hi guys
how are ya all.
iv come across this equpage fidji 60 trimaran yacht.
i want to learn to sail this before i go out and buy a larger /faster trimaran .
here is the link,
www.mashobbies.com.au, # equ-ar6004
will this be good to learn on ??
any one have any thoughts or experiences with this yacht ??
looks well made and designed!!
hopefully should sail and go well
hope to hear some info and replies.
thanks guys
cheers
glen
Glen - RUN - don’t walk away from this one.
I hate seeing new r/c sailors swallow the advertising tht some of these companies put out.
In addition to the purchase cost of $239 you need to add in a minimum of an additional $100 for the radio and servos and batteries.
Other considerations:
Will there be enough room to install servos - or will you be forced to install smaller servos that won’t work?
Standing rigging - cheap thread - or Spectra/Dacon line - or stainless steel?
Can’t see detail of gooseneck, mast or deck rigging attachments
Laminated wood?
Here are sizes (metric and US)
Beam…590 mm … 23 inches
Length…660 mm … 26 inches
Height…1180 mm … 46 inches
Weight…1200 gr … 2.5 lbs.
No sail area provided but I would suggest this thing is “pudgy” to say the least - and “overweight” is an understatement.
For your reference - a good Mini40 or F-48 trimaran has the following dimensions - you can convert to metric:
Beam-------48 inches
Length-----48 inches
Height----- varies but around 6-7 feet
Weight---- A 3.5 lb boat is considered to be on the high side of weight at this size.
You can do the math, but from my opinion, it is a bathtub/swimming pool toy. I can’t see if it has any kind of boards or keel so can’t comment on windward performance. If like other “stuff” coming out of China, by the time you get done making modifications, you would be better off to build an RG65MULTIHULL and it will be of similar size. Look for the thread on this forum and give some thought - building isn’t that hard, but would hate to see you waste your money on something of questionable performance.
You really do get what you pay for - (used boats the exception) and as I suggest, I would bypass this one in a heartbeat.
My opinion of course.
hi dick
thanks for the reply.
the boat does have a centre keel iv noticed
i just want some thing cheap to learn on thats all.
all upwill cost me $400 aus inc servos,radio,shipping and so on.
yes i think laminated wood type.!
what other multi hull boat can you reccoemend then besides the rg65multihull ??
what about the three stars brand tri or the t-50 tri ??
i dont want to have to build any thing thats all.
i know it is a smaller boat but surely it must still sail ok??
what about using a min 3 kilo torque servo, will that work ok ??
thats what is reccomended to use in it.
cheeers
glen
so does any one else have any suggestions in stead of just viewing and no input ??
thanks
glen
Glen, mate you have had the best advise already. Forget the toys.
Find your local model yacht club and see what they are sailing.
They will help you and give the best advise, maybe even lend you a boat to get started.
Where about`s in Oz are you?
If they build them like their riva boats beware, they use Masonite for the frames so figure an extra $20 dollars in epoxy to seal the inside, then wait for the humidity to change and watch the planks split open.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=525368
Do a search on Equipage in the same forum and see for yourself how many have split.
Regards
Nick
hi guys again
thanks for the further chat and info
yes i know i have had good advise already,thanks but i just wanted to hear other thoughts,experiences thats all.
well mostly here they all sail single mono hulls.
not my cuppa tea,dont like them
i like tri/cats only
im from melb,victoria
dave from qld state Aus makes nice tries,they are $2,800 aus dollars though
i havnt got all that many $$ yet,still saving,so i thought i would got some thing cheaper in mean time to practise on!!
cheers
glen
I think you will find that regardless of “practice” a good sailing tri/cat will require to learn all over again. If you are thinking “stick time” tuning, responding to wind shifts, etc. then you will get the same “practice” with a monohull - and probably enjoy it even more. If you can buy a used monohull sialed locally, you probably will be able to resell it and recoup some $$$$ - if you buy the multihull, I would wonder what you do with it after getting disgusted and irritated.
Often these seemingly “neat” looking toys do more to discourage new sailors, than does money. It’s only after you spent $400 on the thing will you realize it was a waste of money. Please don’t discount home building - it is a matter of tiome - more than money, and if you have a $400 budget a multihull in the 65 cm to 1 meter size (home built) might be possible. After all - buying a prebuilt boat - you are paying someone else for their time … if that is what you want to do. I really don’t know of any multihull available any longer that sails well. Last one was the Robbe Dragonfly (1.5 meter) but that required a lot of building too. In the end, at least it sailed well to make owner/builder happy.
Back to building - Dont’ discount the SNAPDRAGON or PULSE as they are (as we call) a Box Section so if you can glue up sheets of balsa into a square tube - you have the basics - juist go from there. SNAPDRAGON is available (plans) from Traplet Publications.
In the end, you will have to make your own call - but hopefully the recommendations made here will prevent you from throwing away a bunch of good money on a questionable performing boat. I think the Tippecanoe Trimaran is also a home-build as well.
Best wishes on your selction/decision.
hi dick
ok thanks for your help and advice
cheers
glen
Glen,
I think the best way to get into the hobby is to find a model yacht club and buy a used boat, or parts to build one, from someone in the club. You get a boat that will already be higher in performance than any kit, tons of advice, probably some extras thrown in once the seller see’s your enthusiasm, an “in” with the the group which leads to continued support as all people in this thing love to share advice.
I had wallet in hand at a hobby store 15 years ago to buy boat but for some reason I waited and found club (had to drive 1.5hrs) that sailed US1M. Once I saw them I knew I made right decision. Third visit to watch (and members would sometimes hand me their radios between race heats), one guy brought me to his garage where I bought 2 hulls (botched, runny paint jobs) that I sanded back to shape, Tr/Rx, servos installed, rudders, wrinkled sails (that I ironed out), etc, etc for $250.
Join AMYA (Oz, maybe not) and get the magazine.
Buy used.
yar
hi yar
how are ya.
ok thanks for info and help
cheers
glen
I would also agree with dick. Stay away from the cheapo toy’s, look at maybe the ghost train or something similar. The dimensions listed show a very narrow beam for an rc multi, you would run into lots of problems with capsizing. It looks like it is trying to emulate a full scale, which is very difficult to do with a multi of this size. If you don’t like mono’s your gonna have to build a multi, theres just no good way around it. You may be able to find a used multi, or someone who will build it for you, but that is iffy.
Building a rc boat at home is not that hard to do. We here will be more than willing to help you, and you can even get free plans here. The first step is to see what you wanna build. The next is to locate the plans, cut out the formers, then plank with balsa. Glass, sand, hulls are done.
Let us know what you plan on doing, as we would definately welcome you into the rg65m ranks.
Or … foam insulation , rough (cut) shape, sand to final form, cover with glass, add crossbeams, radio gear and a single panel sail and hit the water.
For considerations:
A few of us are pursuing the 65cm (25 1/2 inch) size multihull,
there is a 1 meter (39 inch) multihull,
a 1.2 meter (48 inch multihull) and
a 2 Meter (approx 78 inch) “monster”.
For a while a few were discussing a 3 meter - but that is almost a “ride on” size. 
The hobby shop that I work at has a few of these boats, one of the trimarans and a couple of mono hulls, the thing that I noticed about them was how crude the planking was done on one of the mono hulls. :mad: Instead of being smooth you could still see the planks under the paint. The internal framing was Masonite or something close to that and was not sealed, in a model boat this will be nothing but trouble. :mad:
In a word I would not buy this boat my self as it had caught my eye but with the problems that I saw in the mono hull I will not give the trimaran a chance.
Andre