Need boat !

[EhDolph]

Hello from Canada. I am new to RC boats but not new to the RC lifestyle. I own numerious RC planes and RC land vehicles. I am in the market for a Mini or Micro electric boat. Ive always liked speed, performance and handling and signed up to this site to hopefully educate myself on whats good and whats crap. I do realize the importance of a recovery boat but was hopeing to avoid that by getting a boat that was self righting. I think i have narrowed it down to a few boats that intrest me from a couple different places and would really appreicate any advice or other recomendations. The first 2 are from MiniCatRacingUSA.com hera are some links http://www.minicatracingusa.com/eco.html the mini eco looked pretty sweet and the StarShip Outrigger http://www.minicatracingusa.com/srigger.html that thing seemed to handle real well. When i looked on MiniCatRacing it said i could save 10% if i was a member of this forum. So thats a bonus. Then i stumbled across AsTecModels and seen the Eco 6 http://www.astecmodels.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=97&products_id=848 They also have a Eco 8 http://www.astecmodels.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=97&products_id=1116 What is the difference between the Eco 6 and the Eco 8 ? Whats the better boat the MiniCat racing or the ones from AzTec ? Sorry for the long winded post just itching to rip the water up and wanna get one on order. :help:

[sailr]

Can't see any difference between the Eco 06 and 08 except one was posted more recently.

Difference between Minicat Mini ECO is

1. It is a smaller boat
2. It is $100 less
3. It requires a much cheaper battery

[SweetAccord]

Hello from Canada. I am new to RC boats but not new to the RC lifestyle. I own numerious RC planes and RC land vehicles. I am in the market for a Mini or Micro electric boat. Ive always liked speed, performance and handling and signed up to this site to hopefully educate myself on whats good and whats crap. I do realize the importance of a recovery boat but was hopeing to avoid that by getting a boat that was self righting. I think i have narrowed it down to a few boats that intrest me from a couple different places and would really appreicate any advice or other recomendations. The first 2 are from MiniCatRacingUSA.com hera are some links http://www.minicatracingusa.com/eco.html the mini eco looked pretty sweet and the StarShip Outrigger http://www.minicatracingusa.com/srigger.html that thing seemed to handle real well. When i looked on MiniCatRacing it said i could save 10% if i was a member of this forum. So thats a bonus. Then i stumbled across AsTecModels and seen the Eco 6 http://www.astecmodels.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=97&products_id=848 They also have a Eco 8 http://www.astecmodels.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=97&products_id=1116 What is the difference between the Eco 6 and the Eco 8 ? Whats the better boat the MiniCat racing or the ones from AzTec ? Sorry for the long winded post just itching to rip the water up and wanna get one on order. :help:

Welcome to OSE!

I'll start with that I love the Starship. You can't go wrong with it and it will be faster than the ECO but is not self righting. Sounds like you want an ECO or a mono that has a flood chamber so it will self right but don't let that sway you away from the Starship as it's a blast. Here are some other Mini's if you have not seen already: http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?t=21403 but don't hold your breath.

I don't have any MHZ boats and we are in discussion if Steve will bring these on OSE as they look nice too. I can only speak for the Minicat at this point that they are nice and you will be happy with them. I'm sure others will chime in soon on that they have and like. As far as the Minicats, they are easy to setup and inexpensive and 3s-4s is all you would ever need for hold your breath speed depending on what motor you want to run, and they are easy to maintain and cheap as are the batteries for these. You are on the right track to start out with Mini's. I stared with a SV but went to Mini's, started backwards, but it happens.

You should also consider that Jim at Minicat will spend all the time you that you need to help you get the most out of the boat regardless what you get, so support is excellent. We have spoken for hours on end about everything as he is a great guy by my experience. You can't go wrong! Also if you have an issue, he will address it immediately no hassel as also with Steve here on OSE.

You may want to get a recovery boat eventually as once the speed bug gets you you will need it sooner or later! I can't rely on the fishing rod and line as too difficult especially if the boat gets a little too far out.

[EhDolph]

I love the Starship. You can't go wrong with it and it will be faster than the ECO but is not self righting. Sounds like you want an ECO or a mono that has a flood chamber so it will self right. Here are some other Mini's if you have not seen already: http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?t=21403.

I don't have any MHZ boats and we are in discussion if OSE will bring these on OSE as they look nice too. BBY has Mini's also and there is a thread on those too. I can only speak for the Minicat at this point that they are nice and you will be happy with them. I'm sure others will chime in soon on that they have and like. As far as the Minicats, they are easy to setup and inexpensive and 3s-4s is all you would ever need for speed depending on what motor you want to run. Batteries are very inexpensive also.

You should also consider that Jim at Minicat will spend all the time you that you need to help you get the most out of the boat regardless what you get, so support is excellent. We have spoken for hours on end about everything as he is a great guy by my experience. You can't go wrong! Also if you have an issue, he will address it immediately.

You may want to get a recovery boat eventually as once the speed bug gets you you will need it sooner or later! I can't rely on the fishing rod and line as too difficult especially if the boat gets a little too far out.

Thanks for all the info. I imagine the boat bug will hit me like the rc planes and cars did. The ones ive been leaning towards are the Starship and the Mini Eco. Just trying to figure out what all i will need to order ie lube ,spare parts upgrades extra props and prop sizes. What ever one I get i would like to hop it up a bit. Im sure glad i found this site.

[SweetAccord]

Thanks for all the info. I imagine the boat bug will hit me like the rc planes and cars did. The ones ive been leaning towards are the Starship and the Mini Eco. Just trying to figure out what all i will need to order ie lube ,spare parts upgrades extra props and prop sizes. What ever one I get i would like to hop it up a bit. Im sure glad i found this site.

I love cars and planes too and went to boats. You won't regret getting the Starship I PROMISE YOU. Jim will help you as we can on what you need depending on what you want to do and how fast you want to go, but the Starship is pretty fast as is. I'm sure you have seen the video. I use oil instead of grease so that I don't have to remove the drive line, but do oil it after 2 runs, take a few minutes and is easier. A metal prop is ideal also, but tricky to balance but I'm particular and like things to be perfect. Start with extra plastic props.

But on which to get, maybe if you can get both and use the ECO as the recovery boat when you run the Starship that way you have the best of both worlds, a fast boat and a recovery boat! I have yet to have flipped the Starship by the way but you never know what lurks in the water!

[tiqueman]

Salir runs minicat racing. Get w/ him and he can answer any and all of your questions. Hes fantastic to deal w/ and a very helpful person. He'll set you up w/ what you need. Ive seen many of his Mini cat product run as hes the President of the club Im in. All his boats are pretyt impressive for the micro scene.

Hope you didnt mind me saying that Jim, but I dont mind pluggin you when I can.

-Scott

[Tiddlertodd]

Have a Mini Rio that is a month old... Will sell for $85.00..

E-mail me... rtmickelson@yahoo.com

Ryan

[EhDolph]

I love cars and planes too and went to boats. You won't regret getting the Starship I PROMISE YOU. Jim will help you as we can on what you need depending on what you want to do and how fast you want to go, but the Starship is pretty fast as is. I'm sure you have seen the video. I use oil instead of grease so that I don't have to remove the drive line, but do oil it after 2 runs, take a few minutes and is easier. A metal prop is ideal also, but tricky to balance but I'm particular and like things to be perfect. Start with extra plastic props.

But on which to get, maybe if you can get both and use the ECO as the recovery boat when you run the Starship that way you have the best of both worlds, a fast boat and a recovery boat! I have yet to have flipped the Starship by the way but you never know what lurks in the water!

I would love to be able to get both boats but the "WARDEN" wouldnt be to happy about that. If she seen 2 new boats in the RC room she would probably trip out :buttrock: haha.. Rite now i can only get away with one new boat I hope to have my boating needs satisfied soon and figure out what all i need to order.

[tiqueman]

I hope to have my boating needs satisfied soon

Is that even possible? :confused2:

[SweetAccord]

I would love to be able to get both boats but the "WARDEN" wouldnt be to happy about that. If she seen 2 new boats in the RC room she would probably trip out :buttrock: haha.. Rite now i can only get away with one new boat I hope to have my boating needs satisfied soon and figure out what all i need to order.

They are small enough to hide one under the bed or one in the closet! One of the great advantages of being small! LOL!

[SweetAccord]

Is that even possible? :confused2:


If you get the Starship EhDolph you will be satisfied!

[SweetAccord]

Have a Mini Rio that is a month old... Will sell for $85.00..

E-mail me... rtmickelson@yahoo.com

Ryan

You may want to post this in the swap shop?

[EhDolph]

http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/8616/resizedbatts.jpg (http://img708.imageshack.us/i/resizedbatts.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)
I got these LIPOS for one of my street cars. Can these be used on the StarShip and the MiniEco

[Diegoboy]

NO. it's too big!
Oh wait, it's the picture that's too big

Please size it down.

[EhDolph]

NO. it's too big!
Oh wait, it's the picture that's too big

Please size it down. Yes i will just gotta figure out how >Sorry about that

[Diegoboy]

I got your back!!

[EhDolph]

I got your back!!

Thanks I tryed to delete the pic but it said it wouldnt delete for up to an hour .Probably be a dead link soon

[Diegoboy]

I saved your image to my PC, resized it, then uploaded it to my site. Now your post is pointing to my copied/resized image.
Sorry for the interruption.
:focus:

[sailr]

7.4V is not enough. You can use 'em but you'll be disappointed in the speed. You will have to program the ESC for 2S. What you need is 3S 2200 packs. We have them for sale but they are not on the website. Call us when you're ready. They are the Hyperion packs. Only the best!

[sailr]

Ah, much better. Size isn't everything!


I saved your image to my PC, resized it, then uploaded it to my site. Now your post is pointing to my copied/resized image.
Sorry for the interruption.
:focus:

[badag98]

http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?t=20661

This little baby can come RTR, It is a great starter boat!!! And has a few extras!!

[sailr]

That's a really Good price for that Micro Hydro but you will want a retrieve boat. Not self righting.

[martin]

The most reliable boats from the point of view on self righting so you can run them on a bit of chop is Minicats Velocity mono, Youll be surprised on how this boat is not just a calm water boat & it will do around 37mph stock on 3s. Also as been mentioned Minicats Mini Eco made by Tenshock its a very good little boat also self righting & a lot of fun, Their isnt a boat around that will turn as fast & sharpe as the Mini Eco. Theirs videos of both these boats on Minicat racing site. Thanks Martin.

[sailr]

The ECO doesn't self right right out of the box. it takes some adjustment and sometimes modification of the openings in the hull and added weight on the left side to get it to sink faster thus self righting quicker.

The mono self rights without any mods. Just a happy coincidence of the design of the boat.

[badag98]

That's a really Good price for that Micro Hydro but you will want a retrieve boat. Not self righting.

Correct the micro hydro is not self righting but it is hard as heck to flip!! I still have not flipped and would be surprised if you did flip one.

[EhDolph]

So Ive come to the conclusion that its probably in my best intrest to get some kind of boat that i can use as a recovery boat for the future. I dont want to have to go swimming if not needed.

[sailr]

Get an Aquacraft tugboat for a retriever. NICE boat!

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXMPJ8**&P=ML

[scot]

Who's hijacked sailr's OSE account???!!!?! A TUGBOAT?!?!?!?

minicatracing are also great at shipping to Canada - they'll help you avoid the standard pitfalls of getting stuff up here from the USA.

I've got one of their mono's and hydro's, and now I have a cat in the mail. Great products and great value.

[sailr]

Haaar! That AQ tug makes an excellent retrieve boat. It's really nicely made. '

Thanks for the vote of confidence. I'm a modeler first and business man last! I take a lot of pride in helping out my fellow modelers. My little business only pays for my hobby. I don't make a living at it! Good thing I'm retired! ;-)

[EhDolph]

Between the Velocity Mono and the Mini Eco what one is faster? I noticed the Mini Eco has a 40amp ESC and the Veloicity has a 30 amp. Also steel prop compared to carbon filled. Its a toss up for me on what boat i should get .

[badag98]

I have an echo and love it, the fact that it turns on a dime at full speed is hard to beat!!!

[EhDolph]

I have an echo and love it, the fact that it turns on a dime at full speed is hard to beat!!!

Do you run yours on 2cell or 3cell Lipo ? Was your MiniEco self righting out of the box or did you have to tweak it ? If so what did you have to do ?

[Diegoboy]

I ran mine on 3S, yes it self rights out of the box (it has a flood chamber). Stock vs. Stock, I'd say the eco is faster.

Nothing turns like an eco!

[EhDolph]

I ran mine on 3S, yes it self rights out of the box (it has a flood chamber). Stock vs. Stock, I'd say the eco is faster.

Nothing turns like an eco!

Will changing the prop or batterys have an effect on top speed or is the stock configeration pretty much as good as it gets for speed with out changing motor ?

[Diegoboy]

You can change the motor, but it's stock motor is all that this hull needs on 3s. If you run 2S, you can change the motor to get more speed.

[badag98]

I run my echo on 3s, and had to add a couple extra holes too the flood chamber plus some lead weights on that side as well.

As for upgrades, I'm not sure you could use a much bigger prop due to clearance issues. The stock motor is fast on lipos

[sailr]

watch the videos. They are totally different in how they drive. The esc's are irrelevant as they work with the motors installed. The carbon props work great on the mono. The reason for the stainless prop on the ECO is because it is tiny. Carbon would never hold up in such a small size.

[badag98]

Well if your not going to buy my micro cat I have listed.....lol :bounce:

My vote would be the Mini Echo, its a pond rocket that makes 90 degree turns. Of the boats I have it is by far my favorite. It is fast and turns on a dime plus you will not have to go swimming like I have after my SV!!

Good Luck:popcorn2:

[martin]

As Sailr has said their very different types of boats, The Velocity is a surface drive deep v that rides very well in chop ( relative to its size ) & i would say is probably faster in a straight line. The Mini Eco is a mono that is still used at world championship level & is sub surface drive & will turn much faster ( blink & youll miss it ) but needs less chop than the Velocity. Very difficult to pick one over the other. Thanks Martin

[SweetAccord]

So you are not considering the Starship anymore? It's the fastest of the bunch.

[martin]

SweetAccord for my own interest how stable do you find the Tenshock minicat & do shafts last ok in them, Also considering the Hor Bolt Micro but dont know much about them though. Thanks Martin.

[SweetAccord]

I have not replaced the shafts and they last a long time being a wire. I do run the liner in mine and oil it after every two runs. The Minicats are stable no real issues, or quality issues. I'm still waiting on my Bolt to say how I will like. It's a copy of the Minicat Hydro but the drive line it larger and the motor coupling is larger. Overall there is not a HUGE difference. Just minor ones but I have not done a 1:1 comparison yet. I do prefer the looks of the Minicat.

[SweetAccord]

SweetAccord for my own interest how stable do you find the Tenshock minicat & do shafts last ok in them, Also considering the Hor Bolt Micro but dont know much about them though. Thanks Martin.

Martin, get with these guys on the Hor as they have run them. http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?t=21402 You can see how the Bolt runs on youtube. Hobby King carries it also and I believe there is a review of it on youtube also.

Hope that helps.

[martin]

I have not replaced the shafts and they last a long time being a wire. I do run the liner in mine and oil it after every two runs. The Minicats are stable no real issues, or quality issues. I'm still waiting on my Bolt to say how I will like. It's a copy of the Minicat Hydro but the drive line it larger and the motor coupling is larger. Overall there is not a HUGE difference. Just minor ones but I have not done a 1:1 comparison yet. I do prefer the looks of the Minicat.

Is the wire drive you have in the Minicat an after market one that you fitted as i thought they came with flex shafts as standard, Or am i mistaken. Thanks Martin.

[SweetAccord]

Is the wire drive you have in the Minicat an after market one that you fitted as i thought they came with flex shafts as standard, Or am i mistaken. Thanks Martin.


You are correct. It's the flexdrive that is how it comes and I am using the original one. I call them the a wire drive and that is my bad. To me they are both a "wire" but that is incorrect thinking.

[martin]

Do you find that the Minicat flips very often & what sort of water does it like. Thanks Martin.

[SweetAccord]

Do you find that the Minicat flips very often & what sort of water does it like. Thanks Martin.

Both like calm water but a little chop is ok, and I have yet to flip either one, but then I baby my boats and don't do full throttle turns on purpose even on calm water.

If you go to youtube and search these boats you can see how well they run if you observe the water in the video. We don't get much wind here and the water is mostly calm.

Here is a short video of mine (starship):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoPuUuX2hk8

[SweetAccord]

Ok I've done all the homework for you on the Starship. All you have to do is click and watch. You can read all the users descriptions on their setups (if posted) and see how they are modding these with different motors and what batteries are being used etc.
Also you can see how they perform in different water conditions also and get a good idea what to expect.

Click, watch, enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_c6_mwzB9E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZJjAcYjrRY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoPuUuX2hk8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k36dQ7KoTzw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr-8FcELANY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbaVC3vukBs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCqXReHnBbg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2U-DiiqyJw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj_31b-l6-c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ7pBEoJ-44
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTHSG_2qhic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5k-jNZVEQYM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXU0uavNgLY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC7Wk2A9MJc

My favorite video showing what this hull can do being so small: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG571aBymKs

Running in rough water: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk5pFWA_CJE

Funny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKBLp3UsXPo

Tenshocks Catalog: http://cid-ace3bbbe72a55299.office.live.com/self.aspx/Tenshock%20Catalog/Tenshock.pdf

Hope that helps.

[ms7497]

Xenon project. Com has tear into nqd's jet boats for 38 bucks

[SweetAccord]

Xenon project. Com has tear into nqd's jet boats for 38 bucks

Lots of those boats are plastic toys. They don't really compare to what we are running here on OSE. :laugh: