on a 4 screw boat is it better to run one motor per screw or use a transmission that will let you run two screws on one motor?
Most people only drive the two inboard screws. Battleships, you usually drive one screw per motor. Battlecruisers, you can run 2 screws with one 550-sized motor, and cruisers too.
On my Iowa, I leave the wing props dead and spin the inner two each with their own motor. ---> I would also however recommend a tranny no matter what motor arrangement you choose. In the pond, where do you need the most torque? A: when you ship is gunked up with moss. Where do you get the most torque from your motor? A: at high RPM. Will you be spinning your motors at full RPM when cruising to ruleset speed? A: No. THEREFORE--->>> Use a tranny so your motor is running at maximum torque (high speed) even though the props aren't spinning that fast (ruleset speed).
you can also go direct drive using "rock crawler" or "lathe" motors. their max rpm's are low and they have a crap load of torque.
$19.00 or so, depends on the brand. good thing being that you can rebuild them and replace brushes when needed.
Hmmmmm... I think I'll still stick with the trannys for the iowa; but good to know if I ever build a smaller ship.
no matter the motor and geared or direct drive id only run one shaft per motor. that way if one motor dies or something I still have the other one operational. (i only run the inner two shafts, its easier and you get better performance)
anything that works, the simpler the better. Ive used gear boxes from different companies as well as building my own. of course battlers connection has nice gear boxes for 550 size motors, also I think traxxas makes some, probably all the RC car brands have something that could be adapted for our use. For my cruiser which runs size 400 motors I built my own gear boxes out of Al stock thats easily available. a few basics to check, they fit the motors you want to use, the mounting allows for the motors to be adjusted for different gear ratios, they fit in your boat, and they are sturdy enough to stand up to combat use and the occasional shot that gets by the armor. really its just got to work.
