Gabrielson Curt. Kinetic Contraption: Build A Hovercraft, Airboat, and More with A Hobby Motor

Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2010. — 195 p. — ISBN 978-1-55652-957-3.Blenders, hair dryers, car starters, vacuum cleaners, power drills, CD, DVD, VHS and cassette players, refrigerators, heaters and AC units, washers and dryers, air compressors, electric toothbrushes, cell-phone vibrator units, ceiling fans, and remote control cars-what do these things have in common? They are all powered by electricity, but also by magnetism, because an electric motor lies at the heart of each of them. Electric motors are amazing devices. You put in an electric current and you get out a rotating shaft. Attach something to the shaft, and it will rotate as well. Over the 19 decades that these devices have been around, they have done a lot of work for humankind. Today, people without access to electric motors spend a lot of time and energy doing things that are effortless for you and me, such as washing clothes. In other words, no more whining when you have to move your clothes in and out of two machines that basically do all the work for you. Large electric motors power ski lifts, pumps, elevators, some buses, and more and more family cars. You usually have to get some sort of technical degree before you get to play with these types of motors. But small is also beautiful. Nowadays you can buy motors smaller than your pinky for a few bucks. You can find the least expensive commercial motors, about the size of your thumb, for around 60 cents. You can also get one for free by ripping it out of an old toy. There is no reason not to have several of these motors sitting around your house to explore and experiment with.Motor vehicles: Models, Juvenile literature.
Airplanes: Models, Juvenile literature.
Ground-effect machines: Models, Juvenile literature.
Motorboats: Models, Juvenile literature.