Almost without exception the uninitiated spectator who has been watching a model out sailing and then sees it being brought ashore will express great surprise at how big it is. That little model you see out on the pond can be eight feet long and weigh up to eighty pounds. Unless you sail in a swimming pool, the rule of thumb is: the larger the model, the easier to sail. And one of the most important considerations in selecting a model is its size, all other things being equal. If you cannot see the boat well enough to distinguish wind changes on the sails and reaction to the controls, you will be unable to operate it among a fleet of models sailing offshore. The distance to which we can sail our model yacht is limited not by range of the radio transmitter and receiver in the control system but by the capability of the human eye. Beyond a certain point we cannot see the boat well enough to set the sails properly. Visibility is crucial for setting sail trim and course – and also for avoiding collisions.

From a practical standpoint, the minimum overall length is 36 inches if you plan to sail with other larger models. The large “J” boats and “A” Class boats measuring eight feet in length represent the upper limit. Thirty nine to sixty inches constitute the most common hull lengths. In selecting your model size consider: where you will store the model when not in use; how you will transport it to the water’s edge; what is involved in your launching it (depth of water required, weight of model, bulk of model, etc.). At the time of purchase you will need to consider the cost of having the model kit delivered to you. Generally, models up to 50 or 60 inches can be packed to ship by mail or United Parcel. Models which cannot be packed within UPS size and weight limitations must either be picked up personally at the shop or be shipped by truck. The same considerations must be given to the spars for your model. A tall one-piece mast may be very expensive to have shipped. If you overlook the shipping costs, you may find the shipping more costly than the model itself, unfortunate but sometimes true.

Sailing model weights range from five pounds to over 80 pounds. Fifty inch models will range from ten to 30 pounds, which is within the launching ability of most adults. The larger boats require a cart or two persons for launching.

While a child’s toy boat can be launched from the edge of the pond, the size of the R/C models requires a launching area with water deep enough to allow for the depth of the model keel. The typical 50/800 Marblehead draws 15 to 18 inches. You may need to wade out into the water to launch and recover your model. At facilities for full-size boats, there is usually big-boat activity which wipes out model activity – model boats sail best undisturbed by powerboat wakes and water skiers! The Parks and Recreation Department in your town may be willing to follow the lead of the Town of Needham, Massachusetts, in providing model-boat facilities, particularly at ponds where other public access is restricted. Consider too the possible need to launch a small boat to recover a disabled R/C model.

The sails on the modern model racing yacht are left attached to the spars rather than furled or stowed as they would be on a big boat. In the normal home it may be hard to find space to stow away a ten-foot mast with sails attached.

Look here for more RC Sailboat Beginner Tips

Wonderful picture I of this radio-controlled Laser. Originally posted in April on the “Proper Course”, which is about full-size Laser sailing.

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See here my review of the Megatech Nirvana

Firstly – It’s relaxing:
As long as you don’t have a phobia against water, standing and watching over a nice lake or the sea is just wonderful. And compared to a loud RC motorboat, where you constantly need to exchange batteries or fuel up, a RC Sailboat lets you enjoy the atmosphere and you even get the time to watch what else is going on around the lake.

Model Sailboat - Art you can play with

Secondly – Boat Building
If you are in to working with your hands and create beautiful things, then a Model Sailboat should be high on your list. Somebody called it – Art you can play with and that describes it perfectly.

Thirdly – Learn to sail
Honestly, what do you think is more fun? Learning from books or buy playing with a RC Sailboat? Obviously model sailing is especially a good way of teaching sailing fundamentals to children, but also grownups enjoy this hobby where you don’t need to get your feet wet.

Fourthly – Competition RC Sailing
The racing fever will quickly infect you as soon as another RC Sailboat crosses your path. And it is a lot of fun chasing each other of the water, seeing your model sailboat fly across the water just powered by the wind and your skills (Actually check out my review of the Nirvana II to see you don’t really need much skills to get started)

If all this didn’t convince you to start with model sailing as a hobby, than I don’t know what.

iPhone Wind App

I got send this link to this really cool gadget for the iPhone that could be very useful to a lot of RC Sailboat captains.
It is a iPhone Application and when you want to know the current wind speed, you just hold your iPhone in to the wind and activate the app.
And it converts between mph, km/h, knots, fps, m/s, and Beaufort.

Click on the picture and you can view their video showing a comparison to a regular hand held wind meter.

PS: What kind of gadgets do you have for the RC Sailboat hobby? Click here to let me know

See here a video of the event in the news:

Have fun. Wish I could be there.

Recently I found this nifty little guide, while shopping around for some good RC Sailboat ‘How to’ books. This little book, 46 pages long, is packed with 250 selected tips of the best submitted by modelers to ‘Radio Control Boat Modeler’s Magazine’ Marine Tips Section.

Time and money saving tips on creating and modifying tools, workshop set-up, building, electrical systems, painting and detailing, engines, radios etc. for the price of a magazine sounds good to me. Admittedly I added some other good books I wanted on top to get myself prepared for another sailing season. Hope to post some more book reviews as soon as the book package arrives (don’t you just love this anticipation to put your nose into some good books?).

If you have any RC Sailboat books you recommend contact me

This quick guide will give you 2 Key Questions to get started.

Question of Purpose:Do I want something to race with the wind or a majestic boat of art?

Race RC sailboats are designed and built solely for high-speed racing. Most are extremely light, with slim hulls, long keels and tall, carbon-fiber masts. The slightest wind will send them of flying across the water and they are very responsive to rudder and sail trim. With lots of wind or while running downwind, they can be a handful. They sure are a lot of fun while speeding across the water, fighting inch for inch to beat another sailboat. But don’t expect bells and whistles and perfectly scaled image to an original.

If you are more in to a beautiful scaled remote control model sailing boats then you can choose from easily assemble able semi scale kits or build a boat from scratch. These boats are a work of art and you will find yourself changing and reworking little bits like brass fittings, a detailed rig or a teak- or mahogany-planked deck.
If you are an absolute beginner and not much of a handcraft person who likes to work on flimsy things and has patience to re-measure and rework the smallest details, than I recommend you to take a semi scale nearly ready to run kit or go for a less artful race boat. To go the full detailed way look around and you will find a large number of build plans available in shops and even for free online.

Question of Size: Or what kind of car are you driving?

All RC sailboats might look awesome on pictures on the package but once you put it together it might be a huge monster that will never fit in your car. I strongly recommend you check out the size of your trunk before you buy the boat.

As smaller sized RC sailboat with 32” – 40” might weight around 6 – 8 pounds and can fit with some arranging in to your trunk or back seat space. But a 72” model sailing boat can easily way 30 pounds and will require a pickup truck or a large van (and lots of patience packing).
An easily removable keel or mast can definitely help, so look for those features.
(See the recommended Megatech Nirvana II with a removable racing keel)

Another thing to look out for:
Also check out where you want to go sailing. If you only have a small pond with lots of seaweed then you want as little keel as possible. But if your pool of water has lots of wind then a little bit more keel is what you want.

I hope this got you started and I will soon post another article on the different features of RC Sailboats to look out for when shopping.