RC Model Power Boats

Getting Started

Introduction

So you have decided that you want to get into RC model power boating but you have no idea on where to get started? The best advice anyone can give you is to make sure you research what you want before spending any money. RC Model Boats can be an expensive hobby and rushing out and buying the wrong bit of kit could spoil your whole experience. Come down to one of our run days and look at what is running and talk to our members.

Hopefully, this page will give you some ideas and information that will help you make the right decision. 

Engines

The first choice you will need to make is to decide what sort of engine you want to get. The type of engine will determine other choices you will need to make. There are three engine types:

• Petrol (uses unleaded fuel and also called gas thanks to our American friends)
• Nitro or Glow Fuel
  
• Electric
  

Petrol

• Expensive to set up
• You don't require much in the way of support equipment - plug spanner
• Are very cheap to run as they only need premium unleaded fuel with two stroke oil mixed in
  
• Gas boats are normally larger
• Larger means larger running area
• Larger means you don't have to stay home all the time when the weather kicks up.
• Carby settings are easy & don't change with the weather.
• Gas will run a long time on a normal tank

Nitro

• Generally cheaper than petrol boats to get set up
• You require support equipment - starter, glow plug driver, glow plug spanner
• Are expensive to run as Nitro fuel costs a lot more than normal fuel
• Nitro engines will fit in smaller boats
• Nitro is finiky with tunning the carby needles
• Smaller boats mean smaller running area
• Nitro is messy
• Nitro is thirsty
  

Electric

• Can be very expensive to set up (although the SuperV ready to run boat sold in hobby stores is reasonably priced)
  
• You require a lot of support equipment - Chargers, spare battery packs
• Are very cheap to run as you only have to pay for the electricity to charge your battery packs
• Electrics can fit into small boats
• Are very clean to run
• Very short run times. if you want more time on the lake then you need spare battery packs - see first point.
  
• Can be very fast, if you have the money. Current speed record is around 190 Kph which beats the nitro and petrol boats.
  

Hulls

The hull is the very obvious part of the boat, it makes direct contact with the water and supports the  engine, strut, driveline, turn fin and rudder.  Power boats can be characterized into planing and displacement style hulls, for speed purposes we are interested in planing hulls.  According to the design of the hull, planning r/c boats can be further classified into two main types, Monohulls and Hydroplanes. 

Monohulls

These hulls have a bottom surface which offers a single continuous wet surface when running, The hull is one piece and  shaped like a "V" when viewed bow/stern.  Their large inner space eases the installation of driveline and motor components. Monohulls can be further divided into 3 primary categories:

• Deep-Vee:  These handle rough water amazingly well by using its hull shape to carve through waves rather than trying to ride over them.  They have an angle (Vee) between a horizontal plane and the hull that varies from 16º to 28º.
• Shallow V: These hulls have angles that are not higher than 16º.  Because of this design they are faster than Deep Vees due to less surface area in the water.  The downside is they can be more tricky to adjust and run and do not handle the rough water as well.
• Crackerbox: These hulls  have a flat to 3 degree V hull.  By design the crackerbox tends to side-slip on turns and requires a bit of skill to drive well.  These must be run on smooth water.

Hydroplane

The term hydroplane in the most general sense simply defines a hull that runs on more than one wetted surface. In other words, a hydro is anything that isn't a mono.  These boats have been designed to trap a cushion of air beneath the hull to lift them and thus reduce the amount of boat in contact with the water. Hydroplanes can be further divided into 4 primary categories.

• Unlimited 3-point Hydro:  These are a comprised of a hull with two sponsons at the front and normally running on the prop at the rear end, thus the name 3 point hydro.  The two sponsons are joined by an elevated section that traps air and lifts the hull. They are fast boats and very critical to adjust and drive.
• Catamaran: The catamaran hull consists of two hulls called sponsons joined by an elevated superstructure containing the drive and control components . The elevated superstructure creates a tunnel and the wind passing through the tunnel creates a lifting effect on the hull reducing drag and increasing performance. Catamaran hulls are typically fast and easier to drive than other hydro hull types.
• Tunnel Hulls:  Tunnel hulls are a small catamaran type hull using an outboard motor. Due to the weight of the motor at the rear of the hull tunnel hulls are less stable than a catamaran. The tunnel hull flies on the cushion of air in the tunnel and is more difficult to trim and drive than the catamaran and are very vulnerable to a blow over.
• Outrigger:  The only type of R/C boat not based on a full size boat, the outrigger or rigger is the fastest type of hull.  Electric powered models have exceeded 120 MPH. The rigger consists of two small sponsons attached with metal or composite "booms" to a rectangular center section containing the drive and control assembly. They may or may not have sponsons at the rear.
  

Boat Retrieval

No matter what you do, your rc model boat will stop out in the middle of the lake at some stage. It may just stall, run out of fuel or it may flip over. So, now that you know your rc model boat is going to be out of reach you need to consider how you are going to get it.

The first you need to discount is going for a swim. This is a dangerous practice and at no stage should you ever consider swimming out to rescue your boat.

There are basiclly three options to look at:

• Small dingy or raft
• fishing rod with a tennis ball and hook attached
• Electric RC Model Boat rescue boat
  

The safest option is a small dingy or raft. If you get an infatable raft, think about how to get you rc model boat back to shore without putting a hole in your raft. There are lots of sharp bits on rc model boats. An electric motor is a real bonus if you can afford it as rowing in and out can be very time consuming (and hard work!).

A fishing rod with a tennis ball and a grapping hook made out of a coat hanger can be very effective. You just need to make sure that you are able to cast the tennis ball out far enough to snare your rc model boat.

If you are feeling industrial, why not make a rescue rc model boat. You can have it tow a line with floats and hooks out to snare you boat and them wind it back in. Or you can construct a hull or attachment so that you hook up to your stalled boat and drive it back to shore.