hi
i have been rc’ing since the 80’s but just got a seawind kit and looking forward to trying out this end of the hobby [:-jump2], i live in rochester ny and my only experiance with sailing is some kite surfing i did on the columbia gorge a few years ago , i was wondering what type - model transmitter people would recommend and my kit came with a hitech hs-785-hb winch servo and i see its a drum setup but the directions call for an winch with an arm , seems like it would be easy enough to use the drum but im wondering if this would be a mistake
looks like a great forum here , thanks dana
a simple 2 channel would do the job…if you sail alone then I see no problems…sure a FM system would be better, but my first radion was the Futaba Attack AM 2 channel…
I wonder where you got your SW from…usualy it comes with a sail arm type winch…but heard that some peoplea re using the Hitec winch
Welcome aboard!
-Wis
_/ if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it! _
hi Wis
thanks for the reply , the local hobby shop had the sw as a full setup and sold the radio out of it and then sold the kit and got it returned so the shop just wanted to get his money out of it and included the servo with it for $185 us , seemed like a good deal , thanks again , dana
You’ve made a good choice. If you haven’t already done so, check out the Seawind Resource Center at www.seawindrc.com.
As far as the winch goes, the boat is deisgned for the Futaba 3801 arm winch, but I just put together a boat with a Hitec 715BB. I think any hi-torque arm winch that is similar in dimensions (the servo tray is designed for a certain size) to either of those would work.
Enjoy!
Andy
Air Capitol Model Sailing Club
www.acmsc.org
I failed to mention… if you ever want to compete within the SeaWind Class Owner’s Association (the national class for SeaWinds in the US) you’ll need to stick with the arm winch, as drum winches are illegal by class rules. The class rules structure is pretty strict–with very few mods to the stock kit allowed. However, you’ll find that the SW’s kit parts are fairly high quality for a ‘kit boat’ and it’s not necessary to do a lot of modifications.
I’m sure there are others that would disagree (and I have other boats–Victoria and CR-914, which are also great boats) but the SeaWind is simply the highest quality kit out of the box of just about any boat on the market. You definately will get your moneys worth.
Andy
Air Capitol Model Sailing Club
www.acmsc.org
hi andy
thanks for the info and the link , it’s my first kit but it’s easy to see it’s a really nice kit , the folks at kyosho have it really worked out , i’m more interested in just getting my feet wet than compeating at this point so i will fit the drum servo and figure i can change it out later if i want to enter a competition , thanks again
Dana, you really should find somrone at the Club in your area and talk with them. Not only will it be a fast track to more info than you could want, but it will introduce you to new people make new friends and see other boats as well. RAMYA has a good group and will be more than willing to help. Check the www.AMYA.org site and get in touch with those guys and it will be all so much easier.[:D]
hi larry
thanks for the link , i know there is a rc sail club in rochester , there was an article in the local paper a few years ago , but i wasn’t able to find them on the web , i fly helis and planks and am a member of the rams here in rochester and would be interested to find the local sail club , finished building the sw last night and all i can say is what a beautiful kit
thanks again
Here you go Dana, this should get you all you need and more.
[:-angel]
hi larry
good work , i had been trying to google up the rochester club with little luck , thanks again
I would agree… contacting the local club is a great idea. They will likely welcome you with open arms. They may not have a SeaWind fleet, but they might allow you to sail anyway.
The arm winch setup on the SW is actually pretty decent. I’ve sailed in anything from 5 mph winds to over 20mph and never had trouble sheeting in. In addition, the arm style is faster than a drum. However, I also understand to each their own, and I’m just glad to hear about another SW skipper joining the ‘fleet’.
Good luck and happy sailing.
Andy
Air Capitol Model Sailing Club
www.acmsc.org
SeaWind #25, #28
CR-914 #1186
Victoria #556
Air Capitol Model Sailing Club
www.acmsc.org
hi
i got in touch with the local ( thanks again larry ) club and joined [:D] , RAMYA has about 27 members and although there are no other SW’s they are more than happy to help me get started , i just wanted to thank everybody who took the time to give me pointers , i ordered a 75 mhz radio and a futaba 3801 servo and am looking forward to getting my feet wet , thanks again , dana
I saw that the Rochester club sails SOlings (among others)… might be fun to put the SW up against them to see how they compare. A well-sailed SW is a good performer, though I’ve never sailed or sailed with a Soling. Solings are nice boats too I hear.
Glad to hear you’re on your way. Good luck and happy sailing!
Andy
Air Capitol Model Sailing Club
www.acmsc.org