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How to Make a Simple Hoverboard

Movies set in the future often show characters traveling with ease by floating on air-powered devices rather than the rumbling gas engines of real-life Earth. But air-powered travel doesn't have to be a luxury only for people in a scientific fantasyland; You, too, can build a basic air-lifted hover board using a few basic garage supplies.

Things You'll Need

2 plywood boards, each 5/8-inch thick, 2 feet wide by 4 feet long
Handheld drill, with 3/4-inch bit
10 interlocking foam mats
50 - 1/2-inch nails
Hammer
Sheet of black pond liner, 2 feet wide by 4 feet long
3 rolls black, electrical tape.
Duct tape
Backpack-style leaf blower

Instructions

- 1
  Drill out a hole 2 inches in diameter in one of the corners of one of the plywood boards. Cut a similar hole in one of the interlocking foam mats. Place that foam mat on top of the board corner so that the holes line up. Then, cover the rest of the board on that side with interlocking foam mats and nail them into place with six to eight nails per foam piece. Set this board aside.
- 2
  Cover one side of the other plywood board in black, plastic pond liner. Drill out 15 to 20 holes, each 1 inch in diameter evenly spaced around the edges of the board, drilling through both the pond liner and the board.
- 3
  Flip the board from Step 2 so that the pond liner side is facing down. Take one of the interlocking foam pads and cut the interlocking ends off to form a smooth-edged square. Cut that square in half. Place each of the halves horizontally on top of the flipped board, with one of the halves at the front of the board and one at the back, then nail them into place.
- 4
  Place the board from Step 1 on top of the halves you nailed down in Step 3, with the padded side of the board facing up. Nail the board from Step 1 on to the halves from Step 3. You should have two boards stacked on top of each other with the foam halves between them, creating a gap of about 1 inch between the boards.
- 5
  Cover the gap along the sides, top and bottom of the board with the electrical tape. This covering must be airtight, with no holes between the pieces of tape.
- 6
  Take off the removable plastic blower tube from the leaf blower. Line up the blower's exhaust nozzle with the 2 1/2-inch hole and tape it into place using the duct tape. This seal must be airtight, with no holes between the pieces of tape.
- 7
  Transport the board to an open space with a smooth surface, such as a basketball gym. Stand in the center of the board and turn the leaf blower engine on to its lowest speed. You should begin moving, with the air blown from the engine going into the gap between the board and coming out through the evenly-spaced bottom holes to create the layer of air on which you move.

Backyard Toys