anyone in northern california to help me?

[jetskier23]

hello, i am having some problems with building my fun cruiser boat. i need someone to help me put my boat together. anyone in northern cali that could come help me out? please help?

Faith

[BoatDoc]

there's acutally lots of folks in your area, you may have to look around, but they're there. what problems are you having? we could help you get going.

[jetskier23]

i am having some problems with getting my flex cable to be the perfect size from motor to that part that the shaft goes through?

[BoatDoc]

the best way i have found to set up a flex shaft is to put it in without cutting it. look at how much overhang there is. measure the excess, and trim that much off. it might be a good idea to cut it slightly long. you can always cut more off...but you can't put any back on. it might be a good idea to pick up some thrust washers or bearings too. octura makes them. you can put them on the shaft between the drive dog and strut. this will help relieve some of the stress from the shaft, and can help preserve the life of you motor bearings. when you decide where to cut, get the soldering iron out. you'll want to tin that section of the shaft. it'll be easier to cut, and it will help keep the shaft from unwinding. once it is tinned you can cut it with a fine tooth hack saw or dremel with a cut off wheel. hope this helps...if you need more clarification, i can see about putting up some pic's of the process.

[jetskier23]

could u call me?

[BoatDoc]

alright...here goes. this is how i do a driveshaft install. it's not the only way to do it, but it works for me. i know i'm showing this on an FE boat, but the same ideas will carry over to nitro/gas. this pic shows step 1. figuring out just how much to hack off of the shaft. in this case, roughly 8.5 inches.

[BoatDoc]

step two is to measure the shaft and tin it. by putting some solder onto it, you'll keep it from unwinding. the pic is kinda fuzzy, but the silver area is where i tinned it.

[BoatDoc]

now to cut it. you can use a fine tooth hack saw, or a dremel with a cut off wheel. dremel is my weapon of choice. this is the cut shaft, at this point you'll either have a perfect shaft, or one that is slightly long. if it's long, you just trim a little off.

[BoatDoc]

here it is installed. i used a 7/32 aluminum stuffing tube and teflon liner. just my preference. trying to bend a short piece of brass is a pain in the butt, so i picked aluminum instead.

[BoatDoc]

another...

[BoatDoc]

last one. you will want to make sure at all times that you get a good shaft alignment. a single gradual bend from the motor to where the shaft exits the hull is best. sometimes you will need 2 bends depending on you application. with my motor angle and overall set up i could do it with a single bend. one last thing, after cutting the shaft, solder the end again. this way you can make sure that all the windings are bonded together.

[LarDog]

now to cut it. you can use a fine tooth hack saw, or a dremel with a cut off wheel. dremel is my weapon of choice. this is the cut shaft, at this point you'll either have a perfect shaft, or one that is slightly long. if it's long, you just trim a little off.
Boat Doc, where do You buy Your carbon fiber stock? Thanks! :cool:

[BoatDoc]

i got that stuff from one of my LHS's. this company may be a better source, as your typical hobby shop is going to charge an arm, a leg, 3 fingers and possibly your first born for a chunk of carbon.


http://www.fibreglast.com/