Use of older motors

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Use of older motors

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10 September 2018 at 12:26 #78842
Martin Field 1
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@martinfield1
Hi all,

I have a collection of older electric motors, which, I dare say are not exactly quick. Trouble is, my passion is for older speedboats. Not mad ducks on acid, you understand, just scale speeds. I have a Sea Hornet dressed as a Chris Craft Racing Runabout (one cockpit, long engine deck) and I have a speed 400 out of a model aeroplane in that. That's as modern as I go. I'm hoping that will be just enough. I have also a Darby One Design scratchbuilt from plans in a 1954 Motor Boat Annual. That is a single step boat once capable of around 30 knots apparently and I'm wondering if that would be OK with the rather nice Basset-Lowke motor I have which is very powerful if not hugely revvy. It's about 2 feet long (1/6th scale). The boat, not the motor! I'm wondering if anyone has used one with a biggish prop to get a "just on the step" performance. I know scale speedboats are not popular, but I ask in hope that somebody has used one of these nice old motors. As I have these old motors, I may as well use them if possible, though I think the Taycols will have to go in cruisers.

Martin

Edited By Martin Field 1 on 10/09/2018 12:29:10
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10 September 2018 at 12:26 #4525
Martin Field 1
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@martinfield1
11 September 2018 at 03:15 #78856
S M
Participant
@sm83187
It should be and you can always prop up or down if you have a little surplus power to achieve the desired result, alternatively you can always build or buy an open type gearbox with a range of gears and change them to get the desired speed you wan't.
11 September 2018 at 12:10 #78860
Charles Oates
Participant
@charlesoates31738
Hi Martin, can you post a picture of the Lowke motor you are hopeing to use?. I've had a few in the past, all wound field of course. If you have the motor type I'm guessing at, it's about 3 inches long, coil at the back of an iron frame. and brushes at the front. I would never consider one of these for anything except a ship or similar displacement model. They're heavy, slow revving amp hungry and not especially powerful by today's standard.

All that aside, you might enjoy just trying it, half the fun of the hobby is trying things out.

Chas
11 September 2018 at 14:06 #78862
Martin Field 1
Participant
@martinfield1
Chas, I can't post photos. No idea how to do that.

But it's square, metallic blue, permanent magnet, on a plain aluminium base with the name stamped in. It has a crude marine coupling and on 9 Volts off a power pack I couldn't stop the shaft with my thumb and fingers.

I'm not a fan of ships, but could be tempted with the more elegant cruisers and river craft.

I just wish there was a decently powerful English motor.

Martin
11 September 2018 at 17:36 #78864
Charles Oates
Participant
@charlesoates31738
Hi again, if yo ever want to add a photo, have a look on the forum front page. Check FAQs on the lower right. Nothing to it.

Have a look at these two motors, from old Bassett Lowke catalogues, one of mine, one courtesy of Dodgy Geezer.

Perhaps your motor is one of those. Both can be described as sloggers rather than performance units, and are unlikely to get you planning. But as I said before, it's often fun to try.
11 September 2018 at 18:41 #78869
Martin Field 1
Participant
@martinfield1
Mine is the one on the right of the top catalogue if it were oriented correctly. I do also have one like the top right of the other one, but more for interest than use.

I find the fitting of all the innards in models nothing but a pain, so no I wouldn't have any fun just playing around. I have far too much making of hulls to do to fiddle with installations…hence my question. Looks like a damned brushless or a drill/buggy motor (I took one apart not long ago) will have to be pressed into use. I only want a scale 30mph.

Thanks for your help.

Martin
12 September 2018 at 09:09 #78872
Malcolm Frary
Participant
@malcolmfrary95515
Apart from poor power to weight and efficiency ratios, these early motors were rarely designed with radio control in mind. There will probably be a lot of work involved in fixing them to mot produce large amounts of interference.

Scale 30mph? Depends on the scale, but a 1:16 model would need to do about 7.5mph to look right.
12 September 2018 at 09:57 #78874
Charles Oates
Participant
@charlesoates31738
As Malcolm says, even with modern 2.4 radio, these motors can wreak havock, even interfering with models on 40 MHz sailing close. I built a metal cage around the motor the one time I tried it. That helped a lot.

I must admit, that with a stepped hull, where light weight is paramount to getting it planning, a brushless and lipo is an ideal answer.

Chas
12 September 2018 at 10:27 #78875
Martin Field 1
Participant
@martinfield1
I take your points about likely power, or lack of it. Perhaps we should say lack of revs. As to interference I have never had a problem with that, even with an old Taycol, although a friendly electronics chum has made me special boards which with a diode bridge both enable my Taycols to be used with an ESC and have the effect of suppression. The Bassett Lowke is fairly conventional in brushgear terms and so should need nothing more than the condensors used normally with permanent magnet motors like the plethora of round Japanese things.

The Darby One Design is not 1/16th scale, it's 1/6th as the real boat is something of a tiddler with sidevalve Ford power. I must say I paid scant attention to weight when I was building, so I suppose a brushless is necessary.

Thanks,

Martin
13 September 2018 at 09:46 #78892
Malcolm Frary
Participant
@malcolmfrary95515
I was just picking 1/16 out of the ait because the numbers are easy. 30mph at 1/6 is about 12.5mph, which is knocking on a bit, and will need serious attention to power and weight. Less weight, more power.
13 September 2018 at 10:01 #78893
Martin Field 1
Participant
@martinfield1
I'm intrigued as to how you're calculating scale speed?

Weight is what it is, there ain't no reducing it now. The model is 26" long and surprisingly beamy, has a single step and a broken chine aft, with a v-shaped transom and offset rudder. I had bought a Brushless for an outboard. Maybe the Darby will need it instead. It's an inrunner 2500Kv. Beyond that I have no idea what's needed, but I think 3 S LiPo should do the trick and I can get them locally.

Martin
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