Spirit of Canim Lake

Spirit of Canim Lake:

Class - American Tuna Boat

Length - 56 cm

The first model I ever built my myself that worked properly.  It runs on a lithium battery and uses the latest in R/C technology the Futaba FASST (Futaba Advanced Spread Spectrum Technology) system.  It also uses electronic speed controllers with fully proportional forward and reverse functions and a fully proportional steering system.

It wasn't always that way though.  I started out with my grandfathers old no name brand radio system, an old Ni-Cad battery, a $9.99 motor, stock plastic prop, and cheap ESC. 

The first of my repairs occurred when I fried the ESC.  I then purchased a new one and found out it doesn't work with the old radio system.

Then I purchased The Futaba FASST system and a nice new Lithium Battery and installed them in my first refit.  Meet my second mistake, the new ESC and Battery completely overpowered the motor and fried it.

So I found a new bigger motor out of an airplane and installed it in her.  Engine rebuild.

This nice new engine has a tonne of torque.  I smashed the plastic prop on a rock and it threw the universal and ripped a blade off that prop.

So three weeks later I finally get my new brass prop and it has about three times the pitch.

Well she runs like a Shrimp Boat on Steroids.

Again I was unhappy with her performance and with her very heavy interior construction.  I again gutted her in an attempt to make her lighter and use a smaller moter that draws less.  I ended up ripping the hull apart completely, replacing the wood deck with plastic, refinishing the hull, all the wood inside the hull was removed and a completely new engine room was built out of plastic.  I used a geared moter for a small airplane.  It draws very little power, has a tonne of power is about a quarter the weight, and makes a cool grumbling sound that almost sounds like an old diesel engine.

She runs great, too great.  I usually have throttle limit of 45% on, if i take that off she runs like a bullet.  One day I was up at Cultus lake with Dan.  Dan had my camera and was taking shots as I was cruising around.  A boat went by and I decided to take the wake.  I recovered fine by the way.