I found a boat, BlackJack 26 SS. Here is what I got...
-The boat
-Transmitter
-Go Engine .18 engine
-Macs header
-Macs 3.5 tuned pipe
-Fuel filter
-Traxxas waterproof servo
-Glo plug ignitor
-2 spare glo plugs
-2 and 3 blade metal props
-Electric starter for the original engine which was not included
The boat is missing the turn fins, which from my research I don't need anyway. There is some surface damage to the bottom, but no leaks.
So, what else do I need? I have come up with this list so far...
-Fuel
-After run oil
-Grease for the flex shaft
-Glo plug wrench
-AA batteries for the transmitter and receiver
So, what else do I need? I have come up with this list so far...
You need a lot of water Eric, by the looks of that boat a WHOLE lot of water.....
[check if there's a automatic shut-off function on the receiver when getting out of reach of the transmitter or at battery-low cirumstances; otherwise you could end up having to watch your boat speeding to the horizon.....].
Eric D wrote:This setup does not have any out of range fail-safe. I plan to get a new 2.4GHz setup when I have the money.
Is the throttle control naturally open or closed? That is, once the throttle control stops receiving signal from the transmitter, will the throttle open up or will it close?
ttocs wrote:how do you mess up the hull of a boat that bad? Flying rc airplanes I can understand damage like that on a plane but on a boat?
I don't think the damage is that bad. The fiberglass is very thin. With enough flexing the gelcoat comes loose. My guess is the engine has vibrated the wood framing enough to stress the fiberglass.
The outer sponson damage is likely from a crash with something.
My plan is to make sure the boat runs good, and then tear it apart and fix the damage, plus repaint the boat something different.
Eric D wrote:This setup does not have any out of range fail-safe. I plan to get a new 2.4GHz setup when I have the money.
Is the throttle control naturally open or closed? That is, once the throttle control stops receiving signal from the transmitter, will the throttle open up or will it close?
Well, with the servo in neutral, the engine is at idle. When the radio is no longer in range though, the servo will probably do what ever it wants too.
Good deal Eric...I've got the grease and may well have a few other items around I'll send you with the dvd. You don't need the turn fin but that boat should ride the prop and it won't turn for shit at speed without it. Cake repair on the hull....
ttocs....the boats are very thin and I've had light hull tunnels running 60 plus.... doesn't take much at that speed to fracture a hull. In the real tunnels and hydro's the hull is designed to fracture and split so that the motor is jettisoned away from the pilot and the glass hull vaporizes and splitters. with the design similarities they have points that will only take pressure via running in a wreck and that is the break point. they ride the sponsons too and just hard chop can cause that stuff....
Fail safes can fuck you as easy as they can save you as if that line is damaged you have nothing and most servos and esc's will burp and stick if there is a fail safe in the line and that shuts down....won't take anything back to neutral...I had a t maxx run away due to a splice in the fail safe line and it destroyed 200 bucks in parts....
2.4 gig is the way to go....I've never run one though.
sorry, I didn't mean it wasn't repairable or that inoperable. Just curious. As I said I have seen a full fiberglass 1/3 scale plaine burn in and turn into nothing but pieces but I guess it would make sence if it hit a stick at that speed it would do it.
I had a nitro RC car for a while as well. I know on those that even though it returned to idle that if it went out of range it just held its last command. The first time I saw it take off across the parking lot at full speed out of control I started to chase it but realized after 3 steps I wasn't gonna catch it.
I have grown tired of airplanes recently though. I am tired of spending hours tweeking, checking or tuning stuff so that I can enjoy a couple 10 min flights........ Wouldn't mind a car again.
oh yeah...I've got a decent xtra temp gun for tuning I'll get your way too eric
it is a must with nitro....I know most of the boats will just run up to 20% nitro stock...some will run up to 40 though if the water cooler is beefy enough....do you know what the motor was broken in on? I would break it in again and flush the motor out over night....break it back in on what you intend to run all the time too
I ordered some 30% fuel, which the guy I bought the boat from used as well. He said it is set a bit rich for the 30% he ran, which would be good for me as I am a beginner to these nitro engines.
From what I have read on 2.4GHz stuff it is two way communication. When commands are sent they are verified back to the transmitter. If the unit goes out of range the receiver looses two way communication and moves everything back to fail safe position. Or at least that is how I understand it.
Chris, I would really appreciate the items you mentioned. I want to get this thing dialed in as best I can. I think it will be pretty fast.
What do you guys think this package I got is worth? I am curious if I got a good deal on it.
Well, I got everything for this boat and gave it a shot this weekend. This thing "schooled" me for sure!
It is a bit too fast for me, or at least I need to get used to it. I ran it back and forth several times then flipped it. It does have a small leak, and I think that may be why it flipped. After a few passes it seemed to run a bit lower in the water and maybe the flood inside shifted and over it went.
Either way it works and was pretty exciting. I plan to tear it apart now and fix the issues with the hull.
This may be a really dumb question, but once one of these is running, how do you stop it before the fuel runs out? Pinch the line? Or if I hit reverse should the servo cut enough air to the carb it dies? I only got one run in before flipping it, so I never got to explore any of my options.
just pinch the fuel line....they make little plastic clips that go around the line that you pinch and it shuts it right down. You can plug the pipe to and it'll shut right down...but save your fingers and use a rag if you do that!!!!
cool that it works...There are tricks for balancing a boat....if it takes on water thru the seal in the top, they make little pumps for it....but you need to find you for sure where the water is coming in.....
Here are some photos of the work I did to it so far. I tried using some fiberglass cloth and epoxy to beef up the engine well so it hopefully won't stress crack any more.
Looking good eric...so when you tested the boat how was it riding on the water? did it look like it was prop walking at all....how did the nose ride? was she pulling up and riding the sponsons?
If she is riding to high in the back the nose will dig slightly..makes it easy to flip as the balance is to high and the boat has to be able to shift it's center of gravity without chaos across the hull.
I just found out that my laptop is fixed and should have it back in the next day or two so I can load photos and videos of the boats. cats and hydro's utilize the same ride style with mid engine high under flow so they really ride the prop and the sponson tips and should only dig down on the tips of the rear hydro glides on either side....I would recommend trim tabs to find the balance....it is the easiest way to sort out balance and turn issues to tune everything.
that glass should be fine...they use a high density fiber but it is very thin...fill it with a very fine glass filled chop from under if it is rough and it'll be fine. If the boat is riding correctly the torque is on the prop and shouldn't be flexing the hull that harshly...the boat would shift violently and roll till the prop before the hull cracks...generally that kind of damage is caused be running over ground...rocks...pipes....and the damage tend to be more from the combo of resonance at the base and a good stiff whack more then just general abuse....
I only ran the boat for a few minutes prior to flipping it. Honestly I was very nervous, having never ran any glo powered R/C before. Once the engine started I ran to the water and put the boat in. I really felt the idle was way high and was paranoid the engine would burn up.
The factory radio is a pile of crap. It has no endpoint adjustments so when you pull the trigger all the way it torques the engine and radio box a bit. I am either going to take my Airtronics radio from my on road car or get a new one for for this boat. I want more servo control before I run this again.
I did notice when I first started the engine on the table it would rev up prior to dying when I pinched the fuel line. I think I read somewhere about this, but I cannot remember if this means it is lean or rich. I know I want it more rich as the speed is plenty and I need to make the engine last.
I also noticed the boat has delayed power. Even when the boat was on plane at middle speed when I gunned it, it took some time for it to rev up and take off.
I am curious about using 2-part foam to fill the front of the boat. I have used some of this before with audio and it seems when it expands it will rip things apart. Do you know anything about this in a R/C boat? I want to fill up the empty space but I don't want to split the hull in half either.
yeah I do....you have to use the right foam....I have some...let me look to see what the name of it is. it is a two part and made to layer in. too much will blow the hull apart....but keep in mind that it only take a thick bead around the boat...don't just pour it in....thimble full at a time. too much and it becomes too buoyant and the boat will hop like a bitch in the nose.
I'll take a look and post more tonight....the hull looks good to me Eric....
I got the boat back together and ready to run again. Anyone have any thoughts or suggestions?
I added...
New radio (Airtronics XL2P)
New fuel lines
New steering servo
New linkages
2-part foam in the front of the boat
Some other odds and ends.
Removed the factory stickers
