Georgio
I made most of my fittings hence some of the delay. The stanchions are 1/8" brass tube from B&Q. I made a jig to keep the distance the same and ensure the holes were central. The railing I bought from SHG at one of the model shows but they are on-line as are other suppliers. I soft soldered the angled supports.
The window frames are from plasticard cut slightly smaller than the windows so that I could fit the acrylic windows in the wooden window frames.
The props are from Prop- Shop, I asked Simon at a show, told him the model and type of motor and he was spot on with his advice. Not cheap but very efficient and look correct.
I made the anchors from brass cut shaped and the tangs soft soldered. You can find examples of the real ones on the web to help with construction. I made mine about the same size as the wooden anchoe supplied in the kit.
Aerials are from brass tube and rod. I used the wooden sampson posts fore and aft.
The deck fittings are plastic sourced from one of the model shows
The scale is 1:12 so you should have no problem finding suppliers. Cornwall model Boats have a good assortment in their on-line store but e-bay has many suppliers.
When you get my pics you will see lots of the detail. Please ask if anything is unclear.
Cheers
Dave

Dave, Do you know where I can get any fittings for my lifeboat not sure of the scale.
Cheers
George

HI Georgio
Yes I agree it is sitting a shade high, and will benefit from some ballast fore and aft near the keel.
The cutting out problem is typical of RF interference and should solve itself if you fit the capacitors. You shoulkd also make sure that all high power wiring relating to the battery, ESC's and motor are kept clear of the radio receiver wires and aerial
Took me about 40 years from start to finish, marriage , children and a couple of house moves delayed the project. I was building other models and did fly powered and gliders for about 15 years but I eventually completed.
I have many pics of my model and have shared with others via my dropbox account. I simply send you an email with a link and you can then access and download all or any pics that you require.
You can't send me an e-mail address on the open form but if you click the PM box to the left of this message screen it will allow you to send a private message with the details.
Cheers
Dave

HI Dave here is the picture of my boat on the water it sits quite high compared to yours. I am going to see if I can get another prop this weekend and take it from there might upgrade the motors to 12v but keep them at the same size (600) defo need to get another esc and got to get the 0.1uf caps as the boat cuts out and starts again on it's own. Your Solent class lifeboat is brilliant how long did it take you get it to look like that any help you could give me on fittings for mine would be great as in the winter I want to strip it back and give it a good clean and paint.
Cheers
Georgeo

HI Georgio
I have an Aerokits Solent (pics attached). Some pics show the model in an earler guise. I have recently upgraded the electrics and corrected the number. its a model of the Douglas Currie 48-016
This type of lifeboat had a top speed of about 9/10 knots so was not as fast as the later fast afloat boats. Two 850 motors would be much to powerful for this model. Regarding the waterline most models I see are usually ballasted far to low in the water, the real boat had a draught of 4'8" and in service it was usually possible to see the white bottom paint just above the waterline. I use two Bhuler 12v motors with two electronize ESCs and a 12v 12 amp SLA. Sails at scale speed and I can usually get a good hour if I use fast speed sparingly.

The fact that you have lost a prop suggests that you may not have thrust washers and locknuts at either end of your prop tubes. As you have found without a locknut the props can and do become detached. Another symptom is that without lock nuts the whole shaft can tighten up and seize, especially if you do not have a locknut at the drive end. The thrust washers take the load when going ahead or astern and you should adjust so that there is minimal play between the washer and bearing. We used to use cigarret paper to set the clearance.

Glad to hear you are managing to sail, I used to sail on the original lake when I lived on the Wirral, and I do hope you can sort out all the niggling little problems.
Cheers
Dave

I think it is Solent class lifeboat I have just sailed at new Brighton and lost one of the props I think it is sitting to high in the water aswell

HI Georgio
Which Lifeboat have you modelled? The earlier types were not fast reponse vessels and had a speed of 10-17 knotts, much slower than the later Trents, Aruns and Severns.
Cheers
Dave

Cheers haverlock I have just remembered I have ordered a brushless motor and esc for my elco pt boat

Hi
I don't know if this will help, but Components do a 775 motor runs at 12000, at about 30 watts. I fitted one to one of my tugs. They have bags of torque. 6vmin, 12v max.
Regards Dave

have a read here

http://www.modelboats.co.uk/news/article/plastic-magic-vosper-mtb-77/16930

and see the speed he obtained.

brushless esc(s) will work with most battery types the reason lipo(s) are mentioned is because they provide max capacity for min weight and are capable of high current flow.

Cheers Dave thanks for the advice I am going to stick with the brushed setup for now then I was think about putting the MFA 850`s in my lifeboat or would that be a bit big for that I am going to sail it tonight so I will try and take a video and post it for spped refernce.

HI Georgio
I am not sure what boat you intend to install the 850 motors into. They are high power and high speed and will use a lot more amps than your existing motors. Also the motor shaft diameter may be larger than your existing motors so you will also need a couple of new brass inserts.
Brushless are good for very fast models but can be difficult to reverse so are not as popular in scale models which may need to reverse frequently.
There are setups that work better than others but as the technology was developed for model cars the norm is for the reverse to be preceded by a braking position. Effectively you have to select reverse return the stick to neutral then select reverse again. Some brushless controllers are forward only so can't be reversed at all.
Batteries can be SLA or NiMh but many seeking the fastest speed opt for LiPo batteries as they are lighter and can deliver much greater power than any other form of battery. They need special chargers and you have to protect the batteries from under discharge. Many new ESC's now have a built in circuit that allows you to set the cut-off voltage.
Unless you have a fast racing hull I suggest you stick with your SLA and NiMh batteries.
If you do go with brushless you may well need to change the props to suit the brushless motors.
Personally I suggest you stick with your brushless motors for now and consider brushless for your next model when you have a bit more experience.
Cheers
Dave

Would I have to change the battery type as well. Everytime brushless is mention lipo batteries pop up.

well they are motors BUT no brushes and no electrical noise probs.

more efficient so longer run times.

if your old setup on 6volt managed to run at 15 amps ok you could fit 2 of these

http://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/acatalog/HYDRA15COMBO.html

the same package is available from many vendors.

I haven't got a clus about brushless tech to be honest would no where to start lol

Thanks dave will go to maplin over the weekend and get some does this count for all motors then as I was thinking of changing the motors and putting in MFA 850 x 2

The way things are going why not rip out the suspect motors and do a rebuild with brushless?

I know its expensive but you would be starting from a known base.

Yes that explains the problem. Have you checked the motors run OK on 6v, they could still be damaged by the excess voltage. I also note that you have no suppression capacitors on the motors and may experience radio interference as a result. The usual set up is one 0.1uF cap across the terminals and one 0.1uF from each terminal to the motor case, making three in all per motor. There are kits on line or Maplins should have them locally. You need ceramic capacitors.
May not be a problem with 2.4 Ghz radio sets but 27Mh and 40Mhz will certainly benefit.
Hope you get it all working OK
Dave

It's all part of the learning curve lol

Whoops!!!
it's called experience!
Good Luck next time
Chris

Here is a few more pictures of the internal setup

Afternoon people I think I have just found the answer to my problem I have Just undone the bracket holding the motor and there is was 6v so I am guessing 2 x 6v batterys wired in series (12v) is only going to have one out come blown fuses I am just going to count myself lucky that only the fuse blown thanks for all the help folks

Cheers dave you are here again saving my life I will take a pic tomorrow night when I get home of the internal setup and the props and will post them straight away I might even try and include any information that is on the motors as well

HI Georgio
Only just seen this post. I'm guessing this relates to your lifeboat and the motors are some Johnson type 600 ex drill motors.
I have looked up the specs but can only see details for 9v where 2 amps is quoted. There are quite a few posts on the web regarding this type of motor and it would appear they come in many varieties with different specs so it is possible your motors are not suitable for 12v.
The fact that they are blowing the fuses in an unloaded state would suggest this is the case. Others have said on the web that their motors and wiring become very hot very quickly indicating too high a voltage.
It is possible that the ESC is damaged, reversing the red and black wires can damage the Output transistor. You can check by disconnecting and insulating the motor leads and switching on. if it still blows a fuse the problem is with the ESC.
Stephen has already mentioned the size of prop, it should not be of greater diameter than the motor casing.
It is possible that one or both motors are damaged due to overheating and as has been suggested a quick check with a meter between a battery and each motor in turn will indicate if there is a problem.
A picture of your model and internal set up, plus the props would help us give more help.
Dave

Thanks I was thinking I could get 1 60 amp esc do the esc need to be the same make and size

one motor one ESC (grins) just in case you were thinking of something else.

yes BUT if you have a BEC ( no independent receiver battery) you need to cut the RED receiver lead on ONE ESC otherwise something will FRY !!!!!!!

Ask elecronize for their advice when you order a second ESC.

Ok thanks for the help I will see if I can get another can connect both of them together with a y lead is that possible

fr15 is rated at 15Amp. So if your blowing 15Amp fuses your on the limit with your esc!!!

if your motors are typical buggy motors you would be pushing the envelope with one motor let alone 2.

if I were you I should obtain a second esc and have each motor with its own controller, that halves the current flow through your esc.

Here is a pic of my speed controller it is FR15

Cheers stephen I will see if my esc takes more then 30 amps if it does I will try a 30 amp fuse in it.

Cheers Alan I will have to try it next week I am sure my dad has an ammeter somewhere.

With two batteries in series you're doubling the voltage which will also double the amps.

6v = 15A * 0.4 ohms (two motors combined)
12v therefore = 30A * 0.4 ohms

If you're happy with the speed at 6v using one battery and just want to increase the duration you could try wiring the batteries in parallel.

Stephen

HI Georgeo, really you need one of the motors on the bench (fastened) connected to 12v with an ammeter connected, then by putting a bit of load on it on the shaft with a bit of wood (not your fingers 😁 ) you will be able to see what amps it will draw, then you can double it and fuse accordingly, I bit crude I know, but it works.
Ammeters can be bought on ebay quite cheap, a 30 amp one should do you.
But as Stephan says, you need to check that nothing is binding anywhere
Hope this is of some help

Alan

It blows even when it is not in the water it will run both motors on 1 battery but 2 batteries it blows

HI Georgeo,

It's difficult to answer without knowing a little more. When does it blow the fuse? On the water and at full speed? in my experience I would expect two motors in parallel to draw more than 15 amps when under load. I'd probably recommend increasing the fuse size if the speed controller is capable of the current.

Other ideas to try first perhaps though:

- Try with a single motor (probably best in the bath!) and see if that still overloads the fuse.
- Reduce the size of the propellers.
- See if there is any friction in the prop shaft.
- Ensure the couplings are properly aligned.

Only rough pointers here. I'm sure others will be able to advise further 😊

Stephen