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[airwolf572010]

Hello ladies and gentlemen.
I have a question to ask re the above.
I purchased one of these about 2 years ago and after a few mods she sails well.
I was asked by a friend if I could get him one so after looking around including Ebay it seems to going price was Australian 249.00
I then looked at a company called Hobbyking and found the same boat a lot cheaper.
Now here is the problem.
The boat I purchased myself had a solid Keel Bulb.
The boat I purchased for my friend has a Keel Bulb which instructs you to fill it with either Nuts or Bolts, Lead Shot or other stuff to make
up the weight of 1.2 kilograms.
Apart from that its the same boat. Does anyone know why this has happened. I checked all the boats on the other site and same thing no Solid Keel bulbs.
I thought lead shot was illegal and it seems you would use a lot of fishing sinkers to get to this weight and perhaps they wouldnt fit iinto the Bulb.
Any ideas or anyone bought one and managed to sort out the Bulb problem.???

Thanks
Armo

[wibplus]

Hi, some shops ask you to supply the weights yourself in order to keep the postage cost down. It would cost a lot more to ship it with the extra weight. You dont necessarily have to use lead, there are other substitutes. 

[airwolf572010]

Thanks mate, apparently I just got a call and he has broken the keel and now found some lead shot>>>
Cant win with this bloke now I have to try and find spare parts Keel which i think will be mission impossible??.

Armo

[airwolf572010]

Sorry re above I mean he has broken the bulb  so I asked him how bad it was he reckons he can tape it together.
I said fibreglass the thing when its filled Duh I told him thats part of being a modeller isnt it trying to fix things or adjust to make the model work?
Now we will see what he comes back with.
Armo

[Boomer]

trying to get Hobbyking to send a replacement part may take an act of God! They are terrible at this and frankly they don't care about replacement parts. "Been there -done that".
Depending on what your friend has done to the pod will determine if is repairable. Can you take a picture of the pod so we can see the damage?

If the pod is more or less in tact, it should be simple to repair with a piece of fiberglass mat and some resin (two part) or epoxy. There are aftermarket ballasts available - some modelers make their ballast by making a mold and pouring molten lead in to the mold.
 
It doesn't sound like you guys are ready for that- plus working with lead takes some precautions - so a repair seems the best and easiest way to go. A picture will help.

Editorial - Hobbyking does not stock parts for their boats and the company they buy the boats from, doesn't either. It took me 7 months, and dozens of phone calls and e-mails and and threats from Pay Pal to get them to send me a replacement keel fin and mast fitting that arrived damaged. I repaired the broken parts, but because it was a matter of principle to get them to replace the factory damaged parts, I stayed on them - I don't buy from them any more because of my experience with them on two different warranty issues. Many folks get their boats without issue, which is a good thing, I just like to let folks know - if something arrives damaged be ready for a battle.

Most of the things that might get broken are easy to fix and it is less trouble. (one man's opinion)

[airwolf572010]

Thanks for the reply Windchaser, Yes you dont have to explain Hobbyking to me either mate. I still buy from em but i dont even know why they have a so called Customer Service Team, I think they just have a copy of their adds in front of them and if a question is asked they quote from that and then tell you to go to the forums as somone might have the same problem and fixed it. No answer when you ask about the spare parts eh???
Ah well Im sure he will figure something out, he's a young country lad so their should be plenty of stuff lying around the property he can find.
Looks like I will have to be more carefull with my old Monsoon with everything supplied doesnt it haha
Anyhow Ive picked up a IOR quite cheap but needs some rigging repair. So I will look around for a website that sells good one metre fittings as she is a nice boat named Argonaut 4 and I have never had a one metre so it will be a good experience for me fitting her up again and then trying the sail.

Armo

[tigertiger]

The Monsoon used to have a solid keel bulb made out of, I think, cast iron. Not anywhere near heavy enough. It did need replacing.

The lead shot and epoxy resin filling of a plastic bulb is quite standard.  and for 1.2kg of postage, I can see why companies don't want to do it.
You can buy keel bulbs, plastic pods, from other model suppliers, as long as they will take at least 1.2kg you should be ok.

Lead shot may be banned in some countries for fishing or shotguns, but they are still available. As are lead-substitute shot, which are almost as heavy I think.

If the bulb is split, but not too deformed, you could just use masking tape to hold it together and fill with epoxy and shot first, before attempting any repair. If it has fallen in two, then I would scour the inside surfaces first to give the epoxy something to bite on.

just my 2 cents.

[airwolf572010]

Thanks Tiger, I received a phone call this afternoon seems he has found some lead shot but now he connected all the electronics and smoke started coming from everywhere. I dont know what sort of Nincompoop I have here but Im taking the boat back and will have a good look at it and fix the thing up for him. I tell yah really gets me going some of these people who know everything and know nothing if yah gets my meaning.
Ah well I have a Surmont goin great I might just say to him listen take this boat its workin dont come back and I'll fix up the Monsoon like I did the Legend and will add to the fleet. by the way here is one I am doing up also in the One Metre Class. Im missing one bit of Wire Riggin blinkin annoying. I dont know whether to change over to the Dacron for the Side Riggin. Here is some pictures. You will see one side being the Left with the complete wire and brass bit on the bottom. The other side has gone missing but I think i should go with the Dacron and the adjusters or whatever you call em.













Thats her called the Argonaut $ worth doing up i reckon
Armo