Bill go on jims and cruise around , tons of info on thunderboats , well back to welding ,,,Later !
Too short/ narrow for NAMBA sure hope they reconsider what a shame to waste such a fine boat/kit
Not entirely true. NAMBA does not have any established national guidelines/rules in place yet (IMPBA does) only a set of rules that NAMBA district 19 has been using and supposedly is submitting to their board at the WinterNats for voting on for the organization which sets the minimums at 48" long x 24" wide, just enough to keep the Zippkits (47"x22") out (there is an unconfirmed rumor circulating that this is intentional, I hope it is not true). As Mike said this would a shame, to me almost a crime, to not allow this hull for the sake of one inch in length & two inches in width as there is no set of eyes in either organization that will be able to tell the difference between 47" & 48" when they are running on the pond. The Zipp thunderboats (Rivett & Rockett) are fantastic deals, something we have been missing for some time. I have a little over $800 turn key in my Zippkits Rockett which by todays standard in building any gas boat is outstanding, THIS IS HOW YOU ATTRACT POTENTIAL NEW BOATERS!!! I can't begin to tell you how many times I've seen and/or heard a potential new boater be all excited about what we do until someone tosses out a $1,500 or higher cost to build, they walk away never to be seen again. For anyone within NAMBA who would want to see this boat allowed I strongly urge you to contact your powers that be & voice your opinion ASAP, starting with Al Waters the president. I also had a long chat a couple days ago with Remy @ Aeromarine who is ready to make a boat for this class (he wants to have something to put out at the WRAM show) but wants to know what NAMBA is going to do. He was very vocal in hoping they will be smart & drop the minimums to at least 47"x22" because that will allow him to produce a hull that he can safely ship and keep in OS2 shipping. He explained that shipping companies like UPS & FedEx require a minimum one inch of area area contents for padding/protection if a damage claim ever needs to be filed & 48"x24" will absolutely put the hull into OS3 which creates a dramatic rise in costs (shipping for the new Insane T-boat is listed at $80 in the US for example) which hurts the ones who matter most, the boaters. I surely hope the NAMBA board will do the right thing & reduce the minimum to allow the Zippkit boats and help reduce shipping costs for manufacturers like Aeromarine who have unselfishly supported model boating for so many years.