Hello, All, After some intense steam builds, I am taking a break to lightly concentrate on a cool conversion. I am using a 'Tantrasway' ebay mahogany hydroplane hull and converting it to RC.
This is a great looking boat. You can find it for sale for as much as 700$. Not sure who would pay that though. If you search the web carefully, you will see this exact same boat sold by several vendors. It comes in several quality levels (such as finished hatch undersides, and paneling of under-hatch areas. Also, different steering wheel covers, and gauges. Additionally, the brasswork is better on some models than others (ex: mitred hatch edge vs straight cut). the seats are stitched vinyl over foam(very nice) .
Definitely saves me some time in the build and for 190$ + shipping, this is a great model to use. It is plank on frame and the inside and outside are resin coated. The inside is quite rough as would be expected, but the outside finish is excellent, and the gentle curves and proportions are well kept. It measures 38 inches stem to stern. There is no stuffing shaft hole. Comes with decorative rudder and propeller, which are useless for conversion. Out of the several already built 20-30's boats, this is the largest and best looking version for my rc conversion.
The boat has a hydroplane tunnel hull, deep dark green bottom paint, and very nice topside finish. Also, there is a flat transom so that mounting a rudder is easy.
Here is a pic of the boat. Fast shipping(Vietnam to my door in under two weeks!) and very well encased in foam. I am using a 2.4gHz tactic tx rx, 600 size 12v motor, lipo esc, and about a 40mm 19pitch prop (2 or 3 blade) More pics and description of the build to come.