ON THE CLUB WATER

Aerokit Fireboat 34"
Boat was given to me in poor condition approx 30 years ago, no running gear and most fittings missing or broken, originally powered with IC motor.
I have installed a 43A 700KV Outrunner Brushless motor, Model No : XYH42-50 and a Hobbywing Seaking 60W / Reverse Program Brushless ESC bought from Giantcod, powered by a 3 cell 2200 mAh Lipo battery runtime 15 to 18min, the prop is a 42.5mm 2 blade racing prop. I am well pleased with the performance of the boat.
I belong and sail at the Hartsholme Electric Model Boat Club, Lincoln.

Here is my 34 in Fireboat that I built some 30 years ago and recently rescued from my loft and updated with an MFA850 with Mtroniks 40A ESC driving through the original shaft to a Graupner 55mm prop. Seen on Nov 25 just after we cleared the first Ice of 2010 from our club sailing water !

Bit of fun with a video camera on my restored 1960's fireboat at my home club St. Helens MBC. had to be really carefull with the throttle and rudder sticks so the whole lot didnt end up upside down due to the camera position...

34" fireboat built 1965 restored late 2009 by me
running graupner 8.4v speed 600 on 8 cells (9.6v).

love the way the boat is in and out of shadow and sunlight throughout the video

I had always admired the lines of 1950s American wooden runabouts and built this Aerokits model when I was an apprentice at Jaguar Cars and it had stayed in my loft since completion nearly 40 years ago. Recently dusted off and upgraded with a Graupner Speed 500 and Mtroniks 40Amp controller and P35 prop. Seen here at Knightcote Boat Club on 25 October

Original 1960s boat aquired this summer from the family a deceased former club member in scruffy, non running but basically sound condition. Was petrol powered at some stage and still had original vintage mechanical speed controller from a later electric power set up. Restored with two (secondhand) MFA850 motors in tandem driving a new single 20 in M5 shaft. . Using a 50 Amp Tornado speed control and plastic X55 Graupner prop.

Sprayed (Volvo) Flash Green Metallic with orginal decks stripped back and restained (using tea bags!) and relaquered

Planing gently on our club sailing water at Knightcote, Warwickshire on 25 October

The weather on Sunday was great here in Peterborough and the perfect opportunity for the first trip out since restoration work was finished. The boat with ballast is very heavy so help from a few friends at the boat club was much appreciated! Performance from a pair of original Decaperms isn't earth shattering but good enough to give a nice scale performance, I might decide to upgrade them over the winter but haven't worked out what the best option might be so any suggestions based on your own experience would be appreciated. Thanks for looking, Roger

These two boats were refurbished by Kalamunda. The first is a Lesro Sportsman and the second a NorStar Wave Rider. The Sportsman has a Graupner 700 on 8.6v and the WaveRider a brushless motor. The on board camera was arranged by Kalamunda and other video shot by Ianed57. The water is at Crealy, Exeter, the home of Exeter and District Model Boat Club.

Just completed , not exactly origonal but not too far out. On the pond for the first time today after a rebuld, and very happy with it I am. Graupner kit, Don't know the builder, but when bought it was yellow! it just had to be put back to red. I didn't like the green deck, so it became mid-grey (gloss rubbed down to semi-mat). Powered by 3 Graupner 500 motors. Working radar and lights (worked from a key-fob, not transmitter). Sailed at inverleith Pond, Edinburgh. Home of Edinburgh Model Boat Club.

I have rebuilt this from a damaged ex IC model. Borrowed a plan from a club member and managed to reconstruct the missing bits. Originally used a fast electric car type brush motor with 7.2 v nicads. Worked ok but nothing spectacular. Recently ventured into brushless and LiPo. Tried an inrunner but ran far to hot and not veryt fast. Changed to an Outrunner (mork torky apparently) and nearly took off! (it is a seaplane tender but should stay on the water!) The LiPo is 11.1v 2800MaH. I use a Graupner Ultramat 16 charger, don't use other than a dedicated LiPo charger and ESC. Battery misuse can result in pyrotechnics, so beware. initialyy tried a two blade racing prop but have changed this to a 29mm 3 blade brass prop to slow down the speed. I have also added more lead and will advise the final weight once I have tried the model on water. I sail with Crewe and District MBC at Boundary Park, Nr Knutsford in Cheshire.

My first post on site as a new member !
I can't take credit for the building this Deans Marine kit, my father did that some 15 years ago but as a static model. When he passed away the ship came to me and a few months ago I decided to make it seaworthy.
She used a standard MabuchI 540RS motor geared down using two 6v lead acid batteries - and runs for hours !
The pictures were taken at Peterborough Area Model Boat Club during our Sunday meet. I'm thrilled with it, very realistic at over four feet long, smooth and very manoeuvrable - Dad would have loved it :-))
I have a dozen or so RC boats, mostly vintage Aerokits and Veron, just bought my first Fire Boat to restore - more to follow I hope. Thanks for looking, Roger

I began these kits when working overseas in the late 70s and never got to finish them off but a chance meeting members of Knightcote MBC in Warks this summer rekindled my interest and have readied both for their first run in the New Year at the club which I'm planning to join..... John Saunders