Dear Members,

After months of painstaking work, labour, innovations, frustrations, deceit, treachery, financial loss etc., etc., etc, my silent partner Musawir Sir (http://www.rcindia.org/profile/?u=1090) and I proudly present before you the LCAC 1.

Videos and clearer photographs to follow. We are esctatic, overjoyed and devastated at the same time. I hate using cliches, but this project has been a true example of "The Agony and The Ecstacy" of Scratchbuilt Mega RC projects.

Oh yes at 52" L X 32" B X 14" H, she does create a rather big impression.

PLEASE comment. We need the encouragement today. To some members on this forum, we extend our heartfelt gratitude and thanks. They stood by us when we needed them the most - Aditya, Anam and V.K. Singh.  . To one other member, we say "Well Sir, you tried your best to prevent it - but then here we are. We did it."

I don't want to sound boastful, nor do I believe in false humility, I don't think anyone in South East Asia has been able to produce 3 successful RC Scratchbuilt models of the Griffon 2000, Griffon 8100 and the LCAC in a span of 6 months.

It was worth it.

Cheers!

Some more - hope you all like what you see..............

Wow sir... its a beauty... Its actually the most beautiful scratch build ever... simply amazing...

Thank you my friend. Thanks also for supporting us and standing by us the whole time. You know the full story.........................

Yes... But even after so many problems... you managed to finish the hovercraft... Its amazing... simply amazing... I have never seen a scratchbuild so beautiful... Very nice build... May we have the specs please.....

Awesome !!   very detailed  

from waste paper baskets, bicycle spokes to wooden spoons - we have used everything to create this monster. Plan to have a quiz someday for members to locate and identify the original material and spot where it has been used!

Basic specs 52" L X 32" B X 14" H. Powered by 4 brushed 550 size motors (sourced by Aditya) driving 7X4 three bladed pusher props and two lifter fans driving 5 X 3 three bladed props.

great build. Congrats VC

Beautiful  

Videos !

Thanks Sirs! Videos - soon. Heartfelt thanks from Mustafa Musawir (Great Guns) and myself.

Dear VC sir, i have never been interested in Howercrafts, but the pics uploaded by you have made left me to do lots of Gooogling.

And i know that 3 hrs of googling is very less to say, but finally i am bound to say---"I love Howercrafts".

I have read several technical details as well. I will be very glad to help you if in any way.

I myself being a professional model maker have never seen such a  marvellous scrach built. I need to learn from you.

Thats all i have to say..

bit lengthy   but i love it

Great build VC sir ....now that's a true and dedicated modeller
Magnificent Build 

Abhay 

Akky, my old friend, 

We need your support today.

Thanks again!

In which way i can help you sir?.. Ill be glad to help..

Will let you know when the time is right. Thanks a ton for the offer.

me too always there to support your fantastic builds
by the way the  detailing is great  especially the propulsion system  

Thanks Akky!

Wonderful build... great attention to deal. Simply love it!

Amazing..Great work. please have some videos posted in youtube or someplace..

thanks

Any reason you used brushed motors rather than brushless ones?

But it looks REALLY good.The amount of that has gone into it is shown.

VC Sir,

What can I say it is simply awesome. You have done it again that too against all odds. Commendable achievement.

The attention to detailing, life like appearance, and fabulous performance has been the hallmarks of all your creations.  

Quote
"Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.
- Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama"

That was for your comrade in arm who showed less of comrade re.

I can only relate to one of the incident which happened with me when I was in the Academy. Since Riding and Art were my passion, so they were my outdoor and indoor club's.

One of my comrade who was with me in Arts club, expressed extreme interest with me to learn painting and used to always trouble (pester) me with his canvas to teach him. So I started with basics gave him a theme, and slowly he was making me commit in his canvas bit by bit and every day he was making me do some addition to it and I realized I was actually making the painting for him, in the last when I realized only finishing was left, jovially I finished it for him and gave it to him as a gift, and asked him to take another canvas and start practicing what he has learned.

On the day of the Gallery, I could not help my self but "ROTFLMAO"  when I saw the same painting displayed on the hall with his name on it. When I confronted him this is what he had to say " It was my effort, since it was me who was guiding you to finish the theme and you were helping me to finish with the painting work, so nothing wrong in my name being there".

So I had some thing to learn from that painting that day. However that one incident could not belittle me in any way since I had my 12 canvas on the Hall and he had his one canvas. By the way all were sold by the end of the Gallery.

So VC you still have your three beauties and many more. He cannot even fathom what all you are going to come out with in the future.

"He has just one flash in the pan"

So congratulations and keep the good work going. These are only minor setbacks and aberrations.  

VC Sir,

I'ts really beautiful 

Congrats Sir & convey my wishes to Mr. Mustafa Musawir.

Please post the videos at the earliest.


Sanjay

Thanks everyone. Overwhelmed by your support and kind words.

Sandy, just one difference between this and your painting story. The person in question here may be unethical in his conduct, however, he is definitely a very talented modeller. I still respect his modelling abilities.

as usual VC , speechless, gr8 work, wow to these brushed ones, brush-less were nightmare, sounds like strapped and strapless , strapped wont malfunction (Even if you want it to) , when are you building one for both of us ?

PS
was hibernating on a scratch-build and Raptor 90, missed this thread

Anytime Sir! Your wish is my command. Now that we have gotten down and dirty (after having built 4 Hovercraft) we know exactly what is required where and for what performance. It will not only cut down the time but also the costs.

Btw, Grp. Capt. Christopher paid me a visit today. An Officer and a Gentleman.

After all the effort that we had put into this baby, there was just one aspect that we weren't happy about. Just one thing that didn't look scale/accurate. So we decided to rectify it for our own pleasure. Hope the buyer / client likes it and understands the passion for accuracy involved. We decided to change the shape of the bow skirt to match the original.

Here are the results............

Another shot.

Necessity, they say, is the mother of all inventions. Couldn't have been more apt! Here is a pic of our Thruster master switch, it powers on 2 x 550 motors driving 3 bladed 5 x3 props. Ever seen anything like this?

The complex array of wiring 

That is wicked... the Anchor does stand out

My brother did something similar with a servo for ignition switch on a 75cc gasser, but that looks professional and uninteresting in front of the anchor switch here !

There needs to be a "hovercraft lover" specially made for VC on RCI

wow what a built!!!! lots of new ideas, specially switches!!!!

 Great VC bai

Greatguns (Musawir) and I gratefully acknowledge the compliments from all members.

 

A few secrets.

The Thruster Ducts

The Bow Thruster intakes (I think that is what they are called). These were dipped in boiling water for a few minutes and stretched into shape. A few blisters were worth it.

The life boat from an inhaler dispenser (both are life savers, aren't they?).

The Thruster Prop stuffing tube.

That's your Ciggy packet there ? what did you use it for ?

What the wife had to put up with.................

She :    

Me :  

Gusty - Look!

Best out of waste project... there is no limit for awesomeness for you sir..

Bicycle spokes and a CA cap..............

The video.



The photography is better from the 2:20 mark.

saw that , live, when i visited our old house , Mrs Chowdhary had no place call her own, all the rooms were RC stuff and boys toys, i am confined to a room, mostly the second Servant's quarters

PS
all that paid off, gr8 vid

Nice video.Great work. 


Can we get some footage of it running on water?

Really a good scratch build... Nice video sir.... It is very massive... Nice good of electronics and yes now you have proved your electronics... Thank you for the credit sir... thank you... Really appreciate that...

Floats so smoothly, very easy to forget it's a scratch build. Rep++ 

She is gone. The client's representatives took delivery a short while ago.

We couldn't test her on water as we didn't have any transportation big enough to carry her to a nearby water body.

This model has a fantastic lift as she has been built light and due to the fact that we have designed a semi finger skirt. As you can make out, she is fast, and even in such a confined space, she is agile. Given a larger area, she will be able to pick up very good speed.

All in all, it is finally over. Can't help feeling nostalgic when I recall the really trying times that Mustafa Sir and I have gone through.

We would like to thank the client for having given us this wonderful opportunity.

P.s. I do have a better video of its final moments with us, but I can't post it here as it would divulge the identity of the client.

Sir..its amazing..and thanks for the inspiration...sure i am on my drawing board to finish one....thank you...

How about you blur the client's face?

His face is not important, it is the rest of him that is distinctive. No go figure that out!

Blur the whole person out.

What was the maximum run time you got sir..?? What batteries did you use?? What is the material you used for the frame??

on the other hand you are saying you are human

I am a human who wants to see more footage of the hovercraft.I don't mind blurring people in videos.

Anam, Using a 1800mAh 3S Lipo for the Thrusters and a 2200mAh 3S Lipo for the Lifters. Getting a run time of 7 mins comfortably. Remember, each battery is powering 2 motors ( for lift and for thrust).

Construction is primarily Coro (reinforced with steel rods) and Styrofoam.

Cheers!

Gandhar, I am sorry I cannot discuss this point any further. I too am upset at not being able to post the final video. But I made a promise to the client and I will honour it.

No problems sir.Appreciate you keeping your promise to the man.

Thanks. The promise was made to an Organisation. An Organisation for which I have the highest respect.

Abhay, I just read your post. Yes, every morning I would get up and clean and dust her and check if anything was broken or damaged by my maid during her sweeping. There is a huge emptiness in my drawing / living room tonight. The emptiness also extends to my heart. She was a sight to behold, first thing in the morning. I do miss her now. Anyway, she has gone to a good home where she will be looked after well.

Its a sad moment..
"Even if a wild animal lives around a person for few days, a lovely bond and understanding automatically creates between two", She was VC sir's own creation,... i might have become a part of life..
Its really touching.. jst now i read the thread and came to know that its gone..

hi VC
that was surely a labour of love   
it must be hard to  put so much into a project when you know the end product will not be staying with you.
it looks superb and I am sure your customer should be well happy with it,
pity about the final video........maybe you will be able to see it being operated sometime.
regards
don

these are mind blowing work is these the real?

Hello VC sir...its my first day on this forum and i am glad to see your work.
Coincidentally ,i am working to make a surveillance hovercraft for my final year project(B.tech ,final year,Electronics and Communication branch).
I am running out of time and i REALLY NEED UR HELP...PROMPT HELP I should say.
PLEASE GIVE ME A CALL at 8882324282.
or leave me a mail at "saurabhreigns@gmail.com" or give me your number via sms.
I SERIOUSLY NEED AN EXPERT ADVICE>>>
I have only a week left for submission of our project,,,,PLEASE PLEASE GIVE ME A CALL OR TEXT OR MAIL...
regards,
Saurabh Srivastava

Inspired by VC sir, I made a similar project for a group of final-year friends (ETC branch). Check it out, it might help:

http://www.rcindia.org/self-designed-diy-and-college-projects/hoverbot-v2/

And, don't worry, a week is enough time. I made it in two days!

Saurabh will get in touch soon. All the best!

sir, i would like to know if u cud assist me on this-
1.can a brushless dc motor be controlled(only on off mechanism required) WITHOUT using an ESC by any means ?
2.If an ESC is must to drive a BLDC motor then ,can we use 555 timer IC to generate pulse sequence which will be fed to the motor so as to turn it ON and OFF(needless to mention that we want to run the motor at a fixed(maximum) speed/RPM )...?
3.Can cellphone batteries(1300,950 and 1350 mAh respectively) be used to power the BLDC motor and ESC.
4.We are making our own RF based Tx Rx circuitry....will this work properly with the BLDC motor and ESC assembly?
Response awaited.:-)

A BLDC cannot be run without an appropriate ESC. I've studied both and can tell you that a 555 certainly can't be used.
Answers to 3 & 4 depend on which bldc and rf modules you have.

You are one of the rare person I have ever seen in this hobby, Who can put in so much love and passion in their builds while making such a beautiful craft for not even yourself, doesn't need any explanation that you particularly love "building" or in other word, "Crafting".

Real Scratchbuilder you are, VC sir.

 

I would never leave a chance to see you scratch building. Its kind of visiting Adrian Smith while he designs Burj Khalifa.

I thank God, we have you for our inspiration.

The Hovercraft is really brilliant.

 

"MIGHTY VC SIR"...:-)

 

I don't have a third of your electrical / electromechanical knowledge / acumen. I just follow the simple maxim - "If it feels right, its gotta be right!"

 

s I may have mentioned earlier, these three models - the Griffon 2000, Griffon 8100 TD and the LCAC - were made by us (Greatguns and VC) for a 'Client'. The clients identity has never been disclosed till date. I have now decided to come up and be bold about it. Here, have a look at the client's representatives who took delivery of the LCAC.

The person who is in civilian clothes is Greatguns.

Just went through the thread. This must be one of the best scratch built hovercrafts I've come across till date.

On behalf of Greatguns and myself - THANK YOU!

Thanx VC. I just logged in after ur call. As u know I rarely visit the forum. And instead of going to the most recent post in d thread, I started with D 1st one and read each one to d last  !!! I never went through this thread. It re-livened my memories of working in d project and feeling proud to be part of it. I m recalling d days when we toiled day in day out like SLAVES to meet d deadline - burnt components, burst lipos (!)....
BTW I think forum members need not be informed that credit for d build & looks goes entirely to VC  - from design, material & the oddest of things to use etc. But they need to be informed that he made a die hard procrastinator like me to work to schedule   .
I think I should visit d forum regularly, for my own good; get out of my cocoon and re-live my passion.....

He! Haaah! - I remember you running around with a fully charged LiPo sparking in your hands, like a phuljhari, at 3 am!!! Those were the days my friend. Loss making effort, but what a GREAT time we had.................

Boss, I think I have accumulated enough material to make 2 more models. One for you and one for me. I miss those models. Come over and lets do 2 super fast builds. Choice of models is yours. Choose between Griffon 2000 and 8100. LCAC is too complicated. All build material at my cost - skirt is your department. You just need to invest in a LiPo, Tx/Rx, motors and ESC.

Let's do it again Boss!

You should have seen my "LiPo burst", dumb me trying to charge a Lipo with 5Amp car casset player adapter and almost burning my room.
 I prefer Griffon 2000, it was the fastest of the three we built - whatever be the reason.
I have two 4000 mAh LiPo lying with me after an esc failure crashed my boat.

I would prefer the Griffon 2000, too, based on its performance. However, the only problem will be the Thruster Shroud Ring. Remember? Let's  work out an easier alternative.....................

NICE! Next build human-powered as desighned by my professor Mark Drela? what material used for the skirts?

I have been dreaming (as usual about making a 46 nitro hovercraft since I saw some pictures and details in a Boat Modeler magazine several years back. I'll try to scan and upload the pages if anyone is interested, provided I can locate the magazine in my book-self.
Another project in mind for long is a working hydrofoil boat. As a class 10 student I made one static scale model of an US Navy hydrofoil boat from card board boxes of shirts invitation cards .... and I gifted it to a junior for his school project . I still have card boards cut out for another one. But it was too small (just the length of a shirt box) to be converted to a working one, so I lost the motivation. Now I am planning to convert my airboat to hydrofoil; have the foils & struts ready but ........

But...........................................

A long time ago I built a hydrofoil like in Sydney harbor but with a long prop shaft to get to the water when up on the foils
it did get up on the foils but didn't control very well and end up at the bottom of the lake lol
I will try another one now brushless motors have more power to get a better lift