Best way to launch sub

[Charlotte514]

I've had some back issues so I have to be cautious on how I launch boats in general and especially a newly built Engle Akula.

I play in an industrial park lake. It has sloping grass embankments but also a wooden walkway 2 or 3 feet from the water.

I can launch my rc boats by tossing them. That probably will not work too well with the Akula. Wading into the pond is not a very good option either.

I just purchased a handcart similar to this one.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Seville-Classics-150-lbs-Capacity-Heavy-Duty-Folding-Hand-Truck-WEB355/301716701

My plan is to attach the sub stand to the platform and lower the sub from the walkway and let it float off. I'm not to sure how the retrieval will work

Has anyone used a similar process?

[crueby]

We've done a very similar thing - years ago Greg built a launcher out of copper plumbing tube and fittings that looks sort of like a handcart with a cradle at the bottom that works out perfectly for launching from different heights:



Last year I made some with short handles that I use as both launchers and as transport cradles, they were popular at the Carmel raffle table too.

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

SubRonLA gathers every coupkle of months.
There are three of four of those carts like you show.
One is wrapped with duct tape to cushion the boat.
Two others have door mat rubber on them.
The mats came from Lowes.
What I found were cheap rubber mats with a fiber flocking on the up side.
I used a 4" disk sander to remove the fuzzy stuff.
Used silicone chaulking to attach to the cart rack.
Cut the mat to shape with scissors.
Ran a bead in the on the entire rack.

About tossing your Akula in the water.
The bow planes will not survive.
They do not survive a little bump of our concrete pond edging.
I have knocked one or the other off so often, I made a wooden jig just to line them up to reattch them.

These carts allow you to get up close to the lake edge and carefully roll the cart over the edge and down in to the water.
To retrieve, you have to drive the boat carefully back to the pond edge and with the cart down in the water, move over the cart the best you can and slowly lift the cart to catch the boat.
Again, do not bump the bow planes.

If I happen to knock both bow planes of at the same time, my fix is going to be to sand the hull smooth where the planes were and repaint the hull leaving the bow planes off.
============
Here is my boat stand I use at the lake.
I made 2 small blocks of wood to set on top of each side to hold the bow planes level at the same time.


I have also modified the rudder twice to get the boat to turn a tighter circle.
I extened the front edge 1/4".
It helps but not enough.
THis past weekend, I extened the tailing edge by 5/8" with a fishtail on the extension.
I can say this worked really well and I pln to leave on.
All my Akula II build is documented here.

http://www.cliffhangershideout.com/Akula/Akula-log.html

================
The above photo is perfect, shjowng how to make launching and recovery easier.

[eckloss]

I know the dimensional drawings are on the forums here somewhere for Greg's launcher. Very effective.

[salmon]

we have several people use the handcart similar to the one you listed. i think we all have modified ours with foam or duct tape to protect the subs as they are loaded or lifted out of the water.

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

The photo above is Mike Dory launching his Type VII which is about 7' long.

[Charlotte514]

Perfect thanks!

[greg w]

here is the original posting about my launcher http://subcommittee.com/forum/showth...-boat-launcher. It gets alot of use in our group of 8 balls. Heck it gets used more than my boats. Greg

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

Thanks, Greg.
I looked for that thread and missed it.
Thanks again.

[salmon]

My favorite way, that I have seen for launching a sub is Tom Anderson's way:




Yes he launches it into the air. Now that IS confidence in the sturdiness of your build!

[bob_eissler]

I won one of the launchers with short handles at last years regatta. Use it all of the time. Thanks for donating them to the raffle!

[crueby]

I won one of the launchers with short handles at last years regatta. Use it all of the time. Thanks for donating them to the raffle!

Glad you like it! They are not that hard to make, just a handful of plumbing fittings and some pipe. The home centers usually have 5 or 10 packs of the elbows and tees, saves a bunch.

[crueby]

My favorite way, that I have seen for launching a sub is Tom Anderson's way:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]8267[/ATTACH]


Yes he launches it into the air. Now that IS confidence in the sturdiness of your build!

Wow, is that for real? If someone launched mine like that I'd imitate Ralph Cramden and "to the moon!"

For you youngsters, thats from a tv show back before they invented color, the world was all grey!

[salmon]

yes, yes it is real! Tom Anderson is known for doing that. Although when I went to the SF run, I did not see it happen. Tom builds incredibly strong hulls.

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

San Francisco a year ago, I was witness to one of these launches.
I was very glad I did not have any of my boats in the water.

Strong boat or not, in a crowd of boats, this is not welcome. (My opinion)