Our review of Seaducer Boat's Gas Sport Hydro...
Download
the Seaducer Hydro Manual here!
This is yet another fine
product from Seaducer Boats who are based out of
The hull is a shoebox design (which means that the top half overlaps
the bottom half when the two are joined. It is made of carbon fiber, with the
exception of the cowl and engine bay compartment, which are made of fiberglass.
Each one is serial numbered by Seaducer Boats for proof of authenticity. The
hull is 45 inches long and 21 inches wide. It has many innovative design
features including a gelcoat finished engine bay, a built-in radio box, a
preformed stuffing tube exit and pre-installed floatation and engine mount
brackets. Seaducer Boats will even pre-install the turn fin bracket for you, a
very important step of building for a hydro to perform well. These features
make this boat very easy to assemble. You can have it race-ready in no time!
Here are some pictures of the hydro as received from Seaducer Boats. The
packaging was surprisingly compact, yet everything was well protected and
arrived in perfect condition. Jerry uses a clingy plastic wrap on the hull
itself to protect it. There is also plenty of protective material in the box.
Assembly
It is strongly recommended that you purchase the hardware kit and motor
mounts from Seaducer boats to make your build easier and successful.
Below are some pictures of the assembly of the boat.
I started by installing the gas bag and fuel lines including a gas filter. The
gas bag used is from American RC. You can read more on their gas bag setups HERE.
The hull comes with two small hooks in the nose section for securing a gas
tank...another nice feature. I removed them and used one of them in the very
front of the nose section to hold the gas bag instead.
Getting the motor in the boat is a breeze. Install the motor mounts on the
engine and then drop the engine into place on the pre-installed brackets and
secure it with the included stainless steel screws and washers. This is a major
time saver and there is no guessing. The engine is where is it supposed to be
and at the correct angle to line up with the stuffing tube.
You will also have to purchase or make a throttle linkage setup as it is not
included with the motor mount kit. You can see how I did mine in the picture
below.
I cut out the air scoops in the cowl and the rear cut-outs for the tuned pipe
and hot air exits. With the piece that I cut out for the tuned pipe exit, I
made a deflector in the main front scoop to help direct any water that might
come in away from the carburetor side of the engine. This was done as a
precaution only.
I then proceeded to tape up the transom and mark the centerline where I then
drilled for and mounted the strut. The transom of this hull is on an angle and
thus you will want to use the hardware kit from Seaducer Boats which is made to
accommodate for this slanted transom. Mount the strut bracket so it is flush
against the lip of the deck. Also make sure it is square with the bottom of the
hull. I then marked the transom for the rudder bracket and installed it also.
The rudder bracket is installed so the rudder centerline is at 2 inches from
the strut centerline. The bracket is notched to fit partially over the deck
lip. I also made sure it was square with the strut bracket, which is also square
with the bottom of the hull. Double check this. The included instruction sheets
explain all the hardware installation very thoroughly.
The instructions call for shortening the rudder blade. To do this you mark a
line on the rudder even with the bottom of the boat. You then make another
mark 3 3/4" down from the first one and cut the rudder blade off at this
point.
To install the stuffing tube, insert a piece of 1/4" rod or similar (I use
a 1/4" drill bit) into the engine's collet. If your engine doesn't yet
have a collet installed, now is the time to do it! With the 1/4" rod in the
collet and the engine mounted it's easy to get the stuffing tube installed and
lined up correctly with the engine. I used a 4" long piece of 11/32"
brass tubing as a sleeve for the 5/16" stuffing tube where it goes through
the hull. I drilled the preformed stuffing tube exit in the bottom of the hull
to 11/32". The 11/32" sleeve fits over the 5/16" stuffing tube
and is the part that will be epoxied into the hull. You will want to roughen up
the outside of the sleeve with coarse sandpaper or similar for the epoxy to
properly stick to it. Run the stuffing tube from the strut to the engine
bending it accordingly. Try to get it straight from the engine to where it
exits the hull, and then slightly bend to get it straight to the strut. Make
sure the sleeve is in proper position; i.e. partly inside the hull and partly
outside. Clean the stuffing tube cavity in the hull with acetone. Mix up some
epoxy and fill the stuffing tube cavity with it. Once cured, this will hold the
stuffing tube securely into place. I also like to solder the sleeve to the
stuffing tube to prevent movement. If replacement of the stuffing tube is
required in the future, a little bit of heat will let it come lose and the tube
can be removed, leaving the 11/32" sleeve in place in the hull.
I used a 2" band aluminum pipe with a 1" diameter header in my hydro.
To get this pipe to fit in the boat I had to trim away some material from the
engine bay lip at the top. Since this was at the back end of the engine bay, I
was not too concerned about doing this. Had it been in the front I would have
opted for a different solution because this lip actually prevents water from
coming into the engine bay when racing. Another nice feature of this boat is
how the deck has a preformed recess in it for the tuned pipe to sit lower in
the hull. Were it not for this, this particular tuned pipe would have been
impossible to get in there without cutting up the cowl. The tuned pipe support
(included in the hardware kit) is mounted to the top deck in an area that is
reinforced with wood from the inside. Note: you will need a 106 degree header for your tuned pipe to exit the cowl at the correct angle without cutting the cowl.
The turn fin installation is quite simple. Mount the fin to the pre-installed
bracket using the two supplied screws. Lifting up the back of the fin will pull
down the front of the boat more. Typically you will want to raise the back end
about 1/8" above level with bracket. Fine tune on water according to
conditions. I learned this the hard way. I flipped the boat once...only once
folks, no lies...and it was during a heat at the 07 Gas Nationals. It was a
hard one to take in! Jerry had told me...it was entirely my fault for not
listening. * as it is pictured here, it's level...the back end has to
come up.
The radio box setup is pretty straight forward, with the exception that you
will want to install the linkage seals on the inside of the box due to limited
access to the outside of the box. This is because of the fact that the box is
integrated to the deck itself. There is a piece of 1/4" plywood
pre-installed under the radio box which is a nice feature. It allows you to
screw the servo brackets right in without loosing vertical space in the box
itself. Just make sure that you do not use screws longer than 1/4" to
avoid going through the bottom of the hull!
There is enough room to use a 1/4 scale servo for the rudder. If you want the
rudder linkage to line up perfectly with the servo arm on the rudder you will
need to use a large scale ball link mounted to the underside of the rudder arm.
I did not have any so I got away with it due to the fact that I use 2-part
linkages joined with a collar. I also glued in a "gusset" to prevent
flex in the rudder linkage. I mounted the included antenna in the radio box lid
and used a small Oring to ensure a water-tight seal. The lid is held down and sealed with radio box tape. Here are some pictures of
the radio box install.
The nose of the hull is made to accept the cowl and thus no front hold-downs
are required for the cowl. The back of the cowl is held with Orings. There are
pieces of wood under the deck where the Oring supports are to be screwed in.
The deck also features two pre-formed "stubs" over which the cowl
sits preventing side to side movement. Do NOT forget to add floatation to the
cowl!
The water line from the rudder to the engine is routed in the starboard side of
the hull as per the instructions. The water exit fitting can be installed in
the nose section of the hull next to the windshield. You will also want to
drill one or more drain holes in the transom to drain any water out of the hull
after running. The hull is supplied with a rear hatch cover that is held on
with simple radio box tape. I replaced this cover with one I made of see
through Lexan just so I could keep an eye on my rudder linkage without having
to remove the cover. This was just a matter of preference.
I also later made a 1.5" x 1" opening in the cowl just behind the
carburetor for additional air to the engine. Again, personal preference.
Pre-run setup
I set the boat up as per the instruction sheets. Set the strut to the proper
depth and level with the boat setup on a flat surface. I started with the turn
fin level with the bracket (incorrect as mentioned before). I eventually ended
up with the turn fin's back end about 1/8" up from level.
At the
I must admit that my first times out with the Seaducer Hydro were less
than perfect. It took me a while to figure out the setup, and in the end it all
boiled down to the propeller used. I cannot stress this enough...if you want
this boat to perform well, get the right prop! I tried just about
every prop I had in my box, and nothing worked well. I spent an entire weekend
at the races trying to figure it out, until I finally got one of Jerry's props
(thanks to Kevin Sheren who finally let me buy his - Jerry was out of them at
the time). The boat was instantly reborn! The performance was nothing short of
excellent. Fast, stable and cornered great! I also got a prop from Bob Austin
at the Propworks that performed excellent also.
Here are some stills and
action shots...
Things
I didn't like...
- no throttle linkage
included in kit
- motor mounts do not allow
for starboard side starter mounting (personal preference only)
Things
I liked...the list is long, there are many to list!
- excellent glass work
- sturdy construction -
Carbon fiber main hull
- enclosed engine bay, easy
to clean - all gel coat finish
- pre-installed floatation
(except for cowl)
- front cowl hold down not
required
- pre-installed motor mount
brackets (with extra set of isolators included in kit)
- integrated radio box
- stuffing tube exit
pre-formed in hull bottom
- high quality motor mounts
including built-in coil relocating bracket
- high quality hardware kit
includes pipe mount and antenna
- pre-installed turn fin
bracket
- high quality turn fin, made
of thick aluminum, pre-shaped and pre-sharpened
- pre-installed hooks for gas
tank hold-down
- plywood backing in radio
box and strategic areas
- pre-formed rear cowl stops
in the deck
- pre-formed recess in deck
for lower tuned pipe mounting
- awesome performance!
Final
thoughts...
The Seaducer sport hydro is by far the easiest sport hydro I have ever had to
build. Seaducer Boats have done all the most difficult parts of the setup for
you when you receive the kit. The high quality hardware kit is a must for this
boat in my opinion. The quality of the hull is excellent. It is extremely
sturdy due in part to the fact that it is mostly constructed of carbon fiber.
The
most important piece of advice that I can give to anyone buying this boat is to
also order the correct prop to go with it, otherwise you will probably not be
happy with the performance. Get the right prop and you will love it! This is a
true race boat and a great one at that!
Happy Boating!
*
I would like to thank Chris Rupley for his pointers. I would also like to thank
Jerry Crowther for taking the time to answer my many inquiries.
Seaducer Boats
Jerry Crowther
2071 NE 55 Ct
Website: www.seaducerboats.com Email: seaduce@bellsouth.net
I finally found some one who understands the dynamics of rudder blades and there dynamics under stress (hydro(aqua)dynamics. the inside of the rudder produces a vacuum
(void) of water you can prove this while stirring your coffe and mike mix
Dave
