RE: A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
Running hardware installed - just waiting on ESC. Hull painted in white & canopy in red.
Posted on: 9/20/2011 10:04 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10726830

RE: A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
Thanks again Jun. As a general rule, I try to keep the CoG inbetween 27-30% of the boat's lenght.
Posted on: 9/16/2011 7:51 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10720428

RE: NQD PX-16 rebuild... am I nuts?
These are just my personal opinions........ If you can live without the boat, you can possibly give it also as a gift or entice somebody to join the hobby of rc boating. Since you're willing to spend on modifying it and buying the hardware, why dont you focus those resources into a boat kit that you prefer and something that will tide you over winter as well. But if you're more curious of possibly achieving what you saw on those videos, then you can follow what you enumerated above.
Posted on: 9/16/2011 11:16 AM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10719637

RE: A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
Just updating this thread............... We molded the cardboard mock-up, pulled a fiberglass copy from the molds and did a water leak test on our small fish pond. Painting is next then installation of hardware Pics below......
Posted on: 9/15/2011 8:28 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10718856

RE: HK Small Bolt Hydro same as HOTR
[quote]ORIGINAL: Rake macdon - the purple running gear from R2 - I was dissappointed. The rudder does not have enough width and the stock alloy rudder turns the boat alot better. Looks great though. Sorry to say mine is still on the shelf though. [/quote] Sorry to hear that. I havent run mine either. I was trying to fit in a sv27 esc, but was huge with the heat sink, so I ordered some ESCs
Posted on: 9/14/2011 7:07 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10717106

RE: A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
[quote]ORIGINAL: 01VIPER27 Good luck on the build Bud! Jun [/quote] Thanks Jun - pm sent.
Posted on: 9/9/2011 9:26 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10709630

RE: A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
Thanks for the suggestion, Jun - will definitely study the options. I have also attached pics showing both transoms and the bondo shaping of the canopy/body.
Posted on: 9/9/2011 7:17 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10709482

A Bit Bigger Reef Racer
I recently acquired a preowned Reef Racer and upon looking at its hull - it reminded me of a similar hull that we have a fiberglass mold of. With all of the topics covering this specific boat and all the brushless conversion threads, I thought I'd undertake a simple project by making it just a bit bigger. We pulled a fiberglass copy of just the lower hull of the boat mold we have and I have built-up the rest with cardboard. Once its finished, we could probably mold it in fiberglass. The stock reef racer is 15" in length while this project will be 24" or 1.6 times bigger. My plan is to power it with a 36 size BL motor in the range of 1800-2200kv, but would like to ask a question if I may.......... .........just like the stock reef racer, our lower hull also has a keel thus the solid and straight prop drive system is angled downwards and next to it would be the standard submerged rudder. Or would it be better to use a flex shaft with a stuffing tube that bends once it exits the keel to be as straight & level with the hull? Any pros & cons on both designs? If the latter would be preferred, I went to the safe side by deviating from copying the stock reef racer's angled transom and made the 24" version with a flat transom to accommodate a surfaced drive system for a strut and offset rudder. I would appreciate any comments or suggestions Smilie
Posted on: 9/8/2011 10:03 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "RC Boats General Discussion"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10708268

RE: The Unofficial Outboard FE Tunnel Thread
Once I cut off the top portion of the rear transom - basically the whole center section will serve as a radio box. As another starting point, could anyone suggest the possible orientation of the electronics?
Posted on: 8/18/2011 12:23 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10676371

RE: The Unofficial Outboard FE Tunnel Thread
Thanks Fast guy and Ryan - I appreciate the replies. Thats actually what I feared - trimming down the transom. But it could also open up some options as the enclosed transom of the TS3 is 6.5" x 2.5" - lots of room in there. If I trim the top portion of the transom and replace the top with a removable fiberglass or wood cover, would it be okay to place the steering servo inside so the steering linkages will be short? Im envisioning something like just the servo arm or disc is exposed, while the servo itself is under the cover. REK and Dubro The stock REK transom mount provides about 1/2" distance between the REK's steering horns to the transom. Swapping the REK stock mount with the Dubro 3.5 adjustable outboard motor mount moves the REK back with 1" clearance from the transom - which I prefer actually. The Dubro's transom mount is also bigger than the stock transom mounting plate of REK which results to a wider grip/mount to the transom. But the Dubro's biggest advantage is the ease of adjustability to make a positive or negative angle by just adjusting a single screw. With the stock REK mount, you need to remove the whole mount from the transom and add the included angle plates.
Posted on: 8/18/2011 8:29 AM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10676062

RE: The Unofficial Outboard FE Tunnel Thread
Good day guys ..................and my apologies for resurrecting a year old thread. Anyway, I recently acquired the REK lower leg outboard from Ray Fuller and was wondering if you guys have any guidelines on a preliminary setup for the Top Speed 3? As a starting point, do I mount the REK's driveshaft to be as level with the bottom of the sponson? I tried positioning that way, but there's only 1/2" between the REk's control horn and the transom of the TS3. If I hike up the position of the REK outboard to clear the TS3's transom, the REK's driveshaft would be level with the top of the tunnel and and not the bottom of the sponson. Any ideas? The REK came with 4 angle mounting plates and I also got the Dubro 3.5 adjustable outboard motor mount.
Posted on: 8/17/2011 11:44 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10675650

RE: HK Small Bolt Hydro same as HOTR
@carakter @sundogz Thank you for your input and suggestions - I highly appreciate it. I tried to look for a RTR bolt, but they were going for $150 - $200 (ebay, etc) while hobby king's $98 RTR has been on backorder for some time now. I certainly understand the complexity of just getting a hull, but researching, planning & building are aspects of the hobby that I still enjoy doing - not counting the new friends you get to meet along the way. So frankly, I wouldnt mind a bit of elbow (rubbing) grease. Lol! Besides, with most RTRs - one tends to read what others have changed or modified to make the boat better - some to the point that most everything was changed and only the hull was left. Im sure this is not the case with this small bolt - but with having a clean slate in front of you, one could really plan something better........or maybe something worse. Well, the hull cost me $40, while the running gear, flex drive, etc are an additional $25 - so still not bad. @Basstronics Sir, thank you for taking the time in both measuring as well as posting those numbers on the board. I truly appreciate how you anticipated what I would probably need to know or ask among you bolt owners of this forum :) I will certainly write those down in hard copy. Well, since Im here anyway - I was wondering if anyone could give me the dimensions of the stuffing tube exit slit/hole - as well as its distance from the rear/transom of the boat? Again, my thanks to everyone!
Posted on: 7/22/2011 11:53 PM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10634554

RE: HK Small Bolt Hydro same as HOTR
Good day to all! I recently received my small bolt hull via HK and also ordered the purple running hardware from R2Hobbies which just arrived today. Unfortunately, the 3.17mm flex shaft and prop drive shaft that I ordered along with the purple hardware has the same diameter as the purple strut - thus the prop shaft fits but difficult to turn with bare fingers. Im not sure if a 3.15mm shaft may be available or something close in measurement - or maybe just grind the prop shaft a bit smaller or maybe bore a bit bigger the 2 brass bushings inside the strut will be easier - any thoughts? I enjoyed reading thru the 46pages that you guys dedicated for this small bolt and Im trying to get some tips here & there. I think I would go for the 2200mah Turnigy Nano-tech batts - but I still dont know what BL motor or ESC to use as I've never used them before. I have experience buying from both HobbyKing and R2Hobbies, so if you guys have any recommendations regarding motor & ESC - I would appreciate a link or two. Thanks!
Posted on: 7/22/2011 5:15 AM by Author "macdon" in the forum "Speed - Electric"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10633125