| A ¼ scale, radio - controlled replica
of a 225 c.i. hydroplane from the 1950’s . This model was designed and
built by John Harper from Stittsville, Ontario, Canada. Legacy was
not derived from one particular full size boat but was built as a tribute
to the hydroplanes. I remember my father building as well as all the great
boats from that era that I saw at regattas or spent countless hours looking
at in the pages of “Speed & Spray”. A visit to the Clayton Regatta
in 2000 rekindled my interest in hydroplanes and I decided that building
a scaled down version of one would be the next best thing to owning the
real thing.
The design of Legacy was a two-stage process. Tony Castronovo
of Warehouse Hobbies in Florida was kind enough to let me copy the basic
dimensions of an R/C hydroplane that Tony’s company manufactures. Armed
with the dimensions for length, width, and sponson size, I then turned
to the internet to download pictures of vintage hydros. I used the pictures
to obtain the scale proportions that were missing from his basic length
and width dimensions. I then drew up a set of plans for Legacy. The challenge
was to design a radio-controlled boat that would perform well on the water
but still be as true as possible to the original full-size designs.
Legacy is 51 inches long with a beam of 24 inches. 1/8 inch
marine grade mahogany plywood is used on the deck, bottom and sides of
the hull. The cross member frames and engine frame rails were cut out of
¼ inch mahogany. The entire hull was constructed using marine epoxy
glue, no nails were used. The cowlings and tail section are made
of fiberglass. I started by constructing “plug molds” using wood, polyurethane
foam and plaster. Once these forms were sanded and shaped to the desired
contours, they were then covered with layers of fiberglass. When enough
layers of cloth and resin were applied to give the structure sufficient
strength, the plug mold was removed.
The engine for Legacy started out life as a 25 c.c. Homelite trimmer
engine. After I visited Warehouse Hobbies in Florida, about all that is
left from the original engine is the flywheel, crankshaft and part of the
base housing. A new 30 c.c. ported cylinder barrel with matching piston
and rod have been added along with a bigger carb and a free flow exhaust
system. The engine has also been converted to water cooling.
I estimate that I have invested over 1500 hours building Legacy.
A significant amount of time was spent researching and designing the
boat. This was followed by the construction of the hull as well as fabricating
much of the hardware and components for the controls and running gear.
Finally, an inordinate amount of time (or so it seemed) was spent sanding,
varnishing, sanding, varnishing and polishing to obtain the desired finish.
Legacy was completed in August 2002, just in time for the Antique
Raceboat Regatta at Clayton N.Y.
A week later, Legacy took to the water for her first test session.
I was very pleased with how well the boat performed on its’ initial
run.
The project continues as I experiment with engine settings and prop
combinations to get the most out of Legacy.
|
