Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
04-28-2008, 07:49 AM
#376
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
New London we have a problem!
My Chicago ran for about 3 minuets with fresh batteries while I was getting it trimmed. It than sank to the bottom of the pool in 5 feet of water. When I got it back I checked the battery comp and it was dry. Problem is I now have to touch the transmitter antenna to the Sub's antenna to get it to work. It has a range of about 6 inches now. Any ideas guys?
Thanks
MERLIN
My Chicago ran for about 3 minuets with fresh batteries while I was getting it trimmed. It than sank to the bottom of the pool in 5 feet of water. When I got it back I checked the battery comp and it was dry. Problem is I now have to touch the transmitter antenna to the Sub's antenna to get it to work. It has a range of about 6 inches now. Any ideas guys?
Thanks
MERLIN
04-28-2008, 10:35 AM
#377
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Hello Merlin,
The same thing happened to my Chicago before I turned it yellow. Water must have gone inside somewhere! Water could be in the RX compartment or one of the 3 motor boxes. In my case, the side motor box developed a hair-line crack & I have described it in more details here:
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_6086994/tm.htm
Hope it helps.
Regards
Normanski,
The same thing happened to my Chicago before I turned it yellow. Water must have gone inside somewhere! Water could be in the RX compartment or one of the 3 motor boxes. In my case, the side motor box developed a hair-line crack & I have described it in more details here:
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_6086994/tm.htm
Hope it helps.
Regards
Normanski,
05-25-2008, 12:27 AM
#379
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
They hit the shelves when summer and pool toys come out, right after Easter I guess. If they don't have a new model, they roll out what's left from prior years. Last year they had a sub (available as Shark or Gator) that was a notable improvement on prior years, but it had an odd look and seemed to have a shorter production run than the previous model (seawolf/conny). There's a conspicuous absence this year !
05-25-2008, 07:46 AM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
I found out where the water got in. All The motors,the RX and wire tubes! Everywhere except the battery comp. Sorry to say,what a piece of junk. I'll dry it out and if by some stroke of luck it works i'll seal it up and try again. I think I can see why wally world stopped selling them.
MERLIN
MERLIN
05-25-2008, 01:56 PM
#381
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Sorry to hear about your totalled Wally boat! I have had a similar experience, every tube full of water. Ugh.
I think the idea of the design with those rubber tubes is that as pressure increases, those junctions should seal themselves tighter...but how well does that protect when the sub is only a few inches down (unless you've actually opened up the sub and sealed everything with silicone, which is more than Wal-Mart does)
Seems like it would be more effective design to have fewer connections and make the thing just one watertight compartment inside, so when it leaked you could open one lid and let the whole thing dry . But then they couldn't do the vertical thruster through the hull. And the easy-access bolt-closed battery box at center-of-gravity would be hard to keep Probably Wal-Mart is betting most parents aren't going to want to maintain the sub beyond replacing AA batteries for their kid the sub skipper.
I think the idea of the design with those rubber tubes is that as pressure increases, those junctions should seal themselves tighter...but how well does that protect when the sub is only a few inches down (unless you've actually opened up the sub and sealed everything with silicone, which is more than Wal-Mart does)
Seems like it would be more effective design to have fewer connections and make the thing just one watertight compartment inside, so when it leaked you could open one lid and let the whole thing dry . But then they couldn't do the vertical thruster through the hull. And the easy-access bolt-closed battery box at center-of-gravity would be hard to keep Probably Wal-Mart is betting most parents aren't going to want to maintain the sub beyond replacing AA batteries for their kid the sub skipper.
05-26-2008, 09:01 PM
#382
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Woohoo! I finally got my sub trimmed to just about right. She dives steadily and cruises nicely at full throttle, once underwater, the tail sinks deeper but this is not a problem. To surface, I simply have to engage the vertical thruster a bit and throttle ahead, the sub jumps out of the water like a dolphin! P.S: I re-installed the stock battery setup and the range problem was gone, so it's gonna remain as that from now on. Here are some pics taken in the tub (yes, the sub IS floating on the surface!
), perhaps I'll have time this week to test her out in open water.
), perhaps I'll have time this week to test her out in open water.
07-19-2008, 12:15 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
i just got a walmart seawolf off ebay tried it in my pool .It runs fine on the surface but will not submerege. the dive thruster works it just wont go under . any suggestions would be great .this is my first sub so im not that familiar with rc submarines and the weight adjustments.it has the little weights in the foward and rear horizontal fins. whats the proper set up (were the water comes to when on the surface0
07-22-2008, 02:48 AM
#384
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Hello Aslvrfrost98csvt,
If you take a closer look at the photos posted by Captain Nemo 2 threads above, you should see the water level is at the bottom of the tower.
The sub should come with several pieces of weight, which you can insert inside the fins to achieve the desirable buoyancy. One more thing you need to also bear in mind, that is this submarine is a 'dynamic diver', which means it will not dive when it is static.
If you are sure the Dive thruster is working, then engaging the dive thruster only causes the front of the boat to tip downward. That alone however, will not get the sub to dive. You should then engage the forward thruster so to push the boat into the water. And when you stop the forward thruster, the sub should slowly rise back to the water surface. I hope this helps.
Let us know how you get on.
Normanski
If you take a closer look at the photos posted by Captain Nemo 2 threads above, you should see the water level is at the bottom of the tower.
The sub should come with several pieces of weight, which you can insert inside the fins to achieve the desirable buoyancy. One more thing you need to also bear in mind, that is this submarine is a 'dynamic diver', which means it will not dive when it is static.
If you are sure the Dive thruster is working, then engaging the dive thruster only causes the front of the boat to tip downward. That alone however, will not get the sub to dive. You should then engage the forward thruster so to push the boat into the water. And when you stop the forward thruster, the sub should slowly rise back to the water surface. I hope this helps.
Let us know how you get on.
Normanski
07-25-2008, 09:09 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
On EBAY seawolf $26
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=220261393406
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=220261393406
08-18-2008, 09:39 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
For those of you who haven't seen my sub video yet, you can see it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8Lht0qkJUA
Feel free to leave comments. BTW, once the sub was 10 feet from shore I could hardly see it it blended in with the water. My GF had the advantage of the zoom on the video camera. Also, the sub is relatively slow ... compared to ducks and geese, that is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8Lht0qkJUA
Feel free to leave comments. BTW, once the sub was 10 feet from shore I could hardly see it it blended in with the water. My GF had the advantage of the zoom on the video camera. Also, the sub is relatively slow ... compared to ducks and geese, that is.
09-06-2008, 10:17 PM
#387
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Not r/c, I know, but I thought I'd show the sub my son picked out at Cracker Barrel.
Any toy we pick up at Cracker Barrel, you can safely bet my son will have broken in a day. This six-dollar wonder was no different: Charlie stepped on it in the first hour.
I patched it up: glued back the broken fin, and trimmed a big tab of excess plastic I found on the propeller that had made the sub slower than a half-dead sea slug. After that junk plastic was gone, it could keep pace with a stock Wally sub, at least a Wally sub past the peak of battery charge. (The motor pod attaches under the keel, I forgot to include it for the photos) Not bad for a single AA cell.
The thing's trim was horrible out-of-the box, always flip-flopping. a) It only had three big vent holes b) it is one lengthwise chamber inside, c) the sail is supposed to hold onto the last bit of air so it stays afloat, d) with all air removed for stability, the hull is negatively buoyant. Combine those four factors, and its normal trim condition, if not sinking, is that about 3/4 the hull has filled with water but there's still a bubble trapped that slips from stem to stern or vice versa, eventually popping bow or stern out of the water and hanging suspended but never staying level. What a dull design.
I changed lines that were meant to suggest "free-flood holes" into real free-flood holes and holed the sail top as well, so all air was free to escape, not trapped as a bubble that would shift back and forth. Then I set buoyancy a tad positive with foam, stabilizing center-of-buoyancy in the middle. Stays level now, actually dives powered by just the one AA cell if I push the fins to full dive.
Better than our usual time with a Cracker Barrel toy, fully functional after Day One !
Looks a lot like the old-school Soviet subs, doesn't it?
Any toy we pick up at Cracker Barrel, you can safely bet my son will have broken in a day. This six-dollar wonder was no different: Charlie stepped on it in the first hour.
I patched it up: glued back the broken fin, and trimmed a big tab of excess plastic I found on the propeller that had made the sub slower than a half-dead sea slug. After that junk plastic was gone, it could keep pace with a stock Wally sub, at least a Wally sub past the peak of battery charge. (The motor pod attaches under the keel, I forgot to include it for the photos) Not bad for a single AA cell.
The thing's trim was horrible out-of-the box, always flip-flopping. a) It only had three big vent holes b) it is one lengthwise chamber inside, c) the sail is supposed to hold onto the last bit of air so it stays afloat, d) with all air removed for stability, the hull is negatively buoyant. Combine those four factors, and its normal trim condition, if not sinking, is that about 3/4 the hull has filled with water but there's still a bubble trapped that slips from stem to stern or vice versa, eventually popping bow or stern out of the water and hanging suspended but never staying level. What a dull design.
I changed lines that were meant to suggest "free-flood holes" into real free-flood holes and holed the sail top as well, so all air was free to escape, not trapped as a bubble that would shift back and forth. Then I set buoyancy a tad positive with foam, stabilizing center-of-buoyancy in the middle. Stays level now, actually dives powered by just the one AA cell if I push the fins to full dive.
Better than our usual time with a Cracker Barrel toy, fully functional after Day One !
Looks a lot like the old-school Soviet subs, doesn't it?
09-06-2008, 11:18 PM
#388
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Man, Cameraz, you sure scared those ducks !
The only wildlife I ever chased, chased back.
The sub was a Chicago, prop modded for nice power and trimmed near perfect neutral buoyancy for great maneuverability.
The fish was a koi, a bit bigger. He seemed to consider the sub an intruder.
The koi , too, seemed optimized for great power and maneuverability. That fish was one big muscle from head to tail.
As I tried to close in on him, he won every round, angling in from the beam for another look at the clumsy newcomer. He never startled.
I kept chasing him, but felt more and more anxious he was going to trash my toy !
The only wildlife I ever chased, chased back.
The sub was a Chicago, prop modded for nice power and trimmed near perfect neutral buoyancy for great maneuverability.
The fish was a koi, a bit bigger. He seemed to consider the sub an intruder.
The koi , too, seemed optimized for great power and maneuverability. That fish was one big muscle from head to tail.
As I tried to close in on him, he won every round, angling in from the beam for another look at the clumsy newcomer. He never startled.
I kept chasing him, but felt more and more anxious he was going to trash my toy !
10-01-2008, 10:35 AM
#389
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
ORIGINAL: CrunchyFrog
Man, Cameraz, you sure scared those ducks !
The only wildlife I ever chased, chased back.
The sub was a Chicago, prop modded for nice power and trimmed near perfect neutral buoyancy for great maneuverability.
The fish was a koi, a bit bigger. He seemed to consider the sub an intruder.
The koi , too, seemed optimized for great power and maneuverability. That fish was one big muscle from head to tail.
As I tried to close in on him, he won every round, angling in from the beam for another look at the clumsy newcomer. He never startled.
I kept chasing him, but felt more and more anxious he was going to trash my toy !
Man, Cameraz, you sure scared those ducks !
The only wildlife I ever chased, chased back.
The sub was a Chicago, prop modded for nice power and trimmed near perfect neutral buoyancy for great maneuverability.
The fish was a koi, a bit bigger. He seemed to consider the sub an intruder.
The koi , too, seemed optimized for great power and maneuverability. That fish was one big muscle from head to tail.
As I tried to close in on him, he won every round, angling in from the beam for another look at the clumsy newcomer. He never startled.
I kept chasing him, but felt more and more anxious he was going to trash my toy !
Thanks for viewing my video. I was up against several problems while making it. First, my girlfriend had never, ever operated a video camera before, so while I was operating my sub I had to direct her what to do! Secondly, the water in the pond was pretty murky and, with my sub being grey, I couldn't see the damn thing once it was more than 10 feet away. The only thing I could see was the 2 inches of black wire sticking out of the conning tower. I think the next time I will put some reflective tape on the sub so I can see it better.
BTW, that Koi you were chasing sounded pretty big! Of course, these subs will never outmaneuver a fish ... or a duck or goose for that matter!
They're lots of fun anyway!
03-27-2009, 09:50 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
It's amazing how this thread keeps on going year after year I almost fogot about it. But it is time for some good sub weather
I almost fogot about it. But it is time for some good sub weather
03-27-2009, 10:40 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
I have been fortuante then. My Dallas is four years old I think, and it works perfect.
I am very happy with my fleet of two Dallas and a Chicago.
One Dallas has a Seaview piggyback like the shuttle on the 747 and it works great two.
Thats just my experience, not a speck of ceral, individual milage may vary.
I am very happy with my fleet of two Dallas and a Chicago.
One Dallas has a Seaview piggyback like the shuttle on the 747 and it works great two.
Thats just my experience, not a speck of ceral, individual milage may vary.
03-28-2009, 08:29 AM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
I'm in Florida on vacation right now and just picked one up on ebay. I always wanted one so when it arrives I'd like to take it out for some test runs.
03-31-2009, 10:38 PM
#396
RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
It has been a long time since I have posted on this thread.
Recently I have acquired two hobby grade U-Boat kits and a highly recommended (by RC sub operators) hobby grade radio to run them. The radio has already been sent back to the manufacturer once since bought new and it still does not work properly. One U-Boat kit has a questionable pressure hull that I am trying to figure out what to do with and the other has appendage alignment issues that make propeller selection troublesome. So I have two boats that need problems solved before they can go anywhere near a body of water and a radio system that, so far, might make a good door stop.[&o]
On the other hand, my Walmart Gator sub that I purchased two years ago still runs like a champ! It will probably be the only RC submarine that I will be able to run this spring...possibly even this summer.
Recently I have acquired two hobby grade U-Boat kits and a highly recommended (by RC sub operators) hobby grade radio to run them. The radio has already been sent back to the manufacturer once since bought new and it still does not work properly. One U-Boat kit has a questionable pressure hull that I am trying to figure out what to do with and the other has appendage alignment issues that make propeller selection troublesome. So I have two boats that need problems solved before they can go anywhere near a body of water and a radio system that, so far, might make a good door stop.[&o]
On the other hand, my Walmart Gator sub that I purchased two years ago still runs like a champ! It will probably be the only RC submarine that I will be able to run this spring...possibly even this summer.
04-10-2009, 03:52 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
You can still find these subs on ebay... Just do a search.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=220393860051
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=220393860051
05-31-2009, 05:50 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Today I put my submarine video back up. YouTube had taken it down, saying the music was a copyright infrngement.
You can see the video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_ilVnEdlAA
cameraz
You can see the video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_ilVnEdlAA
cameraz
04-17-2010, 11:02 PM
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RE: Walmart Submarine = Cool ! Part II
Hello everyone! I'm sorry if I am necroing a thread here, but after a forum search this seemed the best place to post. Summer is coming and with it the outdoor RC season. With that in mind, I wanted to pass on that I have the 1st and 2nd gen walmart subs in stock at my store. (Dallas Chicago, Seawolf, Connecticut) I'm trying to track down a supplier for the Gator and Shark, though I haven't found one yet. The Canton fair is coming though and I hope to find one there. Again I apologize if I posted this in the wrong place.