreme fun while you balance the tube in the turns.

What size and pitch of propeller?

I am designing a hovercraft and according to the rules of competition, I must use a standard 1.5 to 3v DC motor. After visiting a hobby shop, I learned that there is much more to propeller selection than I thought. What size and pitch of propeller can this small motor handle? Or even better, how do I find this out?

Try www.eaa.org, they have lots of design books for aircraft.

Is this the propeller to make the hovercraft go forward, or a propeller to pressurize air under the skirt? They do different jobs and will have different designs.

If you can afford to buy several different props, it might be just as easy to try to find the right prop by experimentation. Just build a small test stand where you can mount the motor and prop and measure the thrust (force perpendicular to the propeller disk) that the prop exerts. Try several props and see which one gives the most thrust.

To get you started, a given prop is generally rated for a certain RPM. As the prop rotates faster or slower than its design speed, it will not perform as well. Speed through the air also impacts performance, but if you are Building A Hovercraft, then this shouldn't be an issue.

A given motor will rotate at a specific RPM with no load and a given input voltage. A prop will add load and that will slow the motor down. Changing the motor voltage will also change the motor speed. The problem is to match the motor speed to the propeller speed. Ultimately, the speed of the motor is related to the propeller design (and vice-versa), so this can be difficult to calculate.

The air load of your propeller will also be affected by the conditions in the hovercraft. If you are using a model aircraft propeller to provide hover pressure, it will perform differently in this application from that of a free-standing propeller. This is because the back-pressure from the hover area affects the flow through the prop.

So, unless you are going to build a propeller to match your motor and application, your best bet is to just experiment to find the right propeller. Narrow your choices to what props fit your motor(s), and what sizes are appropriate for your overall design.

Compare______________________________________________

LOTUSRC T580P+ Quadcopter/Hovercraft Folding Design W/Case FPV Carrier RC Hobby $544.03

New stadium designs w/ Hovercraft Vehicles 1971 Article $7.95

Combat HoverCraft Boat with Double Skirt Design Silver/Black #6653 Open Box/NEW $80.00