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

As promised. Here is a step by step guide to how to do this with lots of photos. I highly recommend doing the "MJ400 mod v. 1.0" version for those without access to power tools and are less skilled in DIYness :)

The materials needed are:

1. 1.25" plastic propellers (Towerhobby.com)

2. 0.098" OD carbon fiber rod (Towerhobby.com)

3. 1.5" PVC pipe or 1.5" PVC slip bushing depending on what version you want (Home Depot, Lowes, etc...)

4. 1.5" PVC test cap to be used for the "v.1.0" version using the 1.5" PVC slip bushing (Home Depot, Lowes, etc...)

5. Thick CA (cyano arcylate) glue (towerhobby.com)

6. 1/8" thick acrylic (scrap pieces)

7. Rigid airline tubing (LFS)

8. Flexible airline tubing (LFS)

Now onto the photos....

fantastic!!!
Thank you for doing this. Could you tell me about how much distance there is between your prop stop and the propellor?

Thanks,
-J

Center brace. See how I rounded off the sharp edges of the stopper using a rotary tool's cuttoff/grinder wheel. This will prevent any damage to the plastic propeller blades when the prop hits the stopper. You can purchase a very good rotary tool (kind like the Dremel) at Harbor's Freight Tools for like $10 and change.

This is the exact one I bought and used.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=41695

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963919.jpg

Cutting out the groove
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963926.jpg

MJ mod mount
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963930.jpg

Surface agitation
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963934.jpg

MJ900 mod w/fancy slots :lol:
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963935.jpg

Be very careful doing the next 2 steps.

Cutting the groove. For this I am using a 10" miter saw with a 7" fine toothed blade. At the highest height setting, the miter saw will come down just enough to cut into the 1.5" PVC pipe halfway through the plastic, making it ideal for cutting the groove. For those of you who chose to use the PVC test caps instead, you can skip this.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/596392.jpg

Cutting the slots
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p7.jpg

Impeller 1
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p1.jpg

Impeller 2
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p2.jpg

Impeller 3
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p3.jpg

Double propeller aseembly. Note the flexible airline tubing just slips onto the rigid tubing (section in red) and glued inplace with CA glue. The propellers are drilled out a bit so that the (1/8" OD?) rigid airline tubing will fit through.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p4.jpg

Assembling the prop and impeller
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p5.jpg

Completed prop/impeller mod.
Note: see how the 2 propellers are placed in such a way that they form a screw like curve. This will generate A LOT more flow than using just one propeller.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639p6.jpg

Nice job DH. :smokin:


Kevin

Assembly 1
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639a1.jpg

Assembly 2
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639a2.jpg

Assembly 3
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639a3.jpg

Assembly 4
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639a4.jpg

Completed assembly
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639a5.jpg

Now onto the MJ400 mods

MJ400 V. 1.0 using 1.5" PVC slip bushing and 1.5" PVC test cap
(recommended if you don't have access to power tools). The PVC test cap is used as the base adn will fit perfectly over the MJ pump.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/59639v-1_0.jpg


MJ400 mod v. 2.0
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963932.jpg

The measuring and marking may seem tedious at first but will save you a ton of headache later on when drilling. In additon to, it makes for cleaner drilling as well.

Measure and mark 1
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/596395.jpg

Measure and mark 2
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/596396.jpg

Onto drilling...
Note how every hole is measured and marked before hand and drilled out with a small bit first. This will allow you to drill with a larger bit later without slipping.

Drilling 1
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963914.jpg

Drilling 2
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963915a.jpg

Drilling 3
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963916.jpg

Drilling 4
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963917.jpg

Completed drillng
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963918.jpg

Again measure and mark the center of the brace so that you can be assured that the rod will be perfectly centered.

Glue the brace onto the PVC housing
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963920.jpg

Measure and mark the center of the brace
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963921.jpg

Drilling the brace 1
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963924.jpg

Drilling the brace 2
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963925.jpg

Completed MJ400 mod
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963928.jpg

Assembled
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/5963929.jpg

See my gallery for more images and details/comments

1 inch

How long is the MJ900 assembly?


Kevin

3 inches exactly from the base. You CAN make it smaller though if you're using just one propeller instead of the 2 I used for the double prop.

Off to Home Depot.

Just what I need, another project.


Kevin

Can you give the exact part number you used for the prop from tower hobbies?

1.25" propellers by Dumas
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXE471&P=0

0.098" OD carbon fiber rods
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXJDP4&P=7

Thick CA glue
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXPT40&P=ML

1/8" square acrylic bars (if you don't have any scrap acrylic lying around to use)
http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=150
http://acetal-rod-sheet.com/acrylic-...-bar-stock.htm

Try this:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...&pagenumber=16


Newty

You can also use this propeller by Hobbico which has a slightly better pitch than the Dumas props and should provide a bit better flow.

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXCTD0&P=0

Did you use the double propeller on a 400? If so, does it have any problems spinning them? I had to cut a single prop down because the 400 couldnt push it.

No the double prop design is only for the MJ900 I used (possibly MJ600 might also work). The MJ400 will not be strong enough to spin both props.

D.

So is this mod supposed to break the surface of the water or is it to give the pump a lot more power?

by the way you did an amazing job at taking pictures step by step making it easy to follow, I just am unclear of the purpose because you had a picture above which showed Surface aggitation (sp?)

this mod is to increase the flow on the Maxijet powerhead while making it very wide and dispursed. Kinda like a poorman's Tunze. Infact the Tunze pumps use the same exact principle of using propellers to generate flow instead of the flat bladed imepllers.

And for effect, I'm referring to BullDZR's videos of this mod in action.


http://www.gborocollege.edu/~wdozier...maxijetmod.avi

http://www.gborocollege.edu/~wdozier...axijetmod2.avi

You be the judge.