AquaCraft Vela One Meter User Manual

➧ NEVER attempt to swim after a

stalled R/C boat!.

➧ Never operate your R/C boat

while standing in the water.

➧ Never operate your R/C boat in

the presence of swimmers.

➧ Always use a Personal Flotation

Device (PFD) when boarding and
operating your retrieval craft,
i.e. Jon boat or duck boat. NOTE:
Because of the sharp running
hardware included with this R/C
boat, we do not recommend a
rubber blow up raft.

➧ R/C boat running hardware is

very sharp. Be very careful
when working on and around
the metal parts.

™

➧ AquaCraft products are to be

used by ages 14 and over.

aquacraftmodels.com

WARNING:

INTRODUCTION & DESCRIPTION CHANGES

WARRANTY SERVICE

Thank you for purchasing the AquaCraft™ Vela! We want the time you
spend with your new R/C boat to be fun and successful so please
fully read the manual. If for any reason you think this R/C model
is not for you, return it to your local hobby dealer immediately.
Your hobby dealer cannot accept returns on any model after fi nal
assembly or after your boat has been operated.

All pictures, descriptions, and specifi cations found in this instruction
manual are subject to change without notice. AquaCraft maintains
no responsibility for inadvertent errors in this manual.

FEATURES & SPECIFICATIONS

BOAT FEATURES:

Prepainted lightweight fi berglass hull
Pre-assembled preprinted sails
Water-resistant radio hatch
Modern, 1-meter design
Tactic™ TTX242 2.4G two-stick surface radio system
Tactic TSX382 sail winch servo (installed)
Tactic TSX rudder servo (installed)
Prefi nished wood boat cradle
Quick and easy fi nal assembly

AquaCraft will warrant your Vela for 90 days after the purchase
from defects in materials or workmanship of original manufacture.
AquaCraft, at their option, will repair or replace at no charge, the
incorrectly made part. This warranty does not cover damage caused
by crash, abuse, misuse, alteration or accident. To return your boat
for service you will need to provide proof of purchase, i.e., your
store receipt or product invoice.

IN NO EVENT SHALL THE PURCHASER BE ENTITLED TO ANY
INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES,
WHETHER RESULTING FROM THE USE, MISUSE OR INABILITY TO
USE THE PRODUCT OR FROM DEFECTS IN THE PRODUCT.

This warranty gives you specifi c legal rights and you may also
have other rights, which vary from state to state. Outside USA and
Canada, contact local importer for warranty information.

Hobby Services

3002 N. Apollo Drive, Suite 1

Champaign, Illinois 61822

Attn: Service Department

Phone: [phone]:00 am - 5:00 pm Central Time M-F

E-mail: [e-mail]

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

BOAT SPECIFICATIONS:

Boat Specifi cations:
Hull Length: 40" [1016mm]
Beam: 6.5" [165mm]
Overall Height: 79" [2006mm]
Weight: 6lbs [2720g]

ITEMS REQUIRED

➧ Eight “AA” batteries
➧#2 Phillips® screwdriver
➧ 2.5mm hex wrench
➧ Grease (Grimracer cable grease, AQUB9500)

➧ Never, ever, attempt to swim after a stalled R/C boat. DO NOT

get in the water for any reason to retrieve your boat. Your Vela
has fl otation added to the interior of the hull and will not sink.
To aid you in retrieving a stalled R/C boat you can use a fi shing
real with a tennis ball tied to the end of the line. Or better yet get
yourself a small jon boat so you can row out and pick up your boat.
Remember to use a PFD any time you enter your retrieval craft.

➧ AquaCraft products are to be used by ages 14 and over.

➧ The speed and mass of this boat can infl ict property damage and

severe personal injury if a collision occurs. Never run this boat
in the presence of swimmers or where the possibility of collision
with people or property exists.

➧ This boat is controlled by radio signals, which are susceptible to

possible interference from electrical noise.

➧ If your Vela should happen to loose signal, wind and water currents

will slowly carry it to shore. The bad news is that the boat could be
carried to the opposite shore. When surveying areas to run your
model, keep variables in mind such as wind direction, size of the
lake, etc. It is not advisable to run R/C boats on any free-fl owing
bodies of water such as creeks or rivers.

2

CRADLE ASSEMBLY

Begin by removing the sailboat components from the box
and assembling the boat stand. You’re going to need the
cradle to aid in the assembly and rigging of your Vela.

Use a #2 Phillips screwdriver and the M4X16
wood screws to assemble the cradle.

Take note that the support straps go
over (not under) the top bars.

3

SAILBOAT TERMINOLOGY

BACKSTAY: A backstay is the line that runs from the top of the mast
to the stern of the boat. Like other stays, it is a strong wire, rod, or
line that is used to prevent the mast from being blown over. The
backstay is specifi cally designed to prevent the mast from blowing
forward. Backstays sometimes have adjustable tension in order
to shape the mast (and consequently the sail) in varying wind
conditions.

BOOM: A boom is a horizontal spar that is generally attached to the
mast at one end, and attached to the aft corner of a sail (the clew) at
the other end. The boom is used to hold the sail out in a horizontal
direction.

BOW: The bow is the front of the boat.

BOWSIES: Adjustment blocks located between the tops of the sails

and the mast.

BOWSPRIT: The bowsprit is a spar that extends forward of the hull
of a boat. It can be used for a variety of things, including a more
forward point to attach a forestay and/or a sail such as a spinnaker
or jib.

CLEAT: A cleat is a piece of hardware designed to hold a line. In the
most traditional sense, a cleat is a piece of metal or wood that is
shaped somewhat like an anvil. A special cleat knot is used to tie a
line to these traditional cleats.

DECK: The deck of a boat is the horizontal outside surface that one
walks upon. When you are outside on a boat, the deck is your fl oor.
When you are in the cabin of a sailboat the deck is usually the ceiling
above you.

MAST: The vertical spars on boats. A mast is supported by stays so
that it does not blow over from the force of the sails. The purpose
of the mast is to provide the basic support for the system of sails.
Masts were originally made of wood, then aluminum, and now
they are sometimes made of carbon fi ber. The weight of a mast is
extremely important because it cancels out weight in the keel.

MASTHEAD: The top of the mast.

PORT: This is the left side of the boat when aboard and facing the

front (bow). An easy way to remember this is that port and left both
contain four letters.

RUDDER: Blade that turns the boat

STARBOARD: This is the right side of the boat when aboard and

facing the front (bow).

STERN: The back of a boat.

WEATHER AND LEE HELM: If the boat tends to turn windward, it’s

called weather helm. If the boat tends to turn away from the wind,
it’s called lee helm.

TYING BASIC KNOTS

BOWLINE KNOT:

FOOT: The foot of a sail is a reference to the bottom edge of a sail.
The forward corner of the foot is the tack, and the aft corner of the
foot is the clew.

FORESTAY: The stay that runs from the top of a mast to the bow of
the boat. As with other stays, a forestay is made from strong wire,
rod, or line, and is used to prevent the mast from being blown over.
On some sailboats, the forestay attaches to the mast slightly below
the very top. If this is the case, the sailboat is considered to have a
"fractional rig". A forestay may also be called a headstay.

HULL: The main structural outer skin of a boat. Most modern boats
have fi berglass hulls.

JIB: The sail that goes forward of a mast. The leech of a jib generally
does not go any further aft than the position of the mast. If it is
larger than that, it is considered a genoa.

KEEL: The part of a boat's hull that extends below the waterline, on
the boat’s centerline, that is used to counterbalance the tendency of
wind to blow a sailboat over. A keel generally is shaped something
like a fi n, so as to cut through the water and prevent sideways
motion of the boat. It also will always have weight at its lowest point
to prevent the sailboat from tipping over.

LUFF: The forward edge of a sail. The luff runs between the head of
a sail (at the top of a mast), to the tack of a sail (at the lower forward
corner of a sail).

FIGURE 8 KNOT:

SQUARE (OR "REEF") KNOT:

MAINSAIL: The sail that is located aft of the mast on a sloop.

4

JIB

BACKSTAY

MAST

MAINSAIL

BOW

DECK

BOOM

STERN

RUDDER

HULL

KEEL

5