***INTRODUCING*** The AquaCraft UL-1 Superior Fe Hydro RTR 2.4

[eboat]

I think I will wait to buy mine second hand just like the super vee
everybody has to have one now but watch a year from now they will be selling for less than 1/2 from all the people that thought they knew what they were doing (first timers) and it just did not work out

[Meniscus]

Was that an antenna? I thought......never mind.

[tylerm]

Was that an antenna? I thought......never mind.

Look at the transmitter in brians hand, not the tactic is it?
As long as the join on the hull is better than the supervees its a step in the right direction.
Tyler.

[FE Wannabe]

Hey Tony,

Did Mark Grim let Brian run it through the lights? If so what was time/speed?

[JimClark]

Of course not he is part of the Futaba Team

Jim

Look at the transmitter in brians hand, not the tactic is it?
As long as the join on the hull is better than the supervees its a step in the right direction.
Tyler.

[properchopper]

re :

...But I still think this boat is too aggresive for a newbie. They will try to run it in bad conditions, as I have stated before
Douggie

I had to think about this comment for a moment, and while my first instinct was to disagree,I now beleive there's a good deal of truth to it [if not somewhat painful to the "first-timer" as mentioned in a previous post].
I beleive it's a matter of perspective ; today the general consensus among the SAW guys was that the boat is very good and can spawn some really good racing. But understand that this crowd is made up of national record holders who know how to fine tune things, and well comprehend the dynamics of running in racewater. But here's the good news to the newbie : this boat was designed by the best FE racers around; the layout is simple and appears bulletproof. I'm of the opinion that much of the tweaking was done before the final design was set in cement. I've personally held off building a hydro because of my lack of "hydro tuning " skill, but I'm lining up for one of these knowing it'll be as close to "plug-and-play" as it gets.
There, I've said it. Im going to bed because tomorrow the records are under attack & I'm gonna go & get my @ss kicked by the best !

[properchopper]

re :

Hey Tony,

Did Mark Grim let Brian run it through the lights? If so what was time/speed?

Brian was pretty focused on his riggers, and the lights were being triggered a lot by the Legg ducklings [ would you believe a 230 mph pass by a p-mono ? Calm down Joerg, it was the ducks screwing with the lights]. Tomorrow's another day. !

[FE Wannabe]

Brian was pretty focused on his riggers, and the lights were being triggered a lot by the Legg ducklings [ would you believe a 230 mph pass by a p-mono ? Calm down Joerg, it was the ducks screwing with the lights]. Tomorrow's another day. !

I hope to get out there tomorrow and maybe Sunday to check it out first hand. It looks like I should maybe bring my semi-auto 12 gauge, to improve the accuracy of the SAW times!
LOL- Just Kidding for those PETA freaks out there.

[Bill-SOCAL]

For the record Brian got the boat without the radio. He installed his Futaba 3PK 2.4 FASST radio in it. The 3PK retains the 75 MHz antenna on it, so hence his transmitter has an antenna.

BTW - I am curious why anyone would think that Mark Grim decides who can run what boats. The only restriction at this event is that it must be a FE boat. If you paid your entry fee and are a NAMBA member (required to run on this lake) then you can run whatever you want to run. ANd besides, this boat qualifies as a P Sport Hydro and fits perfectly into the SAWS event.

As far as the ducks go, I have been authorized to bring a nasty noisy gas boat out for the sole purpose of making that part of the pond inhospitable for the ducks. I guess that makes me the scarecrow of sorts!!

[Meniscus]

Thanks for the clarification on the radio. Curiosity got the best of me and figured I'd ask.

[FE Wannabe]

For the record Brian got the boat without the radio. He installed his Futaba 3PK 2.4 FASST radio in it. The 3PK retains the 75 MHz antenna on it, so hence his transmitter has an antenna.

BTW - I am curious why anyone would think that Mark Grim decides who can run what boats. The only restriction at this event is that it must be a FE boat. If you paid your entry fee and are a NAMBA member (required to run on this lake) then you can run whatever you want to run. ANd besides, this boat qualifies as a P Sport Hydro and fits perfectly into the SAWS event.

As far as the ducks go, I have been authorized to bring a nasty noisy gas boat out for the sole purpose of making that part of the pond inhospitable for the ducks. I guess that makes me the scarecrow of sorts!!

I guess I chose the wrong wording regarding my questioning if Brian had run this boat in a top speed run or not. I did not mean to imply that Mark Grim says who can and can't make a SAW attempt. I just assumed he was the person timing it.

[AndyKunz]

I was at I-Hobby and got to hold and look at the boats. I like the concept - a race-able hydro that has the availability of the Blackjack and SV27. The conceptual design of the boat is great (fantastically open hatch area, sealed tub design) and it will work well for third parties (Randy, are you listening) to make more scale-like and better-looking hatch covers/cockpits for it.

OTOH, I was not especially impressed by the quality of the glass work. The fit of the rear wings into the deck left a lot to be desired, as did the overall quality of the glass. The hatch area, while great for racing, makes for a crappy appearance. They did do a great job at filling the hull/deck seam, but there were voids that I would want to fill before painting it. Why paint? The color did not have the "depth" that I like to see in a boat. If you compare it to a Proboat hydro side by side, you will definitely see a MAJOR difference. The boats will probably race well, but they'll not hold their own at the Concours judging (just as important to me, personally, for Sport hulls).

Another good thing coming out of this entry is the spare parts. I spoke with Mike about availability of the aluminum hardware and he assured me all these black cold anodized items will be available separately (probably Parts Express due to small size!). That in itself should be a big plus for electric racers everywhere.

All said, I praise Mark and AC for getting this to market. I hope it spurs some great competitive boats from other companies. Ready to race hydros for the LSH class is a great selling point. I hope they can grow electric boat racing as a result.

Andy

[Meniscus]

OK, I see the sealed tub. Does anyone know if there is float foam in there?

Thank you in advance for input.

[Bill-SOCAL]

No idea, but I saw the boat blow over at least three times yesterday and it floated fine all 3 times. It is a sealed up hull so I doubt there is any foam in there or any way to put foam in unless you made a hole and sprayed in expanding foam (which I do not think is either required or a good idea).

As far as Andy's comments, come on, it is $330 out the door ready to run with a 2.4 radio. Does it have the fit and finish of a boat whose hull cost that much alone? No. But for the price point the boat looks great, especially if it will be beat up racing or being banged around for sport running.

[Bill-SOCAL]

Thanks for the clarification on the radio. Curiosity got the best of me and figured I'd ask.

No worries. The stock radio is very interesting. I don't know anything about it beyond that it does not use the Futaba FASST which is patented. But it is a FHSS system like FASST and has been tested extensively by Mike Z and others at AQ.