Venom Racing's Awesome New Gas Boats

[George Gonzalez]

Latest from www.venom-racing.com

Venom Racing has jumped into the RC boating scene in a big way with three new gasoline powered racing boats. Check them out!

http://www.rccaraction.com//Media/MediaManager/venomboat01.jpg

http://www.rccaraction.com//Media/MediaManager/venomboat02.jpg

http://www.rccaraction.com//Media/MediaManager/venomboat03.jpg

[rccardude04]

I don't know about you guys, but the catamarans look BAD $$$ :D
-Eric

[7urb0_c471]

good god those look beastly, just look at those air intakes! Although the price is steep and I'm not into boats, I would certainly consider one if I were in the market for a gas boat.

[MattHiggins]

Um, wow!

[RespirologyRC]

Holy Smokes i want one! BUT, i don't think there is a nitro off road boat section. Man i wish i lived near a pond that would allow this. Price or no price; I would sell Matthiggins sister for one of these.

[Sorcerer001]

Gaaaah! Just when I thought I wouldn't buy any more boats for a while! I'll probably pick up the "Segad" version. Street price should be around $1k, maybe lower. Not bad at all when you consider the cost of building a custom boat. If I remember correctly, I paid $350 just to have my Aeromarine painted, and these actually look a bit nicer.
I'd be happy to write the review for you guys. Hello? Uh... is this thing on? I suppose I should've submitted my writing sample months ago, huh?

[George Gonzalez]

The King of Shaves & Segad will have a street price of $949.99 and the Strait Jacket XL should be $699.99. This info is directly from Venom. Great pricing considering everything you get in the package. I like the cats myself, but the Deep Vee should steer sharper. I'd be one happy camper if I got my hands on any one of them. Hey Matt, hands off!

[88Buckaroo88]

The first is my favorite for sure. Some of the best looking boats I've seen yet. Props to Venom on an awesome looking boats.(no pun intended)

[quick5pnt0]

Awesome looking boat, but "King of Shaves" ***?

[Sorcerer001]

We'll have to do something about that 30 mph top speed. Fast, but I can't have my Aquacraft SV27 blowing by this thing... no... can't have that. A simple prop and trim change may be able to eek another 5 - 10 mph out of the Venom. If that 23cc engine is a name-brand unit, there should be tons of aftermarket goodies for it. Big bore kits, carbs, etc...

[VENOM RD2]

The King of Shaves is a replica of the real C1 boat and its an actual brand for grooming products all over the world. Our model is a licensed replica.

As for the top speed the cats can do better than 30mph, closer to 37mph actually, but you have to break them in just a bit so the initial speed out of the box is about 30+. They are big boats you have to remember...58in long, going that fast for your first big boat is pretty cool and when you have a couple running together its awesome!

The radio is one of the best features. Its a 3ch system with 3rd CH mixing and an AUX CH with a dedicated external switch plus a TH HOLD button for help starting your engine. In an RTR radio?? YES, plus all of the boats are preset in the model memory!

VENOM RD

[rccardude04]

You guys are crazy... Honestly, Venom is the last place I would have expected something like this to come from.
I love it! If I had the room (and money lol), considering they run anywhere near as good as they look, I'd probably try to get my hands on one...

Edit: According to the picture of the real thing, and the model underneath it, that little nipple (intake?) sticking up on the left rear of the boat, is on the wrong side compared to the real boat. Or am I stupid and don't see the other one on the other side?
-Eric

There are two snorkels--the angle of the shot hides the opposite snorkel. --Pete

[BTE214]

It may be on the correct side but just looks like it's not. You can see it on the real one because the "cockpit"? is farther forward or the intake thing is frather back.

[birdy233]

Nice Job Venom! When will they be available?

[VENOM RD2]

Yes just a camera angle, there are two of those intakes on the both boats and the tubes are scale stainless steel exhausts, 4 per side.

go to class-1.com for pics of the real boats...pretty awesome.

May 1st is our ETA and you can check with your local Venom Dealers or contact us for more info on the who what and where. I'll keep posting current info as well.

Thanks,

VENOM R&D

[birdy233]

I want one!! If I check with my LHS, will the part # be in the system to place a preorder now?

[Sorcerer001]

Indeed. I think I may do just that. If you've got pics of the interior and business end of the boats, that'd be great! I've got to say, you guys over at Venom are doing things right. Keep it up!

[VENOM RD2]

This info is pretty fresh for all of our dealers but it is a valid part number so even if they are not aware of the product just yet they can order it.

Photos to come and video as well!

Thanks,

VENOM R&D

[4DMNYC]

Wicked!

It seems like Venom did a nice job on these so far. That King of Shaves cat looks very scale and extremely slick.

Any chance at getting canopy off shots?

I like the diversity in their product line. Something for everyone without coming off as toyish or cheap.

[chewie]

id love to get one of those and run it along my real boat on the st clair river. espically when it gets a little rough out.. talk about some scale looking video. that would be awesome

[birdy233]

Venom RD2, you should have an order from my LHS here in Texas, as I ordered mine today from the LHS!! Can't wait! :D

[VENOM RD2]

We are working on getting some studio shots of the interior and hardware to publish very soon, this was just the press release. we have some short vids going up tonight and I'll post a link to those later.

We have been kicking around the idea of an across the lake and back race here in Coeur d'Alene (CDA) at the resort. There is a race in England with real boats and RC boats going some insane distance in open ocean. Would be an interesting event.

Which one did you order birdy?

VENOM R&D

[birdy233]

I ordered the Segad Cat :D

[VENOM RD2]

Cool!

Here is a link to some videos!

http://www.youtube.com/venomgroupintl

VENOM R&D

[rccardude04]

Wow! Not bad!
How about showing us how they handle some chop. ;)
Not everyone has a glass smooth pond to run on, and when do the real things ever see that kind of water anyway? :D
-Eric

[chewie]

a prop and a trim adjustment could get these babys flyin.

ill take a king of shaves test model please. returned with full review LOL

they are some good looking boats.

[Sorcerer001]

It looks like they're running a little wet - have you guys tried adjusting the prop angle/depth yet. Seems like you may be able to loosen it up by kicking the strut angle up a bit. Once the nose comes up a little, it ought to start packing air in the tunnel a bit better. I always make sure I've got a reliable retrieval method on hand when doing initial setup on my cats - too much air under the boat obviously results in a blow over. Top speed down a straight, the boat should be riding on the last few inches of hull. Well, to be fair, a boat of this size might ride on the last 10" of the hull. My little 22" Graupner Key West rides (rode, RIP) on the last 1/2" of hull, dancing a little from side to side. A well set up cat is one of the most incredible rides around - whether full scale or RC. Can't wait to see what this thing will do. I'm starting to think I may pick up the King of Shaves now.

[VENOM RD2]

The drive angle is adjustable and we have tested them at different settings. At top speed the hull is out of the water and the chine is visible back to the last couple inches before the transom. They drive quite nice and handle very well. We have also tested them in choppy water and just like the real cats they get airborn and handle some pretty rough water. Our local lakes are usually pretty smooth and during the winter months we see glassy conditions all the time. In the summer with all of the boating traffic out there it can get very rough. We will shoot more video from a full size boat and get some great footage as soon as it warms up just a bit.

We have a reliable retrieval method as well...costs $20...and his name is Paul.

Just posted a new video of the two cats running together on the same you tube site. We are fixing the video quality.

[VENOM RD2]

Some beauty shots in the water...

http://lh6.google.com/AxelRod911/R_a3fRQuumI/AAAAAAAAAEw/7pbee3bXiH0/s800/King-01.jpg

http://lh6.google.com/AxelRod911/R_a3fRQuunI/AAAAAAAAAE4/NdcM7Wrxd1A/s800/King-02.jpg

http://lh6.google.com/AxelRod911/R_a3fRQuuoI/AAAAAAAAAFA/5mIZH30ZyiI/s800/King-03.jpg

VENOM R&D

[Tugboatjoe]

I think i just found a home for my new 6hp mod zenoath 26.I'm still waiting on pics of the inside....

[chewie]

screw pics of the inside. lets see the bottom.. see what we are workin with.

[hpiguy]

I eagerly await pics of the inside. That Segad is gorgeous.

Will these be clutch equipped for those of us that want easy launching? If not, will aftermarket clutches and waterpumps hooks up easily?

[VENOM RD2]

To meet a price point the Segad and KOS do not have a clutch but can be outfitted with one if you like. At this time we dont offer a Zenoah type clutch kit but our engine will accept one. These hull are pretty open to modification if you wish.
Launching these boats w/o the clutch has not been a problem and coming back into retreive them is also easy. As with any engine as long as you take the time to tune it for the day they just run.

The Strait Jacket has a different engine and does feature a clutch.

VENOM R&D

[Sorcerer001]

I'm ok with the fact that the boats do not come with a clutch, but I will absolutely add one later. You guys should make sure you've got one ready to sell as a hop-up, I'm sure you'll sell a few. Before anyone complains about having to drop more coin for this feature, consider that Venom is selling this RTR boat at around half what comparable boats are going for. Go price out a painted and detailed RTR with the competition prior to posting a negative comment.

[hpiguy]

Sorcerer, the Proboat Blackjack has a real Zenoah, is faster out of the box, has a nice name brand JR FM radio and has a clutch and waterpump and only is $50 more. So I was just asking why this one didn't.

I'd pay $50 more out of the box for a clutch system.

I think Venoms boats are way more attractive on the outside than the Blackjack in my opinion though.

I will likely buy one for that hull, once I hear if the glass is good that is. As we have seen with the Aquacraft V24, these foreign glassed boats can be very good or VERY VERY badly made.

[Sorcerer001]

Good point on the Blackjack. I think I'll skip the Venom an pick up the Pro Boat instead. Didn't realize it was faster and came with a better radio system.

[VENOM RD2]

As with any product development you have many compromises to decide on. We wanted the most attractive boats we could offer at the best price we could deliver and still be competitve on performance. Our radio system is feature packed and has no equal in the RTR market. Our Cat's can do 37mph on GPS out of the box w/o any prop or engine modification but we advertise a more conservative speed figure. We have tested the hulls to over 50mph and in rough conditions and they are a blast. An upgrade performance engine will be available soon. For a first time boater this is a very exciting product and it will leave room for growth with experience.

VENOM R&D

[Catmandoo]

Venom,

Your new radio is also FM, right?

Would you say that now having a clutch would give you less rotating mass and more mower to the prop. I was thinking like a car has a trans and there is flywheel HP and wheel HP.I also heard from my hobby shop that the Pro Boat clutch was one of the weakest links and I would need to have a spare or upgrade.

I am leaning towards the King and since I plan on running full throttle, I think a clutch would just add unnecessary weight. What do you need a clutch for anyway. Boats don't have brakes.

Can't wait to get mine.

[Sorcerer001]

Venom,

Your new radio is also FM, right?

Would you say that now having a clutch would give you less rotating mass and more mower to the prop. I was thinking like a car has a trans and there is flywheel HP and wheel HP.I also heard from my hobby shop that the Pro Boat clutch was one of the weakest links and I would need to have a spare or upgrade.

I am leaning towards the King and since I plan on running full throttle, I think a clutch would just add unnecessary weight. What do you need a clutch for anyway. Boats don't have brakes.

Can't wait to get mine.

A clutch is nice to have if you're waiting for a buddy to get his boat on the water, for bringing them in after a run, safer launches (no fast spinning prop to bite you). They're great to have on a sport boat, since it's unlikely that you'll ever be in a situation where you'll notice the extra rotating mass. On the flip side, it's no big deal that the boat doesn't come with one. Just be smart about launches, and don't ram it in to shore after a run. My plan is to pump up the horsepower and install a clutch. I don't plan on racing mine, just ripping around the late by my house.

[VENOM RD2]

Thats right there is a tiny bit of power loss due to the added weight of the clutch. If you tune the engine well for idle it will literally put along slowly and taxi back to you without fear of ramming the shore or you. These are big boats so I dont suggest you have a 75lb child catching them on shore either. An adult launching them and catching them is highly recomended. If you watch one of our videos David is standing on a rock and tosses the boat in. Yeah that works but you can lean down and launch it less dramatically.
We did consider a clutch for the initial production of the Cat's but opted to keep the price down. In a little while we will have more option parts to offer and clutch will most likely be one of them.

[RcLaB1]

not fast enough for me.....for a boat close to one grand, it looks too slow....atleast for me....:confused::)

[chewie]

Good point on the Blackjack. I think I'll skip the Venom an pick up the Pro Boat instead. Didn't realize it was faster and came with a better radio system.


you gotta think of the hull quality and design.. i always found proboat to be lacking both of these.

if you have a bad hull design all the horsepower in the world wont help you..

whats is bad hull design? well rounded contact areas.. shallow tunnels. having rounded tunnels.. not having nice and sharp edge strakes.

i havent seen the bottom of the venom boat.

like on the proboat miss bud and llumar.. and others. i havent seen a single hull that didnt have something rounded on it.

take a look at the miss vegas and the miss bud.. the miss vegas is race inspired and the bottom is completly different from the miss bud.
the bottom has nice and straight sharp edges and bottom.


if you wanna see what im talking about take a spoon and run some water in your sink then barely touch the rounded bottom to the stream of water. and watch what happens. that happens to a boat with rounded edges on the bottom and how do you expect a boat to free itself from the water. when you have this happening


so all in all if it were my money and the venom boat doesnt have the things listed above id put my money on the venom boat. instead of the proboat because proboat is more worried about looks than performance. and if venom can nail both they will have a winner between the two.


not fast enough for me.....for a boat close to one grand, it looks too slow....atleast for me....:confused::)

you gotta remember this is a BIG boat. most rtr boats dont hit almost 40 out of the box.

[Sorcerer001]

Chewie - I'll admit there was a bit of sarcasm in my last post - I'm not going to buy the Pro Boat over the Venom, regardless. Yeah, I made the mistake of buying the Pro Boat Miss Bud when it first came out. As I bought it via mail-order, I didn't have a chance to fondle the boat prior to purchase. I've been running FE (fast electric) boats for since around the age of 16 (I'm 33 now), got to learn the importance of nice, crisp edges and a few other tricks early on. We didn't have power to spare back then. One thing that I still struggle with is scuffing the bottom of a nicely finished hull... it'll be one of the first things I do with this Venom.
Most people have never touched or seen a 40 mph RC boat. They're obviously a lot more common now, but I think most guys would be shocked the moment they pinned the trigger down a straight. Not so much with a HUGE boat, but it's still moving pretty good. A few years ago, the owner of one of our local hobby shops invited me out to a nearby pond to watch him run his 40+ mph modified Traxxas Villian. I brought my little Warehouse Hobbies Force 22 with a mild mod that we'd recently confirmed was good for about 26 mph. His Villain made a LOT of noise, jumped out of the water when he grabbed a handful, and gave the impression that it was a really fast boat. My little Force 22 had a good 2 to 3 mph on him down the straight. Of course it didn't sound as wicked or throw as much roost. He came out to watch me run my little 36 mph Graupner Key West a few months later and just about fell over.
While I do plan to pump up the power on the Venom, I'm buying it more for the scale realism and rough water handling than top speed. Well, that and the 30 to 45 minute run times. Man, can't wait!

[VENOM RD2]

Offering a large boat that does 50mph out of the box sounds cool but if you actually drive one and experience it you will quickly understand that its very challenging and the possibility of loosing control and all that it leads too is very real. A 15lb boat at that speed is not a toy or suggested for a novice and we think it would be a bit dangerous. An RTR approaching 40mph is plenty fast and if you have a small to medium size pond to play in it will eat up that space pretty quickly. Again these are almost 5 feet in length and travel +35mph stock. Once you pass a certain speed you have to adjust the set up of the boat and understand what you are doing. This isnt just so you can go faster but also so you can do it under control. Once you have the hang of it your going to want more speed and these hulls can deliver it.

VENOM R&D

[ApriliaRacer]

I sure want one of these boats! The thing is talking to my LHS, they said you can't just put them in any lake or res. and run it.

I'm going to have to do some research. I'd imagine you'd be able to run it in lakes where they run jetskis or ski boats.....

[VENOM RD2]

Also check with your parks and recreation dept or just call city hall for info. We run in a public park man made lake and swimming is prohibited and there is no fishing or full size boating. The city likes us running there to keep the ducks off the lake so there is some benefit to the park and they dont have to clean up after the wild life as much. You might look into something like this in your area.

VENOM R&D

[lee1980]

Not sure if this has been psoted yet! and i tried to list new topic but it wouldnt let me dont have privalges or something! Any way here it is Venoms very nice RTR 1/8th bike looks well cool!


http://www.venom-group.com/storeitems.asp?section=Land&cc=MODEL_MOTO

Thanks

Lee:)

[VENOM RD2]

Here are the interior phots of the cats!
http://www.venom-group.com/storeitems.asp?section=Sea&Sea=Gas%20Boats

[chewie]

thanks for the shot of the bottom ]
looks like you guys got all the important parts right..

once i got the spare change i will definatly be getting one of these badboys.

[rccardude04]

Not sure if this has been psoted yet! and i tried to list new topic but it wouldnt let me dont have privalges or something! Any way here it is Venoms very nice RTR 1/8th bike looks well cool!


http://www.venom-group.com/storeitems.asp?section=Land&cc=MODEL_MOTO

Thanks

Lee:)


Fail.
http://forums.radiocontrolzone.com/showthread.php?t=247864

-Eric

[ApriliaRacer]

When is the release date for these boats?

[VENOM RD2]

we are looking at the end of this month I believe. They should be coming in and getting shipped all over by then.

[jamesbernatchez]

Wow! I have only had a small electric hydro a while back, but after looking at these I think I will need to pick one up. This would be a nice foray into R/C Boats. :)

Nice work! Keep it up Venom. I am also looking foward to your GPV-1 motorcycle.

[zakerid]

it is the end of the month... let's get boating.

[jamesbernatchez]

I was able to see one of these first hand at the RCCA HQ and it is truely incredible! Way larger in person than the photos can make it out to be. The finish looks great as does all the running gear. I can't wait to get some time behind the wheel of one of these.

[Fixxer]

Is that radio a rebadged Futaba 3PM?

[quick5pnt0]

Awesome boats! Just wish they would make the first one in all glossy black. Not that I could ever spend that much on an R/C, nevermind an r/c boat.

[VENOM RD2]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j90bWIPySE&eurl=http://www.rccaraction.com/ME2/Default.asp

Here is a short review of the King of Shaves, check it out!!