Another Hare-Brained Idea

[Dr. Jet]

So I have a new pond to run my boats where I don't have to deal with a lot of floating reeds. Most of the people are there to fly RC float planes, but boats are welcome, and smaller boats are even more welcome. One of the club members approached me the other day when I was running my 1:20 Short Circuit and asked about a good hull candidate for club members to race and stir up boating interest in general. The requirements were that they be reasonably quick, but not insanely so, easy to get on the water, small, and cheap. I have all sorts of hulls that fit those requirements and the 1:20 scale hydros would be perfect; BUT WAIT!........ There was one more requirement.... They had to handle rough water when the wind came up.

That got me to thinking (uh oh! ). What do I have in my inventory that fits all of those requirements? All the hydros are out. The twin cats are out due to the complexity. The single cat is a possibility, but when flipped, that's it. A self-righting, V-hull boat is what's needed. I have the Geckos, but the self-righting feature is kinda iffy with them now that they run the lighter weight LiPos. What is really needed is something with a flood chamber for positive self-righting. I suppose I could put a flood chamber in the Geckos, but that's a lot of ex post facto work.

Pre-molded composite hulls would be the best option for simplicity's sake. They are easy to get on the water with a minimum of work, and even more so when the manufacturer has a package deal with much of the hardware included or sometimes already installed (my Geckos and other MHZ hulls came that way at the time). The Germans have some hulls that will meet those aforementioned needs, but shipping is expensive. What to do?? How about yet another wood build? Now, I realize I already have a lot of irons in the fire that I need to finish up first. But both of the 1:20 scale hydro designs are complete with just some final tweaks needed to the running models. The same applies to the single-step hydro. I wanted to build a final prototype of the twin cat, but I really should do more hull tuning work on the single version before I finalize the plans for the twin. I already have the Micro Scat Cat Twin running, and propeller tweaking is in the works. The rigger project will be next on the bench; THEN, I can think about building another wood project from the ground up.

I can still do a lot of the preliminary design work on the new project as time allows. I don't need workbench space; my computer has plenty of room for all the ongoing projects. This new project should be something really easy to build, with a low parts count. I should do it such that there is no part longer than 12" in order to make it easy to find building materials. And it will get a flood chamber! An added benefit is that the diminutive size will accommodate the lengths of special "homemade" strakes that I can produce. I always like doing something a bit on the "different" side, and this should be no exception. I think I will design something that employs the well-tested power system of the little stepped hydro with the 2030 inrunner (3100 Kv), a straight shaft, and a de-tongued 26 mm CNC aluminum prop. I think I'll be able to have enough room for a 2040 motor, but that would no doubt be overkill in a 12" hull.

Hmmmm... I have an idea!!

Oliver Seiss (Hydro & Marine) has been making and selling essentially the same list of hulls for decades now. I have some of his cat and hydro hulls in my inventory and the construction quality is quite good. On his site he has listed the perfect hull for my proposed project. It has the ability to install a flood chamber, it is a stepped V-hull, so it should do well in rough water, and it is a bit quirky in appearance. At well under 500 mm, it already fits the definition of "Mini".

My plan? I've ordered one, and I will install running gear using stuff I already have in my parts inventory. I have an assortment of 2040 motors with water jackets that should work in a hull designed around a Speed 400 brushed motor. Yeah, shipping was a little pricey, but I ordered a bunch of other parts to amortize the shipping over a greater number of items. I'll build it "quick and dirty" to see IF I like it. If I do, I'll scale it down to make a 12" version out of wood. I'll forgo a lot of the sexy compound curves and simplify some things, but the heritage will be obvious.


Stay tuned....