Radio Controlled Boats |

You do not want to find yourself asking this question…ever.

But from time to time, for a myriad of reasons, everyone will eventually end up with their rc boat dead in the water and need to have a plan for retrieval. The outcome can be a minor inconvenience or a total disaster depending on how well you’ve prepared.

As much fun as radio control boats can be, to insure that it stays that way, hope for the best, plan for the worst. So long as you realize you’re dealing with the possibilities of drowning, injury from boat operation i.e. cuts from sharpe, spinning propeller blades, if you have a gas or nitro rc boat, you’ve got flammable material to deal with, and lets not forget sunscreen.

 
If you’re lucky you’ve picked an area where no one else is boating. If there are swimmers, you are in the wrong spot. Never operate your rc boat while others are in the water and that includes you. No wading…these boats can come in at speeds you don’t want to be in the way of.
The problems multiply when others are in the area. Your dead boat can now cause harm to them and/or their property. Yikes…

As I’m sure there are more ways to skin this cat, here are four of the more common methods of dead boat retrieval. Although these methods usually work quite well… none of them are perfect.

1. Retrieval Boat

I’ve read articles saying an inflatable raft is good to use, but one must be careful when around any of the metal boat parts, especially the propellers, as they tend to be very sharpe. A canoe or a rowboat would be ideal, but what a pain in the butt carting them around.

2. Radio Controlled Retrieval Boat

Taking a slightly modified 2nd rc boat(my modification involves a coat hanger…)and simply using it like a tug boat, pushing your main boat back to shore.  
There are some pretty cheap electric rc boats that are capable of doing just this or maybe you’ve still got that first boat that just wasn’t fast enough, collecting dust. So long as the 2nd boat fits into a backpack and is strong enough to bring your rc boat home, this method works well.

3.Fishing Rod with tennis Ball

Because of it’s portability and ease of use this method of snagging your boat with the trennis ball, that’s attached to the end of your fishing line, is quite popular. Depending on how accessable the shore line is and how far away your boat is determines how this method’s overall effectiveness will be.

The best method I’ve seen but not tried is combining the rc electric retrieval method with the fishing rod. Attach your line to the retrieval rc boat and afer circling the dead boat use the rod and reel to bring back both rc boats. This will also save those batteries on the electric rc boat.

4.Water Currents

This method really only works if you basically have the whole place to yourself. You better know where you are and have an idea of the nature of the water currents or you might be in for a long wait.
One of my favorite places drains out into a creek and I know everything heads that way. I rarely worry about having any of the above because I know no one is ever there and with the currents I’ll have my boat back in no time.

Hopefully you’ll never have to deal with a dead boat(not likely) and remember…hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Shark 33cc Gas Rc Boat

OK …who wants to race?                                                   

Fiberglass RC Boats

Radio Controlled Boating Tips

Looking for an outdoor activity, that’s so much fun, you’ll actually find the time to do it? Operating rc (radio controlled ) boats, out on some beautiful body of water, is one such activity. It can be the slow and easy going radio controlled sailboats, or the loud and really fast nitro rc racers. From kids to so called grown-ups, there’s a radio controlled boat that’ll get you outside and away from the office and keep your kids off the streets.

So how do you figure out what’s the best remote control boat to buy? There’s sailboats, warships, yachts,  submarines, hovercraft, and my new favorite the flying rc boat, just to name a few. There’s also a wide array of boat sizes. Mini to so big you’d swear you could hop in it yourself. You should also know a lot of these boats are not toys. They are for serious hobbyists only. Don’t get talked into a boat thats too advanced, it will only lead you to great frustration.

If you know you’ll be using a specific body of water most the time, you should consider factoring that into your decision as well. Don’t get a big rc boat if the area is small, don’t get a loud rc boat if there’re houses near by. If there are a lot of weeds you can get a flying radio controlled boat, a hovercraft, anything that gets it’s propulsion from an out of the water propeller or jet . The regular radio controlled boats hate weeds and they will render your radio controlled boat useless. Hopefully you have a variety of places to go rc boating and therefore more options at your disposal .

The two basic types of radio controlled boats are the sport boats and the racers. It’s a pretty simple choice for the newbie. You’ll want some kind of sport boat. Don’t worry, these remote control model boats go fast. They don’t go as fast as the racers, obviously, but the ease of use, reliability, and lower  maintenance, make them the only logical choice for the beginner.They also come, “ready to go” (RTR ) right out of the box, for those not wishing to have to build it from a kit.

For an advanced rc boat hobbyist it just depends on your commitment and available time and money. If you do need more than just a sport boat… no problem. The racers are totally built for a certain task…speed. All else is not an issue. Higher maintenance and cost are the norm. No leeway for screw ups. One wrong move and your beloved nitro rc racing boat is toast. There are many organized events the serious hobbyist can enter( races, speed record challenges,etc. ) For the competitive soul, this is can be quite exhilarating.

There are three primary types of propulsion systems used on radio controlled boats: nitro, gas and electric. Nitro is by and large reserved for the rc racers. The nitro or glow plug gives the boat engine  more boost than the regular gas rc models and is also more expensive to use. The gas boats while costing more than nitro don’t go as fast but are easier to maintain and the fuel is less expensive. So if you want less hassles than the nitros’ and more time on the water than an electric rc boat,  this is a great choice. The electric radio controlled boats are the more popular of the three. They don’t go as fast as the other two and the batteries don’t last long enough for my tastes, but they are easy to learn on, go plenty fast, have very little maintaining to do, are cheaper in  general, and aren’t as loud.

For more on RC ( Radio Controlled ) Boats there are more articles and videos here that are always being updated. Make sure to stop by my store at http://www.radiocontrolledstuff.net and check out our catalog of quality rc boats at wholesale prices.