Hey Pete, The Viper Sub 10 turned up today. I'm now waiting on some spares from Ruberkon. They even managed to source the original Thunder Tiger CCD camera, mounting kit and video cable for me. I'll try and get a video of the mods fitted and a test run in the local lake.
Thanks for posting the vid,I really need to give mine a service. I run with the 6 blade prop and it does a better job than the 3 blade prop,I use an old hero naked for my underwater vids as I don't like to throw out a good camera.
Greetings -- excellent video set, thank you! I am making some similar mods to a Neptune, and also its big brother the SB Seawolf. These are awesome models, and very well built. However, the 9V ESC was quite a blunder in the Neptune, and you made a good choice moving to a SUB10. What is less clear to me is why you wanted to change the motor. I thought they were 12v units and reasonably decent, but I'm curious why you decided to change it out. Also, how did you choose the Mabuchi motor you did, and how did you know what would be a good fit in the Neptune? My apologies if you said so in the video and I missed it. Thanks again for an enjoyable channel.
I think that I tried several motors before I hit upon a good one. My original burned out. This sun performed extremely well. Haven’t had it going for a few years now.
Thank you for responding. I assume your criteria for a 'good motor' was a nice balance between speed an torque. How did you quantify that and decide on the motor you did? My original is good for now, but I have been unable to find the Mabuchi you used. I use these boats as shallow-water research tools for a local university, complete with sonar, wifi and video. If you ever desire to unload yours, please reach out. Thanks again for responding.
You are welcome. To be honest I can’t remember the process I used to decide. But generally speaking a motor with more windings or poles is going to give better torque and smoother running, but at the expense of speed. Also longer run times. I have a feeling that it took me a while to track down a motor I was happy with.
Thanks for making this video. I need a new battery in mine. I think the Ni-Mh is the go. What type of connector is on the original battery. I haven't opened her up to take a look yet. Looks a little daunting!
Glad you are finding it useful 🙂. From memory probably standard Tamiya type plugs. Personally I always use Deans connectors on larger batteries as I trust them to maintain connection better and they take up less room. Soldering and putting heat shrink on is only a 5 minute job. On this sub the replacement ESC and 5 pole motor were the most important changes to stop it amping out, loosing connection and sinking (I got very wet the first time I used the sub before the mods and almost lost it). The 6 blade prop made it fast and the battery gave me very long run times. If you are in the testing stages I would recommend extensive bath tests and then in water you can wade in for the first few runs. Good luck!
Thanks. I have found a supplier of Ni-Mh batteries on ebay. 5000mah. You can choose the connector pre installed. I'm handy with a soldering iron and what not, but figured anything to save time and extra buggering around. Yes, looks like a Tamiya.I also have the 6 blade prop fitted along with a re-settable fuse. The re-settable fuse has proven the best mod so far !That 12v ESC is also on my list. Might not need to worry about blown fuses.I had no idea the stock ESC was only 9v/This sub is still a winner almost a decade on !CheersPaul.
I tend to buy my batteries from Component Shop - either at model shows or on line. They will make up any configuration, amperage and connector you like.
Thanks for the tips. I shall take heed of your mods and experience. I bought this sub new, back in 2013. Apart from the 6 blade prop and the fuse, I haven't done much to her. Looks like a complete sod to take apart. I've built a few Trex helis in my day, but this looks like train wreck waiting to happen. Very fiddly and lots of screws and parts to lose or get mixed up.
If you are organised, take pics and put bits in bowls etc as you go along it is in fact very straightforward - nothing like as complicated or fussy as a 450 heli. Mine came from ebay, but not brilliantly put together I would say. It takes minutes to get the ends off, just make sure that you note which screw goes where on the tail cowling. After I did this video I was much more confident to let it go in the lake having tightened everything up and better routed the pipes and cables. I just took my time and enjoyed the experience of seeing how it worked and trying to make it better. Yours may be fine as it is.
+chewie339 thank you. Not the slickest most action packed video. More for information for someone thinking about buying or working on one if these great little models. I think the videos on this will get mire entertaining once I've finished setting up and start filming things.
Hi. I think that the prop would have probably been a Raboesch item from Cornwall models I cannot remember which one it was, you will need to have the right thread, diameter and direction (left or right handed). I’ll try and dig out the sub later, measure the diameter and put a photo on the Facebook page that I linked to the RU-vid channel.
