Leaderboard

It can be useful to set your failsafe to a slight turn, and sails mid way out, in case of loss of signal due to range, it may then sail back into range 😊

Peter Thanks again. There is a problem with 'dry' range checks. I did a lot of research into this and found a solution. ELRS. 2.4gHz is an awful wavelength for rc boats. Remember the old 47 mHz, a much longer wavelength and much better albeit not digital. So digital replaced analogue for flyers and land vehicles, us boat users had no option. It is all to do with the Signal to Noise ratio. When the signal baloons out (sort of a dohnut shape) the lower parts of the signal hits the water and is reflected, interfeering with the small bit of the signal that is travelling in a straight line from the radio antenna to the receiver antenna. Now if the Signal to Noise is poor, the signal is corrupted and being digital, cuts out. So the point is, you need to range check with the boat on the water. What I would do is tether the boat to the pontoon and put it into the water, then walk around the lake and find the range across the water. Another solution comes from the geeks who fly drones. They invented ELRS. This is still 2.4gHz and digital but uses a new technology delveloped for WiFi used in office blocks etc. WiFi (commonly 2.5gHz) is disrupted by printing machines, coffee vending machines, concrete lift shafts, people.... so the SN is poor but designers want to connect the printers and coffee machines to a central 'control' WiFi had too much noise. However they did not need to send as much information as they do in homes, they do not stream video for example. So instead they send a much reduced set of information, hundreds of times. A smart chip in the receiver recognises the majority as uncorrupted. ELRS does this for RC users and extends drone range from 1 or 2 KM to 10! I use if for my boats. It is good. And cheap. Radiomaster have just launched a transmitter ideal for boat users, the L8R, costing £35. Fully programable by plugging your pc into it at home, so you can set end points, failsafe positions and a lot more. But I don't know if it overcomes the Faraday Cage effect of a carbon hull.