UL-1 first observations

[Flying Scotsman]

For a RTR boat very impressive out of the box
There were some minor problems...as properchopper advised me of..check the powertrain allignment...mine was off...check all fasteners...check the water jacket..mine was ok.
A minor crack in the fibreglass at the stuffing tube entry point into the hull.
Check rudder position in neutral position...mine was off.
I am amazed at the overall quality and fiinish at this price level.
I will paint the plastic white hull cover as it looks plastic and cheap.
So far a 7 out of 10.

Edit update

After reassembly the water jacket which was not removed and was given an air check now leaks badly with a water test at arround 50psi

Douggie

[Darin Jordan]

Check rudder position in neutral position...mine was off.


Douggie,

When you say it's "off", are you talking about after firing it up??

When I disassembled mine, I took the pin out of the rudder to get the steering arm off (not a trivial task... which is good for racing... one less thing to worry about falling off! ;) )... The pin has flats in it for the set screws on the rudder and the steering arm, and they are NOT at 90-degrees to each other... So when everything is tightened down, the steering are will not be at a 90-degree angle to the rudder...

Still works fine, however...

[Flying Scotsman]

Darin, you are correct as to off

Douggie

[Darin Jordan]

Darin, you are correct as to off

Douggie

Just live with it then... I don't think there is anyway to correct that short of replacing the hinge-pin... I'll get some shots tonight to post of mine so you can see what I'm referring to...

Not a big deal, really... Just looks a little off...

[Capt. Crash]

..check the powertrain allignment...mine was off...
Douggie


Ok...how do I do this...what do I look for...how do I correct?

[Fluid]

The flex cable should slide right into the coupler as you feed it through the stuffing tube. If you adjust the strut much this will throw the motor/cable alignment out. I was able to bend the tube down a slight amount to bring it back into alignment with the coupler.



.

[Flying Scotsman]

Captain Crash from the prop to the motor the shaft should be in line with each other and allow you to push the flex/wire shaft into the motor connector with no binding.

Douggie

[Flying Scotsman]

Jay, your answer is much better than my feeble attempt.:smile:

Also, I will try Jay's resolution to the water jacket problem. As found in my edit

Douggie

[detox]

I received my replacement water jacket from Aquacraft. The new end caps and housing have that same sloppy loose fit at the threads as before.

[Capt. Crash]

Thanks...I had a bear getting that cable into the coupler last night...I thought it was the motor shaft being misaligned after I added a thrust bearing and remounted the motor. I will look at the stuffing tube tonight.

BTW...the motor mount bolts have very fine threads and strip out pretty easy...trust me...I know!

Crash

[Darin Jordan]

BTW...the motor mount bolts have very fine threads and strip out pretty easy...trust me...I know!

Crash


Are you referring to the mounts where they bold to the hull, or the mount to the motor??

[killjoy781]

should i not get the ul-1?

lol you guys are startin ta scare me.

[Capt. Crash]

Are you referring to the mounts where they bold to the hull, or the mount to the motor??


The motor casing. I turned the starboard one a little too far....now I have the magic blue liquid on the threads. :olleyes:

[Flying Scotsman]

Killjoy. I trust that you enjoy your UL-1. As many FE boaters are very excited with this RTR model. What boats do you presently own and what is your RC experience...just currious?

Douggie

[killjoy781]

Killjoy. I trust that you enjoy your UL-1. As many FE boaters are very excited with this RTR model. What boats do you presently own and what is your RC experience...just currious?

Douggie

:rofl: i know,,,,im excited toooo! I CURRENTLY DO NOT OWN A BOAT...

*3 years racing & building rc cars (nitro)
*6mnths flying helis (electric)
*1 year miss elam (nitro) sucked because it had a 15 dynamite
*4 years ww2 planes (electric)
*2 years EDF

AND NOW IM READY FOR MY UL-1

I MUST ASK:::: WHAT ARE THE UPS AND DOWNS ABOUT THIS MODEL?
AM I ABLE TO USE A PAIR OF 2200MAH 20C's?

[Capt. Crash]

should i not get the ul-1?

lol you guys are startin ta scare me.

Don't worry about us....I love the boat...get one and it will put a huge grin on your face the first time you squeeze the trigger!:bounce:

[Flying Scotsman]

Enjoy and view the mod updates. Also look up the differences with nitro and FE boats on this and other FE forums. On your edit, yes you can use those batteries But the boat will not reach it's potential. Total available amperage. FE 101 logic

Douggie

[killjoy781]

man i cant wait!!!!!!

where is the best place to buy one at? i think OSE is the answer....cheaper than towerhobbies.

has anyone of you ever orderd from here before? if so, how long did the shipping take to get to you?

[Flying Scotsman]

man i cant wait!!!!!!

where is the best place to buy one at? i think OSE is the answer....cheaper than towerhobbies.

has anyone of you ever orderd from here before? if so, how long did the shipping take to get to you?

Oh boy, I give up on twits,

Douggie

[Grimracer]

I received my replacement water jacket from Aquacraft. The new end caps and housing have that same sloppy loose fit at the threads as before.

We are just about done with the work on this.. hang tight..

I know.. boring blaha blaha blaha..just want it to work.. ME TOO!... none of this comes easy.. sorry and thanks for haning with us on this...

Grim

[killjoy781]

Oh boy, I give up on twits,

Douggie

twits? hey thanks for 411 on the UL-1

[egneg]

man i cant wait!!!!!!

where is the best place to buy one at? i think OSE is the answer....cheaper than towerhobbies.

has anyone of you ever orderd from here before? if so, how long did the shipping take to get to you?

I have ordered quite a bit of stuff from OSE and although it was not this boat it has only taken 2 and at the most 3 days. And if there was any question Steve emailed me for clarification.

Chuck

[Jeff Wohlt]

You have to take Douggie with...well valium if you have it :)

OSE is a great provider of parts and boats with top class service. As far as boats....you can read albout the many boats on this site. Some good reviews and some not so good. The nice thing is you will get help here from guys that know their stuff.

You want a good experience with your investment so ask questions and read posts about them before you buy.

Miss Ellam is nice boat and well put together...why not convert it to FE? Would not take much.

[Flying Scotsman]

Thank you Grim, for staying on top of minor issues. Jeff.... VALIUM.. NO.....THE FAMOUS GROUSE :bowdown: now you are talking :smile:

Douggie

[killjoy781]

i have ordered quite a bit of stuff from ose and although it was not this boat it has only taken 2 and at the most 3 days. And if there was any question steve emailed me for clarification.

Chuck

thank you! That is awesome news to hear!

Do you guys think i should also get me a retrieval rc boat? Like a tug boat? Where is the best place to find such a model?

[Flying Scotsman]

Yes, we all need some means of retrieaval!!
If you are serious, send me a pm and I will advise you of where to purchase the same boat, I use.

Douggie

[Jeff Wohlt]

LOL...well I could not think of that so I used something stronger. My point was to make sure our new people feel the love ! :) Only females can be twits. Males are just good ol d----bags

[egneg]

Yes, we all need some means of retrieaval!!
If you are serious, send me a pm and I will advise you of where to purchase the same boat, I use.

Douggie

Is that the same inflatable pool duck that Paddy uses?

[Flying Scotsman]

Interesting Chuck no pm and no it is an awesome tug, that should get his juices running.

NB. It would be great to get back to the topic of this fine hull, warts and all

Douggie

[killjoy781]

Interesting Chuck no pm and no it is an awesome tug, that should get his juices running.

NB. It would be great to get back to the topic of this fine hull, warts and all

Douggie

how much do they range in price?

[Jeff Wohlt]

I use my kids little z boat or whatever they call it. Even has a guard on the front for pushing. The hole thing was $79. I also have the walmart 2 person blow up raft I keep in the truck $19

If that does not work I send out the yellow Lab...I just hate the teeth marks in the hull she puts in it. :)

[killjoy781]

I use my kids little z boat or whatever they call it. Even has a guard on the front for pushing. The hole thing was $79. I also have the walmart 2 person blow up raft I keep in the truck $19

If that does not work I send out the yellow Lab...I just hate the teeth marks in the hull she puts in it. :)

lol no kidding thats awesome....well, i just dont want to get in the lake, ill have to find me a work boat under $40.00

[Flying Scotsman]

Killjoy, as my pm stated Vac- U- Boat

http://www.vac-u-boat.com/

[Doug Smock]

Killjoy, as my pm stated Vac- U- Boat

http://www.vac-u-boat.com/

Yep, and ask Phil for the four blade prop.

Doug

[Capt. Crash]

Aquacraft makes a great RTR tug that with a few mods can be made to be quite powerful and useful. It's bigger than the vac-u-tug but not too big to get in the car and carry around. I use mine to set and retrieve the marks and do rescue duty. It does it all...from fast boats, to planes, to snagging and dragging sailboats and even rescuing little girls balls.

[alvinsmith75]

That just doesn't sound right.
"little girls balls"

[Capt. Crash]

Yea...just think what would be said if I went with little boys instead...:eek:

[Flying Scotsman]

I will be painting the hull cover as I previously mentioned. Those folks over in China must have strong wrists and hands.
The exhaust manifolds were stripped and glue was applied to correct the problem. All fasteners are over tightened except at the motor mount? Which was loose. Removing the flex connector took a lot of force.

Douggie

[Capt. Crash]

I will be painting the hull cover as I previously mentioned. Those folks over in China must have strong wrists and hands.
The exhaust manifolds were stripped and glue was applied to correct the problem. All fasteners are over tightened except at the motor mount? Which was loose. Removing the flex connector took a lot of force.

Douggie


One of my manifolds were cracked from over torque and the motor housing to mount bolts were loose...be careful with them...they have very fine threads and strip out the housing threads fairly easy if you over tighten. My drive cable connector was also extremely tight as was the set screw.

[Darin Jordan]

That's all interesting... Everything on mine came apart very easily...

[Jeff Wohlt]

Guys, those issues are what QC is all about.. This is common when dealing with China.

[sailr]

Grim,
My UL-1 is on order and should arrive in the next couple of days. Obviously the first thing I will check is the water jacket. Is AQ doing anything to replace the ones that leak with ones that don't? Just curious. Hate to have to go spend $15-20 for an aftermarket one that works.


We are just about done with the work on this.. hang tight..

I know.. boring blaha blaha blaha..just want it to work.. ME TOO!... none of this comes easy.. sorry and thanks for haning with us on this...

Grim

[Flying Scotsman]

In my humble oppinion buy a replacement water jacket.

Douggie

[Grimracer]

Grim,
My UL-1 is on order and should arrive in the next couple of days. Obviously the first thing I will check is the water jacket. Is AQ doing anything to replace the ones that leak with ones that don't? Just curious. Hate to have to go spend $15-20 for an aftermarket one that works.

Dude.. honsitly i dont know.. but.. I will let you know when i know more..

I do know this.. when the time comes call Hobby Services and i will see to it that you get the updated parts.

Fear not the water jacket!...:rockon2:

Grim

[sailr]

Thanks Mike. You da man!


Dude.. honsitly i dont know.. but.. I will let you know when i know more..

I do know this.. when the time comes call Hobby Services and i will see to it that you get the updated parts.

Fear not the water jacket!...:rockon2:

Grim