Mobile Marine do a Skimmer hulls that you can use to build your own skimmer. This is the larger version and they also do a smaller version.
I have used a 2208 brushless with a chopped down 10" prop, cheap 10amp ESC and 11.1v 2200Ma Lipo.
Good when the weed gets too bad!
An old favourite from my hovercraft phase. Runs really well on land and especially water. Although no reverse, it will auto-rotate on the hover, so when pointing in the desired direction on with the propulsion with the brushless motor and away she flies.
Realistic in operation. Looking a bit work worn now. Could do with up-dating with Lipo batteries which would make it even lighter. Seen here with lift motor running with skirt inflated. Steering
interesting, with twin air rudders. Must get some videos of the action.
It's a learning curve to operate a hovercraft.It's fun to watch them drifting in a turn and then trying to go in the direction you want them to go.Lots of fun.
Just fresh off the shipyard, this is my version of an American made Uniflite (firm died several years ago) "Salty Dog" 28. its name is a Puerto Rican slang for escapade. From the same firm who designed and made the legendary Vietnam War Patrol River Boat (PBR), this boat was part of Uniflite's recreational boats line. For this one, I utilized a fibreglass hull I found on Ebay and did the rest with Ethylene 2mm plastic sheets. it runs a 9.6v NiHm battery, a 30A Mtroniks controller, a 3-bladed 35mm M4 bronze propeller.
This is my latest build she is all scratch built.
She is based on a Robert Allen tug built in Cyprus.
She has two 800 motors on belt drive with 70 mm props.
Actually I knew it was Andy 😉
Just another example of my usual pathetic attempt at humour😁
Wonder if John has since made a vid of her Sea Trials?
Or is she just 'TOOO Nice' to risk in the wet stuff 🤔
Cheers, Doug 😎
A challenging project 10 years ago. Scratch built model of theSRN3 built under licence by the US for use in the Mekong delta against the VC in Vietnam. Very light construction with liteply.
Two ESPs control brushed and brushless motors for lift and propulsion. Motor tube ball-raced at each end with a 9x6 pusher prop. Realistic performance and sounds like a turbo prop. Tricky to control in anything stronger than a light breeze. Best on water.
This is my latest progress on the Barracuda RC Boats 52' MLB, US COAST GUARD "TRIUMPH"CG- 52301. I was up until 0500 this AM attempting to finish sheathing the hull. The deck housings are just about ready for paint. I really don't enjoy covering natural wood, but it's a must to achieve proper detail, I reckon. I'm awaiting 1/8" scribed sheathing for the deck, the fantail semicircle will be 1/16" sheathing, and the outboard perimeter of the deck will be 3/16" light mahogany strips. She's powered by a 775 Johnson-type 6-12v motor turning a 4mm shaft and a 75mm 5-blade Raboesch wheel. The 5-blade isn't OEM, but I reckoned she needed some extra muscle to get to the party in distress.
Here is the Sea Scout Ship Voyageur former 4433. Also Triumph II out of Cape Disappointment and the 44331 from last Saturday's Coast Guardsman Memorial taken next to Cape Disappointment Light
Great seeing your model. I look forward to pictures of her underway. I served at the National Motor Lifeboat School in the '80's (30' SRB's and 44' MLB's) and Station Cape Disappointment (47' and 52' MLB's).
Almost complete Veron kit based on the Vosper 110' fast attack craft built for the Republic of Singapore Navy in the early '70s. Fitted with a Shockwave 2 sound system I propose to fit ultra bright LED to the main armament to represent muzzle flash to sync with the sound system.
Many thanks for the Turnigy tip👍 much cheaper than the 20 quid Action /Component Shop version 😉
I hated wasting channels, and multi-channel sets were horrendously expensive😡 so many many 🤔 moons ago I made my own 4 function switch decoder for my destroyer, home made PCB, a few 5V CMOS chips, driver transistors and 5V 5Amp relay outputs. Pics 1, 2 & 3. Gave 4 functions Nav lights, Signal Lamps flashing, Whoop Whoop siren, and smoke unit from one proportional channel. Still seems to work 30 years later!😊
Around the same time I added a winch for the crane on the stern deck and also made a home cooked PCB with a simple forwards / backwards motor driver; again CMOS chips, driver TRs and relays. Pics 4 & 5.
Pulled in well but there was no free-run mode on the winch so it needed something like a tin o' beans on the hook to run it out 🤔 .
Lovely smelly etching for the PCBs 😆 Ferrous oxide!? Or was it ferric chloride? Never did like chemistry, I was a physics man. But it worked😊
Most of the bits were sort of 'lying around' at work😉
BTW: if anyone needs CMOS or 7400 series TTL chips I still have pretty good stock!
Nowadays it's all plug n play and such things are miniaturising so fast one day they'll disappear up there own whatsits!
Back then half the fun was doing it yourself and squeezing the utmost out of a 2 or 4 channel radio. Happy days? 🤔
Cheers Doug (AKA Rambling Man😁)
One of my first boats was an Aerokits Crash Tender powered by a Frog 2.49cc diesel. The radio was single channel, one press of the button for right rudder, 2 presses left rudder, press and hold for throttle.
Built in 2016, she is a 1:14 scale Dumas 40 ft. UTB, which I did my best to keep natural wood wherever possible. Powered by twin 775 size 12 volt Johnson type motors turning Raboesch 50mm 4-blade brass wheels. I properly illuminated her with Lighthouse 9v LEDs and adorned with a BECC USCG Ensign. I overbuilt her like my Father overbuilt his airplanes.
Thank you for your interest and kind words. She's my pride and joy, and has given me much enjoyment. I believe she's sturdy enough to break 1/2" ice! Here's a few more pics of the CIRCLE 43 NAUTICAL CRAFTWORKS/ILLINIWEK MARINE SCALE SHIPYARD FLEET
Beautiful US Coast Guard model. I really like the look of their ships and what a superb looking flag at the transom!
I'd love to see some on water shots.
So, here's my current project in the works. I got a nice 25-inches Deep-Vee fiberglass hull a while ago and now (finally) have a concept for it. Almost by accident I came across a plan for an American bass boat which in turn reminded me of a boat that caught my attention when I was a kid while reading a boating magazine. The boat is a 28-footer from a now defunct firm named Uniflite. it was a small deep-sea sports fisherman called "Salty Dog". Uniflite was very well known within the American boating circles during the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Uniflite created and supplied PBR river patrol craft to the US Navy between 1965 and 1972 for rivers in Vietnam using an already existing pleasure boat hull and adapting jet nozzles for propulsion. So, I just created a prototype template of the cabin so more to follow 😎.
About 10 years old, currently with a DC motor setup Hectoperm but complete base plate can be swapped for a 2 cylinder cheddar models Proteus boiler and steam plant. With ABC boiler control. Lovely detailed model, cruses well on 4 Lead acid batteries in parallel lots of power from the MARXX motor and 60 ~ 70mm I forget, 4 blade brass prop. Actually needs more weight in the back already 4 lumps of lead in the back and some plates of stainless steel. When it gets moving the bow wave is huge. 😁
Thank you for your kind comments. if you don't have an Imara you should put it on wish list, at least. it is still best tug kit available, despite its price, and it is not too difficult a kit to complete, even if you limited experience......Richard
a 30"scratch built pt. boat, I built hull from .8mm ply using a resized eezebilt 20" plan.
the deck fittings were copied as best as I could from photos and drawings found on line. powered by 2- 2200kv brushless out runner motors through 2 20 amp speed controllers. twin contra rotating props twin rudders fast and light a pleasure to build
I built this from a set of plans that i had sized up it measures 43"x12" & runs on a 1400kv Outrunner Motor / 40A esc / 11.1v 5000mah battery 3 bladed Brass 50mm M4 Prop
I was waiting delivery of a new camera so could not record the earlier stages of the build
Hi Lads
I have a Sea Commander with a D3548-1100kv,3S Lipo,60Amp ESC and a 2 blade 40mm CNC prop.
I bought a Precedent Huntsman 34" a few weeks ago and may be running a 3639-1100 or a 3648-1450 instead of the D3548 motor.
As for motor mounts the aluminium angle works well and I just epoxy glue it in place.
Canabus