RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi Matt
Sorry I took so long to get back to you,I was away for a few days.
I got the fairleads through the internet from Leading Edge Hobbies in Kingston Ontario,But
Great Basin Model Yacht's in the U.S. sell's them also.www.gbmy.com
A really cheap way to do it is to use a small plastic bead like they sell in the craft department
at Wal-mart,Check out this site www.legacyfamilytree.ca/sail/ they do an on line built of a Victoria
with lots of modifications there are some really good idea's there and they show how the bead's are used.
I hope your paint job goes well post some pictures even if the boat's not done,I"d like to see your progress.
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

Thanks for the info bobslr. I already ordered the fairleads from www.mariner-sails.com and they should be here by the end of the week. I haven't actually started painting yet, I live in a pretty rural area in northern michigan making it hard to find supplies. I bought some finishing putty from the local auto store and it was deep red, causing me to use about 20 coats of paint to cover it up on my test piece. So I'm waiting for the white putty to show up in the mail. Also, I bought some carbon fiber tubes for the mast and booms at www.graphitestore.com After researching for a couple of days they seemed to be the best. Right now I'm at a standstill until I get the putty in the mail, everything I can do is done (which is not much), but as soon as I dive head first into the painting process this weekend I'll post some pics. I'm using Lance Armstrong's LIVESTRONG color scheme and decals. My oldest daughter, age 7, was diagnosed with cancer two months ago, and the NW project gives me something to take my mind off of things. Thanks for the info and I'll post some pics soon!

Matt

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hello Bob
I have started to rework my Northwinds rigging and I dont see how the servo arm for the sails will have enough travel to pull them all the way in and out did you do anything special to fix this?

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi
This is the setup I used to run my sheet line's (see drawing) I think this design was first posted by Andy1499 on the Yahoo group and it work's quite well.
Can you post picture's of exactly what the problem is ?
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

bobslr,
Here's some pics of my progress so far. I've made a new radio tray (not painted yet), filled and sanded all the extra indents on the hull, and glassed and filled the keel. hopefully I can start to paint the hull within the next couple of days. I'll post more pics when I start to get some paint on.

Matt

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi Matt
Look's like you've been busy,The pictures look great glad to see you reinforced the keel that thing is scarey as it comes from the box.
A couple of thing's that come to mind are:
1) When you bolt the keel on use a 3mm Ny-lock nut,A guy here where I live had the stock nut come loose and the keel dropped off and the boat capsized.
2) On the inside of the hull you have the inner part of the slot that the keel fit's in to,I reinforced that area to stiffen it up so it would'nt flex the hull.
3) If you use the cable push-pull set-up for your rudder then the servo should angle up slightly to give the cable's a straighter run.
4) If you paint it with Krylon let it sit for a week, the paint may feel dry but it stay's kind of soft for a while and the least little thing will mark it until it cures BTW I like the color scheme you choose.
If I think of any thing else I'll post it.
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

hiyas all,

I cant help but think the sail servo on my northwind isnt strong enough to pull the mainsail all the way in. I know there are sailwinch servos available but I just need to know what the minimum strength is I need to install before I go and pay for one. Is 9kg/cm strong enough?
thanks.

RE: Northwind 36
 

That should be ok for most weather conditions. Is the 9 kg/cm at 6 volts? If it is make sure your rx pack is 6 V also.
http://www.sussex-model-centre.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=880 is the one I use on my slightly larger Saphir and it's about the cheapest out there with enough torque. It's a GWS servo in most countries, it seems.
It's nearly twice the size of a standard servo though and you may have some work to do to substitute it.

RE: Northwind 36
 

thats 9kg/cm at 4.8V, and id like a bolt in solution. I dont want to start fiddling to fit a larger servo in there. Anyway, is 9kg too much? Will 6kg suffice? Many thanks.

RE: Northwind 36
 

While the 6 kg rated servo would probably be ok in lighter winds, the 9.6 would give you better handling in stronger winds. You may find that the lower rated servo cannot even hold the sails fixed in such situations.

RE: Northwind 36
 

ok thanks, I will fit the 9kg servo. I intend on sailing it in the river this weekend. From the shore it doesnt look like the sails are pulling in when the breeze is stronger.

RE: Northwind 36
 

I have a victoria, which I believe is smaller than the Northwind. I have a 9kg servo. Somedays I wish I had bought the 11kg servo.

RE: Northwind 36
 

just bought the 11kg servo yesterday, hope to finish installing it tonight! keeps glitching though [:o]

RE: Northwind 36
 

ahh crap.....Tell me it's not a HiTec???
They have a history of glitching and not centering properly.
You will be happy with the 11kg servo.....I know i am.
:D

What servo box set up do ya have???

RE: Northwind 36
 

RE: Northwind 36
 

bobslr,
Here are some pictures of my paint scheme. I just finished the hull and keel last night. The krylon fusion black paint actually attacked the plastic on the rudder and deck of the hull. I had to sand and repaint a couple of times. I'm going to strip the rudder and prime it tonight with the hope of it turning out as well as the keel. Lesson Learned: don't ever paint anything with gloss black because it shows every little flaw which = headache. I'm anxious to show you the mast and booms I fabricated out of carbon fiber. I think it looks as good as the vision sails rig, but not as adjustable, and it cost me less then a quarter of the price. I'm just waiting for the paint to cure before I start "buttoning" everything up. I went to a local sail locker, and the guy there has all kinds of left over scrap spinnaker material the same weight as the stock NW sails, and he's more then happy to give me some for free. I think I can even talk him into cutting it to shape for as well. I'll keep plugging away and post more pics when she's all done. Thanks again for all your help and advice!

Matt

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi Matt
The paint job look's good,I have not heard of Krylon Fusion attacking plastic that's what it's supposed to made for at least you where able to salvage the paint job.
I'm looking forward to seeing how your sail's come out,Keep the picture's coming.
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

Thats a nice paint job.....I'm soon to be paint mine red and black, but i want to fiber glass my keal up.

RE: Northwind 36
 

sif and bobslr,
Thanks for the kind words on my paint job. Lessons learned for what it may be worth - stay away from black paint as it shows every little flaw. I had to sand w/600 and re-paint a couple times for a clean finish. The hull of my boat came out like a mirror, but the deck has flaws that the black paint magnifies. If you paint a lite color like yellow, pay close attention to the color of putty you use to fill with as it's hard to cover up. If you are going to mask a part off, don't use newspaper because the ink will transfer to what ever it touches, use plain computer or printer paper to solve this. If you decide to glass the keel, wear rubber gloves so you can smooth the fiber glass cloth and epoxy around for minimal filling and sanding later and use a sanding block whenever you can. The putty is softer then the plastic so it sands off much quicker. I've been working on this boat for almost a month and still not done and it's still not perfect. sif midget, post some pics after you get the paint on. I'd love to see how it comes out. I'll post some more pics of mine when I get the decals and mast on (still waiting for the paint to cure). Thanks again for everyones help and I hope to see you on the water sometime.

Matt

RE: Northwind 36
 

bobslr,
Here's the finished paint job. I made the mast, main, and jib (not pictured) booms out of carbon fiber. I used 2-56 ball link ends for the end of the boom which makes for a nice clean attachment point for the sails. The spreaders and stay attachment ring are all expoxied to the mast so they won't move. I was very pleased with how everything turned out. The sails will be "work in progress" sometime next week. I'll post some pics with the sails on as soon as I get them finished. Let me know what you think!

Thanks for the help,
Matt

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi Matt
Outstanding!!!!!,You should be really proud of the job you've done.
The paint look's great with the yellow lettering,Is it painted or are they sticker's?I've always like that colour combination I once painted my race car yellow and black it looked great.
Keep the picture's coming and keep up the good work,The boat really look's good.
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

Just thought I'd pass along a tip to anyone building a NorthWind.
The mast step that come's with the kit seem's to be prone to cracking (I had two crack in the first month)It might not be a problem if you leave the boat rigged to transport it but I take my mast off to fit the boat in to the car.
Anyway this is what I did.

RE: Northwind 36
 

hey guys,
i am very interested in this boat and have never built or sailed rc before any advice??

RE: Northwind 36
 

Hi Alan
The best advice I could give you is to read this thread from start to finish and don't be afraid to ask questions.
The biggest problem's with the stock NW are the keel bulb and the radio box and they've been pretty well covered on here.
Bob

RE: Northwind 36
 

bob,
i do have to admit that i had some doubt as to my abilities to complete this project because i am only fifteen but i see there are more people like me(sif- Midget) but i really have NO experience in building. what say you?