yes......, but thats exactly what we are trying to avoid doing by potting the receiver in epoxy. All the electronics get water proofed and then you only have to worry about one servo (rudder) which itself is rather easy to provide some form of water proofing/resistance using traditional means.
Ah ok SnipeHunter, I dont know if I can get past the case for mine since I desided to use cable linkages instead of mechanical rod linkages to save on space. Cant really think of a way to mount it so the cable sleeve can be mounted securely to allow the cable in the center to slide. With the rudder I would have to use a small bracket mounted to the hull but that wouldnt be hard to do.
Anachronus, I dont know about this but couldnt you use two 6 volt batterys hooked up to get the 12 volts? Would two 6 volt batterys be smaller than one single 12 volt or would the 12volt be smaller of the two? Personally I think 6 volt would be enough but after reading about how you can get more time on the water with 12 volts I might have to consider that.
With 2 @ 6V batteries, you can wire them in series to get 12V or parallel to get 6V (with double the AH, which means double the runtime - except that the current draw increases as voltage drops, for the same load). It's nice to have the flexibility of choice. Example: 2 @ 6V/12AH batteries. In series, you'll get 12AH on 12V; in parallel, you'll get 24AH on 6V. If your current draw @ 12V is 1/2 or less of the current draw @ 6V, then you'll get more runtime on 12V than on 6V (all figures approximate - YMMV). Example: Ship draws 4A running 6V, 1.8A running 12V. 2 @ 6V/12AH batteries will give you 12AH wired for 12V while the same batteries in parallel @ 6V will give you 24AH. 12AH/1.8A = 6hrs 40 minutes runtime. (12AH * 2)/4A = 6hrs 0 minutes runtime. Of course, it never works out exactly that simple, but that's the general idea. What you really want to do is achieve balance among all the factors involved: Speed, acceleration, endurance, power, weight, space, operating range of components. All need to work in harmony & cooperation with one another. A lot depends on what will fit into the ship, within the space & weight constraints. I put 2 @ 6V 12AH gel cells into a battleship, but that won't fit into a cruiser, where I use a pair of 5-cell packs of NiMH C cells). BB-34 may be somewhere in between, not quite being big enough for a pair of large gel cells. That's what you'll have to figure out, especially if you intend to arm the #3 turret (which I wouldn't do, since that's exactly where you'll need whatever battery you choose to sit (among other reasons)). Here's the basic setup that I use for everything from a 25kt HMS Nelson to a 33kt USS Pittsburgh: 6V power, MTronics speed control, 2 Mabuchi RS-550 motors, direct or reduction drive (chain) of 2 shafts (even if 4 are available). I like 6V because I get enough power (this isn't racing, after all; all-out speed isn't the objective. Sometimes it's a challenge to get SLOW enough, which is where the reduction drive comes in, where needed) & I can run all ships' systems on 6V (receivers & servos cook on 12V, so they'd need some additional power source that they're happy with). As for runtime, I have no earthly idea. I've never run out of power before running out of day (with 2 @ 6V 12AH fully-charged gel cell batteries, usually 1 running the screws & the other running everything else). For a 1:144 Big Gun BB-34 at 25kts, 12V will be way too much power, unless you use a very steep reduction gear and/or very shallow prop pitch (another consideration). You'd be working with a very small portion of the speed control's available power band instead of having the whole range to work with. Of course, 99.5% of the time you'll be at either full speed or stopped, so in-between isn't so important. However, fine-tuning of speed is easiest if you have a lot of speed control range to work with. JM
So basicly 6 volts would be the most I would need then. I see where your going with that. I used a print out of the lower most of the hull and I can fit the motor and gear drive in the last part of the hull to fit the two stern turrets but the amidship turret was the one that was interfering with the CO2 tank. I was also limited to use a 9oz CO2 tank due to it being small enough to fit. As far as the speed control goes I just want to be able to go between 10 - 25 knots forward, then stop, and 5 to 10 knots in reverse. I dont need to be able to go slower than 10 knots forward. Just need to be able to match speed with a transport. Im also scraping the midship turret idea. I checked one ship out that had a midship turret and it was just too much plumbing to do. Im just going to stick with two fore and two aft turrets and have the center one mounted on a servo to rotate with the aft two but it will just be a dummy. Then for the float the superstructure will be the float.
Water WILL find its way inside. If the cables are loose enough that they can move, there's enough space for water to get in. Personally, I treat servos as consumable items. I spend more on gas getting to & from a battle than I would on servos if I had to replace rudder servos after every battle. I've done waterproof boxes that extend servo wires through the case. The trick is to not even think about putting stranded wire through a hole - water will wick down the strands. Not right away, but over time. I drill small holes in a 3x(whatever), 0.1" matrix & install rows of 3-pin headers outside with only the solid metal pins passing through. Higher-current items, such as ground & power, get larger holes that are drilled, tapped, & have screws installed. Wires are attached inside & out with lug terminals. Silicone seals up the holes. JM
Just a hint, but a little CA glue or similar on the end of your receiver aerial wire will help stop water wicking inside and corroding the wire where you cant see it. The same goes for servo leads.
