There are many things to consider when buying a hovercraft. In this guide, it is my hope that this will provide useful information to help you become more savvy and educated about buying personal hovercraft. A personal hovercraft by definition is one used by private individuals. They can range in size from 8ft in length to 26ft. The majority of the personal hovercraft built are made from fiberglass; however, many homebuilt hovercraft are built from wood, fiberglassed lamenated styrofoam, and even aluminum. Before buying a hovercraft, you should ask yourself the following questions: 1) Have you ever experienced riding and/or piloting a hovercraft before? If not, can you get lessons or have an experienced personal hovercraft owner to help you out? Again if not, an inexperienced rider can be a danger to themselves and others around them/environment. 2) Are you mechanically inclined? If not, repairs can get very expensive, very quickly. 3) Does your state or country require you to register the hovercraft as a boat? If yes, ask your local authorities if you need an ATV sticker/registeration if the hovercraft will be also going over land as well. Some states may require you to register a hovercraft as a boat and an ATV. 4) Is the hovercraft insurable? To my knowledge, Progressive Insurance is the only company that will cover a personal hovercraft. 5) How much work are you willing to put into a broken down hovercraft? Hovercraft seem simple, but they can be a Pandora's box of complexity. What seems like only $100 in repairs to be done could balloon to much more money. 6) Do you have a fundamental understanding of your local and federal boating laws? In this next section, I will give you an armament of questions (and some facts to validate the questions) to ask a buyer if you are not already familiar with personal hovercraft. They are as follows: 1) Does the hull have any damage? If yes, ask about its severity. Heavy repairs can be costly. 2) Does the engine run? If no, ask what is needed to get it operational. 3) Does it have a 2-stroke or 4-stroke engine? 2-stokes are undependable but powerful motors. 4-strokes are dependable as long as they marinized. An example of a 4-stroke engine is a 3 cylinder Geo engine or 4 cylinder Subaru engine. And remember, water cooled engines are the best. Air cooled engines can overheat very easily in a personal hovercraft. 4) Does the thrust propeller have any erosion damage on the leading edges and/or tips? If yes, ask where the seller purchased their props from. If they do not know, a website such as www.universalhovercraft.com is a good place to start. Wooden/composite props are vulnerable to erosion damage by sand, grit, and even water spray. If the prop has no leading edge tape (stainless or epoxy) be very wary of the prop's quality and ask for closeup photos of the leading edge and tips. 5) Does the personal hovercraft have a seperate lift engine? If yes, ask about it's condition. 6) Does the personal hovercraft have a seperate lift fan? If yes, ask about it's condition. Lift fans are vulnerable to rocks, gravel, sticks, and other debris. If there is any damage, this will upset the fan balance and make it dangerous to run the lift at any speed. 7) If the lift component is run by a gear and belts, ask of their condition. This sort of system is notorious for snapping belts and they are not cheap to replace, nor is the gear. 8) If the lift component is run by an airbox and duct system, ask of its condition. 9) If the lift system has a seperate duct for lift, ask about the condition of the splitters. If they are missing, cracked, or warped, this will cause your lift to be compromised. The repair is generally easy and inexpensive, and at least a half day depending on what hardener you use for your resin. 10) Does the personal hovercraft have floatation? If not, does the hovercraft have a max capacity US Coast Guard label? If a person used a two-part urethane foam for floatation, be very aware that it could be detrimental to the hovercraft. This foam absorbs water over time making it very dense. Styrafoam used as floatation is another foam that can crumble from being wet then drying out. Styrofoam or 2 part epoxy foam used as floatation for example, both work very well. Styrofoam however, is vulnerable to gasoline. 2-part epoxy foam is resistant to gas and oil. 11) If the hovercraft has a fingered skirt (segmented), ask of the condition of all of the fingers. If one is missing or damaged, ask if they have replacements. If not, ask if they have a pattern. Most canvas shops can construct a new segment with a pattern using a 18oz vinyl coated nylon material. If a segment is damaged or missing, another consideration to ask, are the mounting hooks intact? 12) If the hovercraft has a bag skirt (the inner tube-like type), ask if there are any tears. If yes, this could mean the entire skirt must be made, or at least one section. Bag skirts are commonly put together with 18oz vinyl coated nylon material. The joints are commonly glued with an adhesive called HH-66. If you make a mistake with the jointing glueing, you can use acetone (or nail polish remover) to make the glue release. Use a 1/2" paintbrush and peel back with even pressure, keeping up with the acetone when spreading the joint apart. 13) If the hovercraft has a jupe skirt (coned bags), follow the guidelines for a bag skirt. 14) If the hovercraft is skirtless, be sure to ask how the undercarriage is protected. If no picture exists of the undercarriage, ask for one. 15) If the hovercraft is a WIG (Wind In Ground Effect), ask of the wings condition and steering controls. 16) Ask about the condition of the steering controls. If they are in disrepair, ask how difficult it will be to replace the cables. 17) Ask about the conidition of the rudders and/or elevators. If they are broken, missing, or warped, they will obviously cause you problems. Manufactured hovercraft may have parts you can buy from the factory (very expensive) and if the hovercraft is homebuilt, replacing these items can be both costly and time consuming. This concludes the guide for buying personal hovercraft.