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View Full Version : Wanted Need a "towboat" for recovering planes from the water!!


TheDustyPagan
Apr 29, 2007, 10:25 PM
Hello,

I'm on the lookout for a good quality tugboat/towboat that I can use for hauling planes out of the water, (should they get stuck in the middle of a pond/lake that i'm flying in). :rolleyes:

If it's possble.... i'd like to attach some kind of a boom to the back of the boat, to act as a towing hoist, so I can hook the plane onto the boom, and haul it back to shore, without the need of bringing a small raft, kiak or canoe, to do the job.

What I need it to do is basically what i'm asking.... just be able to physically pull the planes back to shore. The planes in general, don't exceed any more than about 25oz AUW. But i'm sure when it's stuck in the water, that weight increases due to water getting into the plane, and adding extra drag on the boat.

I have 2 "standard" servos (HS-325's) to use for the boom, to control it going up and down.... and the boom itself i can make rather easily. I just need a strong enough boat that can do the pulling part of the job. And I preferably wanted something that looks like either a tugboat or a coastguard boat.

I put a (really bad :D ) drawing to give you a visual idea of what it's gotta do.







Fun and safe flying :cool:
~Tim~ (TheDustyPagan)

buzzltyr
Apr 30, 2007, 02:02 AM
Tim, you might consider one of these:
http://www.vac-u-boat.com/Vacutug.htm

Easy to build, fairly inexpensive, and would probably do the job. You might also look in the "Dock Talk" forum, as there are a number of threads on recovering boats using other boats, and you might find a simpler solution to plane recovery than a crane.

Some ideas:
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=663556
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=654080
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266574

Mark

TheDustyPagan
Apr 30, 2007, 02:36 AM
Thanks for all the suggestions buzzltyr. :)









Fun and safe flying :)
~Tim~ (TheDustyPagan)

bob.johnson
May 20, 2007, 11:16 AM
I use a Vac-U-Boat tug for a recovery vessel and have excellent results with it. Also get a lot of "assistance" requests from other RCer's at the water. Airplanes are a little trickier to tow than boats. For locations that know that there is a recovery vessel available, installing a thin sheet metal plate at the logical tow point and attaching to it with a rare earth magnet floated by a foam float works best. There are other "round-em-up" systems that will work but only in very calm water and at slow speeds because you may wind up towing from quarter, side or even the rear.