The "Hitchhiker's Guide" to the Maxi-Stream mod

[areze]

there are no holes in the ecotech.

with the difficulty of drilling tanks(mostly needing to drain them) plus the cost of a bulkhead, and the fact that your opening yourself up to leaks. that really wouldnt be a good idea.

now doing it with a magnet just like ecotech is an idea, but easier said than done. it would require a good bit of fabrication and balancing.

 

[Brent Thomann]

hate to change the topic but does anyone know who has the MJ900 on sale or who has the best pricing. I have to get a few of them for this mod.

Thanks!

 

[douggiestyle]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6588093#post6588093 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by areze
there are no holes in the ecotech.

with the difficulty of drilling tanks(mostly needing to drain them) plus the cost of a bulkhead, and the fact that your opening yourself up to leaks. that really wouldnt be a good idea.

now doing it with a magnet just like ecotech is an idea, but easier said than done. it would require a good bit of fabrication and balancing.

i was thinking of a replacement for an existing closed loop. or a new tank. as far as bulk head cost. there are those rubber slip things that are relatively inexpensive. and the motors could be mounted in the top 4 inches so head presure would be low and also water could be remove for maitainance. though most of this brainstorm leads to the new tank scenario. still its an interesting idea.

i said there would be some problems associated with this.

 

[areze]

you'd be needing a sealed bushing for the shaft to pass through, which are not exactly cheap nor reliable, leaks would be a matter of time.

magnets are really the only viable way to put a motor ouside the tank. drilling the tank for it really doesnt solve the problem, you have to seal the transition from water to air somewhere somehow. that is and always will be a liability.

 

[dhnguyen]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6581804#post6581804 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jon770
OK, Thanks.

BTW, I received my dark gray pvc from McMaster-Carr yesterday and it seems VERY thick. I checked the specs you (dhnguyen) posted, and it is the same pvc (I got nervous b/c I ordered 'thick-wall pvc' and thought I made a big mistake). This is the correct pvc, right?

Also, even though about 5 different people each assured me that shpping would only be about $5 to Miami (from their warehouse in Atlanta), my invoice they just sent me lists a shipping charge of $16. I am currently involved in a shouting match with the people over there...I'll keep you posted.

Yes it is thicker than the regular SCH40 PVC because it is in fact SCH80 PVC. No worries. the thickness in this case will be an advantage since it makes the pipe an almost perfect fit to the MJ body and will be much easier to cetner the magnet/impeller

D.

 

[Jon770]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6593108#post6593108 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dhnguyen
the thickness in this case will be an advantage since it makes the pipe an almost perfect fit to the MJ body and will be much easier to cetner the magnet/impeller

I started the mod last night and actually found the ID to be a little too small to fit over the MJ body...and I had to use the rotary to cut it out a little. Is it possible that I didn't take enough off, or forgot to take something off, the MJ body? I also had to shave down the outside a tiny bit to get it on the MJ...

Is that normal?

 

[douggiestyle]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6591841#post6591841 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by areze
you'd be needing a sealed bushing for the shaft to pass through, which are not exactly cheap nor reliable, leaks would be a matter of time.

magnets are really the only viable way to put a motor ouside the tank. drilling the tank for it really doesnt solve the problem, you have to seal the transition from water to air somewhere somehow. that is and always will be a liability.

the mjs are water proof if not i wouldnt be able to have one on my pm kalk reactor. im thinking if the seal is as good as the original where the pvc attaches to the body. then leave the uncut portion slightly longer and slide the whole thing into the bulk head fitting. that is if the bulkhead is one of those rubber types.

 

[dhnguyen]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6593572#post6593572 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jon770
I started the mod last night and actually found the ID to be a little too small to fit over the MJ body...and I had to use the rotary to cut it out a little. Is it possible that I didn't take enough off, or forgot to take something off, the MJ body? I also had to shave down the outside a tiny bit to get it on the MJ...

Is that normal?

It is a very tight fit but it will fit. You can take the rubber gasket ring off from the MJ body and that will help a lot.

D.

 

[Jon770]

so you fit it WITHOUT any alteration to the inside OR outside of the PVC?

After I finally got it to fit (after shaving the inside/outside of the PVC), I found that it wasn't a tight fit, and could rock a little. I wasnt sure if that was because the rubber ring is flexible and allow for some 'give' or if I shaved too much off.

:mad2:

 

[areze]

I dont have the thick stuff, but Im assuming OD is fixed since they all have to go into the same fittings.

I had to shave the outside edge of the lip a tiny bit for mine. otherwise it was bending the tabs out and I had read one person snapped their tabs off, so I figured I dont want to put that kind of stress on them. just shaved it a bit.

biggest thing is to make the lip thick enough that the tabs are actually holding it against the MJ body, not just kinda securing it but it wobbles.

of course I dont have the thicker tubing, so I also had to cut the tabs back a bit because i couldnt make the groove deep enough either.

at the end of the day though, my tubes are firmly held to the MJ body, no play at all. I had to mess with it a few times. I started with a 4' peice my first time, and I didnt cut much off the other end when i finally got it how I wanted it. In that direction I thought the table saw was superior, I could never get it to "shave" off a tenth of a mm on the chop saw, but the table saw with a fence and miter guide had no problems. may have been my blade selection on the miter saw though.

 

[Jon770]

mine wobbles a bit, so I guess I'll give it another try. Luckily, I have 5' of dark gray PVC which will allow me to mess up a BUNCH of times before getting it perfect...:rollface:

 

[Shawnts106]

dhnguyen

Would you suggest Double Nitro 1.75inch Props on the Jebo Lifetech pump???

also, is mounting simular to Maxi's.???

I worry that this is going to be TOO much flow for my 210... what do you think?? Considering you have the experience with the pump???


I would use the same Carbon rods right???

anything else I would need besides

Props
Rods
Glue
Ridgid Airline
sqeeshy Airline
2inch PVC, is blk abs ok?

etc...???

thanks so far.

 

[dhnguyen]

There is no such thing as a 1.75" Nitro prop, only Dumas makes the 1.75" ones. And yes you can use 2 of these on a JEBO pump

The pump design is very much like a Maxijet albeit much larger in size and consumes a little more wattage (23W) Pretty much everything else besides the PVC size is the same

 

[backlash]

(Patienty waiting for parts to arive in the mail.):bounce2: :beer:

 

[ejmeier]

FWIW, this ebay store seems to have very good prices on MJs.
http://stores.ebay.com/Sebae-Sales_Water-Pumps-Powerheads_W0QQcolZ4QQdirZ1QQftidZ2QQtZkm

Any issues yet from a carbon rod? It seems to good to be true! I just wonder - why don't any companies use this material for a shaft? What is wrong with it?

I think the best thing would be if you could find a ceramic coated metal shaft. Unbreakable, and very wear-resistant. Haven't been able to find one yet.

 

[Jon770]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6599001#post6599001 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by backlash
(Patienty waiting for parts to arive in the mail.):bounce2: :beer:

Me too. I already got the PVC from McMaster-Carr, but I'm still waiting on the parts from Tower Hobby. Any experience with how long it takes to get these parts from them?

 

[ejmeier]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6600318#post6600318 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jon770
Me too. I already got the PVC from McMaster-Carr, but I'm still waiting on the parts from Tower Hobby. Any experience with how long it takes to get these parts from them?

IME, its pretty quick. They ship out like the same day you order (did for me anyway), and maybe I just got lucky and they were close by. I think it shipped from Chicago or something - it may be like Amazon where they have distrubution centers all over so it gets there faster - I could be wrong though. Seemed pretty quick for me.

EDIT: That's certainly what it looks like, they have tons of locations listed on their site:

Atlanta

Chicago

Cleveland

Los Angeles

New York City - Philadelphia

 

[Jon770]

I checked online and mine was shipped on Tuesday. Still waiting for delivery to Miami...

 

[ejmeier]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6601290#post6601290 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jon770
I checked online and mine was shipped on Tuesday. Still waiting for delivery to Miami...

Where was it shipped from? Did it come from Atlanta, or someplace farther away? (Maybe they only have PVC at certain spots?)

 

[Jon770]

No, I got my PVC already (from McMaster-Carr)...That was shipped overnight. I am waiting on the delivery from Tower Hobbies. That stuff was shipped from their: Champaign, Illinois distribution center on 01/24/2006. I was hoping it might be here by now, but it actually hasn't been that long. I guess I'm just anxious because I ordered this and my PVC at the same time (on Monday), and already received my PVC by Tuesday...