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Author Topic: [new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations  (Read 1462 times)

bigbloke

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[new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations
« on: December 30, 2012, 11:15:27 pm »

Hi all

new to these walls, been into RC for many years but had a lengthy absence for work / family reasons.

having saved up some coppers Im in the market for a decent size yacht. All the local model shops seem to be
car/plane/copter/powerboat focussed. Not a single yacht :-/

online searches have revealled the monsoon, joysway focus and the phantom as candidates size wise, but all reviews seem to slate them.

pressures of work (50/70 hour weeks) accompanied by frequent work trips away prevent scratch building so looking for a good base yacht to cart around in the car for evening sailing and the odd weekend when family are busy doing other things.

on a bit of a budget, but what model would folks reccomend , and why ?

Regards

BB
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tigertiger

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Re: [new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations
« Reply #1 on: December 31, 2012, 12:53:55 am »

First question, where will you sail her?
The 1m yachts can be 1/2m or more deep at the keel. If you don't have a jetty to launch from you have a problem. If you have shallow launch area, same problem.


What are other people near you sailing? Is there a club?
These people can give a wealth of advice that will save you a lot of time and money. Also, if you buy the same class of boat as them, you can sail with them in fun, or serious, racing. There is also a chance to buy spares if they upgrade.


1m yachts are usually 1.8-2m tall when rigged. You need to find a model that is designed to be de-rigged quickly and easily, not always the case. If you are travelling around a lot and just want to pop a boat in local waters a 1m yacht may limit your options a lot.


Smaller yachts like the Graupner Micromagic, and the Victoria will go into a car rigged, and are still big enough to sail well.
The Victoria will sail in 9" of water. Build log here http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=4231.0
Not sure about Micromagic (hopefully someone else will chip in). Someone else mentioned Nirvana as a good RTR, I could not find these in the UK a while back.

If you are on a budget, then consider this smaller class.


Look at the total cost, some boats are ARTR (Almost ready to run) but these may still need a radio and sail servo. Others are RTR and come with the radio and sail servo. Just check that they have a hobby grade (not toy grade) radio if they are 27MHz. Or you can get a cheap 2.4GHz for under 20 pounds.

Is there weed in the lakes where you plan to sail? If so you need to consider the keel design, a model with a swept back keel will be needed.

Really your best first port of call for info is a local club. See what they are sailing, and they can also advise on suitable waters.
Do a search on here http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?board=112.0 or post here and ask if anyone knows a club near a specific town, it doesn't need to give away where you live, if you are sensitive about personal data.
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bigbloke

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Re: [new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations
« Reply #2 on: December 31, 2012, 08:39:41 am »

How do TigerTiger

Quote
First question, where will you sail her?

The 1m yachts can be 1/2m or more deep at the keel. If you don't have a jetty to launch from you have a problem. If you have shallow launch area, same problem

I have a few local options:

pond formed by a disused quarry at the bottom of my hill, which has quite deep fishing stages
local boating lakes (cwmbran / roath park / cosmaston / foxhunters / tredegar house (newport) possibly cardiff bay too)

other "post work" locations are many and varied around the country - im not allowed to discuss them for contractual reasons  {:-{

Quote
What are other people near you sailing?

from what I have seen electric boats and large ornate, sedate models. I dont get "time out" when the clubs meet - its family prime
time or work time.

with regard to rigging, I have a large 7 seater car so leaving it in there isnt too much of a problem and the places  I park up in the day
are "high security" anyway. no public car parks etc .

Well aware of the weed situation. fallen foul of it before. fortunately I have a LARGE kite reel of 45lb line (several 1000 feet on it) that I have used to
skim boats off ponds before :)

there are two clubs im aware of locally but yacht racing doesnt appeal . I have a twin 380 electric boat and a hydrofoam  for hooliganing around at speed!
In all honesty I doubt I'll have time when they meet. this is firmly something for "my time" whenever I get the chance of an hour or two

I'll have a look at the two boats youve mentioned - my budget could go up to around 300 inc radio.

I was planning to run on 2.4GHz anyhow ideally with a couple of extra receiver units for my other boats / planes. Also 2.4GHz gives me scope for improved antennas
over the standard "half-wave-dipole in a plastic shell" for a little extra range.

I guess ive < kind of > set my heart on a 1m-eqsue yacht this time around though so grateful for any potential steers folks may have

regards

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tigertiger

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Re: [new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations
« Reply #3 on: December 31, 2012, 09:10:26 am »

IOM and Marbleheads (similar size) can be very expensive, as they are both competitive classes. You can pay more than 1G for a hull.


However, you do occasionally get no longer competitive boats show up on ebay, but it is not common.


Although I gave the Monsoon a slagging, and would not recommend it for a newbie to RC modelling, if you can do the tinkering yourself it will get you in on budget. I don't think it is class legal 1m, but that doesn't worry you.
You can also look at how you might knock down the mast and rigging quickly.

Alternatively, build your own. I did see one made of plastic card that sailed well.

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slug

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Re: [new member] semi newbie seeks yacht recomendations
« Reply #4 on: January 01, 2013, 06:33:27 am »

the micro magic..takes up little room and can be bought ready to run.isail mine in all winds doesnt let water in...out of all my sailing boats it gets used the most.another to think about robbe comtessa,they come up on e/bay.shallow keel,hard to capsize sail well...tony
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