Looking for a Safe Place to Test Run My Sub in the SF Bay Area

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  • nelix6030
    Member
    • Dec 2003
    • 51

    #1

    Looking for a Safe Place to Test Run My Sub in the SF Bay Area

    Hello everyone,
    When I say "safe" I mean you would not mind swimming out and retrieving your sub. With retirement coming up this fall, I've finally decided to dust off my Frankenstein U-47 project and get it back in the water. Over the years I've rebuilt quite a bit, including a new tech rack and a scratch-built piston ballast tank (which, as it turns out, isn't quite large enough). My next step is to sand her down and make her look presentable enough that I won't be embarrassed to show her in public.
    The challenge is that this boat has a pretty large turning radius, and my pool just isn't big enough for proper testing and trimming out. I'm located in Newark, CA, and there is a lake nearby, but I'm not quite confident enough yet to risk running her somewhere that would make retrieval difficult if something went wrong.
    Does anyone know of any locations in the SF Bay Area that welcome RC boats and submarines and would be suitable for testing? I'd appreciate any recommendations.
    Thanks in advance!
    I've attached a few photos. I know the exterior is still pretty rough, but I seem to enjoy tinkering with the internals more than the cosmetic work.
    Last edited by nelix6030; 07-22-2026, 12:45 PM.
  • salmon
    Treasurer
    • Jul 2011
    • 2359

    #2
    I am not sure I understand. For trim, it looks like your pool is a fine place for trim. Running it, I see your dilemma. I know there is a run in the SF area at the fly fishing ponds in the park, but I do not believe it is open to anyone not in the fly fishing club. It is open for the annual RC sub run done there. Look up on the website for the Mare Island group they meet regularly at a pond in the area. OR Take a road trip and make it to the SubRun on the east coast. Welcome back to the hobby and retirement!
    If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

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