My zig zag 2 needs some major help!!!

[mikaila31]

I bought the boat last summer brand new off ebay. It worked great at first, then something went wrong and it hasn't worked since last fall. In 3 weeks I'm going to Cancun and I would like to take the boat with me.

It has 2 problems, the biggest of which is that at the moment it will only go a few miles per hour. It happened quite suddenly, it was running fine then it just stopped and started going really slow. I'm not sure if the motor is shot or if something else is wrong. I will post some more on this as soon as I get the battery charged.

The other problem is I have new been able to get it to go straight. Went I turn it on the rudder is constantly twitching and never stops (is that normal?). I've tried trimming it but that only made it worst. I get it going some what straight, but it will turn in tight circles going one way and big ones going the other. Any tips on ways to get it to go straight and turn evenly?

If you get to here, thank you for reading my post. If you have any advice that would help, please post =).

Thanks, Mikaila31

[Umi_Ryuzuki]

After sitting, the bearings may need a little oil, at the motor, and the prop shaft.
Also the brushes may have rusted or collected dirt on the stator. Running the motor at low voltage to break them in again may help. Also, putting a capacitor across the motor terminals and from each terminal grounded to the motor casing may help clear
any RF the motor is creating.

Make sure all the wire connections are clean or that any solder connections are not broken. Low battery will also cause this twitching, so let us know how it ran once it
has a full battery test.

:)

[mikaila31]

I dismantled the boat and my dad help me try to fix it. We tried to fix the twitching of the rudder, but have not been able too. My dad said it was a problem with the chip itself. Is this possible?

At the moment the rudder isn't twitching but it will only turn right, it says as far right as it can go and won't turn left. So, I'm pretty sure I just made it worse(lol).

Also we tried to clean the engine like you said, but can't seem to get it open. It seems to run OK, But any tips on how to get it open? as i would still like to clean it.

I would still like to try to fix this boat and see if I can get it to run again. I probably won't use it, I'm thinking of buying two new ones and using the old one for parts.

As a challenge I still want to try and fix it. So, any advice will be appreciated =).

Thanks, Mikaila31

[Rex R]

motor is a 'sealed' unit when it goes bad you toss the old one and install a new one. question did the boat steer properly before it 'suddenly slowed down'?
rex
edit
if the 'chip' went bad(which seems likely based on your description) Horizon lists the replacement units at approx $22 usd(shipping extra, prolly $7-$10).

[mikaila31]

Thanks for all the replys =)

I did recently buy 2 new ones from a nearby store one is red and the other is bule. I have not tested them in the water but I did test them with the battery from my old boat. One run great so far, but the controller from the red one does not work very well. Also the red boat has lots of sealant runs and drips. It also had sealant on the outside of the hull and overall looks made badly. So, we will return this one and take some batteries with us and test the next one before we buy it.

Thanks again for your help=)