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- Apr 1, 2002
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Although Chris was addressing this post to Rod, I would like to respond.To keep the discussion going on this game changer hull, let me ask a few questions
Happy to tell you how I came to mine...but this is not about me haha
How did you come to settle on the following:
- Deadrise angle, including any transitions (changes in angles or not) you used from rear to front
- deciding 'non trips' were not needed/wanted
- Tunnel width and length
- Tunnel depth
- Tunnel AoA
Cheers
Kris
First a disclaimer: I might be wrong, but I doubt anyone who has read this thread has designed more tunnel boats, had more tunnel boats offered for sale, or published more tunnel hull construction articles.
Second an observation: Designing a tunnel boat is not complicated. I took a mechanical drawing in junior high and a boat lofting class in high school. In college I majored in elementary education.
Responding to Chris's questions: I have been asked similar questions about my tunnel designs. I didn't design the first tunnel boat I raced. It was designed by Dave Knowlen, an aeronautical engineer working for Boeing. Dave had success designing winning limited hydroplanes and also unlimited hydroplanes(the Circus Circus and Squire Shop). It was a framework design. It was called the Excalibur.
After racing Dave's design for a year, I basically copied the design and framework construction method to reduce the size. The result was Excalibur II. A fiberglass version of this boat was offered by Vic Drew from Medford, OR.
I cannot say that any of the questions asked by Chris were intentional on my part other than based on designing/testing/racing many tunnel boats ranging from 15" FE to 42" 1/4" Scale. Did I look to see what was working well on other tunnel designs? Absolutely. Two examples are the forward recovery pads(stumble blocks) developed by Rod and sponson angle on the Lynx developed by Carl.
Game changer hull: Is the G-30 the ultimate in model tunnel boat design? No, it is a very basic design. Is it a competitive model tunnel boat? It has done well at club/district races. Is it capable to winning national championships? That is yet to be answered.
JD