HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review

Horizon Hobby

For more information on the ShockWave 26 Brushless or to buy please visit the following link: http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=PRB3150 Anyone who has followed our videos, articles or podcasts knows that I am a racer. Racing is what got me interested in this hobby and has kept me involved in it too. There are some days, however, when, while racing is fun, I just want to get some time behind the trigger and goof off a bit. Sometimes I don't want to worry about competition. Sometimes I just want to go out and have some fun. That's where one of the latest offerings from Pro Boat comes into play---the ShockWave 26 Brushless. When I first saw this latest ShockWave I was quite excited as it has a lot of innovative features to add to the "ShockWave Family Legacy". It is the first ShockWave to incorporate a brushless motor and speed control. It is the first ShockWave to include three different trim schemes right in the box. It is also the first ShockWave to feature Spektrum's 2.4GHz DSM2 Marine technology. With all that's new it's good to see proven features also make their return. This ShockWave, like the others, features a Deep-V hull design, stainless steel running hardware, comes out of the box ready to run and is sure to bring a smile to your face. With a batch of freshly charged Dynamite Li-Po batteries ready, it was time to hit the water and see if the ShockWave 26 Brushless could set the water ablaze. I will say I had so much fun with the ShockWave 26 Brushless...it's fast, fun, handles well and is a great addition to anyone's collection. I really can't say how impressed with the overall speed and handling I was. I was caught off-guard with how quick it was and, even though it wasn't, my initial reaction was that it was as fast as other boats I've run with twin battery packs. That was a very impressive feeling that I wasn't expecting. This is one boat I am certainly going to be spending a lot more time with. Thankfully, I have some quality time scheduled on a lakefront in the very near future to get even more running time behind the wheel of the ShockWave 26 Brushless. Comments? Questions? Please feel free to e-mail us at Editors@HorizonRC.com Visit Horizon Hobby on Facebook! Come visit us at Facebook.com/HorizonHobby You can follow all that's going on with HorizonHobby.com by signing up for our Twitter Alerts. We're at Horizon_Hobby on Twitter!

HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review 90 7

Reviews 14 years ago 99,314 views

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Most popular comments
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--cLAsic-- - 8 years ago

Did those black kids in the background on the dock, let you leave the lake with your boat or did you think ahead
to bring security . You can see they are in the Jack mode, and one is Jonesing on Jacking so bad he cant hardly
stand it. Its been atleast 2 hrs since he jacked something , After 3 hrs they get nuts and most becomes full blown
sociopaths.

kevin brooks - 9 years ago

why can't you use a non-marine reciever or radio ?

Alex Chen - 9 years ago

If you're looking for a great entry level FE V hull this is the one I'd recommend hands down. The other competition would obviously be AquaCrafts Revolt 31 brushless. Which costs a but more since its a fiberglass hull able to withstand more pressure when dong high speed turns.

Everything on this boat is upgradable, and since the back end is fully adjustable although plastic to keep the cost down it is a perfect training FE.

You could easily upgrade all the rear drive and steer rudder assembly systems to aluminum through OSE and upgrade the prop as well as upgrading the driveline.

I've owned the AQ revolt 31 brushless FE, PB impulse 31 v2 brushless, and this the shockwave brushless.

Both are solid companies but I refer PB
Build quality and styling.

tim eve - 10 years ago

which is better v hull or 2 hull i want to get a fast boat thx

Horizon Hobby - 10 years ago

Since a V-Hull has less hull in the water it has less drag and, if equipped with the same motor and prop, will be faster than a catamaran. Due to the extra hull in the water a Catamaran will have a little better stability though.

MadElectron - 10 years ago

can I take a 3s lipo too?

One kilobyte of ram - 9 years ago

@XDmaster17 yup

brobade - 11 years ago

The U joint drive train is the weak link. Nice 1st toy boat but that's about it.

Andre Clement - 11 years ago

ok thanks!

Horizon Hobby - 11 years ago

I've never driven the Traxxas Blast so I can't comment on that. However I will say I have never had any issues regarding motors on Pro Boat models and I've always thought the handling has been very good.

Andre Clement - 11 years ago

what would you thing would be better traxxas blast or something like the proboat shockwave or impulse. just like motors burning out and handling, thanks.

10. comment for HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review

CheckeredxFlagxRC - 11 years ago

what was the average run time with this boat? and is cavitation when the prop is partially out of the water?

lenwood powell - 11 years ago

how long does the battery last

CoolTool Reviews - 11 years ago

i think i found my first rc boat :D

bayden Bernard games - 12 years ago

JH129M - 12 years ago

Go to 1:10 and watch from there

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

I don't understand your question, sorry.

JH129M - 12 years ago

Why can u u we a land radio system on a boat?

chuck5219 - 12 years ago

When I bought my octura m435 metal prop it was classified as a lifter prop. What does this mean, please respond.

slashbashin - 12 years ago

Ok good, all i needed was general idea of when it happened. Thanks!

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

I don't recall exactly but I want to say it was about 6-months.

20. comment for HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review

slashbashin - 12 years ago

How soon after the release of this boat did they start including metal props?

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

In the Shockwave 26 Brushless? Just one.

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

The Pro Boat Formula FASTech Brushless.

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

Yes you can

bayden Bernard games - 12 years ago

Can you run a 30C lipo (sky lipo 7.4V 5000mah 30c)

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

Make sure you keep an eye on temperatures but you should be ok.

Racer18crf - 12 years ago

Could you run a 7 cell battery 8.4 since a fully charged lipo = 8.4V. PLEASE RESPOND

chuck5219 - 12 years ago

Can an octura m435 three blade prop work on the shockwave 26 brushless

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

@justinnhl95 I'd say a little slower than what you see here, maybe 2-3 MPH slower.

Justin Bielawa - 12 years ago

how fast on a 6 cell nimh battery?

30. comment for HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review

MNinichuck - 12 years ago

@HorizonRCdotCom I found what I'm looking for. Thank you so much for your help.

Horizon Hobby - 12 years ago

@MNinichuck The Shockwave 26 uses Deans connectors. The proper battery for this boat with the right connector would be DYN5303D. Any Dynamite battery that you see with a part number ending in "D" has a Deans connector.

MNinichuck - 12 years ago

I was wondering, I'm getting that boat for Christmas and was looking for batteries for it. I'm going to get the battery that you use in your video. The question I have is, Does the boat have the Traxxas connector in it? All the batteries I've seen have the Traxxas connector on them.

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

Well boats esc died today, just got a plastis bag caught on the prop and stopped it dead ! and would not run anymore. So went out and bought a 60amp sordfish esc and two 3cell packs, man this thing is so fast its scary ! shame boat come with such a poor esc, its only and I mean only just up to the job, but I guess its only a ready to run, and it just fills up with water when you flip it, going to make a water tight box for the radio.

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@Blacklamass I have it bound to my DX3R PRO

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

@HorizonRCdotCom No timer on this radio

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@Blacklamass I don't know, when I was running the Shockwave over the 4th I never hit the cutoff. I normally set my timer on my radio, that way I'm not stuck going swimming if I lose voltage.

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

Hmm no answer to voltage cut off !

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

Yeah they did get a little warm, is it right that the boat just stops at voltage cut off, Thanks

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@Blacklamass Be really careful with those 20Cs.

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

Cells are 20 to 30c run it today goes well straight out of the box, just plug and play, just got 5 mins till boat just stopped, I thought the esc would just drop the power when voltage got low so you could get it back to shore, but had to wait for it to drift in, but a real nice boat with a good turn of speed and so easy to use, ordered some 5000mah 30c lipos today.

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@Blacklamass What C-rating is on the batteries? 2200's will have a rather short runtime.

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

Thanks, I have just bought one, and guy sold me 2 sets of 2200mah lipos, guess boat will be light but not much run time, will they be ok ?

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@Blacklamass 7.4V 5300mAh 2S 25C LiPo, Hard Case with Deans by Dynamite

Blacklamass - 13 years ago

What cells you running on this?

Off-road Nation - 13 years ago

can i run 3s lipo and 4s lipo or onlay 2s and 3s

pipercub37 - 13 years ago

@chuck5219 Same thing happened to me. I was using high end hex wrench and it stripped the set screw on the motor/shaft coupler. They are using loctite or some other type of thread lock on the set screws. Before attempting to remove the screws everyone should first heat them up with the clean tip of a soldering iron. This should melt/loosen the thread lock. Make sure you remove the screws while they are still warm.

chuck5219 - 13 years ago

I ran my boat for approx 3 hours and I had to undo the u-joint screw to lubricate the flex shaft and the screws were seized up. Even my dad with vice grips and alan keys couldn't undo it , why did this happen?

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@jrsmnb About 10-minutes, but I was pulling in early as I didn't want to go for a swim :)

James Smith - 13 years ago

how long is the run time on the batteries you are useing

50. comment for HorizonHobby.com Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless Review

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@sixwood702 Yes you can

Y4wN - 13 years ago

I love Rc but I have never owned an advanced rc boat. Is this a good boat for a begginer? :)

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@energyrc You're right, I looked at the info on the boat's product page which is different than the ESC's specs. They're stating no-more than 7.4v so I am assuming the drive line wouldn't be able to handle the extra RPM.

Tommy Federov - 13 years ago

@HorizonRCdotCom But you replied to danszulc45, saying that "the ESC is rated to up-to 12.5v".

Horizon Hobby - 13 years ago

@energyrc It is not rated at 12V, only 7.4 so 2S LiPo Max

Tommy Federov - 13 years ago

Will a 3s lipo hurt this boat? I know its rated for 12v, but i wouldn't want to reduce the life of the motor and esc. thanks

Rcflyyer1 - 13 years ago

What is top speed of this boat?

Erfan - 13 years ago

@pilots05 its ABS but the ABS is better for water then fiberglass

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@danszulc45 the ESC is rated to up-to 12.5v so it looks like it should be ok, however I'd really recommend going LiPo over 7-cell NiMH. They just give up the power so much better and it's a lot lighter too.

szulc45 - 14 years ago

does anyone know if this boat can be run safely using an 8.4v NiMH hump pack?

Connor Birch - 14 years ago

does anybody know what would be a great high-performance boat but but the size of the shockwave and could you plz give me a short list cuz i am eager for SPEED.

wqdy949 - 14 years ago

@rcbootfan got my stainless prop it is friggen sweet i sharpened it but i need to get a new esc because i fried mine

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@rcplaneguy1 The transmitter is available separately, PRB8060

Sioux Pilot Sam - 14 years ago

will the transmitter be able for BND

wqdy949 - 14 years ago

i orderded the stainless prop today because the plastic one constataly break on me love the boat and i like mine to cavatite i droped the lower unit and it got sluggish

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@blackedo23 Since it's a sensorless motor it's rated by the kV rating and not the turn. It's a 2900kV motor.

blake - 14 years ago

What turn motor is it

GeoVW72 - 14 years ago

@rustlervxldude98 yea, that's part of it. it also has a flex shaft and an aluminum offset rudder. aluminum hardware is more expensive than the plastic outdrive.

rustlervxldude98 - 14 years ago

@GeoVW72 i think its more expensive bc the widow-maker is fiberglass

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@Utopiauu In that case no, I wouldn't use those packs. They are designed for lower current draws seen in mini and micro vehicles. Those packs would be ruined if you tried to run them in this boat, they're just not going to be up to the task! Plus, they are smaller and lighter and will affect the in-water handling of the boat. You'd need to add ballast to the nose to make up for the missing weight.

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@Utopiauu You could, however I'd be concerned that the C-rating might be a bit on the low side. Plus with a 2200mAh capacity you're runtimes would be rather short.

GeoVW72 - 14 years ago

@stampedevxl I have the same sentiment. the only real problems with the boat, in my opinion, are QC and design related. the esc is placed wrong, the plastic prop is bad, and the drive shafts are being pounded in by ham fisted apes. replace and grease the shaft, relocate the esc in front of the servo, buy a metal prop close to stock and the boat is near bullet proof. as far as losi, the good designers are gone and were replaced by toy designers reigned by bean counters

GeoVW72 - 14 years ago

And your drive shaft is bent

GeoVW72 - 14 years ago

@HorizonRCdotCom Widowmaker has the same power system, the widowmaker is 7 inches shorter has an offset rudder instead of a steerable outdrive and tends to porpoise. for a higher price tag and no spektrum dsm why even consder the widowmaker.

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@stampedevxl I haven't been able to drive the Widowmaker, I just did the preview on it. I think honestly they'd be pretty similar, but would reserve judgment until I checked what motor each comes with and had a chance to drive the Widowmaker.

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@casey240sx Get your hands on some of the Orion 45C LiPos. I just got back from vacation and ran a pair of these in the Formula Fastech and the speed was ridiculous! These are so impressive!

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@HelloScottB Have not had any problem with batteries in the Shockwave 26 Brushless at all. In fact I can't recall ever having a battery issue in any Pro Boat model.

IndyHobbies.com - 14 years ago

I have a Aquacraft Supervee 27 brushless. Its very fast and I used 3300 NiMH packs. However, if I run full speed for the duration, it literally will melt the packs and ruin them. Does this boat have the same problem? Is it me? Perhaps you are not supposed to run flat out non-stop with any of these? I'm asking because I would like to sell my Supervee and replace it with the the Pro Boat Shockwave 26 Brushless if it won't damage my packs like the Supervee does.

lazor222 - 14 years ago

Pretty cool, I wish I could get a boat but I have no where to use it lol.

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@xxgg Well, I don't want to say I was trying to flip it because I didn't want to go for a swim but I was hitting it pretty hard. Yes, it is possible, but you need to be aware of it is all.

Mark2790 - 14 years ago

Good job on the second lid to seal the hatch. I hate hatch tape!

xxgg - 14 years ago

Awesome! Just one question: What are the chances of flipping this boat over? either by full throttling too hard or by making a fast sharp turns? I mean, unlike surface RC, you can't just walk over and flip it back over, right? :(

Horizon Hobby - 14 years ago

@jauchiu Actually Pro Boat's been pretty consistent in their plug use. They've either used Tamiya plugs or Deans. I can't think of a Pro Boat model that had EC3s