Quicksilver1

When I was 11 my dad bought me one, I kid you not the first run of the sub, everything was going great, until I decided to fully submerge, she never came back up Water was too murky to even look for it. [sm=cry_smile.gif]

Blazerbogger

Another member asked for more photos.

gulfstreamI

Your Nikko sub project/upgrade shows a lot of potential. I wish I had more time to work on my Nikko Seawolf.

Blazerbogger

Do be in mind this is a great toy sub. I have 4 of them. This one broke, so I'm turning it into a cheap hobby grade sub.

Mekong

I have one sitting at my parents house, I am not sure if it still works, I think the problem is that it just needs some rust removed. Hope my mom hasn't thrown it out yet! If it has some rust is there any way to save it? I know I have the weights still, I am worried that I dont have the controller, is there any way to get a new one?

gulfstreamI

Just order from Nikkousa.com>they still have parts for these subs. The elecronic circuit board on the new Nikko models are an upgrade to those that were made back in the mid 80's .

<akula 971>
I agree with you. I've got three of these Nikko subs, these are sturdy & have a very long runtime. I've got one with a "jet drive" (no prop) sub comming in by next week. unsure about brand (ebay purchase) but it's about the same size as these Nikko Subs.

margandy

Hi all you seawolf nikko owners just converted one to 3 channel dynamic diving what do you think!! Will test this weekedn for water leaks/ ballesting.

jasona

Has anyone yet succeeded in significantly increasing the range of one of these Nikko Seawolf subs?

margandy

Trying to post my pics please bear with me!! margandy

margandy

I have installed a proper hitec micro receiver seems to have twice as much length coming out the conning tower i will do my tests by next week pics to follow so i will keep you updated!! on its conversion perfromance!!

Glvincent

Hello fellow members of the Nikko Sea Wolf squadron,

I have a vintage original Nikko "Exploration Submarine" (cheesy stickers and all). I bought it new in about 1987. I lost interest after a couple of years and it went into long term storage at my parents' house. Last year I decided to "dust it off" to see if it still worked, and lo and behold it worked great. Even the NiCd batteries I had bought way back when still held a charge! But, the rubber seal had completely hardened and dried out. I ordered a new seal from Nikko, but now the sub seems to have a leak I cannot find. I can only assume that the new seal is somehow not as good as the old one was. The new seal came with a black nosecone so now I have black seats, but I am still using the original yellow/white nose. If use Vaseline on the seal it minimizes the leak but I do not dare dive below the antennae length (in the old days I could do this with no leaks).

Has anyone else (maybe gulfsream1 or AKULA971) had this problem and figured out a better fix? I would like to run my sub in a lake but don't have enough confidence in the seal yet. Thanks - and I love the mods and new paint jobs that folks have done to the Nikko sub. Maybe someday I will have the time and courage to get that creative!

Blazerbogger

Glvincent, try looking for any cracks in your hull. If there are any, you should seal them with the longest setting epoxy you can get. If you say your seal has dried out, check the rest of your seals too. The are openings in many places of the hull. Look further back in this thread on how to take apart the sub.

Glvincent

AKULA971, I have actually inspected it stem to stern and taken it completely apart per previous posts (while drying out after it went to the bottom of Mom's pool). No visible cracks in pressure hull and the other hull seals are all soft and in good shape (I think they are as follows: two screws in top of PH with rubber washers, antenna plug, and O-ring for bottom prop). I remember that the original round seal had a super tight fit and this new one seems looser to me.

Leak tests in a "test tank" (large storage box) were inconclusive but seemed to point to the round seal.

Just wondering if anyone else had this particular problem and traced it to the new seal. I may try another leak test someday. Thanks!

periscope

Hi - I don't know that particular submarine so I'm not sure which seal you're talking about but I had a similar problem with the Robbe Seawolf where the hull seals against water around the inner watertight compartment - small leakage of water is easily cured by just smearing a thin film of Vaseline on the two surfaces that meet - it stops any water getting past the rubber seal.

gulfstreamI

Greetings and welcome to the Nikko sub attack squadron!
You have two (2) other areas where the leak may come from. The topside souce is the rubber plug where the antenna wire is held in place. That becomes brittle with age. I would recommend those Loctite "stick & seal" available from your local supermarkets & hardware stores.
The other leak source is that "O" ring seal at the bottom where that dive prop mechanism is located. That was the problem in my second Nikko Ocean explorer sub that lead it's demise and decommisioning. The plastic had become too brittle (20 plus year old) and there were too many micro cracks.

Your new battery (front) rubber seal I can safely rule out as the culprit of your leaks.It is as tight as a cork on a bottle. Just don't exceed the 8 foot deep dive limit that I've noted in my other two Nikko subs before they start to take on water.

Waterbomber

Hi Folks:

I got the replacement parts from Nikko last month and have repaired my Seawolf's magnetic drive coupler. It has passed "the bathtub run test" and now I wish to sell it for $100 plus the cost of mailing it to you. The sub has maybe 5 hours running time since new.

Thought I'd offer it first in this thread, since I said that's what I'd do in my earlier post.

More info and pix available via email if you are interested before I list it elsewhere.

Regards,
Lee Smith

Glvincent

Thanks all for the helpful suggestions regarding the sub leak. Since I have had my sub completely apart I can confirm that the antenna seal is nice and soft, not brittle at all. I didn't remember seeing any cracks around the bottom dive prop O-ring, but last night I took it apart and double checked, and there are no cracks (even used a magnifying glass).

So, I ran the sub today in my mother's pool for a good 30 to 40 minutes, in rough seas (courtesy of my strapping 6-year old boy), and it stayed in perfect trim. I did put Vaseline on the battery seal before running it (as I had done for a previous test when it leaked some). Since the last time the leak seemed to happen when diving deeper, I did not go below antenna depth. I finally got tired of running the sub (amazing life on my vintage NiCd batteries), and when I dried it off and checked inside, it was bone dry! The leak is gone! The same sub that I once had to rescue from the bottom of this same pool now did not leak a drop. I have no explanation but I am sure not complaining.

I think I am ready for "open water". Any advice from the rest of the Nikko SubRon? I know the range is so-so but as long as I keep it close to shore I should be okay.

One other thought, has anyone ever added lights to this sub? Done right I think it would look very cool on a night dive.

Thanks!

gulfstreamI

Using a magnifying glass to check for micro cracks on the sub's hull and rubber seals was the correct thing to do. That's the way I do hull intergity checks on my other toy subs.

About the range of these Nikko subs, on ground level expect a range of at least 35 -50 ft max with newly charged batteries. If you stand on a higher level (about 3-5 ft above water level) & keep your antenna pointed in the "up" position, expect a range of at least 75 ft. These Nikko subs operate on C.B. frequency (Citizen's band) and the principle is the same. To get futher range the transmitter has to be on a higher level for the receiver (nikko sub) to respond to controls.

To boost the operating range of your stock 7.2 Volts (1.2 V Nimh AA X 6) Nikko transmitter, increase the input voltage to 9.6 Volts by adding two extra AA cells to the power supply. Use those two cell "AA" battery holders available from Radio shack. I' e tried this before in those other toy subs I've worked on & it did boost the range to at least 75 feet on ground level.

There's a neat way install lights on your Nikko sub for night time use. Look for those "Tyre flies" available at Wal-mart automotive section. Those are L.E.D. tire valve "bling-blings" that make those lighted wheels effects at night when your tires are spinning. They are motion sensitve & will light up when your Nikko subs move on the water. Just use silicone selant in the seals to make them water tight and install them in the sub's hull. One fore and one aft should be adequate. These L.E.D. lights also come in different colors.

jjp735i

I'm looking for a pdf. of the manual for this sub. I have a Ocean Explorer, but it seems to be the same sub.

Thanks jjp

Glvincent

I thought I had seen this somewhere. Try this link - this is for the newer version without the built-in charger and some of it is in English: [link=http://www.geocities.jp/ejiri_takahiro/S_7002.html]Japanese Sea Wolf Instructions[/link]

oceanfox

Hello

I just subscribed this forum, i am completely new and "ignorant"

I have also the vintage original Nikko "Exploration Submarine" RB2110. It must be one of the first ones, because the date noticed on it is: 1983.

Unfortunetly the radio controller is missing, the propeller is broken and the rubber seal had completely hardened and dried out and leaking. So I have several questions.

Is it possible to find parts of this sub? If positive, where and how?
Does there exists a schematic diagram of the electronic parts (receiver and transmitter)
Can I use a another radio control device (i still have a "polistill" device on 27 Mhz)
Are the crystals for the 27 Mhz still available?

I am completely new with radio distance control, but have good experience with electronics.
So I found out - with my hf generator - that the receiver and the motors are still working!

Every advice is welcome

Maurits

jjp735i

oceanfox,

I just bought a Ocean Explorer from ebay with no controller. You can order a controller from Nikko America for $34.00. You'll need to know what the feq. is, mine has a sticker on the top 27.009 band 3, From what I understand they have the other parts too, but I only needed the controller. I've taken the advice from here and tore mine down to see everything inside, I was wonderfully supprised when I opened it up and it looks brand new. All the rubber seals are soft, no cracks, doesn't look like a drop of water has ever even touched the inside.

i have a guestion for everyone, the front seal, behind the nose cone, mine looks new, but it's not a real tight fit, it seems to seal correctly, but I want to make sure how tight it should be before I take the first run.

Another thing I have done with my wally subs is tie a fishing bobber to the sub, it doesn't look the best, but I can take my wally sub down under in the lake and know were it is. Plus If the little guy decides not to surface I can retreive it. It's kind of cool when I take it down and and bring it up 5 -10 feet away, not knowing excatly where it's coming up.

jjp

Glvincent

It should be a good airtight seal, kind of like when you close a Tupperware lid. For your first run, try cruising on the surface and checking your trim. If it stays trimmed at the same level, try diving to the antenna depth. After a while, take the sub out and open it up and check for water behind the seal. If it stays dry you can try a deeper dive, then check again for water inside. If it takes on water, then limit future dives to the antenna depth.

I recommend doing all of this in a pool with a long-handled recovery net handy. I also recommend not storing the seal on the sub to keep it from getting stretched out. Good luck!

jjp735i

Update on controller for Ocean Explorer. The cost was only $25.00 which included shipping.

jjp

jjp735i

I received my new/ or should I say used remote from Nikko today. The reason I say used is because the back is all scraped up. I'm thinking they must refurbish them. I think the remote may be bad and I wanted some opinions. When I put all the batteries in and turn it on both the f/r motor and submerge motor runs. The steering doesn't work at all. When I move the f/r stick the prop does change directions, but it's backwards. When I move the steering stick the submerge motor spins. When I press the submerge button both motors spin.I have no idea if the sub was in working order when I got it, but when I took it apart it appears brand new inside. I was going to see if Nikko would send me a replacement remote to see if maybe I got a bad remote. What do you think? I guess someone could have cleaned the guts at one time, but if it did get water in it I would think I would see some type of corrosion. I know the worst case is the sub is just dead, but even if it did get wet I can't see everything working so weird. I could be wrong though.

Thanks, jjp