JFSJR

I'm building a deep V boat from scratch. The size is 48" x 15". This boat will be for fishing and designed to toe fishing lines to the deeper water in the Gulf of Mexico. Speed is not important and towing a fish is not important.

I'm wondering what is a good size electric motor, speed controller, what size prop, how many blades, and drive shaft angle? Any other suggestions are welcome. Thank you

Hydro Junkie

I think the first thing you need to be looking at is range or, more precisely, reception range. You have to remember that, by law, a transmitter can only put out one half of a watt of transmitted power. You also need to be aware that water can reflect radio signals, greatly reducing the range that the receiver can actually pick the signal up. On a calm day, you may get out to 100 yards before you lose the signal and, effectively, your boat. On a day with wind, rain and/or waves, you might be lucky to get out 30 yards. Both of these range guestimates are also assuming you have your antenna as high as possible, either on a mast or structure of some sort. Something else you need to remember is that the further out you go, the harder it will be to see your boat and, more importantly, what direction it is headed when you try to bring it back

JFSJR

Thanks, this is good information. I didn't know about these limitations since everyone has been saying the range is 1 kilometer. My surf reals have about 250 yards on them. I intend to attach two lines to the boat and send it out to about 150 yards (Max 200 yards). One line will be tied on for retrieval (just in case), and the other for fishing.

JFSJR

Again, I want to keep the boat in site. Is there anything for boats (like with planes and drones) like a GPS Return to home feature if it gets out of range?

Hydro Junkie

In a word, no. There are fail safes that can be set to make the boat do various things(stop or go in a circle for example) but nothing like a return function.
Now, getting back to your project, there is a shop that can probably help you out. It's name is Mack Products Model Marine. They make parts for kit and scratch builds. They would probably have all the parts you would need. Since you're not looking for a boat that's fast, it would take a different style prop than a racing boat would. The staff at Mack's would be able to give you that information as well as battery/ESC/motor combos that will work with your boat and how you plan on using it. Their website is
index

mike_o

late to the party, but yes, there are return to launch/home options available. And they are not even expensive. Check out the free Ardupilot Rover firmware, which can run on a $22 controller. Youll need a $9 GPS as well.

Got RPM

The OP hasn’t been back to the forum for almost a year so he won’t see your answer - which is an interesting one.




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mike_o

@Got RPM,

oh, I didn't check that. But someone else may stumble upon the thread, so the Ardupilot Rover information could still help

An example here:

HeidyD

Yes, thanks a lot for the answer! Needed it!