Articles about Model Boats

by Clive Halliwell

printed here by kind permission of Traplet Ltd, Publishers of Marine Modelling International

The Air / Sea Rescue Launches played a key role in WWII saving many lives on both sides of the conflict. British Power Boat and Thornycroft built the majority of the boats, though Vosper did build some; they were perhaps more well known for their MTBs and MGBs. Towards the end of the war the RAF wanted long range rescue craft for operations in the Pacific. Designs were drawn up by various builders, and keels laid by Camper & Nicholson. But because of the cessation of hostilities only one boat was actually launched (1946); Celerity was 105 ft ( 32m) long and powered by four engines had a top speed of 40 knots ( 74 kmh )and a cruising range of 4200 miles ( 6760 km ), built by Kris Cruisers. ( I think she went to the Bristol Aeroplane Co rather than the RAF ) However the end of the war meant the end of demand for small fighting craft and sadly the BPB yard at Hythe closed down but Vosper pushed on and in 1948 produced the experimental 73 ft ( 22.6 m ) MGB 538 and also the subject of this review, the 72 ft ( 21.9m) ASRL.

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The Truth About LiPo cells

By Peter Barrow

Introduction.

Lithium technology, used as I have since they came out, can be very rewarding. I have tried to make this user sheet to point out both the good and bad points. They can be used as successfully as Nimhs and NiCads.In the late 1970s I can remember people getting their hands damaged by exploding NiCads. But we learned to use them reasonably safely. Lipos are becoming safer, because we are becoming to understand what we can and cannot do with them. Some of the makers of lipos are on there 6th or 7th generation cells now. These latest cells are subjected to some very stringent tests to make them even safer.The following is my own personal research from the web and experiences over the last 6 years of using lipos.

History

Lithium ion cells were first thought of in the early 1960s and the first commercial cell came from Sony in 1991. This revolutionised the portable electronics industry. Their have been numerous improvements over the years and lot of legislation to make them safer before they were allowed to be sold to the public. The latest requirements are the following: verification of compliance now required by UL1642, UL2054 and SBA G1101. These requirements included crush and penetration tests. For those that want to see all the data follow this link:

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Pay'nPak Contruction Instructions

Some things you will need

To finish the model you will need a few things. The list below is not exhaustive but will get you going a sharp utility knife A flat building board - I use a chipboard shelf piece. read the whole article

Improving the DPI American Dream

- with very many thanks to Darin Jordan

The DPI American Dream hydro is a basically sound model based on a high quality ABS moulding. As with all commercially available kits, compromises have been made in order to make it easy to produce and meet the necessary price points.There are a number of things that can be done to improve its performance and handling. read the whole article

Notes to help you build a fast electric boat

This article is intended as a guide for builders and is not intended for specific models. We will cover different hull types as appropriate and different materials and provide some hints and tips that will enable you to get the most from your model. This is not a source of plans! First we will start with materials. read the whole building article

Brushless motors theory and practice in short

Problems with the with the basics? Here is a quick guide to how they work together with some do's and don'ts. brushless-motors.htm[brushless motor article

Building Nelsons Victory from the Jotika kit

At near enough £700 this kit is a large investment but there is several years work in it so across time it is a very cheap way of spending your time. victory.htm[Follow Brian's building the Jotika's HMS Victory kit here

Beginers Guide to propeller balancing

The propeller is a key component of your boat. It is the part that turns rotational power into forward momentum, so if it is inefficient or poorly matched you will not get the best from your boat. To work properly it must be statically and dynamically balanced. propeller-balancing.htm[read the whole article

Beginers Start Here

Now a lot of people have asked for a quick orientation for newcomers to the fast electric hobby, with a view to how to start.There are a lot of points to cover and we cannot do it in a great deal of detail here. Don't let this frighten you, most of it is fairly simple - it just needs to be got right!! read the whole article

ELCO PT-Boat

A fast electric stand-off scale model of the 80 Foot Boat - BY GLYNN GUEST

This article first appeared in the November 1999 issue of Model Boats in conjunction with a free plan giveaway. It is reproduced here by kind permission of Model Boats.

Having an interest in all types of R/C model boats does keep me busy since there is always something new to try. This particular model proved very satisfying as it combined two favourite types, scale warships and fast electrics, into one model. To be honest a model based on the U.S. Navy's ELCO PT boats had been on my 'new projects' list for many years. I tend to collect information on a casual basis for these projects until something fires up my desire to start building. In this case the catalyst was the review of Kyosho's Streamliner kit, Model Boats January 1998. This model, based on an American luxury high speed open launch, showed me that such fast electric scale models were both practical and great fun to sail. After finishing off a couple of other modelling projects the ELCO PT file was opened and plans started. read the whole article

Building a GTM 400 rigger

The following measurements represent the latest set up criteria:

Rudder from transom (rearward) 35mm (this should not be critical left or right side your choice), Rear end of strut from transom 25mm, Motor from inside transom 80mm, cells as far forwards as they will go!! 

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AsTec's Scud Fast Electric Boat Kit Review

By: Paul Oliver

This review is intended as a personal review by a modeller that may be of interest to fellow modellers, and therefore comments made are the opinions of the reviewer only.

Background to Eco 400 Racing

Fast electric boat racing has been around for a number of years now, but it only really started to gain popularity over the.... Read the whole article

So What Does it Take to Win Races

It's a good question and it is one that is not necessarily easy to answer. You might say that you have to have all the latest gear - not so. I have seen races won by people with 'last years model' of everything. So where do you start?

How about the 6 P's - Proper Preparation Prevents P*ss Poor Performance? Short- To the Point and Accurate! Read The whole article

Setting Up a Stepped Mono

Some years ago Dave Marles of Prestwich Models started producing a stepped mono hull moulding for 12 cells in Epoxy glass - the 'Cheetah'. The hull weighs in at approximately 200 grams. There were several 'new' concepts here in the UK and due to initial problems neither this boat nor it's smaller sister the 'Targa' never took off sales wise.

These boats are still fairly little used in the UK for high end racing ........ Read the whole article