My first Sea Nymph was built around 1964, when I was 11 years old, and was a much loved model. However, in my teenage years I endeavoured to convert it to a diesel engine sports boat by removing much of the superstructure. This never came to anything and it then languished on the shelf for a few decades until the 1990s.
Having built a new Sea Nymph I visualised a new incarnation for this model rather than seeing it scrapped.
The new version would be longer to better cope with the battery weight and I also fancied a stepped deck design as sometimes seen on classic launches. Having used serious amounts of Cascamite during the build I tapped the skins from the inside thinking they would not move. This glue held airplanes together! Surprisingly I found that they simply fell off revealing some of the 100s of 1/4 brass nails used in construction (I was 11 at the time). Flyers of classic wooden aircraft beware!
I ended up with just a keel and bow section. Using the plans from the new Sea Nymph I developed some lines and new bullheads to suit the required design. I added about 6 inches to the keel. I also gave the bow a more classic launch look. Construction relied heavily on 5 min Devcon epoxy that cured fast and allowed quick progress with the carpentry. A one piece cabin roof design with air scoops was used. Front cabin screen and main screens were formed in a V profile rather than flat as per kit design. Rear cabin roof and floor all remove for access.
The flat stern was padded out to a nice outward leaning curve that helps keep water down when going astern.
Following the success of the 'new' Sea Nymph, the move to brushless was a given. A Graupner Compact 300Z motor was fitted with a brushless ESC and sticking with the standard 7.2v battery pack. As ever, performance on the water was very much improved. The increased length does help with the displacement. However, Lipo batteries would probably bring about further improvements in performance due to weight savings.
Experiments with propellers continue with a 35mm 3 blade prop seeming to be the best at the moment.