jdoug

Here's some pics of my WT .18 with SuperVee hardware. It will be running the Grim 42x55 prop. Engine mounts are homemade and the radio is built seperate from the hull so I can remove later if I need. I ran the boat once with an aircooled .15 and it ran excellent. The conrod wore out because I forgot to replace it when rebuilding the top end, so I bought an OS .18 CV-R and dropped it in and propped up a bit. Maiden on this engine should be this weekend! It should fly because I thought it went well with the .15

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

jdoug, that is some good looking work. Now if you think the Wild Thing performed well with a .15 in it you should see one run with a MAC .21 in it.
One observation and suggestion if I may. It appears that you have a drive washer in front of the drive dog. I suggest that it is not necessary for a flex drive installation and may in fact result in vibration or shaft failure and your pretty prop will end up with the fish. When a flex shaft gets prop load it winds up and shortens. If the shortening is restricted by the drive dog or the strut for that matter, it can be stretched to failure. Simply remove the drive washer and space the drive dog about one shaft diameter from the strut. That will give you enough clearance to prevent damaging the shaft. I had an experience with my Whiplash that caused my some problems with vibration. I foolishly had a drive washer on the boat (I should know better) and when running on the beach the shaft and washer got to spinning at different speeds. It set up such a vibration that the brass cooling supply tube inside the hull broke and resulted in flooding the interior of the hull. I had to drill a hole in the transom to drain the water out. All is fixed now with a rerouted cooling tube and the drive washer is on the bottom of our pond for fish food.

jdoug

Thanks for tip John. There is a gap there, but there are also thrust washers in front of the drive dog. I see what you mean by the shaft and washers spinning at different RPMs and causing havoc. So, I should remove the washers and obviously keep the gap, right? This is my first nitro boat so any tips are VERY welcome.

I would love to see one with a MAC .21 in it. But, what I was most impressed with was the handling of this hull. I guess I did good on the build because this thing turns on a dime and goes exactly where you point it! I just may have to build a bigger sister hull w/ .21

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

Remove the washers and leave enough gap so when you manually twist the shaft with the prop ( twist it backwards) and hold the engine from turning you'll see what I'm talking about with the shaft shortening. Adjust the gap based on how much it shortens and so the drive dog doesn't hit the strut.

As you may have guessed, my WT is MAC .21 powered and it handles just as you have noted. And it goes like blazes. (47 mph is pretty good for a .21 mono).

unclecrash

Lookin good Jdoug. Some day I will get the finish on mine. Need mo money have most of the stuff but I might save it for a winter project. But you never know I might get bored

shockme2

Is a .46 or a .32 too big a motor for WT?

unclecrash

How big is the plan size

shockme2

32" long, 11" wide at the transom

unclecrash

Sounds like the plan is for the .21 size engine.I made mine 24in and put a .18 in it and it flies. Being that I like to over power stuff I would probably stuff a ops.45 or I think os makes a .45 not sure but thats what I would probably do. I put a ops.67 modded engine in a 38in hull and it rocks.

Here is a build I did of mine theres a vid too but conditions were not very good for the small boat. Build starts on about page 4

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=5903078&key=

Square Nozzle

My Feedback: (1)

Be carefull about overpowering, with more power comes lack of control. The Wild Thing is a fine boat with a good .21 engine in it. Mine has MAC .21 for power and it's a joy to drive. It's plenty fast, solid on the water and handles like it's on a track. A good racing breed .21 will likely put out more power than a .32 anyway so you will be loosing rather than gaining. A racing .46 will give you more speed but I'm guessing that the boat will be beyond it's design and be uncontrolable if the hull size is not increased proportionally with the engine.