webdr

Ive begun taking the steps to making the Formula a race worthy contender. Unfortunately, theres no RTR class racing here in Atlanta; the guys here are almost strictly gas racers so it's more of a personal quest!


First thing I did was blueprint the bottom; it was pretty wavey so I sanded it with 400 grit until it was flat.

I also ordered some running gear from that company (you know who!) Im impressed with it's fit and finish and shipping time was about 1 week from order to receiving the goods.

I bought a break-away turn fin mainly because I think I hit a turtle in the river a few weeks ago and cracked the hull when the stock fin broke off. Hopefully, the new break-away will keep that from happening. Its almost razor sharp, twice as wide as the stock fin, and half as thick.

Also bought a break-away rudder. This guy is really sharp and should cut down on a little drag.

Also bought the adjustable strut. Finally! I can adjust the pitch and depth... all the parts bolted right up with no problems and cost me about 90 bucks.

Lastly, I removed the spoiler and fins. MAJOR reduction in weight. This alone should aide in getting the aft hull out of the water. I plan on filling in the holes and painting it over.

I also ordered some sidewinder 40% fuel.

My last mod is to send the engine in for a "stage 3" port and polish/ sharpen the crank. The claim is a 40% increase in power which seems a little too hopeful but Im sure it will open up the performance alot.

LMK what u think.

misshydro

I see that they redone there adjustable strut bracket?maybe they saw my bracket?[&:]There old one was made thin=could break when you hit the somthing= not a very pretty sight when the cable whips around freely at 30+mhp. Thats why I made my own bracket and use the Miss Vegas adjustable strut and rudder and flex cable on my Miss Bud.21 Only costed me 16 dollars to do that setup.I had spaire parts form a vegas.[8D]

helmut33

Webdr have you tested out the boat since you have put on your adjustable strut, let me know what you think about the setup, also what do you think about the new .18 motor.
My boat's are on the way,swore I would not get another proboat till after I got the vegas, but I was able to pick up 2 new formula's for 150.00 each so I caved and bought both of them. When you get your motor worked over let us know what you think of the port modding. Well time to go order some new hop ups for the fleet.

webdr

Not tested it yet, the motor is out and Im boxing it up to send it off for porting.

Ive never run the .15 but I know the .18 is quick for a RTR. Hopefully, this little hydro will haul tail. Should be a few weeks before I throw it in the water.

helmut33

Keep us updated on the progress of your build, as soon as the two twins arrive they will be stripped down, engines sent out and new hardware going on, but not to sure if I will be able to get them out on the water anytime soon snow's not to far away but hoping for a nice mild winter this year.

cmiller73

FYI, That is the same design as they always have had.

misshydro

Yep your wright.Same thin bracket.At least I know my strut bracket isnt going to break if it hit something.[8D]

f16man

Well if that strut bracket broke the whole transom would be history, besides the only time it would hit any thing would be radio failure ( hardly ever) or PILOT EROR...... ( almost always) o ya an ocasional turtle.......... are ya pickin up what I'm throwin down?

webdr

I think the strut bracket is gonna be just fine.

DA75HP

HAS ANYONE TRIED THE SUPERCHARGER THAT RB INNOVATIONS MAKES FOR THAT ENGINE.I HAVE A BUD THAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT GETTING ONE FOR.JUST WANTED TO SEE IF IT WAS WORTH THE MONEY,AND WHAT KIND OF PROBLEMS THEY HAD.

webdr

oh man, lets not turn this thread into a supercharger argument.

Locate the search button and type supercharger. Then read any thread and find out they are mere shelf-queen bling.

d-lo

so how are you going to mount the supercharger with your.....................TOTALLY kidding.

well, i am interested in your opinion on your hardware out back. a friend just ordered the same setup you have, i liked the rudder,(although it is missing the water inlet tube, just a pin in the pivot point..), i was a little disappointed in the strut quality. the shaft that came with it was out of round, had machining marks on it, and was a pretty sloppy fit in the strut, which is not bushed, so once the aluminum starts to wear, there is nothing to do about it. the cable is soldered in a little crooked too. now i'll say this, he bought an extra prop shaft, and that one was .003 bigger, much nicer fit and finish, so he is using that one to start with. the strut bracket is full of machining marks too, being the perfectionist that i am, i would be a little let down by it. guess i am just wondering what your take on it is, i know it's taboo to talk about around here, but i am not sure why, i haven't been on here long enough to know the 'inside dirt' on the anti-movement here.

anyhoo, i am doing another proboat build this winter, and was just interested in your setup. looks good, keep it up, and let us know how it works out!!

davey

misshydro

Dont even think about it!![X(] There junk!![:'(] If they were so good we all would be running them in our boats!! Buy a bigger and better motor if you want real power!![8D]

helmut33

Miss Hydro have you tried any of the so called products yourself!

webdr

The hardware really looks good IMO, theres no bad machining marks that I can see and the strut bracket looks strong enough. Ive never heard of the strut breaking, but Im sure a few have and if so, Id rather it break than rip my transome off.

The shaft fits snugly in the strut tube and there is zero slop. I expect the engine back from them by the end of this week. Hope to have it on the water in 2 weeks and I will definately report back

misshydro

When that strut bracket breaks lose on you, it will do more damage then you think.When that cable and bracket whips freely and tears up your back end plus it might reck you motor too. Your boat funeral.

d-lo

did this happen to you from using this product? it doesn't take much to stop one of these motors, i wouldn't think it would tear up everything that bad. and that's in the unlikely event that anything is going to break in the first place. put it this way, if you hit something hard enough to break that strut, you've got bigger fish to fry anyway as far as damage. i have seen regular proboat struts break off, all it did was take the strut, prop shaft, and prop flex cable clean out of the boat. no damage at all. it just pulled it out of the coupler and sank.

this hobby is all about building, running, modding, and having a good time with your projects. one of the great things is, we all share our experiences with each other, he is just sharing his in his own thread, like i have, and you have also in yours.

anyway, this is machined from one piece of 1" square aluminum stock, no welds, etc. is yours machined from one piece? or is there welding, which could fatigue and crack from grinding, temp change, etc, letting go, and tearing stuff up....... just curious, wondering why you are so against these products, unless they have actually failed on you, then i would like to hear about it in more detail. i am not sticking up for them, i saw things i did not like either, but like i said, just curious....

back to topic........pm me if you like, to keep his thread cleaner......not trying to start crap in here, just calling it like i see it......

davey

webdr

What do you mean "when" it breaks loose?
Is it destined to fail?
Does it have a life expectancy?

Its a piece of aluminum... If you whack it hard enough, it will break......but that will not deter me from buying one. Im not out searching for a piece of titanium to fashon a strut from.

Im understanding your "dont say I didnt warn you" statement but I really think this strut will function just fine, and if it doesnt, Ill make sure admit my error.

Matt

Shinning Rock

Hey guys,
Got news, Cooper Pipes has released their new QHP .15 - .21 I got mine ordered today. These Cooper pipes are both quiet and boost performance. Alot of the guys in our local club are starting to use them, check em out @ CooperPipes.com if thats ok to say. I will get back with the results after I get a chance to test it on my Formula.

Steve

kyle_yokomo

I just want to give my opinion of the ajustable strut. I purchased one and am rather dissapointed[] The big problem I have with it is where the flex shaft enters the strut there is no bushing or bushing insert. The flex shaft runs and spins in the strut which is made of aluminum, well after a dozen runs or so the strut is shot and needs to be replaced, I dont know why they didnt use a bushing insert like they have the vegas boats.

Until they fix this problem I will stick with my original strut, besides it works just as good and after tinkering with the ajustable strut, I didnt notice any difference in speed or performance, and I tried a couple different props, at different depths.

misshydro

My cousent broke his bracket on his formula hydro. He met up with a turtle and broke his bracket, luckly he shut it down asap or that broken piece wouldve done more harm to his boat. So I made another bracket and sent him one. Now after read kyle_yokomo and what happend to him,Now I got to asked/warn my cousent about the strut no busting wear out.[8D]

d-lo

so webdr, i see your formula boat on ebay, not going to do it anymore? i was curious to see how all your mods worked out, ie, strut, your boats speed over stock, etc,.

too bad after all you put into it, let us know how things went anyhow, just to finish up your thread for the curious....................


davey

misshydro

He selling it because there no 1/12 rtr class in Alanta GA. To me thats nuts!![X(] I wouldve keeped the boat and ran it for fun!!! All that work and let it go[&:] ??? thats a waste??[] and sad too.[] Good luck trying to get you money out of it thow?? Theres two things that might hurt your boat sell.You should finish the wing and turn fin area to make them look nicer and spot painted to make it look better.But I do hope you get what you want out of it.[8D]