Due to rubbish weather at the moment delaying the launching, I thought I'd fit fans to the ESCs, as I noticed them getting slightly warm during testing. Fans (5v) now come on with the cooling pump through a 5v UBEC, and powered by the same 2s 1800Ma LiPo as the pump.
Also made a few brass tube fittings to divert some of the cooling water to some new side outlets (vintage 'Frog' fittings from my collection). Another small refinement was to fit mahogany anchor chain/ warp rubbers at the forward fairleads.
Have also fitted a battery monitor/alarm which is visible for checking through the rear cabin window. If it keeps raining and the wind keeps up I might think of something else to do to it. It's already a plumber and electricians nightmare! (I want smoke but I've run out of room! (I'm working on that though.
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40" Seaplane Tender, new build. mods and improvements.
Due to rubbish weather at the moment delaying the launching, I thought I'd fit fans to the ESCs, as I noticed them getting slightly warm during testing. Fans (5v) now come on with the cooling pump through a 5v UBEC, and powered by the same 2s 1800Ma LiPo as the pump.
Also made a few brass tube fittings to divert some of the cooling water to some new side outlets (vintage 'Frog' fittings from my collection). Another small refinement was to fit mahogany anchor chain/ warp rubbers at the forward fairleads.
Have also fitted a battery monitor/alarm which is visible for checking through the rear cabin window. If it keeps raining and the wind keeps up I might think of something else to do to it. It's already a plumber and electricians nightmare! (I want smoke but I've run out of room! (I'm working on that though.
We had around 12 Vampires here up to the 70s (speed restricted due to ply starting to delaminate on some) There was an RNZAF aerobatic team as well and it had the worlds? youngest vampire aerobatic pilot, Trevor Bland, (NZ Warbirds founder ) who was from memory only 19yrs old. He flew dozens of different display aircraft at shows, including Spitfires, Mustangs, Vampires , Venoms, Sea Fury etc, (wasn't much he didn't fly)
The brother of a well Known Maori All Black (1960s) was killed in a Vampire crash at Whenuapai airbase (following another Vampire and had a flameout,) came down and wore the bottom of the cockpit off (and a bit of himself I think) skidding along the runway/
You were lucky to have had a ride in one, as they were a popular jet with a lot of pilots.
I'll link another Vampire video I'm sure will impress you in the next comment.
JB
Here's the other vid link Peter, very impressive flying!! Norwegian pilot, won't see flying like that too often in a warbird! You also might like the You Tube vid (under RNZAF A-4 Skyhawks 'Kiwi Red' Display.) before they mothballed the Sky Hawks.
JB
Finally got a reasonable day and got the model on the water for the first trial, - goes pretty well (see vid) A few small trim tweaks and she'll be set. Very economical on the batteries as well.
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Finally got a reasonable day and got the model on the water for the first trial, - goes pretty well (see vid) A few small trim tweaks and she'll be set. Very economical on the batteries as well.
Thanks Mike, she's not perfect (drawings I went off were way out and needed some serious correction and additions) but she floats and runs ok so that's a bonus. Always good when things work out!
JB
RE - I like the lake. Very calm.
Thanks MB, it's a good lake when it's not too windy. There are some nasty 'no mans land' areas where you'd need a boat to get your model back, if it stopped with an'offshore' wind. Ran my HSL there at night once, surprising how hard it is to track a model at night, even with all the lights going. Lucky I had sound units fitted and could hear roughly where it was till I got within about 30ft!
JB
Not much to add really, just made a drip tray on the back of the stand for the prop shafts. They are ball bearing shafts and weep quite a bit of oil, (a good thing as it cleans out any water)
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Not much to add really, just made a drip tray on the back of the stand for the prop shafts. They are ball bearing shafts and weep quite a bit of oil, (a good thing as it cleans out any water)
"Has anyone tried petroleum jelly (Vasoline) ?"
Have never tried it Martin, never even considered it!
Metal to metal is not quite what it was developed for, and I strongly suspect that it's melting point is far too low and it would rapidly exit stage astern!🤔
BTW: Whatever grease / oil you use injection under pressure from a syringe is always recommendable. 👍 As mentioned above; if fitting ball races or roller bearings injection / filling with grease under pressure BEFORE fitting is also highly recommendable.
Cheers, Doug 😎
PS Apropos Teflon grease: If it's good enough for the Teflon President (DJT) then it's good enough for my boats!😁
Had a small issue with the water pump speed, as on 2s it was a little slow. A 3s was a bit much for the motor to run flat out at max voltage (even though it's a 6-12v motor) and I really wanted something around 10v so as not to wear the pump diaphragm out too quickly. I also wanted a better flow of water from the side outlets and exhaust.
I had recently purchased a couple of cheap voltage controllers from Ali Express, which work well, so I fitted one in the power line to the pump and ESC fans (fans are limited by a UBEC) and it's now adjustable to suit the flow required.
I was thinking of fitting a small 10A ESC to match the flow with the throttle but it requires a lot more wiring, this was just a 10 min job. Next job is to throw the boat back in the water and set the flow.
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Had a small issue with the water pump speed, as on 2s it was a little slow. A 3s was a bit much for the motor to run flat out at max voltage (even though it's a 6-12v motor) and I really wanted something around 10v so as not to wear the pump diaphragm out too quickly. I also wanted a better flow of water from the side outlets and exhaust.
I had recently purchased a couple of cheap voltage controllers from Ali Express, which work well, so I fitted one in the power line to the pump and ESC fans (fans are limited by a UBEC) and it's now adjustable to suit the flow required.
I was thinking of fitting a small 10A ESC to match the flow with the throttle but it requires a lot more wiring, this was just a 10 min job. Next job is to throw the boat back in the water and set the flow.
I'm thinking of towing an oil boom behind the boat with a pickup and pump to recycle the oil, -that way I'd never run out!😁😊 'Oil' be coming up with some more roily clever ideas later Martin😂
JB
Just fitted this IC 3 way fuel tap, for balancing the water flow between the rear exhausts and side tell-tales. Too much was going to the exhausts, as the tubing is a larger ID. Works well with the new voltage controller to get the flow just right.
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Just fitted this IC 3 way fuel tap, for balancing the water flow between the rear exhausts and side tell-tales. Too much was going to the exhausts, as the tubing is a larger ID. Works well with the new voltage controller to get the flow just right.
Hi JB what type of pump are you using ,is it a Peristaltic type? Also where did you buy the IC 3 way fuel tap , its a nice looking one and in the correct orientation.
Michael
I have one in my HSL as well and they seem to be very reliable (and are cheap). There are various sizes and brands of these and I have another which is a bit smaller I bought for an experiment. The 3 way tap I bought about 12 yrs ago, either EBay, Ali Express or Banggood (can't remember which,) and past orders have been deleted on these sites after 10 yrs (Hobby king is the same) Just had a look through all the sites I've used ( including Great Planes, and other aircraft sites and can't find a single R/C fuel tap!
Plane and boat hobbies have been slowly dying round the world, and the dwindling number of available accessories (especially in the IC area) is sad to see. A number of the largest US model companies have closed in the past 10 yrs or been absorbed by others. I have 7 planes from US (1 UK) model kit companies which are no longer in business. I had a number of Graupner models in the 70s and 80s (boats and planes) and now they really don't exist as they did any more.
Also looked on Made In China.com - look here if you want to see where all Chinese made anything comes from (manufacturers wholesalers etc, - prices samples anything. Very Interesting!
JB
Re Dougs' comment and recommendation re the Hobbywing ESCs (and the better fwd/rev capabilities) I decided to take a punt and buy a couple to try. Fitted them with a bit of re-wiring and they work very well. The cheapo ones I was using (with fans) were fine but had the jog forward to reverse feature (safety feature for rock crawlers) which was a mild annoyance. Not sure if $18 as against $50 for 2 ESCs is really worth it just for the convenience, but it's done and working.😊 (it's only money, right?)😐 Tanks Doug!😁😊
Also I swapped the sound unit in the MTB for the newer self contained one in the ST, so the ST now has 2 the same and I don't need the extra REC any more (due to the incompatibility between the 2 types ) Another lot of re wiring, but it's much better now and all happiness filled😊. Just have to buy the later speaker which is much better, (can actually have 2 speakers on each unit, plus sirens, lights, indicators etc) (only another 20+ wires to fit)
JB
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Re Dougs' comment and recommendation re the Hobbywing ESCs (and the better fwd/rev capabilities) I decided to take a punt and buy a couple to try. Fitted them with a bit of re-wiring and they work very well. The cheapo ones I was using (with fans) were fine but had the jog forward to reverse feature (safety feature for rock crawlers) which was a mild annoyance. Not sure if $18 as against $50 for 2 ESCs is really worth it just for the convenience, but it's done and working.😊 (it's only money, right?)😐 Tanks Doug!😁😊
Also I swapped the sound unit in the MTB for the newer self contained one in the ST, so the ST now has 2 the same and I don't need the extra REC any more (due to the incompatibility between the 2 types ) Another lot of re wiring, but it's much better now and all happiness filled😊. Just have to buy the later speaker which is much better, (can actually have 2 speakers on each unit, plus sirens, lights, indicators etc) (only another 20+ wires to fit)
JB
Looking forward to a blog on the Miami JB - be interesting to see how you do it - found a whole lot of articles on smoking your boat - if you wanted them can scan & send......Never know there might be a germ of an idea somewhere............now if only I can get around to my steam drifter with its smoke unit .......but beginning to feel like Christopher Robins shipwrecked sailor who never knew where to start and ended up just sitting ...........
Have parts cut/cutting for two off Dave Milbournes Faireys - one being for a friend who is the other person here remotely interested in model boats........as well as countless half finished projects which stalled for various reasons........
In the meantime need to finish 57 perspex trophies to keep the wolf from the door......
Hi Peter, yes I cool the motors with brass tube coils and water pump. I'm not sure if they even get hot as I never tried without them. I work on the theory, 'put everything on you think you might need and if you don't need it you can take it off' I don't prop the motors too high,- rather let them rev higher with less pitch, thereby taking the load off the motors.
The motors are 540 45 turns which is sort of 'low gearing, high torque' so they are not straining. I could put on much bigger props and make a speedboat out of it, but it wouldn't look right. Batteries are only 2s 2200 MAh and last for over an hour, so motors aren't sucking many amps.
I use 2 12V 385 motors in the MTB with no cooling other than clip on heat sinks and a computer fan blowing air through the boat, and they've been running for years (get that hot you can't touch them) with no probs. Just keep the bushes oiled now and then. These are so cheap they are not worth worrying about. With fans and ready made water cooling plates available these days for ESCs etc there should be no overheating probs, and most ESCs have temp and low voltage sensors and cut out if they get too hot, or with low voltage, (if they cut for temp reasons you know to up your cooling or unload the motors) The modern boat/car ESCs are pretty much plug and play, - auto cell count sensing( LiPos), auto throttle centering etc)
Still using a 70's 20A Futaba marine ESC (in the Fairacre launch) which is as good as any similar unit today. Just plug any 12v battery in (no need for cell counting LiPos) and away you go. Was used on 27MhZ but now used on 2.4. Also used an Electronize unit,- nice but huge and makes an annoying fizzing sound going slow so I replaced it.
JB
With Grahams' help with the circuit diagram and suggestion, I've managed to make a switch for the smoke in the ST, which is operated by using the spare rudder channel on the TX. Moving the stick left switches on the smoke and air pump and right switches it off. I used two 5A micro switches, a 3A relay and a micro servo to make the switch. Works really well as I had run out of switches for the smoke and air, (already have lights and water pump on the available switches) and only had this option left.
Pics are of the test set-up and the switch installed in the boat (center of pic). Also shows the air pump and 'pen' type smoker in place. Have 2 small voltage regulators in the stern for the different pump and coil voltages (one in place). Also shows the new plumbing for smoke, water, air.
JB
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Using a servo/microswitch on/off latching method for smoke.
With Grahams' help with the circuit diagram and suggestion, I've managed to make a switch for the smoke in the ST, which is operated by using the spare rudder channel on the TX. Moving the stick left switches on the smoke and air pump and right switches it off. I used two 5A micro switches, a 3A relay and a micro servo to make the switch. Works really well as I had run out of switches for the smoke and air, (already have lights and water pump on the available switches) and only had this option left.
Pics are of the test set-up and the switch installed in the boat (center of pic). Also shows the air pump and 'pen' type smoker in place. Have 2 small voltage regulators in the stern for the different pump and coil voltages (one in place). Also shows the new plumbing for smoke, water, air.
JB
"Baking tray, yogurt pot, ice-cream tub.
Now you have got me thinking LOL!! "
Don't forget the 9V battery, razor blade and baling wire Martin 😉😂
Or should we call you MM?
For 'Martin MacGyver' 😁😂
BTW; have sorted you some servos (mini/micro) and raw materials.
Not sure when I'm gonna get out again to post 'em though🤔
(Same applies for Steve's (Cormorant) model submarine book😐)
Stay safe!
Cheers, Doug 😎
The brother of a well Known Maori All Black (1960s) was killed in a Vampire crash at Whenuapai airbase (following another Vampire and had a flameout,) came down and wore the bottom of the cockpit off (and a bit of himself I think) skidding along the runway/
You were lucky to have had a ride in one, as they were a popular jet with a lot of pilots.
I'll link another Vampire video I'm sure will impress you in the next comment.
JB
JB