Good thread!! I have built a few over the years. Some with more success than others!
My first baitboat was made of flat bits of ply, looked like a shoebox, and delivered 1kg of bait very, very slowly!
Next up was a scratch build - took about 2kg of bait and had a built-in echo (Humminbird with camera and screen on the bank). This was a lovely boat, fast, simple (2ch + release mechanism) and stable. 3hr+ running time on a 6v 10Ah battery. But sadly it didn't survive a fall onto concrete in my shed :( See pic: I wish I could find the right hull to build another!
Next up was the 'drainpipe special' which is somewhat infamous amongst my friends. I had the bright idea of using square drainpipe to make a tri-hull boat, with the electrics and single prop down the middle hull. Unfortunately, the amount of sealant and extras needed to make the hull resulted in massive weight, the hull twisted in a chop and made the hopper release unreliable, and the whole thing had a turning circle as wide as the QE2! I used it once, when it took 20min to get out to 200yds, failed to drop the bait, then got stuck in the reeds on the far bank!!
Then I had a modded R6 with a bigger motor to make it a bit faster. It proved somewhat tricky to steer at speed though due to the short hull design.
Now I have a Deliverance where I've ripped out the electrics and installed 2.4G radio, Lipo cells and a brushless setup to give me plenty of speed. It's corking boat albeit a little heavy. It is also carrying a small leak which I cannot find for the life of me.
I'm currently looking at something small for carrying pike baits in rough water and will post any progress.
@Doca, love your hull, I wish I had those sorts of building skills! I would look at maybe putting the hopper at the back though like the one in my pic. If you place the battery right in the nose of the boat, it should balance out nicely and it's a very simple solution without the stability issues.