bcochran

36 minutes ago, Ian_Grant said:

I think she looks great with furniture and crew of models aboard!

Thanks Ian,

i wasn’t sure how those things would work out. 

Just a few detail shots while I wait for my new Tx/Rx and ESC.  At times I don't like the way this boat looks.  And at other times I do like it. It is not a perfect build for sure. But I like these detail pics so here they are.

12 hours ago, thibaultron said:

About 35 years ago I attended my first Nationals with the RC Warship Combat Club (we had radio controlled warships with radio controlled BB guns on them and each team tried to sink the other side's ships). Well we were on one of the reflecting ponds at a former Worlds Fair site. There was a nearby building with a glass outside elevator. Very time the elevator moved my steering servo gliched, and I lost control until the elevator stopped!. Not a good thing! That night the boat worked perfectly at the hotel. In desperation it took a 3 foot long twisted shielded pair cable I had in my tool box and replaced the servo wiring with that. I left the whole thing coiled up in the hull. The next day the ship worked perfectly! I left it that way all week. I took it out and reinstalled the old wiring when I got home, and the boat worked perfectly for the next two years.

 

The combat is not as destructive as it sounds. All the electronics were in watertight and BB proof boxes, and the plywood ribs withstood the abuse. The only thing we had to do was periodically replace the silkspan covered 1/32nd balsa skin. Generally once or twice a year, if I attended every event I could (one week long Nationals, and 4 or 5 weekend long events). We also had mesh armor on the inside of the ribs to protect the equipment, but still allow water to come in through the holes. There was also one bilge pump, that had a restricted outlet. As long as it kept up, the boat stayed above the water. We did this in shallow water, so we could retrieved sunken, or out of control models. I participated for 15 years, and no one ever lost a model.

Wow that must have been fun.  I know nothing about R/C boats.  My main hobby has been model trains.  I have built trains, planes, boats, ships, cars, trucks and other things. I am amazed how involved you can get with models.

I found this drawing on ebay.  This drawing may be of the real boat or it may be a plan for a model. I bought the Marx version of this boat on ebay and with this drawing I may complete a model with a complete interior. 

I bought a new  transmitter receiver and a new ESC on eBay.  They should come next week sometime. I hope to be on the water soon.

After having completed the superstructure of this boat I turned to the R/C components again. I moved both battery packs too the bow.   I twisted the wires to the ESC and the batteries.  I turned on the transmitter and added power to the receiver.  At first the transmitter and receiver were bound then the receiver light went off and there is no response from the transmitter.

The ESC fan turns on but I have no idea if the ESC is working.

To me the thing to do is buy a new transmitter receiver, hook them up and hope things work. If that doesn't fix things I will get a new ESC hook it up and hope things work.   This will probably take another week to accomplish.

I don't know what transmitter receiver to buy.  The seem to be around $30 to $40. The one I want to replace is a 2.4 GHZ with a third channel. I will look for one like it.

I found a little cocktail table for my voyagers to put their drinks and beers on.  It is from a pizza box. It's used to keep the pizza from getting crushed. I cut the legs down and painted it.

This boat is getting to be like a doll house.  I'm thinking of buying the Marx version on eBay and instead of motorizing it, put a complete interior in it.

14 hours ago, MAGIC's Craig said:

I will be following along with your R/C progress since I would like to get a better appreciation for the wiring sequence as well as the "do's and don't's" as I build the system into my current build.  Since home for me is relatively close to yours, I look forward to perhaps seeing your project underway.  Very nice work!

 

I will be at Waller park pond in Santa Maria when I put in the water.  I have no idea when that will be.

This is me resting on the Port San Luis pier after a puzzling, confusing and a bit on the difficult side build. All the stress and anxiety is over.  On to the R/C equipment after a brief rest.

Well the dingy is hanging off the davits with pulleys.  It's not too realistic but it is better than than string alone I think.

So now I have no excuse to not working on the R/C equipment.

My pulleys came in the mail today.   Now I can rig my dinghy realistically.

Well the building of the boat is complete for all intents and purposes.  There are a ton of little flaws but I just have to live with them.  Somebody go and buy the Marx version on eBay now and out do me. I have a wild hair up my *** that's telling me to buy it and make one with a white hull and turquoise roof.  Or buy the Dumas Chris-Craft Commander.  It is a wood kit.  I'd make another log if I do.

I know how I want to hang the dinghy from the davits. I ordered some pulleys for it.  I hope the are the right size.

This boat is not finished.

Last time before I got to the r/c parts my log was marked finished.

25 minutes ago, bobandlucy said:

I have joined the girls on the deck. Can someone pour me a whiskey? Rocks, please.

 

Bob

If I could find another 1/20 guy I would add him and call him bobandlucy.

A top  down view of the deck.  I want to finish the boat before I get back to the R/C equipment.  I want to try everything Ian  has suggested. I just have some paint touch up and I am figuring out how to realistically hang the dingy from the davits.  I replaced the plastic stanchions and davits with metal ones from a Marx Constellation kit.  I want the dinghy to be solidly attached so I won't lose it when she cruises the pond. 

 A few aditions to the boat, a lense and and electrical connection for the light, a radar dome, controls for the motors and Fido the dog.

54 minutes ago, Ian_Grant said:

Just another thought - you said there's no hobby shop near you; what if you call the guy at Big Rich Models who curated your electronics? He'd probably be happy to talk you through debugging the boat.

I'm going to do that.

If anyone wants to build this model boat.  There is a Marx version on eBay right now.  The Marx version has metal parts which I think are superior to Lindberg's plastic ones. You would have to paint the metal parts to make them look like chrome but that is not hard with spray paint.

The price is probably prohibitive though. They want $299 plus $74 shipping.  That price is close to a Dumas wood one on eBay that is similar.

I would like to have both but not at that price.  I would like to make another with a white hull.  There is a Lindberg Sport Fisherman boat for $425.  I would like to make that too but I think it is too expensive.  Off all I would like to try my hand at the Dumas Chris Craft Commander.  It is listed at $325 plus $30 shipping.  I just might spring for it and start another log so everyone could watch me crash and burn.  I usually work in plastic.

11 hours ago, Ian_Grant said:

Bob, your model 3150 motors are definitely brushed; if they were brushless they would have three leads.

 

Your post #7 shows your ESC is the "brushed" type, ie for brushed motors.

 

Interesting that everything works with the deck off. All components are therefore good. Sounds like possibly RF interference.

 

I see from your pictures that the leads from ESC to motors are pretty long and loopy. Brushed motors generate a lot of electrical noise as the brushes pass from one coil to another via the commutator; this electrical noise can then be radiated by the long motor leads. I recommend you try soldering small capacitors, say ceramic 0.1uF leaded, right at the motor terminals. This is a classic configuration to reduce noise from brushed motors; one capacitor from each motor power pin to GND (the motor metal case) and a third capacitor between the two motor pins. See this pololu description:

 

https://www.pololu.com/docs/0J15/9

 

As they say, it will also help to twist each pair of motor leads together in a spiral from ESC to motor, so the two wires "cancel" each other's radiated emissions.

 

Finally, and I realize this would affect your trim and ballast, try moving the rear battery up forward beside the other one so its noisy lead isn't near the Receiver and ESC. You could then twist the leads from batteries to ESC for the same reasons.

 

You're very close........eyes on the prize!!   👍

 

 

 

 

Thanks Ian.  If this boat ever hits the water you will have a big hand in getting it there.

I was playing with the transmitter trim and I think I caused the problem.  I had the decks off and everything was working even the rudder servo.

When I put the decks on the trouble started.

If I replace the ECS what are the specs I an looking for. I think I have brushless motors and the ESC needs to match.

The Transmitters have a receiver included.

Strange happenings. I tried to operate the R/C equipment. The Tx and the Rx were bound. Things worked like before when the motors turned in a stop and go, stop and go manner. 
 

Then everything quit.  My volt meter’s batteries were dead.  I will still check the voltage. 

I broke off two of the plastic handrail stanchions while working on the electronics. I am a clutz.  That's the reason I haven't finished my Cutty Sark model.  I keep hitting thin plastic parts and braking them off.

I got these metal stanchions on eBay.  They are from an old Marx version of this boat.  It had metal parts but the Lindberg version has them in plastic. 

I sprayed them chrome this time. The davits show what they look like unpainted.

Ian.

Thanks for your help.

I will use my volt motor to check out what you suggested.

You can come here. This is where I live.

3 hours ago, Ian_Grant said:

Bob, it would be worth a little debugging before spending money on a new RC set!

 

The two most likely problems that come to my mind are (1) the ESC somehow burned out, and (2) the RC Tx and Rx are no longer binded for some reason. I'd be surprised if anything is wrong with the Tx or Rx.

 

If the ESC is burned out then it will not supply power to the receiver via the 3-pin "throttle" connection and the boat's innards will be inert. I recall you have a voltmeter at least; with the battery connected to the ESC measure the nominal 5V it should be supplying for the Rcvr. Centre pin is +5V, GND is usually a black wire. If no voltage, it's the ESC.

 

If the Tx and Rx are no longer linked, then the Rx will ignore the Tx and again the boat will be inert. You could test this by connecting any 6V battery to the Rx's "BATT" pins (if you have a spare 3-pin connector with the wires, or cut one). Now that the Rx does not depend on the ESC, test for servo operation. If nothing happens try repeating the binding process. If you're sure they are binding according to the instructions in the TX and Rx manuals, then OK maybe one of them is at fault but again I'd be surprised.

 

Wish I could just pop over to help.....

 

Good luck!

The Tx and the Rx will not bind anymore. There has been a steady disintegration of the working of everything. 
At first the motors would go on and off, on and off when I pulled the trigger on the Tx. The Rx would flash red on and off with the motors. The servo would turn by itself intermittently.  The servo control would not work. Now nothing works.

Here is where things stand.  I've worked on the electronics.  Everything is hooked up and nothing works right.

I am going to replace the transmitter and receiver.  They are not too expensive.  If that doesn't fix things I will replace the ESC.  Those are the only possible things that an be fixed. The batteries and the servo are OK.

I keep breaking the plastic hand rail stanchions by laying my arm on them while I am working on the electronics.  I have some metal ones coming today.  They are from the old Marx it.  That kit has a lot of metal parts where the Lindberg kit made them in plastic.  If you are looking to build this boat I would suggest getting the Marx kit for the metal parts. There is one on eBay now but they want your first born and your next year's salary for it.   There is a guy on eBay selling the metal parts.  That's were I got mine. I may end up swapping out my plastic rudders for the metal ones I have coming.  The plastic ones seem very precarious hanging down beneath the hull.

I have some block and tackle pulleys coming that I will rig the dinghy with.  That dinghy looks fragile hanging out held only by thread,  I also have metal davits I could replace the plastic ones with.  The plastic looks too fragile.

So it loos like it will be a week or more before I get it in the water.  There are no hobby shops that sell R/C near me.  The closest one is in LA or San Diego.  I buy most everything on line now.

I added life rings, something all boats like this should have.

14 hours ago, shipman said:

Hope you got good news results.

Thanks Shipman

I don't have cancer.  I have more tests to undergo.