# Floating skimmers



## UltiLink (Sep 4, 2008)

Well, as promised, project post.

the plan is to build a mod for the tau piranha skimmer so the thing actually floats. 
So far, what ive done is very basic.
Taken a picture of the piranha:http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s277/neo3000000/Image0006.jpg
Found the "balance point" aka the point at which the weight of the piranha is equal, so you can balance the model on just one point. Fortunately, GW have already done this for me, as their plastic support rod fits perfectly in the point. http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s277/neo3000000/Image0007.jpg

Now i have to pick the magnets. im after something about 5 mm wide and 2/3 mm thick. thing is, im buying these of the net, and i need to keep 35 quid on my card for fallout 3, as i have a tendency to forget about my bank totals.
Currently, its a toss up between http://tinyurl.com/4ho4j5 and http://tinyurl.com/4grvn4 and http://tinyurl.com/526dfx (yay for tinyurl)

Next comes magnet layout: basic idea is http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s277/neo3000000/Skimmer.jpg but if it doesnt work, im stumped.

Also, methinks the base should be flat in my opinion, so im gonna check if i can borrow the schools laser cutter and make meself a flat acrylic base. 

more to come when i do stuff.


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## Zaamel (Mar 10, 2008)

Sounds like a cool plan, Ive always wanted to know if you could actually make skimmer float with magnets.

Il be watching with much anticipation.


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## UltiLink (Sep 4, 2008)

well, ive tried today with 2 really cheap magnets. a gun drone is able to float, about a inch off the surface, but its hideously unbalanced, and flips over.


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## Djinn24 (Jan 12, 2008)

will be watching this, intrested in this myself and have thougt about doing it.


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## Trigger (Mar 12, 2008)

UltiLink said:


> well, ive tried today with 2 really cheap magnets. a gun drone is able to float, about a inch off the surface, but its hideously unbalanced, and flips over.


At least you know the magnets are strong enough. Hope you've got more patience than me!


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## Jezlad (Oct 14, 2006)

How do you plan to stop the model toppling over the side?


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## UltiLink (Sep 4, 2008)

The gun drone was just a test in to make sure the things float. When I'll mount my piranhas, they weigh enough not to be flipped.


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## DarknessDawns (Oct 21, 2007)

you could have one magnet in the centre, attracting th piranah magnet, the having a ring of magnets around the centre magnet to push away the piranah, these ones need to be angles towards the one point,, and all need to be evenly spaced
very difficult


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## UltiLink (Sep 4, 2008)

DarknessDawns said:


> you could have one magnet in the centre, attracting th piranah magnet, the having a ring of magnets around the centre magnet to push away the piranah, these ones need to be angles towards the one point,, and all need to be evenly spaced
> very difficult


umm, click on the doodle thing in the first post.


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## enieffac (Nov 24, 2008)

I read this the other day and decided to play with the idea a bit (or maybe an awful lot... because I want my chaos deamon screamers to levitate). I used mini-magnetix magnets (magnetic toys for kids). The magnet itself is maybe 3mm wide and 5mm high. (allowing things to float 1-2cm. high quality magnets will give better floating). I made a stable floating platform after giving in and adding a pair of alignment pins (vertical pin glued to the base and sticking through a small hole in the upper platform) and I believe that is the only way to make this actually work. 

In your case, I would drill one hole in each of those wing looking things that extends below the vehicle for your stabilizer pins. I would drill shallow holes the size of the magnets you will be using on the back end of either exhaust pipe, and a third hole towards the nose in the middle of that nice smooth looking surface. (make sure that all three magnets are above the base, and if you draw a triangle between the magnets it should have the balance point inside the triangle, but it doesn't need to be in the middle of the triangle. This thing will mostly level itself.) Once your magnets are mounted flush with the vehicle surface, they can be painted, making them invisible (this will have no effect on how high the vehicle floats).

The next step would be to make a landscape (probably rubble of some kind) that includes three high points that line up with the magnets on the vehicle. Hide the base magnets (I would use significantly bigger/stronger magnets on the base to maximize lift) in your terrain. Modify your base terrain to raise or lower the vehicle to the height you want it. You can also suspend it at a shallow angle by raising or lowering one magnet. Install a pair of pins that line up with the holes you drilled in those fins earlier (I like using those pins with the plastic balls on the head. Just cut the plastic ball part in half and it makes it very stable when glued). You will now be able to remove the vehicle from the base, bounce it up and down in the air, etc. 

The biggest issue with your particular vehicle is that it doesn't have a flat bottom. That means that the low bits (fins) will be MUCH closer to your base than the rest. I recommend getting liberal with the trimming of anything that sticks down over your base area.


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## 10228 (Sep 8, 2008)

sounds cool


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