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Model Boats Website
Liked Maiden Voyage 5 years ago
Liked It's a sad day!. 6 years ago
Liked Sea Queen 7 years ago
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Recent Posts
💬 Re: Maiden Voyage
5 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD (
Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 53 Views · 2 Likes · 1 Comment
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Lovely looking model. I agree that "scale" speed looks far better for this type of boat. I do notice that your boat looks a little bow heavy at low speed - I had the same thing with my Aerokits Sea Commander but solved it by moving the battery pack further aft (improved the apparent speed a bit too!). I too am playing with propellors - currently using a 40mm S-type but this seems to be causing the motor to overheat so plan to experiment with a 35mm one and shaving the trailing edge of the 40mm to allow the motor to run faster.
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📝 Props - dumb question?
5 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 4 Views · 0 Likes
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Thanks for the info. Now I can start looking for the right sort of prop. Just need to sort out size, number of blades and pitch!
Ian
Ian
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📝 Props - dumb question?
5 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 4 Views · 0 Likes
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I'm just starting to try to "tune" my boat by playing about with propellers but I've hit a real newbie question: When suppliers talk about a prop being right- or left- handed (presumably that it is designed to spin clockwise/anticlockwise) are they talking about the view of the prop from the front or rear of the boat? Viewed from the rear, I need a prop that spins anti-clockwise - so is that LH? (or is it RH?)
Thanks for not laughing (too much)!
Ian
Thanks for not laughing (too much)!
Ian
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📝 Leaking Boat!
6 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 5 Views · 1 Like
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Try covering the outside of the (dry) hull with kitchen or tissue paper and then fill the leaking compartment with water from the inside. With luck you will get a damp patch developing on the paper that will give you a pretty good idea of where the hole is.
Ian
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📝 It's a sad day!.
6 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 7 Views · 2 Likes
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Someone mentioned ED motors! My Dad's old Sea Commander had one before I converted it to electric, but I still have it (in a box on the wardrobe!) Can anybody tell me anything about it? it is marked as an ED MK4 with what looks like a serial number of 4G147. it is water cooled and has a variable throttle. I cant see how the ignition worked but it has a large tug-start fly/pully wheel on the drive shaft. Any info gratefully received.
Ian
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📝 It's a sad day!.
6 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 7 Views · 2 Likes
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If anybody is interested, the recently re-formed Trafford Model Boat Club which runs on Sale Water Park (M60 jnc 6, South Manchester) allows IC. They run most Sunday afternoons. Contact Mark on 07895642327.
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📝 Sea Queen Spray Rails
6 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 5 Views · 1 Like
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My Sea Commander "Jaydee" has spray rails about 3/16th inch square. Have a look at the Aerokits photo gallery. There is a picture of it out of the water and some in action. I believe rails are a must for stability in the turns when going at speed as well as helping lift the boat onto plane.
Ian
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💬 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 16 Views · 4 Likes
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Many thanks Dave. I'll see what I can do and let you know the result.
Ian
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💬 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 15 Views · 3 Likes
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Hi Dave
I've attached a photo of the prop as you asked. You can just see where I've shaved it down. This seems to have eased the overheating considerably. You can also see the water inlet for the cooling system that was used with the original diesel engine. This is now piped directly to the outlet on the port side (you can see it working in some of the action photos). The other photo is a fore/aft view of the central bay which contains the motor, ESC and battery.
Ian
I've attached a photo of the prop as you asked. You can just see where I've shaved it down. This seems to have eased the overheating considerably. You can also see the water inlet for the cooling system that was used with the original diesel engine. This is now piped directly to the outlet on the port side (you can see it working in some of the action photos). The other photo is a fore/aft view of the central bay which contains the motor, ESC and battery.
Ian
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💬 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 14 Views · 2 Likes
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Hi Dave,
The original prop was about 42mm as was the 2-bladed replacement before I filed it down to approx. 38mm. The battery is a Ni-mh 7.2v 3700mAh 6-cell VP racing battery. As you can see from the photos I am getting a semi-planeing speed which is what I wanted as I think it looks "right" for this model. it is true that the boat is rather heavy but that is because I have left my father's old 1960's transistorised receiver in situ, partly out of sentimentality and partly because it seems to balance the boat nicely.
Ian
The original prop was about 42mm as was the 2-bladed replacement before I filed it down to approx. 38mm. The battery is a Ni-mh 7.2v 3700mAh 6-cell VP racing battery. As you can see from the photos I am getting a semi-planeing speed which is what I wanted as I think it looks "right" for this model. it is true that the boat is rather heavy but that is because I have left my father's old 1960's transistorised receiver in situ, partly out of sentimentality and partly because it seems to balance the boat nicely.
Ian
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💬 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 12 Views · 0 Likes
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I have changed the prop to a 2-bladed one without loss of performance but still had to reduce it's size to stop the motor overheating - to do this I simply ran the motor out of the water and held a file against the rotating prop! - crude but did the job!
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📝 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 24 Views · 12 Likes · 7 Comments
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Now has name and "port of origin" plus flag and is performing well. Still has a leak and I think the engine tends to run hot. I'm considering changing the original 3-bladed prop for 2-bladed one as I'm told that will cause the engine to draw less power from the battery. Does anyone have any experience with this sort of mod?
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💬 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 10 Views · 2 Likes
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Thanks Johnlikessailing. However, I have now replaced MFA 500 with Mtroniks 600 and got much better performance, although I'm not sure how much of this was due to the change of motor and how much was due to rectifying the slippage due to a loose grub-screw on the connection between the motor drive shaft and the universal joint that I found when I removed it! (Lesson - beware of alternative causes of problems!) Now I just need to sort out a leak - hardly a surprise on a 50 yr old model! Hey-ho!
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📝 (Pleasure Craft) Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 5 Views · 2 Likes
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Built 1961. Raced in early '60s. Originally IC powered, now converted to electric. (Motor: Mtroniks 600) (9/10)
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📝 Jaydee
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 19 Views · 11 Likes · 3 Comments
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This Aerokits "Sea Commander" was built C.1961 by my father with ED Mk4 diesel engine and his own scratch designed and built radio/receiver ( I have all his design documents). He raced it successfully in the early '60s but hadn't used it in years when I inherited it. Have now replaced the IC motor (mothballed carefully) with MFA Torpedo 500 but it runs a bit slowly ("river cruising" scale speed). Looking to obtain semi-planing but not racing speed.
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📝 Guestbook Post
7 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
Master Seaman)✧ 312 Views · 0 Likes
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Hi, I have kept safely and replaced the old IC set up in my 1960's Aerokit Sea Commander with a modern electric system. Unfortunately, I’m not sure that I was given the right advice and although the boat runs ok, it is slow, only reaching what I would call a scale “river-cruising” speed. I would like it to be capable of a bit more (without reaching “racing” speed) and wondered if anybody can advise me on a more suitable engine/battery/controller configuration?
I am currently using an MFA Torpedo 500 motor powered by a VP 3700 7.2v 3700mAh battery pack through a Fusion Aquapower 128 (128A max continuous current) controller.
Any pointers will be gratefully welcomed.
I am currently using an MFA Torpedo 500 motor powered by a VP 3700 7.2v 3700mAh battery pack through a Fusion Aquapower 128 (128A max continuous current) controller.
Any pointers will be gratefully welcomed.
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📝 Guestbook Post
8 years ago by 🇬🇧 IanD ( Master Seaman)
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I have recently inherited my Dad's 1960's Aerokits Sea Commander still in its original state with 3.5cc diesel IC and his own self-designed and scratch-built electrics. This is the boat that won the "M.P.B.A. R/C Speed Championship 3.5cc" in 1963. I would love to convert it to electric motor and modern r/c, preferably without destroying any vintage interest it may have, and see it running again but I think I'm going to need a lot of advice as I am a complete modelling novice. Hoping to show it on the South Manchester Model Boat Club stand at Haydock next weekend.
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