New boater to the electric boating community

[OTHill]

I have recently reintroduced myself to the RC boating hobby with the purchase of a RTR Zelos Cat. I have a great place to run and have made several trips trying to dial in my boat. For now it's mostly OEM And I must admit I'm on the steep side of the learning curve as far as electrics go.

Several years ago...well closer to 20 I ran nitro moters like the K&B .67 (11cc) in two outrigger hydros with exhaust throttles (I'm dating myself) a Prather 46" V hull and a tunnel hull with a K&B 3.5 outboard, also with a tuned exhaust. At the time I lived in Los Angeles so there were several RC boat stored to purchase nitro fuel and other essentials to keep the boats running. I think we ran at Legg Lake but i'm not certain.

Radios were a big problem since the frequencies were a selection of three or four channels and you needed to have a flag on your antennae based in the channel you were running. More than once did I have another radio take control of my boat leading to disaster.

The radios of today seem to be better at descriminating frequencies which is a good thing.

Back to my Zelos, and my several experiences so far at the local lake. So far I am convinced the 6s batteries are the way to go for performance. While I'm having issues with my telemetering which is supposed to give GPS speed, it has failed to do as yet. I have purchased a dedicated GPS which I hope will give me better results... waiting for it to arrive.

Battery location I have found is critical in terms of the center of gravity of the boat. Adjusting the strut angle seems to have minimal effect on the attitude of the boat.

Electric boats have their own set of issues it seems but I'm learning.

On the last visit to the lake I lost the starboard prop ( nut came loose) and the boat made a a hard left into the weeds. New prop on order.

Jim

[fweasel]

The strut position on the Zelos 36 is very critical to how it will run in the water. If you're running two 6S packs, you really don't have much choice but to run them side by side, as far forward as they'll sit in the tray, as most won't clear the hatch lip of the hull. The rest of the tuning is done at the struts. Use a flat edge the runs across the last two ride pads and take measurements down the the flat surface of the strut. You'll see readings in the 3-4mm range. The stock props are quite dull, and an Octura style prop, so they tend to lift the back of the hull. As a result, you don't need negative trim and would be best served to start with a neutral setting, or possibly dialing in a little positive trim (distance from your straight edge would increase). Be sure both struts are set exactly the same and make small changes between test runs. A good crash will most often knock at least one strut out of adjustment, so it's good practice to check the settings every run.

Have fun!

[1coopgt]

Is yours the Zelos 36 twin ? I picked one up in January . I'm still waiting to get it into the water. Sorry to here you lost a prop.

[RaceMechaniX]

Welcome Jim to OSE. Where abouts in AL are you?

If you ran at Legg lake years ago you might remember the Grims, Mark and Kim. They have moved to the Huntsville area and have a thriving club.

Tyler

[OTHill]

I don't remember the Grims but I have followed the Huntsville group and they have a large membership. I'm located just south of Birmingham and there's not much RC boat activity in my area. Especially where performance boats are concerned. The local lake where I run is owned by the City and the caretaker is supportive of starting a club or just some informal racing. Don't know how to get that started.

[OTHill]

Yes you are right the 6s packs wont clear the hatch lip so the forward movement is limited. I plan to try four 3s packs, two per side running in series for 6s. These will allow forward movement right up to the foam in the bow. The 6s packs really make the Zelos scream but with the COG too far back the boat bounces and almost blew over a couple of times. I was able to get out of the throttle fast enough to prevent the blowover.

I have several props, two ABC and one Octura which I have sharpened, balanced and polished. The OEM Zelos props are ok with 3s packs but are poor performers with 6s packs. More throttle time is needed