New Hydro from Aquacraft - Miss Seattle

[fwlbp]

Was perusing tower hobbies and saw this beauty in the coming soon section: http://www.towerhobbies.com/products.../aqub1822.html

laqub1822.jpg

The specs look identical to the GP-1, so is this just a prettied up gp-1 with a nicer canopy and $50 price increase. I wondered why the gp-1 suddenly dropped from $170 to $129, now I know why :-)

I definitely think the new look is awesome. And finally no more piano wire! Looks to be a evolutionary improvement rather than revolutionary.

What do you guys think?

[fwlbp]

[JimClark]

Nice

[revoltrunner]

I like the hatch system on it. if its only going
to come in white it would be nice if they left
the graphics off the boat so you could paint
it before applying them. it would look good
in quite a few different colors with those graphics.

[fwlbp]

I agree, I think the body would look awesome as a blue with the yellow/gray graphics on top. I also wonder if the 2600 kv motor (grim recommended to upgrade in the gp-1) would fit easier in the miss seattle since it has a taller hatch.

[fwlbp]

Finally, aquacraft has posted it up on their site:

http://www.aquacraftmodels.com/boats/aqub1822-miss-seattle/index.html

I have to say it looks even better in the gallery photos on their site! It looks to have decent ride pads.

One thing that catches my eye is the front nose fin, it almost looks adjustable! But the online manual makes no mention of this, hmm......

[ray schrauwen]

Cool, looks better too.

[Shooter]

Sorry, I had to chuckle. It looks nearly identical to my avatar. I made that mold out of a stair railing part from home depot! LOL.

That hatch system is inovative. I'd like to get a closer look to see how the secondary hatch attaches. Very cool.

[fwlbp]

Just saw that towerhobbies pushed out the release date from October to late November. Must be some logistics issue or ironing out some bugs.

[FSTOP]

Did anyone ever get this boat? I'm definitely interested in it. Mainly if the hatch system is waterproof without having to use tape. Have wanted a small UL hydro just like this for awhile, but tired of dealing with hatches and taping. If anyone has got it, please give any insight into the hatch system or any other observations, will be greatly appreciated!!
Looks like the hull is not being sold even as a replacement, as i would probably have re-engineered the whole thing and put in my own electronics. But would like to know how well it runs stock, and if the hatch can keep the water out without taping.

[RCBoaterGuy]

Miss Seattle is virtually identical to the GP-1 hydro - same exact electronics & drive system - to me it looks like they put a different lid on the GP-1 hull.

That said, here is a review of the GP-1... http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...1#post25864427 - The reviewer mentions having issues getting the boat on plane unless he toss's it in the water a certain way. It's been awhile since I read that review, don't remember if he tried the optional 2600Kv motor or not?? It's listed on Tower in the GP-1 parts list.

FYI: that optional motor can also be used with Miss S. However, if I were going to upgrade the motor, think I would be more inclined to go with 28-45-2700Kv... http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXLWY4&P=7 - in the hopes that the longer can would provide the extra torque needed to get 'er plane easier, same cost as the AQ motor.

I realize my answer doesn't deal with Miss S. specifically, but I would think that it should put you in the same ballpark.

Hope it helps...

Did anyone ever get this boat? I'm definitely interested in it. Mainly if the hatch system is waterproof without having to use tape. Have wanted a small UL hydro just like this for awhile, but tired of dealing with hatches and taping. If anyone has got it, please give any insight into the hatch system or any other observations, will be greatly appreciated!!
Looks like the hull is not being sold even as a replacement, as i would probably have re-engineered the whole thing and put in my own electronics. But would like to know how well it runs stock, and if the hatch can keep the water out without taping.

[Bill Gibson]

Ive got about 8 runs on my MS, and like the GP-1....I REALLY LIKE IT! It got right up on step and ran great right out of the box....As a matter of fact, before I did some of Grims tune up tips on the GP-1, the MS appeared to be a little faster in the straights! That's changed now, the biggest difference being using the blue prop that comes with the MS on the GP-1.....now it pops right up and hauls butt! The GP-1 turns a little smoother than the MS, but both turn well with with Grims little turn fin tweak...it does help! The only adjustment ive made on the MS is to drop the strut just a smidge to smooth out the prop walk the MS had at top speed. I will say that speed wise, it went fast enough today to blow off the water, even with the strut lowered! Just my opinion, but both of these boats are EXTREMELY FUN to run!

[FSTOP]

Thanks, guys. I had read a few other reviews mentioning not being able to get on plane, but in my experience, its always been a matter of tuning the boat right--either by strut angle, CG, or prop choice. I've got a box of props for many boats. I definitely like the looks of the MS over the GP1, looks more scale. Wish they would just offer a BNF, sell a plain version without stickers applied, or sell the bare hull though. Could certainly look much nicer with a proper paint job.
Does the double hatch system REQUIRE a tape-job then, or is it pretty water-ready as is?
THANKS again for the insights!

[RCBoaterGuy]

You know after reading Bills post I was somewhat embarrassed... I was suggesting $60 motors, when a hull tune-up does the trick. Great example of why I like this forum, there is just so much stuff involved in getting a boat to run correctly, they are unlike R/C anything else.

Fortunately, there is a good crop of 1/8" smooth bore props available... as Bill mentioned - the stock MS prop
This group http://www.offshoreelectrics.com/pro...d=ose-2bld-3mm

First 3 on this list... http://www.offshoreelectrics.com/pro...Plastic+Series

These... http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXMNN0&P=7 - which are exactly the same as these... http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXYYL8&P=Z -- look at the last 4-digits of the part number -- BUT, tower give's conflicting specs, not sure which ones are accurate.

Last but not least... a set of Y535's... http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXMNN1&P=Z

BNF vs RTR... check out the price's of the GP-1 on Tower, the RTR is $10 less - go figure.

Last time AQ sold a bare hull for one of there products was the SV27's - that I'm aware of - there maybe others that I don't know about.

The sticker question seems to crop up a lot. Proboat offered the SW26v3's in a semi user configurable format... http://www.proboatmodels.com/Product...=PRB0650#media - the black ones were factory applied, the consumer had a choice of three color scheme's. Don't know what kind of feedback PB \ HH received from there customer base regarding the user configurable color sets.

That said, the factory stickers come off fairly easy. Denatured alcohol (http://www.lowes.com/pd_206566-34228...hol&facetInfo=) is plastic safe and will clean the sticker oooie-gooie gunk off. Sometimes there's a bit of residue left over, Ajax dish soap ($$ store) and hot water cleans it right off - then sand & paint.

A touch that I think would add realism would be to cut-out the cowl above the cockpit (that black sticker looks so cheeze) & cut-out the exhaust duct. Put a plastic piece in there that would route air from front to back, hope that makes sense. Maybe put a screen over the intake from inside.

Thanks, guys. I had read a few other reviews mentioning not being able to get on plane, but in my experience, its always been a matter of tuning the boat right--either by strut angle, CG, or prop choice. I've got a box of props for many boats. I definitely like the looks of the MS over the GP1, looks more scale. Wish they would just offer a BNF, sell a plain version without stickers applied, or sell the bare hull though. Could certainly look much nicer with a proper paint job.
Does the double hatch system REQUIRE a tape-job then, or is it pretty water-ready as is?
THANKS again for the insights!