Dirk Lohry

Dirk Lohry lives on a lake in South Dakota USA; the hovercraft he is building from a Neoteric partially-assembled kit will let him navigate the lake over thin and broken ice for the first time. After undergoing pilot training at Neoteric when he took delivery of his hovercraft kit, Lohry observed:

The Neoteric craft can hover in place, spin like a top or even back up - try doing that in any other hovercraft! The cool thing was flying over floating logs and vegetation - try doing that in a boat! Landing on shore was just cool - no more dragging my boat up the shore, knee deep in mud. I’m looking forward to maneuvering around the changing shores of the Missouri River. After the big flood this summer, there are new hidden reefs, trees and rocks. For a boat, that’s a nightmare; for a hovercraft, it’s a dream. Follow along as Dirk assembles his hovercraft …

2 November 2011: There was no problem trailering the unit the 650 miles back to South Dakota. The thin strip of carpet on the tail had to be moved, but that was about it.

3 November 2011: The construction video is very good. Some things have changed, like the removable instrument panel. The polyester adhesive was not found; it was not listed on the manifest. The rubber adhesive was there. Is this something I purchase separately or was it missed?

16 November 2011: I am off for a week, but have made real progress. The engine is mounted and the mechanics of the steering are done. There were no specific directions on mounting the engine unit but there was only one way it would fit. The tachometer reads like 100 instead of zero and it sounds like there is a screw rattling around inside. I have not hooked it up yet but I don't think it is good. If you agree that it should read zero now then please send replacement.

A question: What are the dimensions for mounting the center seat … or does it matter? I have the center seat with the side-by-side in the back. And where is the computer box located - I am assuming inside the port stern wall? I should have taken pictures while I was there!

Everything else is going together fine!