TFL Hobbies "Popeye" Hydro: P-Sport Hydro

[Jlov]

So something like this angle on the turn fin Slo? Did your CF Popeye come yet?

[flraptor07]

So something like this angle on the turn fin Slo? Did your CF Popeye come yet?

That looks pretty good Jeff, give it a try.

[SloHD]

So something like this angle on the turn fin Slo? Did your CF Popeye come yet?

To be honest it looks like a little too much, but I would try it out and see how it is. I should have my hull middle of next month. I already have all my equipment and hardware for the build though.

[ron1950]

man you guys are putting way too much into this thing..if your turn fin is straight and the cg is anywhere near correct it will run stable even I have made mine work pretty well....if u put a much heavyer motor in the stock motor mount position then your cg will be way back of where it needs to be....then we all put a huge prop on it and it does wheelies on the prop cause the weight is way back .... I got the cg close to where it needs to be but still is a bit light in the nose....next fix would be to move the motor about 3 inches forward....

[tlandauer]

I am by no means an expert, but I am convinced that the hops ( in a general sense) have alot to do with the speed the boat is traveling at and the angle of attack that is built-in on the sponson. The shape of the bottom, how the air goes thru, etc., etc. Also if two sponson ride pads ( AOA) are not unified, you will have rocking hops.
I acquired a hydro with very pronounced AOA, with a UL-1 fin it rocked ( left-right-left) quite obviously, I tried a few different turn fins: Miss Vegas Deuce, Venom Miss Excite and the little TFL one, my observation was that when I had some nice chops on the water, the chops want to send BOTH sponsons up at the same time, but with the speed that the boat is traveling, the curved part of the fin is holding the starboard sponson down, so I see the portside gets tossed up. This got me thinking of making a straight fin myself, I used G-10 FG and cut one up, the problem was gone instantly.
This may not be applicable to all situation, but with that specific hull and the modification that was done by the previous owner, it was the best solution which I found.
DSCN1167_4689.jpg DSCN1172_4714.jpg DSCN1173_4715.jpg DSCN1178_4720.jpgDSCN1177_4719.jpg

Doby, I don't mean to go off topic, but this has me perplexed for quite sometime, I said this to invite people with REAL knowledge to enlighten me, thanks for putting up with me here.

[tlandauer]

man you guys are putting way too much into this thing..if your turn fin is straight and the cg is anywhere near correct it will run stable even I have made mine work pretty well....if u put a much heavyer motor in the stock motor mount position then your cg will be way back of where it needs to be....then we all put a huge prop on it and it does wheelies on the prop cause the weight is way back .... I got the cg close to where it needs to be but still is a bit light in the nose....next fix would be to move the motor about 3 inches forward....

Ron, sorry, I know it is long winded and I agree with you, but I just want to have some educated opinion on that issue that I had.

[ron1950]

not a problem at all we all need to copy doby's boat and no problems

[Doby]

I just need to bet them back on the damn water..want to check out the mods I made over the winter.

[Fluid]

Guys, hooked turn fins just need to be set at the correct angle for the particular hull to eliminate hopping. This may take some experimentation, starting with the fin rotated 'too far back', then rotating it forward a little at a time until the hopping goes away. Go too far and it will begin again. This is really pretty basic tuning for 'most all curved fins, yet it seems to be kept a secret. I've found that what the fin angle "looks like" is often not what is actually required. It depends on the hull, the CG, the prop, the depth of the strut and the actual running aoa of the hull. It may be slightly different on two identical hulls. Sometimes rotating the fin less than one degree can make a big difference.

A couple club members were having this issue with their ML hydros running curved fins. They screwed around with strut depth, CG etc. but could not get the rocking/hopping to go away. I had told them to change the fin angle but "they knew better". Finally after weeks of wasted time they tried it, and the hopping was gone in both boats. There could be other causes like warped sponson bottoms, but if you're running a curved fin spend some quality time with your hydro rotating it until the hopping stops.


Or if you know better, then just ignore the above.
.

[tlandauer]

Guys, hooked turn fins just need to be set at the correct angle for the particular hull to eliminate hopping. This may take some experimentation, starting with the fin rotated 'too far back', then rotating it forward a little at a time until the hopping goes away. Go too far and it will begin again. This is really pretty basic tuning for 'most all curved fins, yet it seems to be kept a secret. I've found that what the fin angle "looks like" is often not what is actually required. It depends on the hull, the CG, the prop, the depth of the strut and the actual running aoa of the hull. It may be slightly different on two identical hulls. Sometimes rotating the fin less than one degree can make a big difference.

A couple club members were having this issue with their ML hydros running curved fins. They screwed around with strut depth, CG etc. but could not get the rocking/hopping to go away. I had told them to change the fin angle but "they knew better". Finally after weeks of wasted time they tried it, and the hopping was gone in both boats. There could be other causes like warped sponson bottoms, but if you're running a curved fin spend some quality time with your hydro rotating it until the hopping stops.


Or if you know better, then just ignore the above.
.

Thanks, Fluid, was hoping to get some advice from you!

[ron1950]

jay has forgot more then ill ever know ..thanks jay

btw would a straight fin be better off or what?

[Jlov]

Awesome everyone. Did a few runs and adjustments each time and the hop and bounce is now gone. Thanks Slo,I turned it just slightly clockwise on the last run and that was perfect. You were right it was too far forward at first.

This thread is now 29 pages long of which about 20 I've been around for. Would never have been able to build or run properly this Popeye without this thread. Great thx to all who have helped me along the way.

Tim,my Dad once told me "the only stupid or long winded questions are the ones that never get asked". I have heeded that advice for along time and benefitted greatly from it. I like you feel hesitant at times to ask questions but their are a bunch of extremely knowledgable people on here that always seem willing to help. Glad to be a member here.

I'm starting a Daytona twin build this weekend and will really be counting on members here for that build......

[tlandauer]

Jeff, it took me three years to get where I am at, and only 20 pages for you!
Now start a new thread on your Daytona twin build!

[Jlov]

Lol Tim, I have joined a build thread that Nate started for the Daytona twin build. Ran the Popeye some again last night. It has been windy here and keep getting choppy water to run on. Flipped it and servo holder broke free. Have a question for anyone. Seems every time I have a flip something I have epoxied breaks free from hull. I am using 5 min epoxy from LHS. Is there something that bonds better? I'm sanding area of hull each time before I epoxy but still no help. Does adding milled fiberglass help in bonding? Or something else I can do? Thx Jeff

[ray schrauwen]

Yes, Jeff there is a better Santa Claus... er, glue...

I know MAS makes a small kit with their epoxy and all I use is their 24 hour glue. Others like West Systems etc. are just as good, you just have to wait longer for it to cure. It's worth the wait, nothing will pop out in most cases.