just getting serious with FE boats

[dirtslide]

hi i just have a few questions about RC boats and this looks like the best place to get reliable answers.first i have to let you know i have been in the RC hobby for over 20 years and have had 2 or 3 boats but nothing serious ,mostly cars, planes and Helli. last week in picked up a sv27 and love the look and quality of the boat and cant wait to get it in the water. i always hop up my toys right out of the box and then see what they capabilities are so i will give you a list of parts i have installed on my sv27 .trim tab adjusters,latch kit,9720 prop port side fin ,auto bail, and other small items like hatch tape and shaft grease. all ready to go but my big question is can i go lipo or should i start out with nimh which i rarely use anymore on any of my RC . i did pick up two duratrax dtx 4600 stick packs and wonder if they will be to heavy for this craft, i have over 1500 bucks worth of lipos for my off road and on road racing but i know the sv does not have LVC and don't want to ruin any of the lipos .i should mention i have also ordered a lipo safe cut off and will be installing it if i am going to throw in a pair of reedy 2cell 5000 30c lipo .but want some confirmation that this is the right thing to do . thanks in advance for any info and happy water-crafting to you all. ken

[skibo2]

Ken, The SV was designed to use NIMH batteries but Lipos work just fine in the boat. Your GTX 4600's is what I started out using and they were great. I have since switched to Lipos (pair of 2s 5250's) and the boat is fantastic with them. Yes, a LVC is a definite should have. You can run without one but don't over do the run time. My 5250's give me a run time of approx 8 - 10 minutes max. I am not familiar with your choice of prop however, for the stock SV don't exceed a 45mm prop. I use the Octura M-445 and the temps are good. Good luck and I am sure you will be pleased with the performance of the SV.

[dirtslide]

that sounds great Skibo and thanks. the prop is one of Mike's Grim Racer and is 40x52/3 aquacraft#AQUB9720 and is said to be close to stock but alloy instead of plastic .I'll keep the stock one as a spare. and i think your advice is excellent about the batteries i will start out with the nimh and then try the lipos but put the timer on them so as not to over run them at least until the lipo safe shows up then that should solve that problem. i also forgot to mention that i ditched the OEM receiver and installed a spectrum 3100 so i can use my 3pk to control the sv, any thoughts on that , range should not be a issue and size is definitely not so it should work out fine . i would rather have 2.4 than am any day:

[skibo2]

Ken, good choice on the radio. That was one of the first things I did when I got my SV was ditch the AM radio. Am currently using a Futaba 2PL/ FM but thinking of going 2.4 next year.

[egneg]

You will need to sharpen and balance the Grim prop for best performance.

[dirtslide]

thanks egneg ,i just ordered a balancer right now . like this thread states "getting serious about FE boats" ps.skibo, i had the pleasure of spending two weeks in your beautiful state this summer on vacation and cant think of a better place to run RC boats cheers. ken

[egneg]

Glad to hear it. You will definitely have an advantage when you can do your own props (not to mention the cost savings).

[skibo2]

Ken, yes, Florida is great for boating 12 months a year. I am originally from Michigan and I ran RC boats for many years up there and was tied down to only 4 months a year when I could run them. The rest of the time I spent day dreaming about the coming of summer. No more, have been here in FL now for 9 years. I am in central Florida just north of Orlando and our club runs three days a week all year. Our club runs sail, gas and electric boats. I have 8 boats and my favorite is the SV. If, during the long winter where you are, you get the urge to upgrade here is what I am running currently in the SV. Castle Hydra 120 ESC, Fiegao 8XL motor, 42mm two blade prop and a pair of 2s 5250 lipo's. The boat runs in the upper 40 mph range. My Avatar is a gas boat with a modded engine and it runs a consistant 47 mph on GPS and my SV can keep up with it and in the right water the SV is just a little faster.

[dirtslide]

that sounds awesome .I'm now super excited to have bought the sv 27 if someone with 9 or more years of experience likes this boat that much and yes i will be upgrading the power system as well as some of the hardware,i think at that time i will install the brushless system from the sv into the Rio and have two brushless systems