Hi guys,

   I want to build a bait boat for surf fishing. Hope to get some guidance from experts here.. the boat I am planning to build will be similar to the "Aqua Cat" model (It need not look the same but has to do the job). This bait boat is not for carp fishing or for the lakes it is for the beach hence we have to look at a lot of other issues regarding stability... so let us leave out the design for the time being.... Let us see what I need in terms of motor, esc,battery, tx/rx etc..

The boat will be have a place to hold the bait which may be a fish or a piece of it weighing not more than 250G and a fishing line attached to it and pull this line to about 300m  to 500M drop the bait and return. You can watch the Aqua Cat in action  here


Hope some one can guide me on the choice of equipments I need like what size of motor,esc,tx/rx,servo,props etc...

Regards
Ilango

Wow.. a whole another use of RC !  I have seen people making one time videos of fishing with RC stuff, but this is a whole another ROUTINE use of RC gear

Looking forward to interesting discussions on stability etc.  It is amazing to see the boat getting tossed high in the waves, and getting pretty much submerged... all serious material and design challenges !

Yes Anwar, the boat design will be the toughest part, we need the right buoyancy and CG to make sure it can with stand the rough waves. We also need a system that will make sure the boat gets back to its upright position asap after a topple.... it has be 100% water proof and the components must be protected from corrosion !!! too many things to look into but it will be fun to design and test I want to start with the simplest problem first and decide on the components needed to power this boat first....

I am surprised that none of the boat folks have responded here so far !

May be due to the heavy rain everyone is out with their RC boats. Hope to see some response one their battery dies down !!!

Hi
This boat is just awesome...Big design challenges.1) to ensure the boat does not turn upside down when hit by waves...I think this can be achieved by keeping the kneel relatively bigger and heavier.
2) Making the complete cabin watertight.

Prop: This boat will require more of torque than speed.hence you would need to use a 3 blade prop.
Better way to start off on this would be start off the size of 3 blade prop that is available. based on it you can then decide the length of the boat.
Let me see if I can get some plans for this.

Shreekant

Check this out as well

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1061170&highlight=aquacat

Thanks Rooster/Shreekant for your input. Nice to see R/C being used for something other than carp fishing.

The same performance can be achieved with a motorized sailboat without Main Sail & Jib. In the above bait boat C.G (about 1 ~ 1.5 kg weight fixed at the centre board)  is kept well below the hull and for extra safety a ball is attached above the deck. As mentioned by Sreekant a low rpm / high torque motor is enough to sail it.  Attaching a building log video of a sailboat. 

Quote from: Sb_Maharana on September 22, 2010, 10:22:12 PM
The same performance can be achieved with a motorized sailboat without Main Sail & Jib. In the above bait boat C.G (about 1 ~ 1.5 kg weight fixed at the centre board)  is kept well below the hull and for extra safety a ball is attached above the deck. As mentioned by Sreekant a low rpm / high torque motor is enough to sail it. 

This is exactly what I have in mind... can use all my old lead weights to provide extra weight and low CG. by any chance can I have a copy of the plans of your sail boat??? what wood did you use to make it?

It is a kit build Sailboat. I have to make photocopy the plan(blueprint), if you want to scratch build it , otherwise I can arrange a sailboat kit for you.

Hai.. Guys I am not into rc boats.. But i have an idea... can we over come the issue of boat turning over due to waves but baking the boat symmetrical vertically and horizontally??? ie it was ride on water on both sides.... is that possible?

Quote from: Sreedhar on September 23, 2010, 11:20:39 AM
Hai.. Guys I am not into rc boats.. But i have an idea... can we over come the issue of boat turning over due to waves but baking the boat symmetrical vertically and horizontally??? ie it was ride on water on both sides.... is that possible?

It is possible but it will look more like a submarine than a boat... to be more precise it will look like a tube with wings !!!

 
Thats true... But for an autonomous vehicle its the purpose that comes first.... It will solve the problem... No tension... 

@Sreedhar, Turning over is just one part of the problem dear...

Can anyone suggest what I need to lookout for in terms of power/speed/model/brand etc. Looks like the boat will be around 3Kg in weight and will have to pull the fishing line to around 400Mtrs into the sea. Hmmm say 1/2KG of fishing line and a Max of 1/2Kg of bait+weight. It will be better if we can estimate for 5Kgs..
1. Motors
2. ESC
3. Servo
4. TX/RX

By the way I prefer ebay.com

What do you guys think of this motor??

http://cgi.ebay.com/Johnson-12-Volt-DC-Motor-RPM-16-000-12-VDC-550-Size-/130329080136?pt=Radio_Control_Vehicles&hash=item1e5837f148

hmm i think brushless would be better if you want gud power.... try hobbyking.com....

(a) You need a watertight compartment for ESC, Servo battery etc.
(b) Marine ESC & Motor (watercooled) will be more suitable, but very expensive.

Quote from: Sreedhar on September 23, 2010, 02:16:51 PM
hmm i think brushless would be better if you want gud power.... try hobbyking.com....

There are a plenty of stuff there and Iam confused !!!! Can you guide me to a set of motor and esc at hobbyking??

Quote from: Sb_Maharana on September 23, 2010, 03:37:18 PM
(a) You need a watertight compartment for ESC, Servo battery etc.
(b) Marine ESC & Motor (watercooled) will be more suitable, but very expensive.

I saw the water cooled motor and esc but will it be ok with SALT WATER

I dont know about motor for boats... it would be better if our experts give an answer....
but most motors are for aircrafts i think...
but it would be better to use brushless thats for sure....

Considering the weight you want to push.. i guess a watercooled motor with lower KV and larger prop would be good....(correct me if i am wrong).....

Go for a gud high amp esc.. You dont want to burn of lower amp escs......

(a) I think speed / power is not a big issue
If the motor has high rpm - use small propeller vise versa.
but in this case marine motors & esc are more suitable as you are keeping everything inside a air/water tight compartment.

(b) Water cooling system of Marine ESC & Motors are made of copper tubes and water is only circulated around the casing to keep the temp. down. I don't think major issue with salt/sea water. Motors & ESCs must kept dry after each sail.

but if we use larger prop on hign kv motor then there is chance of burning off the motor.....

http://cgi.ebay.com/RC-Fishing-Boat-Bait-Casting-Waterproof-Durable-/250698827065?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a5ed08539