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Author: MB Admin

  • DF65 Rudder Angle Tool

    Introduction

    Limiting the DF65’s rudder angle? Really? Why? And there’s a tool for that?!

    Yes, limiting the rudder angle is the right thing to do. Big boat or small, constraining the angle to 35 degrees is essential – push your rudder beyond that and your rudder starts to become a brake, slowing your boat down.

    Why Rudder Angle Limited to 35 Degrees ?

    • Beyond 35 degree rudder efficiency is reduced due to formation of eddies on the back of rudder as the flow is no longer streamlined. This is called stalled condition.
    • The manoeuvrability does not increase beyond 35 degree, but rudder torque increases and ship’s turning circle increases.
    Ref. #2

    DF65 Setup

    A typical servo for the DF65 will have a useable range of 110 – 130 degrees, so limiting this is important. Fortunately, to help, there’s a useful setup tool available via Thingiverse; user ‘Yotter‘ has uploaded a useful set of tools and sailing-related items.

    Yotter’s “DF65 Rudder Angle Tool” is a simple but effect bit of kit to help set the limits of travel for your rudder. Download the file and print on a suitable 3D Printer; then using tape, temporarily affix to you hull during setup.

    Use your transmitter’s End Point settings to set the maximum range of the rudder, using Yotter’s Rudder Angel Tool as your guide.

    References

    1. Mariner’s Digest: “Rudder Angle Onboard Ship Limited to 35 Degrees”.
    2. Marine Engineering Online: “Construction and Types of Rudder on Ships”.

  • Buy Me A Coffee

    Added a ‘BuyMeACoffee‘ link to a few of the pages. The site will be free to use but if anyone appreciates the content and what the site has to offer, here’s an opportunity to give a little in support.

    Thanks in advance if you want to support; if you don’t, then that’s fine too.

  • New Links Added

    Added Model Sport and Soch Sails to the Repository this morning.

    Also split out the links to two categories (more to come):

    • Associations / Representative Bodies
    • Shops

    Total link count: 6 (ooooh! Steady on there! Six!)

  • First Links Added

    The first four links have been added to the MB Repository – some of the first which I used when starting in the hobby.

    The structure/layout and organisation of the Repository will evolve over time, the first four links are just dumped in there.

  • Hello World! From MB

    Here it is, the traditional ‘Hello World’ post as the initial blog posting on a WordPress site…

    Getting into the hobby of boating, I was lost in a sea (no pun intended!) of information, trying to find relevant help and advice whilst containing the whims to buy vessels and gear. I kept forgetting where I’d been, forgetting where that useful snippet of information came from and generally losing my way.

    MiniBoating is my attempt to collate what I’ve found and what I will find, with the hope that it will help others in their quest for knowledge.

    Here goes, let’s see where this takes us.