Speeding Up A Nikko - Island Cruiser

[latinwindow]

Hi there guys,

New to the forum. I know there are really good boats out there - but I guess in a way, what differentiates an enthusiast from the rest is the passion for this RC boats. The pleasure of seeing that boat in the water!

I bought a Nikko - Island Cruiser boat few weeks ago. I have done a bit of research and am aware that Nikko boats are "toy" boats rather than modeling boats. It is my first r/c boat. I am no expert in RC modeling - and much of my literature about the subject has been read in the last weeks. Despite the fact that it is a "toy" boat... I found that the level of "detail" the model had in its aesthetics made it worth it for me. I always liked that Island Cruiser Yacht style boat!

In the water, it is a toy. It goes at about 7km/h max and its internal components are pretty standard.

The ECM has the radio control unit built in.
The motor is a Mabuchi RS-380SH
The battery it uses is a 9.6v Nimh 2400 (6 cells)

I was wondering if i could get the boat to go faster - within reason that is. I understand is not a performance boat as such. Ideally to get a balance between reasonable speed and battery duration.

My first thought was to change the motor - but i have found it quite difficult as i am no expert in the field of electric motors.

Thats why i come to you guys, after reading some of the posts in the forum, i can acknowledge your expertise and willingness to guide/help. Thanks for that in advance!

Questions i have:

Can i upgrade the electric motor?
If so, what would be the motor to buy (I have heard about brushless) without changing the other parts (ideally)?
If not I am open for suggestions!

I can send more detailed pics as well if needed.

The Link to the motor's specs is:

http://www.mabuchi-motor.co.jp/cgi-bin/catalog/e_catalog.cgi?CAT_ID=rs_380sh

Regards,
Sam


Picture of the boat

NKB-112-2.jpg

Boat Inside

IMG_0539.jpg

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[Eodman]

Sam thats a nice looking boat! That said - if you don't want to change the electronics you have to stay with brushed motors!

I'm not real familar with this hull but I'm gonna guess you will have to re-inforce it to get it to run fast(15-20 mph)! It maybe possible but it goona cost you a couple of bucks to do!

I'm sure the guys here will be able to help, but you need to establish how fast & how much cash you want to spend!!!!!

[goldendesign04]

I would say yes, this can be upgraded. The motor specs funnily enough state its normal usage is in a vacuum cleaner wonder what sized sucker they put that in! If you could, give us an idea on monies youd like to put into this little project. At first thought a larger capacity battery with more cells would probably give you a welcome livening up for little $. Now it wont be a night an day increase as the internal electrics have to be considered, ie: what voltage, amps that little esc/reciever can handle. Also a pic of the business end would help an available space inside. There is plenty here who jump at the challenge of making a "toy" better so expect better advice an more accurate advise at that with the more information you can provide! Good luck it is a nice looking boat be cool to see it run fast!

-Wayne

[latinwindow]

Intended speed & Budget

Hey guys,

Wow! Thank you so much for such quick and positive response. I am looking forward to make it happen!
In response to some of the questions so far:

It is a scale model of a yacht - so i guess it wouldn't be cool to make it fly in the water like an hydroboat (an obviously the hull etc wouldnt take it). I guess a 15mph range would be desirable as a benchmark (I am open to suggestions though).

The budget (the one million dollar question) - I am willing to spend around $300 USD
(Is that too much? reasonable? to little? - again I am open to suggestions).

I am willing to check the ESC/receiver for voltage/amps (take closer pictures of it and post them perhaps can help)

Also I will take pictures of the entire boat too - to give an idea of the total area available.

So where do we start? I am ready to go guys!!!

PS when the project is done it will be nice to take pictures of final product/result an even a small video of the boat in the water!

Thank so much guys, this forum kicks a*s!!

[Eodman]

Sam measure the length and width of the hull and post them!

And take a photo of the just the bare hull and show both inside the hull and on of the outside!

And finally

There a few guys here that really like scale boats so this should be a fun rebuild! Just take your time!

[Doby]

If you have a 300 dollar budget, perhaps you should look at something already capable of the speeds you are trying to achieve. Heck,,,with that kind of money you will easily exceed your speed expectations.

Not trying to talk you out of doing the modification though.

You might want to PM a member called "Diegoboy". I think he just did a similar mod for really cheap . There is a thread on that build somewhere around here.
He wanted to see just how cheaply it could be done.

[Eodman]

Yeah I was going to make that suggestion perhaps Supervee, but he indicated he wanted to stay with this scale boat! And we all know how I feel about ready to runs

[latinwindow]

Hull dimensions & budget

Hi guys,

I know that the most "cost effective" option is to buy another boat. But I just really want to see this one in particular have a sound/robust performance in the water to enact the beautiful boat it is! Nevertheless thank you for the comments! They are all welcome!

The size of the hull (as requested) in inches is:
Boat (LxWxH): 32" x 8.75" x 9"

In centimeters:
Boat (LxWxH): 81.28 x 22.22 x 22.86


Here some pictures of the boat (outside detail):

Cannon 001.jpg

Cannon 002.jpg

Cannon 004.jpg

Cannon 009.jpg

Cannon 010.jpg

[latinwindow]

Battery Access (Pictures)

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[Diegoboy]

How fast are you looking to get this thing my good man?

[latinwindow]

Hull & ECM

Tried looking for any specs in the ECM but couldn't get any reference numbers or serials or Volatage/Amps info out of it (is there any other way to assess it?)

Cannon 012.jpg

Cannon 013.jpg

Cannon 017.jpg

Cannon 022.jpg

[Diegoboy]

How fast are you looking to get this thing my good man?

[latinwindow]

MOTOR part1

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[Diegoboy]

Tried looking for any specs in the ECM but couldn't get any reference numbers or serials or Volatage/Amps info out of it (is there any other way to assess it?)

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Hook it up and put a meter on it. That will tell you what it's running, but not it's limits

[latinwindow]

Hey Diegoboy...

Hi Diegoboy,
As fast as the structure (i.e hull) allows without major modifications.
I got a 15mph-20mph range in mind as suggested by another member in the forum.
If it can go faster and have a decent battery life then I am up for that within the budget that is!
Cheers,
Sam