Owner of the Original Aeromarine National Champion and Record Holding Titan

[nitrobaby]

Just Stop it Right Here!.

Stop IT Right Here.

JUST STOP EVERYTHING RIGHT HERE!!!!

As an owner of an Original Titan, manufactured by Aeromarine dating back to my first experience with the boat in 1999, 3 Time National Champion with the boat, Oval Racing Record Holder and speed reached in excess of 70 mph... I have a few things to say...

...Darn good job on that boat Traxxas! Really Great Job!

I was always wondering when you guys were going to step your game up from your "Entry Level" RTR "Toy Like" boats to be on par with your impressive performance car and truck lines. Being a Nitro R/C Boat Racer since I was 7 years old (Now 39) and fan of your marketing and promotion on the car side (from the little trucks to the big trucks) I thought you could really boost the boat market if you got serious with it. I was just going to your site to send an email to you stating the very same thing. but to my surprise... I was cruising the site the other day and I ran across the "NEW" Titan. As always YOU posts speeds right in front so I didn't even have time to ask the question. So with that speed I was thinking. Could it be true? Have they built the .21 NItro Engine deep vee that I thought the market so desperately needs? But to my disappointment it was only electric. Well I wasn't "THAT" disappointed. The speed is still impressive. I could still see the potential. The Electric gives new enthusiast a good entry level fairly easy point of entry. I can see nitro would be a bit more difficult. The boat in it's "All Out" form is maybe a tad bit slower than my .21 powered Kyosho FMR customized tuned and ready to race that I had been racing for Kyosho for a couple of years now so I am pretty impressed with the "Out-of-the-Box" performance for an electric boat. (It's taken 2 and half years to get my Kyosho to the speeds it's at now) I know some of you on here think that electric is faster and it very well might be in the RTR arena but I host a West Coast race where I invite the "Top Guys" of electric in our area who are also record holders to race against our guys in nitro and they are fast but not faster. They can usually hold there own though but more times than not they are over powered by the nitro. (This is of course in on a 6 lap 1 Mile Oval Course) But I will say this for a chosen few elites electrics are right on par head to head and Traxxas seems to have finally fallen in line with those elite. Thank You. Even though you are electric I still thank you.

I was happy with the length of this Titan as it is even longer than my current Aeromarine Titan which I feel is about 3" too short even though I have still had tremendous success with it. The Traxxas Titan is the perfect length to replace my current Aeromarine Titan, however, I wished that they set it up for Nitro use, or like someone said earlier, made it in a bare hull. Also... Although I love painting boats and paint them often for many customers, Traxxas does such an awesome job in that arena even I have to say "Why bother?" . I am also a graphic designer with several fuselage areo-dynamic designs and graphics for R/C helicopters that I have done and I still say I would be hard presssed to come up with something any better.

I am excited about Traxxas stepping their game up. I just hope it includes boats that us serious guys can race with. I don't understand why they see boats different. In just about every other market they build the product with performance that can compete on the track with the best of the best and the fastest of the fastest but the boats they always fall shot of that. I would think they would see boats same way. If the guy at the track that is beating everybody has one, that is the rig everyone will want. But in boats they don't even step up like that even though just one organization runs about 60 events nationwide each season. That's a lot of events that could have racers who bought your product voluntarily promoting and demonstrating your product, racing and doing well under more intense conditions. Plus the thousands of hours of R & D you would gain from the best in the game. All this would work to impress that new local enthusiast. And then low and behold he goes to the hobby shop and finds the same boat he saw at the lake. Just like he saw the same car in the hobby shop he saw at the track beating everybody. That scenario doesn't exist near as often as it does for cars. Most racer performance boats you can't find in the hobby shop and the ones you can don't have race events for those particular boats often. That's why I am so excited with this because I know Traxxas gets it and maybe with them involved in more serious racing it will help grow the market from entry level to expert. Even the Titan I race is the cream of the crop Race machine but you would never find it at a hobby shop. Then if you did buy one you would have to spend countless hours on the set-up to get it right. I think it took us 3 years to get it right and it's still probably a bit over powered but that's the case with any true racing machine. That's where the driver comes in.

As I mentioned, I think Traxxas has the start of something good here. I just hope they opt to step it up like they do in their cars and not just stick with the entry level guys. In the past 10 years I have chosen to race boats that entry level enthusiast can go buy themselves instead of me racing our own scratch built stuff. Maybe they can't buy it at a hobby shop but at least they can go online to the same guy that builds my stuff and get one just like it. Then it just comes down to driving skill... well and set-up skill... but the playing field is a lot more even. I realized equipment needs to be readily available if the boat market is to grow so why not spend the time in R&D on things that are already out there and more plentiful. As a result I have won championships and set records against all the custom stuff using equipment you can buy easily from the manufacturer and Traxxass is way more capable in manufacturing and marketing than any of my present sources. I have gone 70mph. with my .40 Engine size Nitro powered Aeromarine Titan boat in oval racing trim. I have gone 87 in race trim with other designs and I have one that holds a Nitro Record at 114 mph. I expect if Traxxas keeps it up. They will be there soon. I am looking forward to it. Performance, Reliability and Availability is what this market needs. I think Traxxas has the right ingredients to go far with this.

[H2O~Boy]

Wow that's great. It's cool to know the driver/ owner of the original titan with that much experience below your belt.
You mentioned your hoping for traxxas to create a more serious boat. Even though I wish for the same thing, I doubt that will happen as traxxas is trying to create more of the RTR vehicles that anyone can pick-up themselves and run outta the box. But that would be sweet, maybe someday.

[nitrobaby]

Oh! Don't misunderstand. I think they have the foundation for that more serious boat right here. At 36", their boat is longer than my 33" Titan and this boat has over 70 mph. So if the width is similar to my original Titan they have the footprint to go a lot faster without exceeding the capability of the hull design. All I am asking them to do is take their best revo engine. Design a water jacketed head for water cooling and straight-through tuned pipe. They make everything in-house so they have everything they need already. It's just a matter of pulling the pieces together. They could just go to the drawing board and build a .21 cu in. Size engine (a popular racer's engine size class and a .46 Size engine (which is another popular size engine class) The boat is a bit long for the .21 size engine as popular boat range from 29" like the Little Titan to 33". The Traxxas Titan is actually the perfect size for .46 nitro powered vee hulls as this is the length of most. Most get mid 50s to low 60s out of this size and power combo with nitro. All I'm sayin g is make the boat upgradeable to that.

Car Action Footage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsfT7qoCm9A

Compare to my own .21 Nitro Engine powered Kyosho Race boat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YenELpciIjE

Although this is the smallest and one of the slower nitro engine classes the speed is still very commendable and the Titan is about on par with it. Although, as I mentioned the size of the new Titan could withstand the next engine size up which the .45 size engine where you could easily get another 10 mph out of it.

That seems to be the easier things about electrics especially if your not competing where you are restricted by cell count. To go faster you just add more batteries and prop up until you over heat and melt down. I guess that's the downside. Plus the effect on run time. That's one plus on the side of nitro. No matter how hard you run the engine it will run the same amount of time. Actually the harder you run it the more efficient the fuel consumption as it consumes less fuel per revolution. but I guess you it evens out because you turn more revolutions consuming fuel each time. Although you may cover more ground faster, the run time may be just as long running slower when the engine consumes more fuel per revolution.

When racing head to head with electric guys they seem to have a lot punch at the beginning then tail off whereas the nitros run hard from beginning to end.

Nevertheless, I would like to throw this boat out there with my nitro buddies and give them a surprise.

[filmmaker]

That seems to be the easier things about electrics especially if your not competing where you are restricted by cell count. To go faster you just add more batteries and prop up until you over heat and melt down. I guess that's the downside. Plus the effect on run time. That's one plus on the side of nitro. No matter how hard you run the engine it will run the same amount of time. Actually the harder you run it the more efficient the fuel consumption as it consumes less fuel per revolution. but I guess you it evens out because you turn more revolutions consuming fuel each time. Although you may cover more ground faster, the run time may be just as long running slower when the engine consumes more fuel per revolution.

When racing head to head with electric guys they seem to have a lot punch at the beginning then tail off whereas the nitros run hard from beginning to end.

Nevertheless, I would like to throw this boat out there with my nitro buddies and give them a surprise.

well lets see, first the class is on 4s the T29 runs in...
not by adding more cells do I go faster, but with a prop change, and 5s high 60's are no problem
and sounds like someone needs FE schooling
when setup correctly electric boats are fast and run hard through the end of the race..
They don't drop off and nothing over heats!
and much cheaper to
several guys I know go through a gallon fuel fast!

[nitrobaby]

well lets see, first the class is on 4s the T29 runs in...
not by adding more cells do I go faster, but with a prop change, and 5s high 60's are no problem
and sounds like someone needs FE schooling
when setup correctly electric boats are fast and run hard through the end of the race..
They don't drop off and nothing over heats!
and much cheaper to
several guys I know go through a gallon fuel fast!

Sorry. You are right I don't know much about electrics. I have Randy Naylor of Blew By You Boats running in my district and Bill Oxidean who is a good friend but I have never run FE before. I think they are both top performers I think... As Randy has had many of his boats featured in R/C Boat Magazine and both he and Bill fill up several slots on the Record books. I was just going by what I see of their boats. Their first lap does not appear to be as fast as their last on a 1 mile 6 lap course. I could be wrong but that is the way it looks. Maybe they don't have their boats set-up correctly but I would think they should. I am not knocking electrics. Like I said. I invite them to race with us when I can. I think I have the only nitro race in Cali that does that. As far as cost... again... it appears the cost of batteries, speed controls and motors are about on par with fuel and nitro engines.

So help me understand. 4s is a smaller pack than 5s correct? So 5s have more batteries (or the like) where you get more speed? Am I understanding this correctly? So what are the classes. Is it 2s, 4s, then 5s? Help me understand.

[filmmaker]

Bill and Randy rock!
I talked with Bill a few weeks ago about building me a boat for FE, but I'm going to have an FE rigger built by someone else... I should see 75mph+ on 4s!
As for the 4s 5s lingo, you are correct... its 4cells = 4s, 5cells = 5s, etc.
They have classes that most are 4s but they have a 2s rigger class and upto open classes that you can run 12s if you gotem!
And if you see a boat fall of pace some, its a good chance they need to go up in Milliamps

[nitrobaby]

Bill and Randy rock!
I talked with Bill a few weeks ago about building me a boat for FE, but I'm going to have an FE rigger built by someone else... I should see 75mph+ on 4s!
As for the 4s 5s lingo, you are correct... its 4cells = 4s, 5cells = 5s, etc.
They have classes that most are 4s but they have a 2s rigger class and upto open classes that you can run 12s if you gotem!
And if you see a boat fall of pace some, its a good chance they need to go up in Milliamps

Could that rigger be built by CMDI?... and Eagle SGX perhaps? ...or X2?

[filmmaker]

Could that rigger be built by CMDI?... and Eagle SGX perhaps? ...or X2?

The JAE 21FE

[nitrobaby]

The JAE 21FE

Yah. I see that boat design is causing quite a stir. Even received a challenge from them guys to go head to head.

[filmmaker]

Yah. I see that boat design is causing quite a stir. Even received a challenge from them guys to go head to head.

It has the world record right now

[nitrobaby]

It has the world record right now

Wow! Really where? I'd like to check it out?

[nitrobaby]

Bill and Randy rock!
I talked with Bill a few weeks ago about building me a boat for FE, but I'm going to have an FE rigger built by someone else... I should see 75mph+ on 4s!
As for the 4s 5s lingo, you are correct... its 4cells = 4s, 5cells = 5s, etc.
They have classes that most are 4s but they have a 2s rigger class and upto open classes that you can run 12s if you gotem!
And if you see a boat fall of pace some, its a good chance they need to go up in Milliamps

So if 2s is your smallest/slowest class that would be like our .21 class which runs about 38 to 45 mph for most boats. 50 for top guys and 60 for the top guys that are "Rumored" (for me that means doubt it but that is what they say) to have gone that fast with a .21 vee vull. What are the speeds for a 2s vee hull.

4s sounds like you next step up so for nitro engine running that would be a .40 sized engine which is about 46 to 52 mph for the average guy 54 to 58 for top guys and above is a select few. What are speeds for 4s

But since traxxas has this 6s that is like our .60 engine size vee hulls and they run from about 52 for the average guy 58 to 62 for top guys and 70 and up for a select few.

Open Class would be like our .90 size engine class which actually be anywhere from .68 to 1.0 cu. in. or any combination of two engines above .45 cu. in. They run around 58 to 65 for the average guy 68 to 75 for top guys. 75 and up for Elite guys.

[filmmaker]

So if 2s is your smallest/slowest class that would be like our .21 class which runs about 38 to 45 mph for most boats. 50 for top guys and 60 for the top guys that are "Rumored" (for me that means doubt it but that is what they say) to have gone that fast with a .21 vee vull. What are the speeds for a 2s vee hull.

4s sounds like you next step up so for nitro engine running that would be a .40 sized engine which is about 46 to 52 mph for the average guy 54 to 58 for top guys and above is a select few. What are speeds for 4s

But since traxxas has this 6s that is like our .60 engine size vee hulls and they run from about 52 for the average guy 58 to 62 for top guys and 70 and up for a select few.

Open Class would be like our .90 size engine class which actually be anywhere from .68 to 1.0 cu. in. or any combination of two engines above .45 cu. in. They run around 58 to 65 for the average guy 68 to 75 for top guys. 75 and up for Elite guys.

The 2s class I was thinking of is the 2s Rigger class and they are fast!
and alot of 4s classes are equal to a .21 nitro, and even some 4s boats are equal to a .40 nitro as well
I would love to build a Phil Tomas 45 on 4s

[PBO]

As I mentioned, I think Traxxas has the start of something good here

What are your thoughts on developing a performance version? As excited as I am about a Traxxas BL boat, it does look a little too much RTR for my taste

If the trim tabs were adjustable at least, then that might give the very conservative looking trim some scope...& the full V hull, why not a running plank, it looks like it's chine walking in one of the vids?

[filmmaker]

What are your thoughts on developing a performance version? As excited as I am about a Traxxas BL boat, it does look a little too much RTR for my taste

If the trim tabs were adjustable at least, then that might give the very conservative looking trim some scope...& the full V hull, why not a running plank, it looks like it's chine walking in one of the vids?

its all about the CG and strut angle

[PBO]

its all about the CG and strut angle

What is?............

[H2O~Boy]

its all about the CG and strut angle

Strut angle doesn't have any affect on chine walking...
And the CG only affects it if the weight isn't distributed correctly.

That's what the trim tabs and turn fins are for.
Btw PBO if you look under accessories for the Titan you can add adjusters for the trim tabs. Those would greatly help with setting up the handling of the boat.

[PBO]

Thanks H2O~Boy, should have looked there first

[filmmaker]

Strut angle doesn't have any affect on chine walking...
And the CG only affects it if the weight isn't distributed correctly.

That's what the trim tabs and turn fins are for.
Btw PBO if you look under accessories for the Titan you can add adjusters for the trim tabs. Those would greatly help with setting up the handling of the boat.

Wana make a bet!
this has a big deal to do with it
if the strut is not set correctly and the cg the boat will not handle right
Turn fins help in turns not chine walk and if the CG is off, the boat could be all over the place
trun fins do not stop chine walk
I set my trim tabs at 0* because these can cause excess drag and slow the boat
Lets not make these comments if you have not worked on FE boats
people are looking for correct answers not guesses

Thanks H2O~Boy, should have looked there first

make sure to read through and not take just anyones advice
FE boats can be a handlfull if not setup right
this boat is not out yet and we are seeing lots of wrong advice on this forum already

[PBO]

make sure to read through and not take just anyones advice
FE boats can be a handlfull if not setup right
this boat is not out yet and we are seeing lots of wrong advice on this forum already

OK, if you're an expert can you tell me...

a) why I wouldn't adjust trim tabs for better trim?

b) how strut angle & CG will negate chine walking?

c) how you prevent a deep V from chine walking?

d) what's an FE boat?

[H2O~Boy]

Wana make a bet!
this has a big deal to do with it
if the strut is not set correctly and the cg the boat will not handle right
Turn fins help in turns not chine walk and if the CG is off, the boat could be all over the place
trun fins do not stop chine walk
I set my trim tabs at 0* because these can cause excess drag and slow the boat
Lets not make these comments if you have not worked on FE boats
people are looking for correct answers not guesses

First off my comment was simply about chine walking, not overall handling. Of course the strut angle & cg both affect handling, but this is only about chine walking.
And yes trim tabs can and will slow the boat down slightly, but being that you can control the handling of the boat much easier with them, it's a good trade off to me anyways, especially if this boat is to have fun with and not just your FE racing.
Obviousely you've never had or driven a villain, all you care about is your FE boats. Because turn fins added to a villain WILL cut down on chine walking drastically. Yes I agree they are for controlled turns, but they also reduce chine walking, that's where you are wrong. Don't give advise you don't know.

[Jakey]

... That seems to be the easier things about electrics especially if your not competing where you are restricted by cell count. To go faster you just add more batteries and prop up until you over heat and melt down. I guess that's the downside. Plus the effect on run time. That's one plus on the side of nitro. No matter how hard you run the engine it will run the same amount of time. Actually the harder you run it the more efficient the fuel consumption as it consumes less fuel per revolution. but I guess you it evens out because you turn more revolutions consuming fuel each time. Although you may cover more ground faster, the run time may be just as long running slower when the engine consumes more fuel per revolution.

When racing head to head with electric guys they seem to have a lot punch at the beginning then tail off whereas the nitros run hard from beginning to end.

Nevertheless, I would like to throw this boat out there with my nitro buddies and give them a surprise.

Why would a nitro (two-cycle) engine not be susceptible to prop loading issues as does any other type of power system? Are you saying an electric engine can only be propped-up so far, yet a nitro engine has no reasonable limits? If so that is just plain silly!

Basic two-cycle engine design by its very nature is inherently inefficient wrt to fuel use. If you are seeing improved fuel use with higher speeds, RPMs and engine loads, it is most likely due to port and exhaust timing/tuning issues which wastes significant amounts of fuel at low RPMs. The port timing and scavenging shape of the exhaust pipe are both tuned for high RPM power which in turn "blows" disproportional amounts of unused fuel and air out the exhaust at lesser RPMs. To say 2-cycle engines takes less energy to go faster (increasing frictional drag and associated losses) is just not true as this would oppose the laws of Physics and Thermodynamics. Now, if you were using direct injection technology, similar to what BRP/Rotax produces for their larger 2-cycle engines, then fuel efficiency would go up dramatically across the entire RPM range and emissions would go down dramatically, but more speed would still require more fuel.

[makaveli72]

I like the debates i'm seeing in these threads....for a newbie like me, this boat would be my first, so the in-depth conversations about the diff. parts, tuning and the like are amusing, yet exhilarating and educational at the same time for me; and others i'm sure...Keep um' coming folks...esp. film and H20.

Let's just respect each others reasoning and opinions. I'd hate to see the thread get closed.

[filmmaker]

[Strut angle doesn't have any affect on chine walking...
And the CG only affects it if the weight isn't distributed correctly.
That's what the trim tabs and turn fins are for
Btw PBO if you look under accessories for the Titan you can add adjusters for the trim tabs. Those would greatly help with setting up the handling of the boat.

why don't you go back and read what you post
you said it right here that I what I posted has nothing to do with it

[filmmaker]

OK, if you're an expert can you tell me...

a) why I wouldn't adjust trim tabs for better trim?

b) how strut angle & CG will negate chine walking?

c) how you prevent a deep V from chine walking?

d) what's an FE boat?

so many questions so little time
having the strut set wrong (and out of the box these boats should be very close to good) it can cause the hull to handle wrong
you are better off to addjust the strut and CG first to get the boat to right as close to perfect as you can, then add some, just some addjustments to the trim tabs to settle things down a bit more if needed..
also the wrong size prop can cause chine walk to, usually to big of a prop can cause this
and a 3blade prop can help to
there are mono hulls that don't need trim tabs specially when the strut and rudder and CG are all good.
its all about balance

FE = Fast Electric

[filmmaker]

First off my comment was simply about chine walking, not overall handling. Of course the strut angle & cg both affect handling, but this is only about chine walking.
And yes trim tabs can and will slow the boat down slightly, but being that you can control the handling of the boat much easier with them, it's a good trade off to me anyways, especially if this boat is to have fun with and not just your FE racing.
Obviousely you've never had or driven a villain, all you care about is your FE boats. Because turn fins added to a villain WILL cut down on chine walking drastically. Yes I agree they are for controlled turns, but they also reduce chine walking, that's where you are wrong. Don't give advise you don't know.

Let me help you out..
this is not a Villian! this boat has much more power and is setup to race
turn fins are just that, turn fins... they help a mono TURN
if your using trun fins to stop chine walk, you have the boat setup wrong..
placing trim tabs lower will cause drag and slow things down

[H2O~Boy]

why don't you go back and read what you post
you said it right here that I what I posted has nothing to do with it

I was originally referring to the strut not affecting chine walking. However I did look that up and yes I was wrong about that. I'll admit that. I was told differently in the past.

You are right this is not a villain. What's your point? It is similiar in the fact that it is a deep v hull. I do realize turn fins are meant to help turn the boat, but that does not mean they can't have a dual purpose to reduce chine walking as well. A way to prove that is to put turn fins on a villain after it has been upgraded for more speed. They will help it turn as well as reduce chine walk.

But what I don't get is you say you keep your trim tabs set to 0* to reduce drag. (Which btw those can help with chine walking immensely too). But if you keep them set to 0* then why even have them? If your as good as you apparently say you are, you should be able to set up your boat well enough to not need them at all, which would save you much more drag by eliminating those. Which will add speed, just like sanding the hull which you couldn't grasp.

And you say this is a race boat?
Yes it is plenty capable of racing, traxxas did a great job with it.
However i'd love to take a poll to find out who will actually race it. My guess is over 95% of owners who buy this will be driving this for fun whether around their pond, lake, river, etc. Not racing.

[makaveli72]

Okay, from doing some research on the Trim tab tuning via google, basically from what I understand, adjusting the Trim tabs upwards (or out) will bring the Bow up. Adjusting the Trim tabs as flat/level as possible (o *) or downwards (or in) will carry the Bow down. Fine, so can anyone explain how the Trim tab adjusters by Traxxas work? I don't get it...does it change as the location of the "nut" change up and down the Hex screw?

[j-rock]

Okay, from doing some research on the Trim tab tuning via google, basically from what I understand, adjusting the Trim tabs upwards (or out) will bring the Bow up. Adjusting the Trim tabs as flat/level as possible (o *) or downwards (or in) will carry the Bow down. Fine, so can anyone explain how the Trim tab adjusters by Traxxas work? I don't get it...does it change as the location of the "nut" change up and down the Hex screw?

as you turn the screw it will move the trim tab up or down allowing you to set the ange at wich the boat runs through the water. this is called the trim. if the tabs are down then the bow will be lower getting it on plane faster. if the tabs are higher then the bow will ride higher wich is better for rough water.

[nitrobaby]

What are your thoughts on developing a performance version? As excited as I am about a Traxxas BL boat, it does look a little too much RTR for my taste

If the trim tabs were adjustable at least, then that might give the very conservative looking trim some scope...& the full V hull, why not a running plank, it looks like it's chine walking in one of the vids?

Most of the work would be in adding the necessary materials to hold a nitro engine and it's drive shaft. Which may require the swap out of all the running gear due to the extra weight which would cause additional stress on the running gear. Not sure it would hold up to a 7 to 10 pound boat ripping through corners at 60 mph. I also may look at the very least in reinforcing the bottom and sides inside the hull just to help resist hull flex. Over time that could cause stress cracks that would only get worst due the vibration of a high-performance nitro engine. The trim tabs also look a little flimsy but I have see the same used on larger gas boats that can run in the 60 mph range. Rearranging the inside of the hull would also call for the reconstruction of the radio box where I would add a third channel to control the fuel/air mixture. I could also add a fourth channel to adjust the length of the pipe to optimize it for the prop selection and nitro rating. As far as the running plank... that is not legal for racing in our organization but may be just fine for sport use.

[H2O~Boy]

as you turn the screw it will move the trim tab up or down allowing you to set the ange at wich the boat runs through the water. this is called the trim. if the tabs are down then the bow will be lower getting it on plane faster. if the tabs are higher then the bow will ride higher wich is better for rough water.

^^^ Correct
And you can also adjust them individually so if your boat happens to lean more to one side you can balance it out, just like a 1:1 boat.

[nitrobaby]

Strut angle doesn't have any affect on chine walking...
And the CG only affects it if the weight isn't distributed correctly.

That's what the trim tabs and turn fins are for.
Btw PBO if you look under accessories for the Titan you can add adjusters for the trim tabs. Those would greatly help with setting up the handling of the boat.

Everything effects everything. It is a very slim balance of it all. I have run my Kyosho with too much negative angle. Instead riding wet it chine walked. When we raised it up a bit more it shot the boat out of the water but horizontal to the water. Raised it a bit more and it smoothed out. What was funny is that it only started doing this at one race site. My guess is because the water is a lot shallower (2.5 ft.) there and the water much warmer in the spring summer. But we left it that way for other race sites where the water is 90 feet deep and very cold. It ran good even with the change.

[nitrobaby]

make sure to read through and not take just anyones advice
FE boats can be a handlfull if not setup right
this boat is not out yet and we are seeing lots of wrong advice on this forum already

On that note Let me just make my post clear... I HAVE NO EXPERIENCE WITH FE!!!! My comments have to do with my experience with Nitro and things I am considering to apply to this new Titan. Please do not take my comments as advice for FEs.

[H2O~Boy]

Everything effects everything. It is a very slim balance of it all. I have run my Kyosho with too much negative angle. Instead riding wet it chine walked. When we raised it up a bit more it shot the boat out of the water but horizontal to the water. Raised it a bit more and it smoothed out. What was funny is that it only started doing this at one race site. My guess is because the water is a lot shallower (2.5 ft.) there and the water much warmer in the spring summer. But we left it that way for other race sites where the water is 90 feet deep and very cold. It ran good even with the change.

Yeah I did some research and learned a bit more about all this and what affects what.
That's pretty interesting though that the depth of the water affected your boat that much. I never got into that much of the specifics as I don't race, i'm just a pleasure r/c hobbiest, lol. But that's good knowledge, thanks.

[PBO]

^^^ Correct
And you can also adjust them individually so if your boat happens to lean more to one side you can balance it out, just like a 1:1 boat.

Except in a 1:1 boat you would be inclined to trim out in smooth water & in for rough water...

[nitrobaby]

I was originally referring to the strut not affecting chine walking. However I did look that up and yes I was wrong about that. I'll admit that. I was told differently in the past.

You are right this is not a villain. What's your point? It is similiar in the fact that it is a deep v hull. I do realize turn fins are meant to help turn the boat, but that does not mean they can't have a dual purpose to reduce chine walking as well. A way to prove that is to put turn fins on a villain after it has been upgraded for more speed. They will help it turn as well as reduce chine walk.

But what I don't get is you say you keep your trim tabs set to 0* to reduce drag. (Which btw those can help with chine walking immensely too). But if you keep them set to 0* then why even have them? If your as good as you apparently say you are, you should be able to set up your boat well enough to not need them at all, which would save you much more drag by eliminating those. Which will add speed, just like sanding the hull which you couldn't grasp.

And you say this is a race boat?
Yes it is plenty capable of racing, traxxas did a great job with it.
However i'd love to take a poll to find out who will actually race it. My guess is over 95% of owners who buy this will be driving this for fun whether around their pond, lake, river, etc. Not racing.

I am a racer and I am postive that most don't race. I am sure Traxxas, Aquacraft, and Horizon Hobby will all agree. There are not enough racers to even support them making an effort in this area. It's mostly all of you who mess around at your local pond who help them make their numbers. Us Racers, well we are the unsung marketers of this whole movement as we run more often in more places for more people to see our equipment in action at a higher performance level than the average guy will even care to acheive. But that's what gets you excited and running to the store to get you even a smaller even slower piece of that high. : )

[nitrobaby]

Yeah I did some research and learned a bit more about all this and what affects what.
That's pretty interesting though that the depth of the water affected your boat that much. I never got into that much of the specifics as I don't race, i'm just a pleasure r/c hobbiest, lol. But that's good knowledge, thanks.

Yah.. that one baffled even me. If it wasn't for my dad (my mechanic) and his 50 years of experience I would have immediately went to the trim tabs which would have probably just been a band-aid on the real problem. And imagine my surprise thinking I was going to go out and kick some butt out the gate to find out I had severe handling problems. Good thing we went to the race a day early just to test. Usually we show up on game day and play ball. The difference in doing so showed in the video I posted earlier. You wouldn't ever know how horrible the boat was handling only just the day before. : )

[makaveli72]

as you turn the screw it will move the trim tab up or down allowing you to set the ange at wich the boat runs through the water. this is called the trim. if the tabs are down then the bow will be lower getting it on plane faster. if the tabs are higher then the bow will ride higher wich is better for rough water.

^^^ Correct
And you can also adjust them individually so if your boat happens to lean more to one side you can balance it out, just like a 1:1 boat.

^^^ Gotcha! Thanks guys for those quick responses.

Except in a 1:1 boat you would be inclined to trim out in smooth water & in for rough water...

Interesting. Tks for reply as well.

[H2O~Boy]

Except in a 1:1 boat you would be inclined to trim out in smooth water & in for rough water...

True. In 1:1 you are constantly adjusting per water conditions whether that be by using the trim tabs or the power trim/ tilt itself.
If only we had electric adjusters which could be controlled on our remotes for that - I've actually thought about creating such thing, but I never got the time & money to go through with it. Maybe some day.

[PBO]

so why would you want to increase the wetted surface area in your RC boat when the water surface is smooth & decrease in the opposite conditions?