H&M Hydro Performance?

[10gauge]

... Hey you two, it must be the Australian connection?!
Paddy & Andym, if you have pictures, that would be great. I agree, H&M hulls are gernerally very light and strong. Thanks for the COG starting point.

Someone mentioned that at speeds above 50mph the Lobster and XzessII hydros are twitchy unless it's on very smooth water since the sponsons are mechanically attached to the hull and are inflexible at absorbing any chop. How smooth was the water for you to hit 75mph? These are fantastic speeds...

[10gauge]

It seems that the H&M Lobster may have more room at the front. But it is less sleek compared to the XzessII. As far as the XzessIII goes, you can't mount any HW on the transom, unless you epoxy an adjoining connector... That will surely break off after the first flip over!

I think that the H&M Lobster and XzessII are the way to go. Are you guys using Speedmaster HW?

[andym]

Yes I read that on RRR and in my opinion it is bull*!***!***!***!**. The sponsons are held with carbon booms through glass tubes. Yes the body goes over these but only for the looks. The xs2 has quite a bit of flex in this area and I have run it very fast on what could only desrcribed as poor water conditions. When set up well they skim over the lumps and ride flat and true. As a matter of interest my Whiplash sport 20 can not run as well on chop at slightly lower speeds.
I started with the Solinger hydro set up and then changed to a mix of Fullers rudder and speedmaster strut. The solinger was nice to look at but the rudder floged out on the pin very quickly. The adjustment verticaly that I could get on the Fullers rudder was a big help in setting the hull up well.

[10gauge]

That's reassuring to know! If the XzessII is doing comparatively well against a proven sport hydro like the Whiplash, then that's saying a lot. I am looking forward to building one of these real soon. Thanks for sharing your experience with this rigger.

[andym]

Not a problem and I think Paddy will chip in with some pics soon, hopefuly of the rigger and not himself!

[Xzessperated]

At 75mph I never run on anything more than a slight ripple. You never know when a breeze coming from the wrong direction will pick the nose of the boat up at that speed and you are entering into a speed area that can break boats if they hit the water the wrong way.
I also read that comment on RRR and I can not agree with it. These little hulls handle well if setup right.

[Xzessperated]

I will do some pics at work tonight and post them tomorrow

[10gauge]

And thank you too, Paddy. It's great to hear that you guys are doing warp 2 with these setups.

On the FDM site, it appears that the XzessII has those internal rods you mentioned which may allow better flexure in the sponsons. The Lobster Hydro doesn't flex around any rods, it's a bonded epoxy attachment.

I'd love to see some pictures, whenever you get the chance... Great food for thought here, guys!...

[Ub Hauled]

I own a Lobster, she's getting big, I may cook her soon...
LOL
just kidding, my Lobster is not completely ready for water yet, I need a little more
painting (window & turbine) and a good clear over it... I have a 1521/1D that will find
home there, the problem will be fitting the cells in it. I think it'll be 3s1p for now.

[10gauge]

Lobster bake?... I'll be there! :)
Ub, that 1521/1D is a monster of a motor on amps. What are the dimensions up front? I am wondering if a 4S1P/5000/25C can fit on these hydros?...

[Xzessperated]

Here are the pictures of the mod that lets you run up to a 6s battery in an Xs2. The battery will also slide almost to the nose with this mod so it gives you much more control over COG.



You can see Andy has cut the front CF boom and is holding it in place with some strong ply that is glued to the main hull



The next thing Andy has done is to cut out a section of soft drink bottle in the shape of an air dams and double sided taped them to the sponson spreaders.





I have purchased this hull off Andy and have driven it at 65mph and there is no sign of blow over with these air dams added. In my first Xs2 I added 3 fishing sinkers in the nose of the boat to do the same thing.
If you need more pics of anything to do with Xs2 or Xs3 let me know. Only too happy to help.

[10gauge]

Fantastic photos Paddy! This really helps demystify the whole process. By the way, how did you end up with the strut end in terms of height, angle? Did you find it necessary to mount it centerline or slightly to the right to correct for any propwalk? If it's not much trouble, do have a photo of the rear of the hydro?

I am thinking of using 0.150 flex and ultimately a 1515/1Y and 4S/5000/25C in 1P. It's nice to see that there is some versatility for space in dialing in the right COG.

Thanks again.

[Xzessperated]

Fantastic photos Paddy! This really helps demystify the whole process. By the way, how did you end up with the strut end in terms of height, angle? Did you find it necessary to mount it centerline or slightly to the right to correct for any propwalk? If it's not much trouble, do have a photo of the rear of the hydro?

I am thinking of using 0.150 flex and ultimately a 1515/1Y and 4S/5000/25C in 1P. It's nice to see that there is some versatility for space in dialing in the right COG.

Thanks again.

COG is important in all boats but at these speed it is very important to stop blow overs and damage to the hull.

I got a picture of the transom side on but forgot to take one end on. I will do that later. The bottom of the strut is 20mm below the bottom of the hull. It is best to start at 0 degrees for angle. You might play with the angle but I think you will return to somewhere near 0 degrees. As you can see there is nothing trick about the hardware.

[ksm2001]

Like the pop bottle spoilers to keep the nose down will definitely try that in the spring, thanks Andy and Paddy. 10 gauge here is an inside shot of how I set mine up, just some more info for you. I took the Rx pack out the back due to the cg and am using a ubec or can put it up front to add some weight but like the idea of the pop bottle, cool.

Ken

[andym]

You can see from the pic of the yelow one that the rudder is kicked out at the bottom by a few degree's. You will find that this induces some lift to help with blow overs and also puts downward pressure on the inside sponson during a turn, this helps keeping it planted and the turn fin hooked up so as to turn well. Ksm2001 I would run my motor a bit further forward than you have, what is the CoG like?