After a gap of a few years, I thought I'd try another RC submarine. Luckily, although in the midst of the Government dictated lock-down, there was enough material to hand for this.
Rather than basing it on the modern types I've favoured in the past, something the general public would instantly recognize as submarine was used, i.e. a WW2 U-Boat.
Dynamic diving type, maybe not as clever as the "all singing and dancing types" full of ballast tanks and electronics but something like 80% of the fun for 20% of the cost/effort is its main appeal.
A simple free flooding hull with a central watertight box for the RC and built mainly from bits of spare plywood I had lying around. Three RC functions needed (rudder/ESC/hydroplane) and controlled by a 40 MHz radio outfit (so glad I didn't discard it in the rush to 2.4 GHz!).
It took a couple of trial runs until it could be trimmed to cruise in a stable submerged fashion and is now a safe and reliable performer. But, it (like all our model ought to receive) 100% care in preparation, operation and maintenance. Relying on other people to recover your stranded model is not a good option with RC submarines!
Glynn Guest
