blizzard x

[BoatDoc]

here's my new 'rigger. Climate blizzard X. the sides and hatch have been replaced with carbon. this pic is what the boat looked like a few weeks ago...it's come along a bit since then, more pics to come later. power is a nemesis 8s and castle 80amp ESC. hardware is fuller's. dry weight with the turn fin on is just under 11.5 oz, all up weight is just less than 2.5lb.

[Z-Rider]

Nice looking rigger. I am planning on building one of their Predator riggers over the next several months.

[BoatDoc]

this is what she looks like right now, just needs some clear coat.

[BoatDoc]

...and another

[BoatDoc]

here's a close up of the pitot tube install. i think it's pretty slick.

[BoatDoc]

here is a preliminary set up pic...going to try and clear coat her today.

[BoatDoc]

hardware install. fuller's gear.

[BoatDoc]

got a few coats of clear down, just need two more and some wet sanding...i'm no painter though. just as long as my wet surfaces are smooth i'm happy. and my cells showed up from fine design today. 2 GP3700 pro-matched 6 cell packs. along with a paycheck worth of gear for the next project.

[BoatDoc]

YAY!!!!!!!!! she's up and running. got through a couple of shake down runs today. it was a bit windy for my taste, so i called it a day kind of early. took about two runs to figure out the strut setting. here's a few pics, action pics to come later.

[BoatDoc]

another

[BoatDoc]

there's more? how 'bout that rudder eh? nice and short, this thing will still turn on a dime.

[BoatDoc]

and more...here's the radio compartment. it took me a bit to figure out my servo mount, but i finally got it.

[BoatDoc]

one more, just for good measure. btw, that piece of black tape up on the bow is just covering up a hole for the data logger. i wanted to get through a shake down run and check for leaks before running with the eagle system installed.

[BoatDoc]

whew, just ran this thing against a couple of other N2 hydros. i knew i didn't have race speed with that motor...but it didn't even look like i was moving!! i'm just glad that i'm a racing noob. it helped to have an excuse. got new power on the way. it sucks to drive 110 miles one way just to get pounded, next time, i'll be a little more competitive. :D

[Fluid]

Expect it to take awhile before getting a new rigger properly rigged. A few ideas to check:

What prop are you using? Something on the order of an x435 or y535 might be in the ballpark, although a lot depends on the way the hull runs, the cell quality and how you want to run it - race or sport.

That 8S motor is not a bad choice for racing, it just needs to use a little larger prop than a 7S or 6S does.

Where is the CG of the hull? I'm not certain with this particular, narrow-tub design, but 2-3" behind the sponsons may be a good place to start.

Is the transom dragging? If so, put a little down angle to the strut to raise the stern.

Do the sponsons dance around in rough race water, or are they 'glued' to the water? If the latter, you can raise the strut 1/8" and try again. Watch the strut angle, and set the strut by placing the hull on a flat board. Trying to "eyeball" adjustments is best left for the 'experts', and even they should use a setup board for best results.

[BoatDoc]

we played with the strut angle a bit. the tail is down a little, but not dragging. it looks like i'm getting everything i can out of the 8s motor. i'm going to run it a few more times this week with another prop or two and see what happens. otherwise i've got a nemesis 7s and a lehner motor on their way. the turning is good as long as i stay on the throttle, if i let off, she'll spin out pretty easily. current prop is an x632 with a little tongue removed, barr cutt and light back cut. was thinking about a lifting prop just to see, as i haven't tried one on this hull yet. i know my previous (and heavier) blizzard didn't like lifters very much. she's pretty solid in race water. on glass, the front rides pretty free. there's a little hop in the turns and a nice solid ride down the straights. thanks for the advice, jay, a few more ideas to keep in mind.

[Fluid]

You do not have enough prop for that motor. The x632 is appropriate for the 7S - or even the 6S with the right setup - but that 8S needs more prop to get up to speed.

Reducing the blade area is not the right direction with that motor; the 32mm props are darn small as it is and reducing their area reduces their efficiency too much IMO, especially in and coming out of the turns. Those prop mods do let you use a hotter motor and get higher speeds even with the lower prop efficiency, but the 8S does not need the prop loading reduced. A slight tongue reduction is okay. Try a y535 or a 1735", watch the temps, and watch the speeds increase. The 7S will still be faster, but the 8S will likely make a better sport motor.

* Lifting props will need the strut angle changed - usually they like it dead flat on a set up board. Their disadvantage is slower acceleration out of the hole compared to X-props, but once up and running they can work very well for ovals. They have a large blade area which works with some torquey motors, not with others. The X-props are so popular on FE racers because they come in more sizes appropriate for the motors many guys run, but they are not the only props which win races. :cool:

[BoatDoc]

i was running the 632 because it was the best prop on my previous blizzard. of course, it was heavier...and i should have thought about propping up a size or two on this one. i'll try some other combo's over the next few days. keeping weight in mind during the build, and dropping the water cooling i shed approx. 5 oz from the last set up. yeah, the last one was a tank. all my temps are under control, cells are coming in at 115 or less, esc at 120 or less and the hottest the motor has gotten is 124. i've got some breathing room there. thanks again, more testing soon.

[BoatDoc]

i tried both the 1732 and 1735 today, but to no avail. set the strut nice and flat. the boat would not plane at all. is this a depth issue? my old one would run on them, but this one just refused. slapped the 632 back on and bam! she's a rocket, found a nice strut depth/angle in the process.

[Fluid]

By "not plane at all" I assume you mean that the props cavitated and the boat didn't accelerate. This is either a strut depth or CG issue - or perhaps just the design of the boat. Insufficient angle of attack on the sponsons or tub can make it tough to get the boat up with a lifting prop. This problem is eliminated by giving the boat a flat toss launch with full throttle. Speed will be faster with these props, but the CG may have to be moved aft a bit.

[BoatDoc]

tried the flat toss. i'll play with CG a bit and see what happens. the data logger is going in today, so we'll get some actual numbers. i'll be measuring speed, rpm, motor temp and current. i didn't have it installed before because i wanted to be sure that i was running leak free, plus i was having trouble coming up with a way to mount the mag pick up. but i've got all of that worked out. numbers will be up by the end of the day, then i'll have some data to work with.

[BoatDoc]

i ran with my eagle system in the boat yesterday. the numbers i got are a little confusing. the rpm's seem a little lower than they should be, and the speed readings are eratic. i was seeing an average amp draw around 55 on the 632 prop. nothing is getting hot, the motor hit a high temp of 145 on the second run. cells and esc were both under 125. i e-mailed eagle tree about the speed readings so i'm waiting to hear back from them. my average speed looks to be about 41-43 mph (but there are eraneous readings in there too). looking at the amp draw and voltage during the run, it would appear that the motor is drawing just over 400 watts.

[BoatDoc]

finally got a pic of this thing running. still waiting on more batt's and the new motors...this is with the 8s nemesis. after this run i stuck a M435/3 prop with positive results. i'll be doing more tinkering with that prop. thanks for the shot, rex.

[Rex R]

kinda wish I had managed to get a shot of it going past a bouy...:) maybe next time. looks better in person than the pics would suggest.

[BoatDoc]

my new nemesis motor showed up today. the lehner is on backorder. i think chris may have sent me the wrong one, but i'm cool with that. the motor is marked as a 7s. but one of the leads is marked with "5915kv" which is the rating for a 6s. i'll probably just call chris to let him know that his inventory may be off but i'll keep the motor. as long as i can keep temps under control, a motor like that should keep me in the running for the upcoming points series at Mazo. i'll probably step down to a x432 for the first run with the new motor.

[BoatDoc]

my homemade wire drive is causing drag in the strut. my octura flex hex is out of round. the result? pulling too many amps. not drastically overheating anything, but i'm killing my speed with all the drag. i'm working on getting a flat bottomed, ball bearing strut. one way or another, i'll get one on that boat. cut the drag up the speed.