EKOS clone and upgrade questions.

[JPriami]

I ordered a Dragon Saga cat from the UK this week. I did a bunch of looking around to find the specs of everything and now I might be heading for trouble. because I was originally going to buy the new EKOS with the new outrunners. at that time I ordered new lipos for the boat and 36mm machine props by venom. But I ended up getting this other boat thats a clone of it because I liked the paint better because its not the EKOS paint job like everyone else has. So I want to know whats best or has been proven to work best to upgrade things like the motors in the EKOS boats.

Here is a couple pics of the boat.




Specs:
Length - 820mm
Width - 240mm
Weight - 2400g
Speed Controller - 2x 70 Amp Water Cooled (Included)
Servos - 1 (Included)
Motor - 2x Water Cooled 2636kv brushless (Included)
Battery - 2x 11.1v 2100 - 4500Mah Lipo (Not Included)
Hull Material - Fibreglass (FRP). Propeller - D36 x P1.4
--
The ESC's are 70 amp

Specs:
Type - Water Cooled
Voltage - 7.4 - 22.2v (2 - 6 cells lipo)
BEC - 5.5v @ 4 amp
Battery Connector - T-Style
--
The motors are Feisuda 380 2848-2636Kv

Specs:
15 Turn
27 Amp
0.0341 Resistance
2636 Kv
0.9 I0(A)

When I ordered my lipos I was thinking I would be gettin gthe EKOS. I ordered Hyperion EX 3S 5000mAh 45C packs

Now after finding the motor specs, well I'm worried I will smoke those motors running my packs. Because they are only rated for 27 amps. Am I right to figure that’s a problem? I am not buying smaller lipo packs lol. But I will try to buy better motors. What would be the best replacement motors that will drop in without too much modding and give me much more speed and even turn a bigger prop if I have to. I am thinking I maybe buying new esc's at some point if i kill these. wont know till I cross that brigde.

[JPriami]

I see these motors are a good upgrade. Are they a drop in replacement or a little work needed? If so what all is needed to complete? And can you turn a larger prop with these?

But 9xl or 10xl better for 3-4S lipos? because I may try to get 4S if I cant get this thing to break 50mph on 3S

Where are you guys getting the wire drives from? I seen them one night in a search but didnt save it on this pc.

[LarrysDrifter]

Read the SeaKing 120esc thread and others.There will be all the info you can ever need on upgrading these hulls.And 9xl's and 10xl's are good motors that bolt right in.Youll be spending alot of money on this to get good speed out of it.Wire drives and other drive hardware is from rcraceboats.com.click on the EKOS part and youll be there.Be sure you read up on things before you buy.

[LarrysDrifter]

One more thing-66 mph is the top mile per hour that needs to be broken here with that hull.Good luck.

[Rumdog]

the main thing you'll need to do is make sure that the props are counter rotating. Spinning toward each other. In the pics, they are not counter rotating. Yhis will require a right hand flex and clockwise spinning prop, or wire drives.

[JPriami]

Thanks. I will inspect the flex cables when get it. I have a pair of counter rotating 36 mm props for it that came the other day

[JPriami]

from that pic of the boat props it looks like i will need a right hand flex cable to use my counter rotation props right? I just want a 2nd opnion before i order

[Rumdog]

Yep, if it comes like in the pics, you'll need a right hand flex.

[LarrysDrifter]

Or use wire drives.I have them in my EKOS,works good.

[JPriami]

Im going to try and get the wire drives. I just need to sell some of the stuff I dont use to reinvest in this area of the hobby lol. this keeps me out of trouble with the ole lady

[LarrysDrifter]

Im going to try and get the wire drives. I just need to sell some of the stuff I dont use to reinvest in this area of the hobby lol. this keeps me out of trouble with the ole lady

You ainta kiddin there.I have about $600 in my EKOS upgrading everything.But now its fast and fun.Untill I wreked bad Monday.Went 66mph and got air.You can get wires from rcraceboat.som.They go right in.Should be the same for your boat as the EKOS.

[JPriami]

awe man sorry about the accident. 66mph thats sweet for this boat
did you find the best props for your setup yet or did you have time to play around with diffrent props?

[LarrysDrifter]

awe man sorry about the accident. 66mph thats sweet for this boat
did you find the best props for your setup yet or did you have time to play around with diffrent props?

I ran 442's on it for the speed runs.Temps were 117 degrees on motors and speedos.The best props I ran were 38mm from Kintec.They can be found on the EKOS upgrades section.Dont over speed this hull.IMO,dont go faster than 50-55mph.Mine with the 38's was at 56mph.Make sure you slow down to turn.I just tore my hull down.It is gone.I found a lot of cracks that go all the way through the hull.On top of the major break.Just be careful when running top speed with your china hull.They are cool and look nice,but are thin and flimsy.Look around on the Venom King of Shaves threads-you will find a lot of info as far as upgrades for yours.I dont know for a fact,but Im pretty sure you have the same hull,just painted different.Good luck with yours and post pics and tell us what your doing with it.Ill be on the search for a new hull.

[JPriami]

I ran 442's on it for the speed runs.Temps were 117 degrees on motors and speedos.The best props I ran were 38mm from Kintec.They can be found on the EKOS upgrades section.Dont over speed this hull.IMO,dont go faster than 50-55mph.Mine with the 38's was at 56mph.Make sure you slow down to turn.I just tore my hull down.It is gone.I found a lot of cracks that go all the way through the hull.On top of the major break.Just be careful when running top speed with your china hull.They are cool and look nice,but are thin and flimsy.Look around on the Venom King of Shaves threads-you will find a lot of info as far as upgrades for yours.I dont know for a fact,but Im pretty sure you have the same hull,just painted different.Good luck with yours and post pics and tell us what your doing with it.Ill be on the search for a new hull.

Thanks for all your input and advice. I'll keep things updated here as I go along. right now im waiting on the boat its coming from the UK it shipped out today. In the mean time im researching the upgrade options and making my list. My lipos came today so thats was nice to get.

[scubasteve95]

[QUOTE=JPriami;217126]I ordered a Dragon Saga cat from the UK this week. I did a bunch of looking around to find the specs of everything and now I might be heading for trouble. because I was originally going to buy the new EKOS with the new outrunners. at that time I ordered new lipos for the boat and 36mm machine props by venom. But I ended up getting this other boat thats a clone of it because I liked the paint better because its not the EKOS paint job like everyone else has. So I want to know whats best or has been proven to work best to upgrade things like the motors in the EKOS boats.

Here is a couple pics of the boat.

Specs:
Length - 820mm
Width - 240mm
Weight - 2400g
Speed Controller - 2x 70 Amp Water Cooled (Included)
Servos - 1 (Included)
Motor - 2x Water Cooled 2636kv brushless (Included)
Battery - 2x 11.1v 2100 - 4500Mah Lipo (Not Included)
Hull Material - Fibreglass (FRP). Propeller - D36 x P1.4
--
The ESC's are 70 amp

Specs:
Type - Water Cooled
Voltage - 7.4 - 22.2v (2 - 6 cells lipo)
BEC - 5.5v @ 4 amp
Battery Connector - T-Style
--
The motors are Feisuda 380 2848-2636Kv

Specs:
15 Turn
27 Amp
0.0341 Resistance
2636 Kv
0.9 I0(A)

When I ordered my lipos I was thinking I would be gettin gthe EKOS. I ordered Hyperion EX 3S 5000mAh 45C packs

these packs will work just fine....keep it stock and run her.
3s-4500 or 3s 5000mah no real diff.
motors are less kv then the ekos...thats good
nice paint....makes me want to sand and paint my ekos

[scubasteve95]

o yea..1 more thing
cat is 2" shorter than ekos make sure inerts are the same dimensions.
just to be safe.......
check the flex first may be ok...mite just have wrong prop for pics...
seen it done before to club member
again nice cat...good choice..saw this first but
was out of stock so ordered the ekos...love this boat
but now i hate the paint....off i go to to get some sandpaper

[VIKOS]

Well since it is a replica and since I'm the only one around with this hull paint scheme..I love my paint. those motors look to be better suited than the Venom motors..and your esc is probably better than ours. I have no problem running 4s lipo on my esc nor issues. Its says 2-6s lipo might want a low mah if you go more than 4s. I also got a couple of hair line cracks none are break thru hull so I just used marine hair line filler,and some of my epoxy glue on the left side front. put your mouth to it and suck..no homo.... if you suck in air the nyou have a break thru. I don't want to hit 66mph in this hull I see bad things happening. I'll be happy at 50-55 mph all day every day set up.

[JPriami]

Thanks for the tips.
Let me ask a question. For those of you experiencing cracks in your boat. Have you thought about reinforcing the hull a little bit with an extra layer of epoxy resin. Or apply fiberglass matt where you are finding the cracks with the resin. Or maybe a layer of carbon fiber with resin in the problematic ares?

[JPriami]

fei-380-xL
Feigao 380xl "Extra Long" Sized Brushless Motor
I was going to order these but the cooling jackets are out of stock.

[FighterCat57]

I run a pair of these on the stock ESC's 3s/4s w/32mm props and get about 53mph out of it. The motors have 19 &25mm spaced mount holes and mount in the stock position.
http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbyking/s...idProduct=5146

Order a pair of Jeff's EKOS wire drives and Couplers. Best drive available IMO.

HTH- Good Luck!

[JPriami]

I run a pair of these on the stock ESC's 3s/4s w/32mm props and get about 53mph out of it. The motors have 19 &25mm spaced mount holes and mount in the stock position.
http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbyking/s...idProduct=5146

Order a pair of Jeff's EKOS wire drives and Couplers. Best drive available IMO.

HTH- Good Luck!

I did order the wire drives and octura 1/8 couplers today. I may order a spare set of flex drives too. I understand the wire drives are good. But it sounds like it has to be a straight shot from the motor to the prop. if there is any bend in the wire drive it will cause problems. Am I correct or did I misunderstand this somewhere? Seems like the flex cables would be more forgiving where you have a slight bend.

I looked at those motors and read the reviews. They dont sound to bad for the price. They do look a lot like the venom ones tho and thats scary lol.
I know the new venom boats have out runners. And we have yet to get any feedback on how those work in these hulls.
But I know outrunners can make more torque than the inrunners. And the can be fan cooled like on the heils and other rc's. I have even read where people have been using out runners on boats and like them. One day I'd like to see what out runner would work well in this hull other than the venom ones.

[FighterCat57]

I did order the wire drives and octura 1/8 couplers today. I may order a spare set of flex drives too. I understand the wire drives are good. But it sounds like it has to be a straight shot from the motor to the prop. if there is any bend in the wire drive it will cause problems. Am I correct or did I misunderstand this somewhere? Seems like the flex cables would be more forgiving where you have a slight bend.

I looked at those motors and read the reviews. They dont sound to bad for the price. They do look a lot like the venom ones tho and thats scary lol.
I know the new venom boats have out runners. And we have yet to get any feedback on how those work in these hulls.
But I know outrunners can make more torque than the inrunners. And the can be fan cooled like on the heils and other rc's. I have even read where people have been using out runners on boats and like them. One day I'd like to see what out runner would work well in this hull other than the venom ones.

The problem is the 19mm stock motor mount holes, limiting to 380 size motors with 19mm spacing.

I have a pair of 540 outrunners in another 32" hull, much like this one and love them, they sound awesome. 500-600 heli motors. (generic 32" cat thread)

If you're up to changing the motor mounts, I can recommend a few motors.

[JPriami]

I might hit you up on that. But for now I havent even got the boat its on its way to me. It was in the UK then germany now in NY. So it wont be long lol. I plan on running it stock a couple times to see what its like. then change out the flex cables and try diffrent props. then motors. and im sure ill be fixing things that break. I hear the rudder setup is weak so I have that to watch.

[FighterCat57]

I might hit you up on that. But for now I havent even got the boat its on its way to me. It was in the UK then germany now in NY. So it wont be long lol. I plan on running it stock a couple times to see what its like. then change out the flex cables and try diffrent props. then motors. and im sure ill be fixing things that break. I hear the rudder setup is weak so I have that to watch.

Yeah, the rudder is not break away, so be cautious...

[JPriami]

I was looking at battery packs and what some are posting they are using. I ordered packs and paid a pretty penny for them. but now looking at the specs of the packs others are using i wonder are mine too long. mine are 6.5in long or i think about 160mm. are the packs going to hit something up front in the hull being longer?

[FighterCat57]

I was looking at battery packs and what some are posting they are using. I ordered packs and paid a pretty penny for them. but now looking at the specs of the packs others are using i wonder are mine too long. mine are 6.5in long or i think about 160mm. are the packs going to hit something up front in the hull being longer?

That hull/battery holder is different than the EKOS, so can't say...

[JPriami]

ok. i am looking for some 4s to have on order. i was looking at the turnigy 4s 5l nanos. but im not sure. guess i should wait till the boat comes. should be thursday

[FighterCat57]

ok. i am looking for some 4s to have on order. i was looking at the turnigy 4s 5l nanos. but im not sure. guess i should wait till the boat comes. should be thursday

Yeah, the height from the hull to the hatch is a limiting factor... only like 33mm + or - .

[JPriami]

thats good to know thanks

[VIKOS]

nope just epoxy when you find a crack thats all the way thru..most are just hair line and are ok..epoxy is great. On another note where did you find this boat I might buy one and upgrade a lil bit...good that both boats can swap parts on each other..I'm going to bump up prop size t o34mm next week..raced a thunder tiger OBL and tore it a new a$$hole today lol. Those v hulls are crap but they are quite though...lol KOs FTW!!!!