New Best with the M41

[EXTREMEFUN1300]

Not impressive with regard to 99% of all the other bad ass boats around here, but I was happy to finally see >50. GPS was 51, strut was WAY to positive and she was porpois'ing like a rabid dolphin! Been really tough to get this boat dialed in, lower the strut and it's more stable but slow, move it just a little bit and it's all over the place again. Moved the batteries around in both configurations and didn't make much difference. These boats are just too cheap and light weight to begin with I think.
Stock motor, HW120a esc, stock plastic prop and two 5000mah 50c 3s in series.

[stadiumyamaha]

Thats not bad at all on stock prop and motor.
I fought the spartan blues when they first came out. They just aren't up to going much faster with an abs hull. Fun bashers though.
Once a buddy got one and we raced them together not worrying about bumping and running over each other on 4s, they were a hoot.

[busstoff62]

M41 I have. SnapOn LE
I found that -1 works good to keep it from slapping the water
I put some 7600mah 75c lipid in it crazy fast till the tea as connectors melted
Replaced them with xt90s now the esc is over heating.
Thoughts on leopard 4082x2 & a seaking180a esc?

[EXTREMEFUN1300]

Thanks stadium, they are a lot of fun that's for sure. I have a Spartan as well, best I've gotten out it is 44mph simply due to handling, or lack thereof! LOL The thing is a rocket, but above 40 it really gets dicey, need some serious tuning as it's capable of SO much more from the speed standpoint.
I'm going to sell both now that I've got the bug, and move into a TFL or Proboat.

[EXTREMEFUN1300]

I have XT90's on everything, seem to work well but again I'm not throwing an insane amount of current at it, for long anyway. I bought a Seaking 180a to replace the stock Traxxas esc that I fried, it made a HUGE difference in esc temps as expected. Low voltage cutoff activates now before high temp cutoff, can get about 8-10 minutes run time on 6s 50c 5000mah. I moved down to a Seaking 120a as I want to save the 180a for a new boat if I find one in need of an esc, the 120a gets warmer but still nothing like the stock Traxxas esc. On 4s I think you can have fun all day long with the 120a, but if you're running those batteries in 6s you'll definitely want the 180a. I now have the Seaking 120a in both the Spartan and M41, waiting on the Leapard 1700kv motors and going to sell both to get something higher end.
One of the biggest things with any of these FE boats is cooling, the rudder water pickups are a great idea but they simply don't flow enough, at least the stock Traxxas rudders. The dual pickup setups are better as the esc and the motor have individual feeds, but again the volume of water just isn't sufficient for the current these tiny little works of art demand.

[Peter A]

I have XT90's on everything, seem to work well but again I'm not throwing an insane amount of current at it, for long anyway. I bought a Seaking 180a to replace the stock Traxxas esc that I fried, it made a HUGE difference in esc temps as expected. Low voltage cutoff activates now before high temp cutoff, can get about 8-10 minutes run time on 6s 50c 5000mah. I moved down to a Seaking 120a as I want to save the 180a for a new boat if I find one in need of an esc, the 120a gets warmer but still nothing like the stock Traxxas esc. On 4s I think you can have fun all day long with the 120a, but if you're running those batteries in 6s you'll definitely want the 180a. I now have the Seaking 120a in both the Spartan and M41, waiting on the Leapard 1700kv motors and going to sell both to get something higher end.
One of the biggest things with any of these FE boats is cooling, the rudder water pickups are a great idea but they simply don't flow enough, at least the stock Traxxas rudders. The dual pickup setups are better as the esc and the motor have individual feeds, but again the volume of water just isn't sufficient for the current these tiny little works of art demand.

Actually the water pick ups are sufficient in just about every case. Dual pick ups even better. 8-10 min runs can result in residual heat build up, and testing temps by finger touch is very subjective. Get a temp gun to know for sure. There are a lot of threads on this forum to do with cooling, try the search function and have a read of some.

[EXTREMEFUN1300]

"Sufficient" is just as subjective as by "finger touch". Over engineer instead of engineered obsolescence is what I'd like to see, especially in Traxxas models that advertise to the masses 6s and 50+mph without a flashing disclaimer of "but make sure you don't run longer than 3 minutes if water is >50deg F, replacing factory Traxxas battery connectors is required" etc etc.... Dual water pickups help the esc a little by relieving a little back pressure, the motor gains the biggest advantage by not having already warm water to the input.
Having done even a little research before I got into FE boating and knowing what I know now wouldn't have swayed me away, but newbie is going to look at Traxxas first simply due to their excellent marketing, Proboat second. Few manufactures are going to advise of the risks in anything other than very fine print.

[Peter A]

Not to burst your little bubble there chap, but you have a lot yet to learn. An important little issue, the water cooling should run through your esc first! That'll be why your esc temps are higher.
Also having done some testing on the issue, I can tell you that more flow does not necessarily mean better cooling of the motor or esc.
Regarding Traxxas stuff, it is toys for the masses, manufactured and sold on price points. you get a much better boat if you do your homework and build your own.

[Norwest]

This goes back a few years but Paul Pachmeyer said to down size side to the exit end of the system so water would stay awhile longer would help in cooling but other say BS but I tried it and it worked to a tee. The thing is when the temp is 90 and water near that temp, your caught in less run time due water temp!

[Mxkid261]

Years ago I once over engineered a cooling system with dual this, dual that, biggest line and inlets/outlets I could find. When I freshened up the boat after a T-180 exploded a couple years back, I went back to just a single inlet/outlet with normal size hose. Guess what? Same temps as they had always been, checked with an infrared gun. Just my 2 pennies

[stadiumyamaha]

I agree MX, I dont believe that enough heat transfer takes place to take advantage of the potential cooling one water line provides before it is expelled.

Extreme, I think it would be a good call to bail on the traxxas stuff and go for something a little more robust. You should either some of the artr on ose or pro marine or even oxidean. The cool thing about an artr is that the hard part of drilling hulls for hardware and picking the correct hardware is already done and you can focus on power systems and the other fun stuff. Its kind of the next step before a full on build.

This is a great hull. https://www.offshoreelectrics.com/pr...06-carbon-4082

[EXTREMEFUN1300]

No bubbles burst here pops, since we're using pet names. Never claimed to know anything other than the obvious I've learned from the two Traxxas models I've had for a short time, and OSE using that fancy search button you mentioned, learn a little more everyday, not enough hours in the day!
Where did you get the impression I wasn't running water through the esc first? I said relieve a little back pressure from the esc, due to the motor not having warm water to the input. Not that pressure even exists in Traxxas stuff, it's like putting the nozzle of a pressure washer into 20' of 5/8" garden hose. No idea how the higher quality equipment is made, but I'd imagine it's engineered better. Traxxas stuff IS toys for the masses as I was eluding to. Not interested in building my own simply because I want to enjoy the hobby, now. Definitely going to get rid of the lipstick wearing pigs and start with a better platform.

[Jack6835]

M41 arrived today. Battery connection broken out of the box. Resoldered and took it out on a pair of 5500 mAh 3S lipos. I put a speedometer max speed and got 60 km/h. What a joke! Through on my x42 prop brought it up on plane and it spun the prop shaft off the boat. Checked and coupler was completely tight? Traxxas won?t warranty the shaft or the prop I lost but we?re so gracious as to tell me I?m an avid hobbyist and could solder a new one in. Unbelievable! They gave me the option to send the boat back and they said they would go over it for defects. Pleeez! I had planned on upgrading this with a seeking 180 ESC?s and the leopard 4082 but like you said I think this hall is cheap plastic in the boat is a POS! What a disappointment!