Blue Devil to RC -- Newbie Dumb questions -- help

[Jim McLaughlin]

I also have one of these kits. Its been sitting, unbuilt, on a shelf in
the garage for at least 10 years.

Long story, kids who wanted to do RC cars, then high powered rockets,
etc., while Dad (me) just wanted to run nice calm boat.

Kids (2) now running F/A 18s and / or reactors on various carriers.
Me, I still want to build and sail "MY BOAT".

I have a lot of left over 2 channel ground frequency radios, solid
state and mechanical speed controllers , servos, receivers and motors ( more
damn electric car / truck motors than I know what to do with).

What I want is dual 540 motors, counter rotating props, etc.

I am looking for a prop source. Brass.

Ideas?

I do a lot of electronics, so radio, motor power NiCads and such are
not an issue for me.

How much weight (well distributed) can the hull hold? (Try saying that
three times <g>)

What do I need to watch out for with respect to solid state speed
controllers and under deck heat build up?

Ideas on minimizing heat build up?

I have no idea if the old car solid state controllers are reversible. I
think, but cant remember, that most are not. Yet I have a nagging feeling
that some that I have are reversible.

Anybody out there done this..????


Help!!!!!

"Longtailedlizard" <longtailedlizard@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20030306191915.05143.00000016@mb-fy.aol.com...
> Hi All,
> I had recently got a hold of a Lindburg Blue Devil Destroyer. Its a
scale
> model (3ft long) that is motorized (preset patterns). I decided to try and
> modify it for R/C. I thought it would be something different for the kids
to
> play with in the small pond, since it is unque compared to most off the
self
> R/C boats.
> I'm trying to do this cheaply, so, I steered clear of "robbing" any
parts
> from my T-maxx and my T-maxx 2.5. What I did find was some old Nikko
cheapo
> battery powered R/C trucks/jeeps.
> As of right now, I have the receiver, battery pack, and motor all mounte
d in
> the hull. The motor is connected to the gear box. Forward and reverse ops
> checks great in the bath tub. It makes a nice little wake.
> My problem lies in the rudder control, the cheap R/C units come with
nothing
> more than a holding coil, with springs to center the wheels. This is great
on
> the trucks, but I have extremely limited room in the hull of the fan tail,
and
> only a few inches in front before the gear box.
> I was just looking for some useful ideas or suggestions regarding any
ideas
> for rudder control to make this model seaworthy (OK, pondworthy).
>
>
> J

[Kurt Greiner]

Hello,

First off, two 540 motors would be overkill for a destroyer of that size; 380
would be fine.

For brass props, try Loyalhanna Dockyard; Don can set you up with the best ones
for your model.

For speed controls, I would recommend the gold speed controls from Hi Tech -
they are cheap, give excellent control for low speeds, and dont make a lot of
noise.

To quickly figure out how much weight you can put in your hull, mark the
waterline with paint, pencil, tape, whatever and put it into your bathtub.
Fill it with weights (fishing weights, old tire balance weights, anything heavy
and dense) until it submerges to the waterline, and then either add up the
weights (if they are marked) or just weigh them all on a postal scale. That
will give you your weight budget.

The Gold Speed controls will barely heat up in this situation, so that should
not be an issue. The are reversible too to answer that question. Last time I
bought one it was around $ 30.00 Their limitation is that they only handle up
to 7 volts or so (not good for 12 volt systems) and their amperage is very
limited compared to other speed controls (not an issue for smaller models like
this one)

Check out my webpage for other r/c warship building ideas, and a message board.

Kurt

Kurt Greiner

SeaPhoto Maritime Photography ...delete "net" to reply
http://www.warshipphotos.com - now taking online payments via Paypal

Learn about large scale r/c model warships-
Warship Models Underway http://www.warshipmodelsunderway.com

[Rob]

The only dumb question is the unasked one - how's that for profound?

I can only help you with the weight. Boats will hold lots more weight
than you'd think. Gather all the stuff you're gonna put in there and
(guess what?) put it in there! Approximately close to where it'll end
up is good enough for the first shot. Don't forget to toss in some
brass rod for rudder coupling, etc.

That should at least let you know if you're going to be able to float
it. If it's below the designed waterline, you're in trouble. If it's
above the waterline (light) then you've STILL got to take into
consideration the superstructure. What I've done on (admittedly
simpler) boats like the Lindberg tug and trawler is to just heap the
stuff in. They both required a few ounces of weight to get them down
to the waterline.

As you build, and before putting something in permanently, test-float
it and ensure the hull floats at least close to level side-to-side.
Fore-and-aft isn't too big a deal because of things like battery
packs. What IS an issue is access. The lindberg tug was easy because
it's relatively small and the superstructure is big - pull it off and
I can geet at all the important stuff. The trawler was tougher - I
had to cut the main deck in half cross-wise and have the aft portion
removable, while the forward half was glued in. Luckily, there's a
break in the deck that was convenient and hides the seam.

Props? Look up 'rivabo' and 'dumas' for props. Lots of props are
speed props and aren't good for our applications. What about the kit
ones? They might work! You'd be surprised.

[Rob]

I was thinking about the 540's last night as well...this'd be the
world's only planing destroyer! (or submerging one).

In way-old Ship Modeler's magazine (Scale Ship Modelers? I don't
remember) there used to be a company named AW-RC that was building
speed-controller/motor combinations based on servo circuitry. They'd
draw their power through the servo wires. One of their write-ups was,
I think, a Blue Devil. It might've been a Snowberry, but in any case
was about the same size. With 2 of his motors, this thing was totally
realistic - curling bow-wave, etc...WAY cool.

He's still doing business, the last I heard, and is in Margate, FL.
That's all I know. I do small-scale boats, and I've gotta get in
touch with him, but haven't yet. I've been powering my wee boats with
servos, but I think the Blue Devil is too big for that.

[Dshafer56]

I'm building my 3rd for rc. They work just fine on the stock props... just
don't look as scale up close. 10' out from shore you won't be able to tell the
difference. A cheap, reversable speed control and 1 or 2 cheap 380 size motors
(you can use the included gear train if you want to mess around...) and a 2
chanel radio and you're in business. Detail the deck and superstructure to
your taste/level of skill and go have fun. The others are right; twin 500/540
size motors would put that hull up on step. Far too much power. Keep it
simple and inexpensive and have fun with it. -Don-

[Jim McLaughlin]

Thank you!

There are at least 4 380 motors in the box of spare parts, pulled out when
certain younger folks wanted their R.C.
cars to "go faster" <g>

What a great, helpful group.

Thanks again!

"Dshafer56" <dshafer56@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20030314201905.19773.00000042@mb-fw.aol.com...
> I'm building my 3rd for rc. They work just fine on the stock props...
just
> don't look as scale up close. 10' out from shore you won't be able to
tell the
> difference. A cheap, reversable speed control and 1 or 2 cheap 380 size
motors
> (you can use the included gear train if you want to mess around...) and a
2
> chanel radio and you're in business. Detail the deck and superstructure
to
> your taste/level of skill and go have fun. The others are right; twin
500/540
> size motors would put that hull up on step. Far too much power. Keep it
> simple and inexpensive and have fun with it. -Don-
>