Suitable Boat For Retrieving Planes?

[donjiskra]

What are your recommendations for a boat that I can use to go out and get plane? Looking for an inexpensive ready built model.

[Ron Olson]

How large of a plane are you talking about?
I bought a Zig-Zag Racer to use as a retrieve boat for my nitro boats. Otherwise I use a fishing pole with a top-water lure and/or my cheap inflatable 2 or 3 man boats to row out to them.
For the ZZR, I don't think that it would handle anything over a .40 size plane, maybe a .60 . It's a fast ,fun little boat for the price plus it has a basket that you can mount on the nose to help in the pushing duties.

[OhioMike]

Go to the Colorado Crew model boat web site. They have a pretty unique retreival boat they use. Its a U-shaped job with twin power, catamaran style. The U faces forward and has a chicken wire type net strung between the arms of the U that sets quite a bit underwater. Might be what your looking for. Another option that works real well, that are Scale guru, CG Bob uses in our club is a trailing line behind his tug that has flotation spaced on it to keep the line above water and a neat bulb type object at the end with whats best described by me as a trebble hook with tape protection on the barbs on the end. maybe he'll post a pic or something. hope this helps.

[Umi_Ryuzuki]

Some other Ideas.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266574

[CG Bob]

Here's my 20 inch tug YOOPER with it's 9 foot towline. The best length for the towline is 4 - 6 times the towboats hull length. Shorter boats with a smaller turn radius can use a shorter towline; longer boats with a larher turn radius need a longer line.

The hook is made of brass rod soldered together. The floats are foam fishing floats. The larger one was cut in half so I could make two towlines. I have used this same design in several SSMANA regattas to salvage disabled boats.