** New Zelos 48 Brushless Large Scale Cat From Pro Boat**

[Jesse Flovin]

Temps are great, slightly warm to the touch no biggie. Here's a full speed pass on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/jFweqIQ8WJY

[Jesse Flovin]

The throttle trim knob will re calibrate when the esc is powered up, Regardless the position set. That's not going to get the speed ur looking for. The smaller of the two factory props is only good for just over 50mph or so, I found my electronics were hotter due to running higher throttle position on average. Plus the 48mm prop seems to have a ton of cavitation or slippage until higher speeds when the boat catches up with rpms.

[IRON-PAWW]

*Somethings* up with this new hull of mine. I've just gotten a mere 46mph setting the boat up the same as I had the previous hulls. I tried the same prop as before - the 48mm 1.4 pitch where I previously got 56mph (91km/h). Then today I tried a 48mm 1.6 pitch prop. That got me 1-2mph extra (to get the 46mph) but not much more. I should at least be able to get close to what I had before surely. Next I have OSE's own 48mm 3 blade CNC to try as well as some 52&53mm 2 bladers. But I figure if something's off I want to get that sorted first. Same batts as before.

Only thing I notice is that the boat's rear end does seem to really dig down and wallow in the turns, almost like it's dragging something, then the boat takes a bit to pick up speed again. Strut is fully extended (lowered down) at the limit of adjustment and with neutral angle. Seems I might need to lift the rear some more with this hull.

I got nowhere near as much oomph as you have Jesse. Nice lake there. Those cattle enjoyed the show!! :-)

[Chado2448]

I'm in the same boat as you PAWW ( pardon the pun ). I've adjusted the strut and battery position a million different ways and it is still bouncing terribly. Can some one share a pic or two of their strut placement? Here a video of mine, it does the same thing no matter what adjustments I make, glass or chop, don't make a difference.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=91JUEfyzOw0

[Rafael_Lopez]

I'm in the same boat as you PAWW ( pardon the pun ). I've adjusted the strut and battery position a million different ways and it is still bouncing terribly. Can some one share a pic or two of their strut placement? Here a video of mine, it does the same thing no matter what adjustments I make, glass or chop, don't make a difference.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=91JUEfyzOw0

This doesn't look like bounce to me. This looks like prop walk. What prop are you using? Is it perfectly balanced? The boat seems to be twisting to the left and then dropping, causing what seems like a bounce. I saw that when developing the boat with large props or unbalanced props; or both.

[Darin Jordan]

This doesn't look like bounce to me. This looks like prop walk. What prop are you using? Is it perfectly balanced? The boat seems to be twisting to the left and then dropping, causing what seems like a bounce. I saw that when developing the boat with large props or unbalanced props; or both.

Unsharpened props or dull leading edge props will do this as well...

[Rafael_Lopez]

Yup, thanks Darin. A dull prop will definitely do that as well.

[IRON-PAWW]

I've only ever had bounce like that at speed. In the 40's where I am now I only get a little bounce after long straight runs, but nothing too serious. Had it way back when I had my strut set too high as well. The prop walk I had looked sort of like a twisting motion - where one of the sponsons always seemed to dig in at the front and the whole hull just appeard to angle down on that spot and then jump back, exactly as Rafael also describes. Pretty much all my cnc props have needed some sharpening in the least. Some are actually quite dull along the leading edges of the blades. Close to the hub/centre in particular. But maybe just try a cnc prop if you have one to see if it makes a difference, generally they aren't too bad right out of the wrapping. Not perfect but good enough for a little testing.

[Rafael_Lopez]

Bouncing up and down is one thing, usually a CG issue or a prop with too much rake. Twisting like that, causing the bounce is prop walk.

[Tango Whiskey]

Hi, Rafael --
I'm new to FE boats (but not to RC, having played with many nitro planes, cars, and boats in the past), and just bought this Zelos 48. I'm not experienced enough to know how to tweak the boat for best performance, but it looks to be running very well as-is to me. After installing the rudder and antenna tube, greasing the drive cable, centering all the control trims on the Rx, and hooking up two 4S 5000mah 50C packs (positioning the packs as far forward as possible), I've done absolutely nothing to it. It's running the prop as-is right out of the box, with the strut position as it came out of the box. I haven't sharpened, polished or other wise modified the prop or rudder. I'm using the smaller prop that was already installed on it and haven't tried the larger prop. It seems to be gliding along the water at what I would consider the proper attitude and doesn't bounce. I have no idea what speed I'm getting and really don't care, as it's plenty fast for me, and impressed the heck out of bystanders at the lake. It corners very nicely, way better than I expected. If I had to guess by comparing it to the many videos I've seen of this and other boats, I'd say it's probably running around its advertised 55 mph speed. It wouldn't surprise me at all if it was exceeding that on full throttle straights. After 5-6 min run time, the esc and motor are both barely warm to touch, and the batt packs are warmer but not what I would consider hot. All components -- electronics, motor, batts, prop -- seem very well matched to the boat to me, but again, I'm new to the FE boat world, so I lack the experience of others here.

What I can say for certain is I am very pleased with the Zelos 48 and am really enjoying it so far! I realize no product is perfect and it's evident from this thread that some have shipped with problems. It appears from my untrained eye that mine was among the good ones, as I have looked it over carefully and construction and finish on mine appears to be flawless.

My only minor complaint is I wish the front edge of the cowl was secured by something more substantial than a small pin. I do use tape on the seam after installing the cowl, but I would still prefer the front edge of the cowl be secured by a ledge of some sort with more surface area of engagement. I'm afraid the small pin might eventually cause hull cracking around its mating hole due to repeated shock loads from bouncing along waves. I will probably glue some sort of lip that slides under the hatch opening to better secure that area.

Thanks for putting so much thought into this boat's development, sir!

[Rafael_Lopez]

Hi, Rafael --
I'm new to FE boats (but not to RC, having played with many nitro planes, cars, and boats in the past), and just bought this Zelos 48. I'm not experienced enough to know how to tweak the boat for best performance, but it looks to be running very well as-is to me. After installing the rudder and antenna tube, greasing the drive cable, centering all the control trims on the Rx, and hooking up two 4S 5000mah 50C packs (positioning the packs as far forward as possible), I've done absolutely nothing to it. It's running the prop as-is right out of the box, with the strut position as it came out of the box. I haven't sharpened, polished or other wise modified the prop or rudder. I'm using the smaller prop that was already installed on it and haven't tried the larger prop. It seems to be gliding along the water at what I would consider the proper attitude and doesn't bounce. I have no idea what speed I'm getting and really don't care, as it's plenty fast for me, and impressed the heck out of bystanders at the lake. It corners very nicely, way better than I expected. If I had to guess by comparing it to the many videos I've seen of this and other boats, I'd say it's probably running around its advertised 55 mph speed. It wouldn't surprise me at all if it was exceeding that on full throttle straights. After 5-6 min run time, the esc and motor are both barely warm to touch, and the batt packs are warmer but not what I would consider hot. All components -- electronics, motor, batts, prop -- seem very well matched to the boat to me, but again, I'm new to the FE boat world, so I lack the experience of others here.

What I can say for certain is I am very pleased with the Zelos 48 and am really enjoying it so far! I realize no product is perfect and it's evident from this thread that some have shipped with problems. It appears from my untrained eye that mine was among the good ones, as I have looked it over carefully and construction and finish on mine appears to be flawless.

My only minor complaint is I wish the front edge of the cowl was secured by something more substantial than a small pin. I do use tape on the seam after installing the cowl, but I would still prefer the front edge of the cowl be secured by a ledge of some sort with more surface area of engagement. I'm afraid the small pin might eventually cause hull cracking around its mating hole due to repeated shock loads from bouncing along waves. I will probably glue some sort of lip that slides under the hatch opening to better secure that area.

Thanks for putting so much thought into this boat's development, sir!

Thanks for the good words. In reality usually the few that have problems are the ones that end up on the web, in forums like this which is why I and Darin choose to make ourselves available. I can assure we have sold plenty of boats and not every owner is in this thread, or on the internet for that matter, reporting problems or possible issues they cant seem to sort out. Those people are usually out enjoying the product. This comment has absolutely nothing to do with those having issues. I'm simply stating that when things go well, we usually never hear about it. Its usually when people experience issues that we hit the web in search of someone else experiencing the same thing and try and learn how to solve that issue.

[Tango Whiskey]

I'm really impressed with it, Rafael! It's the first "ready to run" RC product I've bought that I didn't feel a bunch of cost concessions were made. This boat appears to have quality components and build quality throughout. The hull has a solid feel to it. The finish is certainly better than I expected too, and paint jobs are not among my strengths, so I'm especially pleased with that! Time will tell, but it looks to be built to last.

I really appreciate Darin and your participation here! It's good to know I have a place to go for excellent feedback quickly in the event I ever have problems.

[Chado2448]

This doesn't look like bounce to me. This looks like prop walk. What prop are you using? Is it perfectly balanced? The boat seems to be twisting to the left and then dropping, causing what seems like a bounce. I saw that when developing the boat with large props or unbalanced props; or both.

I'm running a cnc 4814, I'm going to swap the factory prop back on and give it another go. On the bright side it did finally hit 50 on that run! Thanks for all the words of wisdom guys, I'll get this thing dialed in soon enough.

[Rafael_Lopez]

Some insight on stock props for projects that I've been involved with, I balance the prop before sending the sample off to the vendor to copy for mass production. They make adjustments to the mold as necessary which throws off the balance of the props a little. For the most part, you don't need hours or work to get the prop balanced, but I would suggest you balance and sharpen your prop to both extend your strut bushing's life and get optimal performance from your boat. One does not need to be an expert to do it. A balancer and a set of jewelers files can be had for less than what you would pay for someone to do the job for you. Even CNC props can require balance and I know for a fact the leading edge is usually very blunt. One some, the root of the leading edge is almost square.

[lucdesorel]

Have you had the chance to run on 6 cell? What speed did you get with both prop?