With the motor prepared I moved on to fitting it in the hull. My plan included a 35mm diameter propeller – quite large for this size of boat but I want plenty of grunt – and I struck lucky. The prop removed from the Puffer measured about the right size so I was able to fit it to the drive shaft to get this in position.
First though, the shaft had to shrink by about an inch and a half. The shortest version I could buy was 5 inches long which puts either the motor or prop beyond the end of the model. I managed to saw through the tube and pop the end bearing out reasonably easily. This was reattached with a drop of superglue to the shortened tube. The glue was probably not needed since I had to hammer the bearing back in. The drive shaft was also shortened and the end filled flat to allow the motor coupling to key onto it.
With the temporary prop in place the hull was drilled and generally messed around with until everything looked like it would line up. Milliput tacked it in place but will eventually be supplemented by car body filler. The motor sits on a bed of silicon sealer (as used in plumbing) which holds it in place but provides a bit of flexibility to dampen any vibrations.
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