New to RC could use some help

[james thomas 5Participant @jamesthomas5]

Could use some help with billings phantom

[james thomas 5Participant @jamesthomas5]

This is my first post on here and my first attempt at an RC boat. Ive been building models all my life and even professionally at one point.My son took an interest in a model of the U.S.S Constitution I was building and asked if we could build an RC boat. I purchased the billing boats Phantom kit which in itself is easy enough to put together but what I really need to know is what do I use to waterproof the hull i.e what resin do I use and do I coat both the inside and the outside of the plank on frame hull and also what motor etc do I need? The manual says RS-380 motor but when I google it all I see is a cheap crappy looking motor. I would also like to know if all servos and speed controllers etc are compatible with each other or do I need special ones for RC boats?

Like I said it's my first try at RC so please excuse my lack of knowledge 😀

Any help would be greatly apreciated.

Thanks in advance 😀

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi James,

Yes things have moved on with electrical powered boats , have a look at the Sea Breeze thread being described by our editor Graham, which will give you a sparkling performance. It won't be cheap

Regards Ray

Edited By Ray Wood 2 on 26/03/2018 18:29:57

[Malcolm FraryParticipant @malcolmfrary95515]

You can always pay a lot more for a motor if you really want to, but a 380 running on its rated voltage will push this boat along probably up to the limit of what the hull can do on the water.

The only "special" requirements for boats are 1/ forward and reverse 2/ NO Brake function 3/ use an ESC with a reasonably generous current rating.

Servos and ESC almost universally use the same pin connections and they almost all use the same signal conventions so it is generally safe to assume that anything that requires to plug into a receiver will do so and work. Just needs plugging into the expected channel the right way round and not between the pins (got the T shirt for all three at one time or another)

Requirement 2/ because reverse is the brakes and you don't want to faff about going through a brake sequence when there is a risk of damaging a concrete wall with your boat. Requirement 3/ because a boat is always in a state of accelerating. With a 380, a Viper Marine 15 will be fine, best to avoid ebay products with extravagant current handling claims.

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

Hi James and welcome to the forum.

​Regarding waterproofing. How is the exterior going o be finished?? A quick google shows something with veneered sides. If this is the case, then having planked and then veneered the hull, a few coats of marine varnish will do. For the inside, probably I sould paint this with resin of some sort, various types out there…Z-poxy or something similar. This will also stiffen up the hull a bit. HOWEVER, different people have different ideas about this.

​The 380 is a fine motor for the price, of for a pound or so more, a speed 400 would look less cheap and provide a few extra watts of power. On a 7.2 Nimh pack this should give all the performance you need, as per Malcolm's post. A speed 480 is a faster motor, same diameter and mount but a tad longer..

OR go brushless but you may end up with way too much power for the style of hull.

Ashley

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