Re: Getting prototype parts made?

- Make a waterproof _un_hydrodynamic housing.

- Coat it with a thick layer of paraffin.

- Shave off the part of the paraffin that's not streamlined.

- Wrap it with fiberglass tape wetted with resin, then with vinyl tape or Saran
Wrap.  When the resin has cured, peel off the wrap.

To answer your questions:

Yes, it's possible to make your own parts from resins.  It can be a lot of
work, especially if you want a nice finish or if you want the housing to be
separable without destruction.

Aluminum can be fabricated with relative ease.  Joining it is less easy.  It
can be surprisingly inexpensive to CNC machine arbitrarily complex shapes from
solid blocks of aluminum, especially if you have moderate quantities to make.

The toughest questions center on sealing the shaft and cooling the motor.  When
you solve those problems, the rest of a design should fall into place.

-Mike-



-Mike-