chistech

I have an electric all fiberglass boat built by the late John Nicolaci of PBM fame. It is powered by two 12volt gel cells and has the prop weed protected. He used a method like Scale Only 4 Me. He would circle the plane to entangle in the float then pull it it. It is made like a tug boat and could tow in his 13' PBM. He was having radio problem interference with the big electric motor but got it straightened out just before he passed. I will take some pictures and post. The boat has a cooling coil around the motor but he found he didn't need it. It is also geared down to turn a bigger pitch prop. Uses a Hitec wheel radio. I hope to have this unit at our club's memorial float fly for John this Oct. so we can use it and show his ingenuity.
In the pictures you can see the ensnarement float stuck on the rear arm of the boat for transportation purposes. It gets put in the water when the boat is sent out. The two 12v gel cells give it substantial weight in the water. Fins on the flat bottom give it directional stability when towing a downed plane but still allow it to work in shallow water. The screen is not only on the prop but also protects the rudder from debris. You can see the gear reduction and water cooling coil on the motor. The most important part is John had experimented with the best location to attach the float line to for the best performance of both the boat and the float. The rear pulpit was his first location then he built the higher center pulpit which ended up being more effective for float positioning and overall towing performance. This boat works good but with as with everything, it's not the answer for every situation.