For the past week I have been looking over the carcass of my previous Mister Darby project. A couple of years ago the Mister Darby was damaged (dropped) when I moved to another house. This Mister Darby has been in storage over two years. Now after looking at the plans and thinking of the problems I ran into during assembly, I think I will take a different path on my next Mister Darby. The picture below shows some of the damage to my first Mister Darby. The damage is far more severe than it looks in the picture below. NOTE the masking tape holding the decks together. I am embarrassed to even post this picture!



One of the features I will have on my new Darby is the use of the Harbor Models Power Distribution Panel. I located it under the wenches. In order to do this, I had to make the wench house roof removable. Then I mounted the wenches on a hatch and then mounted the power distribution panel on a bracket that supported it. I do plan to change the bracket design and add ventilation holes on the bottom of the bracket. The pictures below were taken BEFORE my Mister Darby was damaged. I also plan NOT to use the switches that were mounted on the outside on the post side. (You can see these switches through the stairwell on the port side in the picture)









More updates soon.

Hey Roger,

Good to be back on the forums. Like the new look. Anyway, any picture of a Darby is welcomed, damaged or not. Mine? It has been "dry-docked" for some time now. Hopefully construction will commence soon.

i.t. guy,

Thanks for the comment about the new look. Also glad to see you back. I have several unfinished projects that I need to get done, that's for sure. By me doing the Mister Darby (Starting Jan 07), I am again pushing the completion of the other kits still further sometime in the (not so close) distant future. Although the Mister Darby has been a thorn in my butt since I got the kit almost three years ago. So now when I redo this project I’m taking not only a different path in the building, but also I have a different attitude. We all know already the (lask of) quality of the wood, plans and fittings and other items. No reason to “beat a dead horse”. Plus from the beginning I’m not limiting myself to modeling the “Mister Darby”. I already have a list of items that I want and depending what I end up with, I am sure it will not look or function as the real Mister Darby did. Dumas has sold allot of these kits over the years. It seems that the Dumas Mister Darby kit is allot like a Harley… You NEVER see two built the same way!

Here are some ?'s that I have been asked:

- What do you use for motor controllers?
- Do you hook up the ESC's with a "Y" harness to the receiver or do you run two motors with two esc's?
- For the "Electronize Speed Controls", did you use this ESC with the Pittman motors?
- Do the "Electronize Speed Controls" need special cooling?
- Did you run "direct drive"?
- What did you use to power your Darby?
- What radio did you use?


Now that I have gathered these ?"s together, I need to get them answered for you.

For my Darby I used two Electronize Speed Controls. This are microprocessor-based units will take up to 24 volts with a 30amp continuous load rating each! They are very smooth in forward and reverse. They also have an adjustable speed range so you can match the throttle stick travel. 33/8" x 2" x 7/8"



The Electronize Speed Controls are rock solid. Yes I have used them with Pittman motors. As far as special cooling, I've never have had a problem with them over heating. I have always mounted them on stand offs that will allow air to flow under them also. The stick range is set with a screw driver, a bit old but this is GREAT because you don't have to reprogram it everytime you remove the battery as with some other ESCs. The only thing I don't like is the whine they have. But when they are in the hull, and on the water, you never hear anything from them. They are also cost more than others and they are also larger in size. I am again using them on my Wyeforce and Aziz projects. Best thing to do is to call Dave, he'll make sure you get the right one for your project.








For my Darby, I used the big 3700 Pittman motors ran direct drive. For a radio I used the old Ace R/C - Nautical Commander Transmitter 7Ch.Tri-Stick radio system. Ace has some information on it's new system at this link: ACE WEBSITE Also, I did not use a "Y" harness, I used one ESC for each motor. For a battery, I used a lawn tractor battery I got from Wal*Mart. I was "just" small enough to fit through the opening and heavy enough to help ballest it down.

Hey Roger,

Looking at the pics of your first Darby, where did you place the battery? It seems to me that somewhere in the middle of the hull, but looking at the blueprints, it does not seem clear. Also, did you use additional ballast?

Jim,

The battery I used sat right under the deck opening. It was a large lawn tractor sealed battery. I never got the the point of putting it in the water with everthing... so as far as ballest... yes and no. Yes I added ballast to the bow (lead shot) in front of the bow thruster when I was building it. I never got to the point of figuring out how much more I needed. I can say this... YOU WILL NEED ALOT to get her down to the water line.