Rapier1.
When the first lock-down came along I dug out a couple of old wrecks that had been thrown away and had been saved from a skip some years previously, and this looked like a good time to see if they could be rescued.
The first was a badly built and abandoned LesRo Rapier (shown here after the rebuild as my photos showing the full rebuilding sequence will not load).
The LiPo tray carries two large 2C 5600Mah LiPo cells, but only one is connected up at a time - the unused LiPo acts as ballast to keep the hull running straight, but makes for a nice quick change when the first one runs down 😀
Any basic tools that I may need when I am "pond side" to change a prop or brushless motor are carried on small magnets in the rear compartment to save me forgetting to take them with me and this has proven to be very helpful!
Bob.
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When the first lock-down came along I dug out a couple of old wrecks that had been thrown away and had been saved from a skip some years previously, and this looked like a good time to see if they could be rescued.
The first was a badly built and abandoned LesRo Rapier (shown here after the rebuild as my photos showing the full rebuilding sequence will not load).
The LiPo tray carries two large 2C 5600Mah LiPo cells, but only one is connected up at a time - the unused LiPo acts as ballast to keep the hull running straight, but makes for a nice quick change when the first one runs down 😀
Any basic tools that I may need when I am "pond side" to change a prop or brushless motor are carried on small magnets in the rear compartment to save me forgetting to take them with me and this has proven to be very helpful!
The original forward deck hatch that I made had a large air scoop shape, but it looked too aggressive, so I sliced it in half.
The lower half was given a 1.5mm flat plywood top to become the new front hatch cover, and the shaped upper half was added to the front cabin roof to become a streamlined air intake for the (imaginary) cabin air con system .
LesRo Rapier.
Since the addition of the new forward hatch I have been able to balance the high speed attitude of Rapier1 using a small amount of roofing lead sheet shaped to conform to the bottom of the hull inside the void.
This lead sheet has been covered with some tight fitting removable buoyancy foam cut to size.
The stainless steel trim tabs that I had been using to control the high speed attitude of the hull are no longer needed and have been removed.
Bob.
Since the addition of the new forward hatch I have been able to balance the high speed attitude of Rapier1 using a small amount of roofing lead sheet shaped to conform to the bottom of the hull inside the void.
This lead sheet has been covered with some tight fitting removable buoyancy foam cut to size.
The stainless steel trim tabs that I had been using to control the high speed attitude of the hull are no longer needed and have been removed.
We have been spending a lot more time in our caravan recently taking advantage of the unusually good weather that the north west is currently enjoying- this gives me more time on the Southport lake but no time in my workshop (shed) at home!
The trim tabs were secured onto the stern of Rapier1 by a pair of stainless steel cap head bolts on each side, so these remain fitted but with no current function.
Maybe I could find some pictures of some bathing platforms and design something suitable to fit Rapier1 and secure it using these same cap-head bolts?
That could look good and be easily removable as I secured the matching stainless nuts inside the transom when I fitted the trim tabs.🤞
**I have reposted this as it was previously assigned to a second entity (bobs2) that I seem to have acquired on this site!
LesRo Rapier 1.
This old Rapier model was discarded by its last owner some years before the Covid Lock-Down period that confined us all to stay at home for a while, and had previously been consigned to a skip....but it did have an interesting history.
Unfortunately the boat had not been put together very well by its original builder (thought to be sometime in the 1960's) and one side of the boat was built with a twist in it.
A later owner had crudely "fitted" a petrol engine into it and covered the inside of the hull with some sort of shellac to help prevent the fuel soaking into the hull.
Some of the bulkheads had been roughly hacked-out to make space for the oversized engine and its fuel tank etc and it was in an overall sorry state.
The petrol motor had at a later date been ripped-out of the hull (causing even more damage to it) and the boat had been abandoned for several years before it was given to me to dispose of.
I rescued this hulk back from the skip and took it home during the Lock-Down to give myself a "challenge" - something to think about when I had plenty of enforced time to see if I could do anything with it.
One of the first jobs was to chip away the uneven and thick shellac that was smothered all over the inside of the hull. This was very hard and looked like the sort of coating the could be found covering a "toffee apple" - but much harder.
Some of the shellac could be prised away from the inside surfaces that it covered, but most of it adhered quite well and took a few days of chiselling to chip it all away without puncturing the hulls side and bottom skins.
The remains of the cabin sides were cut out and used as templates to cut some new complete replacements from 4mm birch ply.
One side of the hull had to have the deck removed to give access to the stringers so I could push them out into a position that would straighten the twisted hull side.
The new cabin sides were inserted and the bulkheads were restored to what would have probably been their original shape to fit the cabin sides squarely back into the hull.
With the new cabin sides fitted and the bulkheads now complete again, the deck could also be refitted.
At this stage the hull now looked "straight". The twist had been removed successfully and I was inspired to actually make new cabin tops and all the other things that were needed to complete the rebuild.
These first pictures show the bulkhead shapes being restored to fit the new cabin sides….and painted grey to help hide all the new wood inserts…….
Bob.
This old Rapier model was discarded by its last owner some years before the Covid Lock-Down period that confined us all to stay at home for a while, and had previously been consigned to a skip....but it did have an interesting history.
Unfortunately the boat had not been put together very well by its original builder (thought to be sometime in the 1960's) and one side of the boat was built with a twist in it.
A later owner had crudely "fitted" a petrol engine into it and covered the inside of the hull with some sort of shellac to help prevent the fuel soaking into the hull.
Some of the bulkheads had been roughly hacked-out to make space for the oversized engine and its fuel tank etc and it was in an overall sorry state.
The petrol motor had at a later date been ripped-out of the hull (causing even more damage to it) and the boat had been abandoned for several years before it was given to me to dispose of.
I rescued this hulk back from the skip and took it home during the Lock-Down to give myself a "challenge" - something to think about when I had plenty of enforced time to see if I could do anything with it.
One of the first jobs was to chip away the uneven and thick shellac that was smothered all over the inside of the hull. This was very hard and looked like the sort of coating the could be found covering a "toffee apple" - but much harder.
Some of the shellac could be prised away from the inside surfaces that it covered, but most of it adhered quite well and took a few days of chiselling to chip it all away without puncturing the hulls side and bottom skins.
The remains of the cabin sides were cut out and used as templates to cut some new complete replacements from 4mm birch ply.
One side of the hull had to have the deck removed to give access to the stringers so I could push them out into a position that would straighten the twisted hull side.
The new cabin sides were inserted and the bulkheads were restored to what would have probably been their original shape to fit the cabin sides squarely back into the hull.
With the new cabin sides fitted and the bulkheads now complete again, the deck could also be refitted.
At this stage the hull now looked "straight". The twist had been removed successfully and I was inspired to actually make new cabin tops and all the other things that were needed to complete the rebuild.
These first pictures show the bulkhead shapes being restored to fit the new cabin sides….and painted grey to help hide all the new wood inserts…….
I noticed the comment from chugalone100 about this thread that I last commented on 3 years ago when I was able to take the trim tabs off this Rapier1 following some experimental work that I had been doing on re-balancing the hull.
Following a quick a read through this old thread , I noticed that I was unable to upload any of the rebuild pictures that I had taken to document the restoration of Rapier 1 as it was done.
I thought it could be of some interest to anyone else that may be tempted to take on a helpless wreck to see a few of them, so I have included some (not all) of them here to hopefully persuade others to restore rather than throw away any of these old Classic Model Power Boats as they are an important part of our model boat history.
Since this restored Rapier 1 was first seen on the water, it has attracted a lot more attention than any other model that I have sailed - partly because it was quite rare back in the 1960's when it was first released and was available as a kit, and partly because it didnt sell very well, so very few of them were ever made ....or seen.
I was amongst the greater majority of Classic Model Power Boat club members that thought the Rapier was a really ugly looking boat when it first came out - and that is why it never sold very well and it remains one of the few LesRo models that has never been re-kitted.
Fast forward 50 years or so, and the model does not look quite so bad in my eyes - in fact, I have come to quite like it.
One thing that did blow me away when I first run Rapier 1, was its unexpected speed and superb handling - it also has a very tight turning circle too! This has not gone unnoticed with several comments being over-heard about others trying to find a Rapier for themselves!
I know at least one builder who has bought a Javelin (same hull) to convert into a Rapier! Praise indeed for such an ugly ducking!
There were a lot of Javelins sold and it was also re-kitted (at least twice) so it is still quite easy to find them for sale.
I picked a Javelin up on ebay quite recently as they provide an inexpensive way to experience this superb all-round 39 1/4" performance hull at a modest price - and another one of these superb hulls could be the base for a future Rapier project.....
This Rapier 1 is still performing very well and has clocked up well over 100 fast running hours (with no failures) since the Covid days when it was restored.
This is quite a heavy duty workload for a twisted old wreck that was pulled back out a skip and goes to prove that it is well worth giving new life to an old Classic Model Power Boat as they really do have a lot to offer.
The attached pictures shows the boat when it still had its original "Covid Colour Scheme" - I only had black and white household paint in the house during lock-down!
There a lot of work in bringing an old boat back to life, i know because i did one myselfin some waus i would rather build a new model because the amount to put right well done for rescueing it .
Philuk👍
LesRo Rapier 1.
The wheelhouse windscreen formers were rebuilt and a new wrap-around screen "mask" was cut from 2mm ply to replace the original window construction.
The original kit wheelhouse roof was only a bent piece of plywood skin. I wanted to replace this with fully constructed roof that could be lifted on and off to improve the access as well as to give a more "finished" look to the boat in this area.
A new plywood base was cut for this new wheelhouse roof and some formers were made to replicate the curvature that I had used for the front and rear removable cabin roof assemblies so that all the to surfaces of the boots cabin tops were in unison with each other.
Bob.
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The wheelhouse windscreen formers were rebuilt and a new wrap-around screen "mask" was cut from 2mm ply to replace the original window construction.
The original kit wheelhouse roof was only a bent piece of plywood skin. I wanted to replace this with fully constructed roof that could be lifted on and off to improve the access as well as to give a more "finished" look to the boat in this area.
A new plywood base was cut for this new wheelhouse roof and some formers were made to replicate the curvature that I had used for the front and rear removable cabin roof assemblies so that all the to surfaces of the boots cabin tops were in unison with each other.
LesRo,
Your all-around customization is making your model look magazine-cover worthy. The wrap-around mask adaptation is an excellent detail and truly elevates the model.
I completely agree with ChrisF—you are a master restorer.
😎
Rapier 1. Covid Colour Scheme.
I just found this old video that was taken of Rapier 1 during its first run after being restored.
The boat run OK, but the balance was not quite right causing the bows to "bob" up and down slightly and it was noticed that the longer the boat was run, the worse the "bobbing" became.
When the boat was brought "back to shore" after this run the hull was found to be full of water !
The hull was checked and was seen to be undamaged and after further investigation it was seen that the new water cooled alloy motor mount had a leak(!) - so the longer the boat was run, the more water was being pumped into the hull.
As the water weight built up and sloshed about inside the hull the weight transfer caused the eratic handling seen here.
Fitting a replacement alloy water-cooled mount stopped the leak and allowed the boat to run smoothly. Apart from this faulty new component (that was quickly changed) Rapier 1 has run really nicely since it was restored and I have been very pleased with it.
After the Covid restrictions had finished, I was able to buy some red paint and the colour scheme was changed a little to the one that the boat has been seen with ever since.
Bob.
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I just found this old video that was taken of Rapier 1 during its first run after being restored.
The boat run OK, but the balance was not quite right causing the bows to "bob" up and down slightly and it was noticed that the longer the boat was run, the worse the "bobbing" became.
When the boat was brought "back to shore" after this run the hull was found to be full of water !
The hull was checked and was seen to be undamaged and after further investigation it was seen that the new water cooled alloy motor mount had a leak(!) - so the longer the boat was run, the more water was being pumped into the hull.
As the water weight built up and sloshed about inside the hull the weight transfer caused the eratic handling seen here.
Fitting a replacement alloy water-cooled mount stopped the leak and allowed the boat to run smoothly. Apart from this faulty new component (that was quickly changed) Rapier 1 has run really nicely since it was restored and I have been very pleased with it.
After the Covid restrictions had finished, I was able to buy some red paint and the colour scheme was changed a little to the one that the boat has been seen with ever since.
I haven't even looked to see if my Rapier rescue has any twist in it at all Bob.
I'm sure I'll be referring to your images and rebuild when I 'eventually' make a start on my Rapier.
I wouldn't worry too much about your Rapier having a twist in it Will, the "self jigging" construction makes it almost (!) impossible to build it with a twist - especially on one side only!
Rapier 1 was the exception, and although I took the twisted side apart and rebuilt it straight, I still don't understand how the first builder managed to achieve it.
When looking along the hull from the stern, the left hand side of the hull bowed inwards like a banana, but the right hand side was OK.
By removing the left hand deck to expose the stringers, I was able to get in with a razor saw to chop out some of the wood and reconstruct that side of the hull with spacers to push it back outwards until it was "straight".
To do this, I had to first remove the two cabin sides, but I was going to replace them in any case as they had been "butchered" - presumably to get the large two stroke engine and fuel tank etc fitted.
With the reconstruction of the hulls left hand side framework completed, I inserted the new cabin sides that I had cut and replaced the parts of the bulkheads that had been hacked out (making room for the large two stroke engine) so I was able to realign everything before replacing the left hand deck skins to make the hull look a lot better.
Basically, when fitting the new cabin sides and reconstructing the hacked-out bulkheads, I was able to re-jig the hull using the original inter-locking kit construction to get everything realigned.
I was able to press the left hand "hull side skins" outwards to their correct location without having to replace them with new wood.
Once that was done, the side was braced with new deck supports and new deck skins were cut and fitted.
For those that have watched and enjoyed the "Only Fools and Horses" comedy programs, Rapier 1 is a bit like Triggers Brush. It's all original.....apart from all the new bits..........🤣
Rapier 1.
Here is another old video of Rapier 1 running in her new colours, and with the large air scoop on the foredeck.
At this early stage Rapier 1 was still running with the adjustable trim tabs fitted.
Soon after this, the trim tabs were removed as the hatch I cut in the foredeck would be used to balance the boat with cut and shaped pieces of roofing lead to adjust the balance of the boat.
The large air scoop was also replaced with a flat hatch - but it was cut down and added to the cabin roof as an air-con intake.
Bob.
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Rapier 1. Early Running - Red/White/Black Colours.
Rapier 1.
Here is another old video of Rapier 1 running in her new colours, and with the large air scoop on the foredeck.
At this early stage Rapier 1 was still running with the adjustable trim tabs fitted.
Soon after this, the trim tabs were removed as the hatch I cut in the foredeck would be used to balance the boat with cut and shaped pieces of roofing lead to adjust the balance of the boat.
The large air scoop was also replaced with a flat hatch - but it was cut down and added to the cabin roof as an air-con intake.
I love the Rapier, and her new colour scheme.
Is that her flat out now or has she still got more throttle to go.
She looked great in the earlier video when she was going faster.
Rapier 1 is quite fast for a boat that is just under 40" long and for a model that is not a featherweight.
I have previously posted video on here of Rapier 1 at speed and she is a very impressive site that rides and steers very well too.
The original motor was changed after a few weeks as the boat was just too fast for regular use on our Southport Model Boat Club lake, but she is still as quick as shown in the early video - but more stable and with faster steering.
Duration was a problem with Rapier 1 when she was running too fast - it was only giving 7 minutes per run before beginning to slow slightly on 2C 7600mah LiPo batteries.
If I can find any of these videos I will let you know, but I may not have kept any of them.
Hi Boatshed,
Since your question about the performance of Rapier 1 (in your last comment) I searched and found this for you.
Here is a video of Rapier 1 running as she is now with the lower power Surpass motor on a 2cell LiPo battery.
The original motor was too powerful for the small Southport club lake and the duration was only 7-8 minutes at best.
Although not as fast, she drives beautifully and gives more running time per battery charge.
The lower speed still gives a good driving experience within the confines of the small club lake.
Towards the end of this short video, you can see that I throw the boat around a bit (pure abuse) to show it’s tight turning ability coupled with its outstanding stability.
Les Rowell did a really good job when he designed this hull - it works perfectly - not so sure about the cabin shape - but the hull is really good.
Bob.
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Since your question about the performance of Rapier 1 (in your last comment) I searched and found this for you.
Here is a video of Rapier 1 running as she is now with the lower power Surpass motor on a 2cell LiPo battery.
The original motor was too powerful for the small Southport club lake and the duration was only 7-8 minutes at best.
Although not as fast, she drives beautifully and gives more running time per battery charge.
The lower speed still gives a good driving experience within the confines of the small club lake.
Towards the end of this short video, you can see that I throw the boat around a bit (pure abuse) to show it’s tight turning ability coupled with its outstanding stability.
Les Rowell did a really good job when he designed this hull - it works perfectly - not so sure about the cabin shape - but the hull is really good.
Rapier 4.
Another LesRo Rapier was attracting very little attention on an eBay advert a little while ago, and feeling a little sorry for it, I put in a sensible bid......and bought it.
So I now have another LesRo Rapier in my fleet and it looks like it will take a lot less work to get back on the water than my original twisted and fuel soaked "Covid Project" - although like all Rapiers, it will need a decent wheelhouse cabin top making to replace the single thin layer of plywood skin that is specified during the kit build to act as a roof.
This one had a piece of clear plastic wrapped over the wheelhouse to replace the kits thin ply skin wrap that is specified as a roof. I have not seen this done before.
I properly constructed (and removable) roof will be crafted to replace this thin "wrap-over" to make a better looking boat and to improve access.
Another "mask" to wrap over the front wheelhouse windscreens will also be made to tidy-up another weak area of the original (but otherwise superb) design.
The hull is also devoid of strakes, so I will have to make some more and fit them too............actually, the more I think about it, the more I find to do to this Rapier, so maybe it will not be a quick restoration after all..................
Bob.
Another LesRo Rapier was attracting very little attention on an eBay advert a little while ago, and feeling a little sorry for it, I put in a sensible bid......and bought it.
So I now have another LesRo Rapier in my fleet and it looks like it will take a lot less work to get back on the water than my original twisted and fuel soaked "Covid Project" - although like all Rapiers, it will need a decent wheelhouse cabin top making to replace the single thin layer of plywood skin that is specified during the kit build to act as a roof.
This one had a piece of clear plastic wrapped over the wheelhouse to replace the kits thin ply skin wrap that is specified as a roof. I have not seen this done before.
I properly constructed (and removable) roof will be crafted to replace this thin "wrap-over" to make a better looking boat and to improve access.
Another "mask" to wrap over the front wheelhouse windscreens will also be made to tidy-up another weak area of the original (but otherwise superb) design.
The hull is also devoid of strakes, so I will have to make some more and fit them too............actually, the more I think about it, the more I find to do to this Rapier, so maybe it will not be a quick restoration after all..................
@ChrisF Yes I know, but my range of interest is (very) slightly narrower, so I don't have quite as many, but I do need to start to thin some of them out as I will never have enough time to restore all of them.
I have two (very rare) original LesRo Sportman boats. I waited for years to find one, and then like a number 3 bus, two came along - one after the other..
The hard work of removing the old prop shafts and engine mounts etc has been done, so both are now easy restoration projects with "clean" (freshly cleared) hulls that are ready for new wood and running gear to suite the new owners choice.
For some strange reason I have started working on the worst (fuel soaked ) hull, leaving the previously electric powered hull ready for somebody else to enjoy bringing back to life.
I should advertise this hull as I am sure somebody somewhere will be tempted to restore this really nice original LesRo design, and it would make a really good first restoration project with no oil soaked wood to remove or try to treat before any glue can stick to it. This one will accept PVA glue and make an easy restoration.
The original forward deck hatch that I made had a large air scoop shape, but it looked too aggressive, so I sliced it in half.
The lower half was given a 1.5mm flat plywood top to become the new front hatch cover, and the shaped upper half was added to the front cabin roof to become a streamlined air intake for the (imaginary) cabin air con system .
Bob.