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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Sep 24, 2017 3:00 am |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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New toy time. If remembered I played around with a low level drone to see if I liked. I did like but, being blind in one eye, I just could not judge where the thing was. Just was not going to work unless I put in a LOT of time and effort. So I went to the ground and got a car. I got a fairly decent car that moves OK... In my apartment it seems fast, outside it seems slow. It let me know what I needed to know. I LIKE it!! I just ordered a beast. Spent a LOT for the thing but it totally moves. This will be an outdoor vehicle only as it will do a real time speed of 30+ MPH.. Out of the box it is not that fast but it includes the gearing change to get that speed. LOL! I'm almost afraid of this thing! It is pretty big at a size of 8.3 pounds (That includes the controller). Still it is really big. 24.8 inches long. 9 inches high. 11.9 inches wide. The electronics have a lifetime warranty. It seams to have enough torque that the tires are epoxied to the rims. It is a REAL vehicle in miniature. It even has a real drive train with a Planetary Gear Differential. Even the transmission looks solid. Yes it has a transmission. All the gears are metal and mounted on ball bearings. The danged thing has a 13.2 inch wheel base. I thought that my current car was decent sized but it is not even half the size of the new. Here is what the beast looks like. To give an idea as to actual size it has a ground clearance of 3.5 inches. I'm going to get in SO MUCH trouble around my apartments but can't wait. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0192 ... UTF8&psc=1Attachment:
rc-car 1.jpg [ 98.45 KiB | Viewed 19923 times ]
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jaylach
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 6:36 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Needed someplace to store my RC cars so emptied out a small shelf. I never really used anything that was on the shelf anyway. To give an idea as to vehicle size the shelf is 28 inches wide. The yellow Corvette is just an indoor toy. BTW, the new car, bottom shelf, is a total blast! LOL! Retirement is a good thing. Attachment:
RC-shelves.jpg [ 101.62 KiB | Viewed 19906 times ]
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sboots
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:56 pm |
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Site Admin |
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Joined: Tue Apr 10, 2012 9:48 pm Posts: 2946 Location: New Jersey
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I see that you are enjoying retirement.
_________________ stephen boots Microsoft MVP 2004 - 2020 "Life's always an adventure with computers!"
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jaylach
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 9:55 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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sboots wrote: I see that you are enjoying retirement. Yeppers! I kept saying that I was not going to do so but could not resist. I switched to the higher ratio gear set. This thing hauls! What concerned me about the higher speed pinion and spur gears was the warning that it would shorten run time and also cause the motor to run hotter. I still got about 20 minutes of run time while still having about 25% of battery charge. I popped the body right away and both the battery and motor barely felt warm. For now I think that I'll leave in the higher speed gearing. After all I DO have two battery packs. What is cool is the main battery charger is designed to plug in to a 12 volt car outlet (think cigarette lighter). While I did but an AC adapter for charging at home the default charger will work fine for running in one of the local parks. It so happens that I have what I call a 'jumper box' for jump starting my car if ever needed. It also happens to have a 12 volt outlet. Throw the jumper box and charger in a small backpack I have and I can run all day at a park. All the run times stated are with a 3000 MAH battery. I know that I can get a 5000 MAH pack and think up to 5800 MAH. I think that I could get around 35 minutes runtime. The batteries are 7-cell NiMH so should be fairly durable.
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jaylach
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2017 8:49 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Well I just got back from doing a run time test with the higher gear ratio. Under almost constant full throttle I go around 20 minutes before it started slowing down. Since I have 2 battery packs this will work. It takes around 30 minutes for a battery pack to charge so that works just about perfect allowing for the thing to cool down between runs. The run time actually MAY have been longer with a freshly charged battery. I last charged the battery I used 4-5 days ago. I still can't believe the suspension on this thing. The oil loaded shocks seem to do very well. I was able to do full speed hard 180 degree turns with the inner tires just barely lifting off the ground. Since the shocks are positioned for general purpose I could probably re-position and adjust to keep the inner tires on the ground for 'road' driving. I was a bit surprised when I messed up. As most parking lots this one also has concrete stops for each parking spot. I missed a turn and hit one. The car partly jumped and climbed the thing and kept going. I DO sort of wish I had gotten the four wheel drive version instead of the two wheel drive. The two wheel drive just does not do very well in grass unless it is really short. But then this is a short course race vehicle. It is not designed for heavy off road. The orange and black shorter vehicle in the photo of the shelves seems to do better off road but it is designed for torque with a 12.8 volt Lithium Ion batter verses the 8.4 volt NiMH battery packs on the new vehicle. I could go to Lithium Polymer battery but would also have to swap for a new motor and speed control unit. The stock motor in this vehicle has a motor with brushes. To go to a Lithium battery I would need to also go to a brushless motor. Total upgrade would be about $200.00. Not sure that I can justify that although it would allow the thing to reach speeds of about 60 MPH.
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Doddie
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Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2017 2:51 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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jaylach wrote: Total upgrade would be about $200.00. Not sure that I can justify that although it would allow the thing to reach speeds of about 60 MPH. You'll have reason to justify it when you join a club and go racing! It may not be this particular club in Wyoming but it'll bet it's one like it! https://www.facebook.com/sewyrc/
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jaylach
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Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2017 3:24 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Looks like Cheyenne. That is about 315 miles away. On a quick search I don't see a result for a club in North East Wyoming. Besides I've come up with another way to justify... I'm retired and old. I can blame it on senility.
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Doddie
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Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2017 3:40 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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jaylach wrote: Looks like Cheyenne. That is about 315 miles away. On a quick search I don't see a result for a club in North East Wyoming. Get a nitrous kit, sit on it, you'll be there in no time! Quote: Besides I've come up with another way to justify... I'm retired and old. I can blame it on senility. That would work but for the fact you'll likely forget you own the damn thing in the first place!
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jaylach
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Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2017 3:46 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Doddie wrote: That would work but for the fact you'll likely forget you own the damn thing in the first place! That would be OK as I would then have a new toy every day.
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jaylach
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Posted: Sat Oct 07, 2017 11:35 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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We also have some nice waterways around here. I'm thinking about getting a boat. Within a 20-25 minute drive there is a really nice lake. Same drive time in the other direction is a reservoir that is really nice. Within a 5 minute walk is a large creek that has many deep and smooth areas. If I do it this is probably what I'd get at ~$160.00. 1/10 scale at just under 2 feet long. I'm probably just missing the spec but don't know the top speed. https://traxxas.com/products/models/mar ... st?t=specsAttachment:
cheap boat.jpg [ 126.51 KiB | Viewed 19838 times ]
Now here is what I actually want!!!!I could do it but don't know if I could really make full usage. Talking about ~$430.00, 3.5 feet long and a top speed of ~55 MPH. https://traxxas.com/products/models/mar ... es?t=specsAttachment:
fast cigar boat.jpg [ 26.29 KiB | Viewed 19838 times ]
In any case these are real boats in miniature... Both even have water cooling built in for the motor.
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JoanA
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 10:18 am |
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Moderator |
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Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2012 3:25 pm Posts: 1916 Location: Pembrokeshire, South Wales, UK
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Wow! you'd need a good open water source to run that one Jay, they both look classy though.
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Doddie
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 12:43 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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jaylach wrote: I'm probably just missing the spec but don't know the top speed. A quick search returned the following thread on the Traxxas forums, seems there's a small flame war going on in the thread but the relevant info (I think lol) is there At the very least there's some good information about how the boat handles in choppier waters that might be of interest. https://forums.traxxas.com/showthread.p ... d-of-Blast
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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 1:44 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Joan, the second one pictured is pretty much out of the question. I have plenty of open water but, with a top speed of 50+ MPH, it would need pretty calm water. The first one although much slower would probably be much more suited to the creek right behind my apartments. Thanks for the link Doddie. I had not hit the forums yet. I must say that I don't admin those forums as it would seem that bashing is the game of the day. Here is a link for a third party review of the Blast. http://www.toptenreviews.com/electronic ... as-review/They give a tested top speed of 20 MPH and an excellent grade for handling. The biggest down side they give is the battery charge time. It also seems to take on water according to Amazon customer reviews.
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Doddie
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 2:02 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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If it takes on too much water then I guess you could always have some fun with a RC DSRV
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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 3:00 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Took me a bit but I assume that DSRV stands for Deep Sea Recovery Vessel/vehicle. ') Here are a couple of others I'm looking at. Both have 'self righting' features if you flip it. Both are smaller than the Traxxas Blast being 17 inches. The smaller size could even be an advantage on the creek behind my apartments. Would need extra batteries as run times are 10-15 minutes. Boats rank at #1 and #2 in several third party top 5/10 rankings. Pro Boat React: Brushless motor and LiPo battery. Manufacturer says 19 MPH top speed but a third party review claims 28 MPH.. $99.00. http://www.proboatmodels.com/Products/D ... d=PRB08024Pro boat Recoil: Brushless Motor and LiPo ready; includes NiMh battery (I think). 25 MPH top speed. $169.99. http://www.proboatmodels.com/Products/D ... 6#features
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Doddie
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 3:47 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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I was thinking Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle, but yeah Talking of which... I suspect this sort of thing just might appeal to you, only boys with toys could get into this sort of stuff, I suspect women everywhere would simply roll their eyes! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyELuyFZHFE
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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 4:14 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Doddie
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 4:28 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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jaylach wrote: Check out this one, pure insanity. Quality, pure quality! I was expecting Tele Savalas to emerge from that tank!! (Battle of the bulge)
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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 5:06 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Doddie
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 5:16 pm |
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welcoming committee |
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Joined: Sun Jan 13, 2013 4:13 pm Posts: 1723 Location: Dunedin, Alba.
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jaylach
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 5:55 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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I would have to say that it does not qualify as an RC. To me an RC needs full time human control. I would consider the truck to be a high level of industrial robotics programming. In the same way I don't consider a lot of the higher level drones to be true RC even though they can be. I mean pulling up an app on a phone or tablet and touching points on a map that are sent to the drone is not flying the thing. It is just setting up a flight path. Speaking of industrial robotics programming I used to do the stuff from scratch. Talk about pressure! One typo and you could destroy a machine worth over half a million dollars and up. Of course the following two videos are showing machines more advanced than what I used to program 25-35 years ago but give an idea. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=cn ... ORM=VRDGARhttps://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=cn ... ORM=VRDGAR
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JoanA
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Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2017 11:01 am |
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Moderator |
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Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2012 3:25 pm Posts: 1916 Location: Pembrokeshire, South Wales, UK
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That battle looked fun Jay, especially when there were boats on fire and that one split in half and sunk. Years ago I used to go model car racing with my first husband, can't remember what model car we had though all I remember is putting petrol in it to make it work.
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jaylach
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Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2017 4:21 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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I used to do gas powered planes but not cars.
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jaylach
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Posted: Tue Oct 10, 2017 8:46 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Here are a couple of other boats I'm looking at. To save a few bucks I'm sort of looking at the possibility of trying to find one that I can use the same batteries between car and boat. Let's go military. This boat is 21 inches and has the advantage of following the actual boat as in not having any propellors. It is driven by dual steerable jet pumps. Would give an advantage in shallow water and mild rapids. It also has working lights for 'night missions'. http://www.proboatmodels.com/Products/D ... d=PRB08027Attachment:
alpha boat.jpg [ 34.22 KiB | Viewed 19767 times ]
Then there is an old classic. The Volere built in the 1950s is a classic and the model follows the original with a wood hull layed over an ABS plastic hull. It is a 22 inch boat and beautiful. The issue here is that the propellor rides deep in the water and would restrict areas I'd like to use. http://www.proboatmodels.com/Products/D ... d=PRB3050BAttachment:
volere.jpg [ 130.18 KiB | Viewed 19767 times ]
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jaylach
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Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2017 9:14 pm |
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Resident Geekazoid Administrator |
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Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:09 am Posts: 9438 Location: The state of confusion; I just use Wyoming for mail.
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Considering the water I'll be on I went ahead and got one of the 17 inch boats. The following link is to a YouTube video of the thing in action. It will do 25+ MPH. It does have a nice feature as to the speed. The transmitter has a slide switch to set the max throttle to 50, 75 or 100%. I'll be starting out at 50% https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILPAs7-W5m8Also the maintenance is a lot simpler. On the military patrol boat I would have had to remove the impeller jests and more just to grease. With this one it is a matter of one set screw and slide out the drive shaft. Also cost was a little bit of a factor. I got this one with an extra battery, grease and grease gun and a spare prop for $10.00 less than I would have paid for just the patrol boat or Volere. Attachment:
recoil.jpg [ 68.38 KiB | Viewed 19740 times ]
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