A few questions

[A32Limited]

Evening (or morning, wherever you are.) I've been reading over the topics about this boat, and find that the normal agreement here is that it's handling and stability is pretty poor. I've been researching this boat, as well as the SuperVee27, and the FASTech. On a couple of other sites, I've seen that they say the BlackJack26 handles great.

I'm pretty new at boats (I've had one for almost 10 years but hardly ever used it, a Villain IV) and I recently broke it out, and am now interested in something with higher performance.

Anyways, my main questions about this boat, since I've only ever driven the Villain, is what kind of reliability does it have? What batteries would you recommend, and how does it actually handle, and do you recommend it? Thanks for the help.

[chirotray]

For what its worth.....Im having a blast with mine. Its extremely fast on lipos and fun, but im not trying to seriously race it. I think that like most things its all about expectations. If you expect to buy this boat and compete against guys with full customs, you will be disappointed, but if you expect to get a pretty dang good rtr and have some fun, its perfect. I must say that with some basic mods some of these guys have it handling pretty decent. With the bj and supervee on nimh batteries, my friends supervee walked on my bj everytime. Now with the bj on lipo and the sv on nimh its almost funny to see the difference. I just gotta figure out what im going to do when my friend gets lipos too.

[hex-dj]

A32Limited .You make the final decision on those ,now if I were to recomend one I d go for the SV 27 RTR EP. Why? Because theres plenty of parts available for it in most hobby shops elsewhere. The Fastech from Pro boat is a good boat ,but not many parts are available for those as I know a few Hobby shops sell Pro boat parts. What I mean is that the Aquacraft SV 27 EP has far more company support than the Pro Boat Fast tech vee.Plus you have a factory ready FE boat that all you have to add to it is a left turn fin for better handling.You make a final decition though.

[chirotray]

Quick note: if you get the bj, no matter what batteries you go with, buy the programmer. Its a must have.

[chirotray]

Hex and I dont agree on much, but he is right about the customer service. I deal with the major distributors a lot, and its hard to beat the customer service from hobbico.

[hex-dj]

Where I live right now theres not much from Pro Boat that I can buy. I have both the BJ 26 EP and SV 27 EP and to be honest both boats come very powerful as stock. Yes the BJ 26 does not handle well from factory ,because of its rudder and other details so if you re going to buy the BJ start thinking about a new strut for better handling performance.

[A32Limited]

Thanks for the help. I'm not looking for something that does the speed of sound. I like Deep-V hulls like the Villain, and the Fastech is a Deep-V, but I've always been interested in catamarans, like the BJ26. The Villain is cool, but I'm really not sure if it's worth upgrading or not.

What I'm just looking for, is something that's reliable, pretty easy to operate, as well as service, and looks cool. That's why I was looking at the BJ26 and the Fastech.

Do overall what I'm getting about the BJ26, is that it's a good boat for the cost, but does need some work (like most R/C vehicles.) I guess I'll look into what it's flaws are, figure those out. Thanks!

[chirotray]

One thing that ive noticed is that the sv27 likes to flip over a little easier than most boats, but it does turn better than the bj. (stock anyway)

[A32Limited]

I've watched videos on Youtube. I don't want a boat that flips that easily, since I usually throw it off the side of a dock.

[chirotray]

There is a hatch upgrade for the sv, it looks dumb, but really works. Look up blackwater rollover hatch on youtube and see what you think.

[crazzy maxx]

i went from a villain ex with 13 turn epic motors and it compars to my blackjack like a peice of dirt. i put the aero-marine hardwear on mine, took off the turn fins and with old beat up gp3300's the boat still did 33mph. a simple hardwear upgrade and the boat will smoke the sv. mine with the 3300's killed my friends supe veee and he had new 3600's i only had the new hardwear. but if you change the hard wear get fullers. aero-marine is a pain because you have to drill new holes.

for stock performance it did well. the only thing thats really stupid is that it has alot of prop tourqu. the boat is meant for right turns . it turns left but you have to go pretty slowor the whole;eft sponson comes out of the water and the boat some times will flip...
and also the sv isnt good in water with swell ove 4 inches

[A32Limited]

I won't really be making a choice till August, when I have more money to play around with. I'm just looking for something that's quick, reliable and looks good...Reading about these new boats makes me tempted to just upgrade my Villain, but I'm still up in the air. Maybe the trip I'm going on will help me figure it out.

This site's been a huge help, I've learned that R/C boats aren't much different from their real life counterparts.

[crazzy maxx]

compared to my/my fathers boat there is a BIG difference(check the avatar)

[A32Limited]

I've got a 24 foot Bayliner Capri. My Villain can handle a few waves or a corner. LOL

But yeah, it won't be till around August that I reach a verdict.

[Apples1]

i have been there a32, i have a villain ex and got sick of it after 3 months and upgraded the crap of it, till it became unreliable, (and still not quick) so i got the BJ26 and love it.

good luck

[hex-dj]

A36Limited, to keep an SV 27 from flipping so much youd have to buy a left turn fin,which does not come factory instaled. Not to mention you d also need a small black rubber cover for the hatch which is not included either. The last one is to stop huge amounts of water from getting inside by the hatch after a flip.

[A32Limited]

I'd really like a BJ26, but it seems as if it has so many design flaws out of the box that I'm hesitant on getting one if I decide to go that route. I'm sure I'm annoying, and I apologize, I just want to get the most out of my investment.

On that point, I'm more interested in the BJ26 then the other boats I've mentioned. I've been surfing the site, and seeing different set-ups, but I can't find the website of the company that makes those parts. I like being able to corner, and throwing waves out sideways and such, like maneuvering around buoys and other obstacles. What's the best set up for getting the BJ26 to do this, or close to it? I'd just like some recommendations and prices mostly, since you guys are the experts with these things.

[hex-dj]

A 32,the aquacraft site for the SV 27 is www.aquacraftmodels.com and the Pro-Boat site for the BJ 26 i s www.proboatmodels.com

[chirotray]

google fullers hardware

[hex-dj]

Prices for the latest in RTR brushless boats range from $269.99 SV 27 EP ,BJ 26 EP is $289.99 a Fast Tech be should be around $ 289.99 too.

[A32Limited]

Hex- I've been to their sites, and all the distributors. For a while, I was thinking it was flawless, till I started looking at these websites, and I learned that it's not as good handling as their claims. I'm looking more for what the favorite set-ups are for cornering. You folks are fast at responding. Lol

Chiro- that lead me right to their page, thanks.

[hex-dj]

Chiro is right the fullers is great . My strut/rudder system is from Twisted Liquid Racing or Twisted-Networks now. Its a good system ,but I dont recomend anyone making deals with Twisted,because they have this weird method of sending packages and giving out excuses... Hummm,TLR ...just not recomended . Their BJ 26 hardware is great in quality also.

[Ub Hauled]

Fullers:
http://www.drcwebservices.com/ffe/

[crazzy maxx]

Get Fullers Hardwear. Aero Marine Is Nice But You Have To Drill New Holes Into The Boat. Look At My Thread And Youll See What I Have To Do If You Get Aero Marine But You Are Better Off With Fullers. And The Bl Bj Doesnt Have That Great Of Tunring To The Left Going Fast. The Left Sponson Flies Out Of The Water If You Go To Fast And Sometimes It Will Flip...

[A32Limited]

I'm getting closer to a decision. I have a feeling I'll get the BJ26, run it for a while, then once my funds are refreshed, start upgrading it. It appears to me that putting the mid-set rudder on it and lowering the batteries helps quite a bit. Would there be anything else to make it better handling?

[crazzy maxx]

take out all the unneccesary sdtuff battery box and tupperwear bowl

[Tony]

Hi. I have a BJ26 too. Its a fun boat, but not a race boat. If you are not in a hurry to get one. Wait till Oct, and get a FE Pro Boat Miss Elam . The hardware on ME seems better than the BJ26. Take a look

http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products/Gallery.aspx?ProdID=PRB3550&Index=0
http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products/Gallery.aspx?ProdID=PRB3550&Index=4

[A32Limited]

Tony- that looks pretty cool, but I'm not really into hydros. My Dad had one, and while it wasn't brushless, I really wasn't all that impressed with it. He bough it to out-do my Villain, but due to reliability issues, I was always having to push him back to shore. And I'm not getting it as a race boat, just something I can have some fun with.