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with enough width to fully cover the box lid seams is available from

several R/C boat suppliers; plus you can also use clear hockey

stick tape as well. A screw/gasket cover arrangement will require

a flat cut-free gasket which you can make up from regular rubber/

foam weather stripping material using the cover as your guide. An

alternative to a flat gasket is to simply apply a thin even layer of

regular petroleum jelly that can act as the box lid sealant; however

this method will demand a good cleaning/re-coating after each

opening of the container. Over-tightening of the multiple hold down

screws can also distort the entire radio top surface; so just use a

small screwdriver on the lid fasteners and leave the high-torque

cordless tools away from your I/C boat’s radio compartment.

Miscellaneous Box notes

Should you decide to use an adhesive agent to secure your

boat’s radio box, using one that’s both fuel proof and waterproof

is a given; yet you shouldn’t go overboard with the compound if

and when you might need to remove the box unit in the future. A

polyester-type glue will generally hold a wood or fibreglass radio

box and still be relatively easy to cut/remove in the future.

If at all possible, avoid joining your piano wire control linkage ends

with steel-to-steel clevises and carburettor/rudder tiller arms as this

combination, due to engine vibration, could induce enough ‘noise’

to sometimes interrupt radio signals and this can occur even on

today’s high tech 2.4 GHz radio systems. Large-scale nylon/plastic

rod ends are well-suited for I/C hulls and their composite make up

will prevent any linkage related control gremlins.

Finally, always try to avoid having any sharp edges leftover either

inside or outside of your fully assembled radio box as you can get

nicked by a tiny shard of fibreglass, a linkage end, etc. that can be

produced when installing everything involving your boat’s control

package.

closing thoughts

Choosing the right radio box unit for your marine craft is just as

important as picking the correct engine, drive layout and transom

gear to install inside/on the hull. As always, if you any questions

regarding this column or any other nitro/petrol boat set up queries

please feel free to contact me via the email address located at the

top of the article. Talk to you next time. MMI

tip of the Month

On a related note to this column’s main theme, the I/C

modeller will have to join the right design rudder blade to his/

hers new radio box/servo assembly. Like any component on a

power craft, its rudder must closely match up in both its outer

dimensions and its pivot point to ensure that it turns the boat

as the driver desires. Modifying or even switching out the blade

may sometimes be necessary to suit your driving style and/or

to prevent unwanted servo stress or what I call ‘fall over’ which

means the rudder travels past its designed arc angle and this in

turn causes hull spin outs while cornering at speed. Having the

right style rudder can greatly improve your ability to pilot even

the most high-performance I/C hull; so keep that in mind if your

particular vessel is too tail happy too much of the time.

Any number of rudder blades can be used on a single hull

design which you can change to make the boat handle as you

desire

trick of the Month

As the appointed Halloween pumpkin carver at our home I

recently came across a tool that’s capable of both making scary

faces and do some sawing on an I/C boat. Tired of breaking the

low-grade metal saws found in standard pumpkin carving kits, I

purchased a carving tool online that has a hardened steel blade

and I’ve also used this tool to shape materials I needed on my

boat projects. My version of the knife uses a clamp style handle

and both thin and wide blades and these knifes have given

your scribe clean cuts in hard balsa, foam and many plastics.

Capable of working/cutting in relatively tight quarters, this

pumpkin carver now has a good home in my toolbox!

Although made to carve Halloween pumpkins, this dual-blade

saw is also handy for cutting/trimming materials inside the

tight confines of many I/C hulls

Built into the boat’s deck this radio compartment uses a tape

down cover and the box itself has ample room for a larger rudder

servo as well

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