I've noticed a large influx of 'toys' in the remote control boat catagory. Now i know they are all 'toys' (!) but i think it might be useful to list a few pointers from people new to the hobby, or looking to buy presents for others. Firstly, to put it into perspective, a fairly GOOD r/c boat will set you back about £100 [cheaper on e-bay!], plus the cost of the radio gear (2 channel, 27mhz) of about £40. These boats will go about 10-15MPH (Faster than the cheap toy- yes, really!) and will be a perfect starting point, with upgrades of batteries/ motors/ props etc available from your local model shop.

THE CHEAP TWIN ENGINE 380 BOATS ARE NOT THE BARGIN THAT YOU THINK, IT IS HARD TO GET SPARES- THE PROPS BREAK REALLY EASILY- VERY HARD TO UPRATE, AND DO NOT HAVE INTERCHANGABLE FREQUENCIES

(important if you wish to run at a lake with others)

  The best advice i can give for starting any hobby is to find your local club, pop along and ask questions.

So:

• Buy recognised name brands ie Ripmax/ Kyosho, Graupner, Robbe, Traxxas, Tamiya etc
• Buy from the uk -you may get charged import tax, may be broken, cant get spares, postage may be high
• Buy the best you can afford, if you dont like it, it will still be worth money, unlike the 'toys', so you can re-list it
• Use google, or any other search engine, try and join forums etc, we're really friendly!
• The old addage of: if it sounds too good to be true- it prob is!

Happy sailing!