“I was originally looking for a rescue tug, and being a long time fan of Heng Long rc tanks and seeing that it was an open box sale from Motion RC, I took a chance with this little tugboat. I saw some potential in it as maybe a little more than just a rescue boat. I ended up keeping the original motor but removed all other electronics. Everything was completely disassembled and all parts were sanded, primed and painted. The raft was removed as it looked too toylike and scratch built parts for a somewhat more enhanced realism. Installed a 40 amp speed control with new ball bearing prop shaft, u joint and stuffing tube, installed new nav lights and pilot house interior lights with rotating radar and new Radiolink radio system. I believe for the money, this is a good little project boat and can be detailed fairly easily and cheaply with a little time and patience to transform it a nice little boat for the pond. Just remember to add some foam to the inside hull because things happen”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“First thought was it’s going to be a temporary boat for me to have a little fun with running with my RC sail boat buddy’s. But the more I take it out for our Monday morning club meetups on out lake the more I love it. Just a beautiful boat and it looks so good on the water.”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“It goes backwards as well as forward However the battery life is practically mother. I would advise getting a bigger battery pack to keep the fun moving.”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“The tugboat capsize within less than ten minutes on a small pond with only small water action. After thorough drying it worked intermittently for a minute at a time and then died all together. I don’t know what recourse I have, but $129 capsized in 10 minutes”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“I was a bit disappointed with this boat. I would call it a model but it is not a model it’s a toy boat. Not a great one at that. When I first tried it out it would not turn at all. I finally managed to get it to turn and it is not exponential it’s hard left and hard right or center. The throttle is not really exponential either it feels like it’s 2 speed. I didn’t run but one pack through it and I was done. I took it apart and modified it. I added a full size servo for the rudder and put an esc on the prop motor and used my own Traxxas radio receiver for it. Now it performs well and is fully exponential. All the original electronics I put in the garbage. I like it now after the modifications.”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“Mr Derek M. Was able to exchange one defective model. The other two Heng Long Work Tugboats ran very well. However, rudder angle response is limited to approximately 15 to 20 degrees, port and starboard.”
How would you rate the overall quality of the product?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How would you rate the value of the product for the money?
Very Low
Okay
Very Good
How difficult or easy is the product to assemble, use, or operate?
Very Difficult
Average
Very Easy
How well does the product perform / function?
Very Weak
Okay
Very Good
“Since I won at my local club's R/C tug regatta with a friend's borrowed boat, I have been interested in getting a tug of my own. Unfortunately many of the RTR tugs (like the ProBoat harbor tug) aren't cheap. The Heng Long looked like a nice way to dip my toe into the tug scene without a major outlay of cash. Was it worth it?THE ROSES: The Heng Long tugboat is nicely packaged and appears to be reasonably well put together. It has a lot of nice realistic touches like rope around the winches, tire fenders to hang on the side and more. The kit goes together quickly and easily, and appears to be pretty well made for the price.THE THORNS: The radio setup is CHEAP! You do NOT have proportional control with this system. The steering is either full turn or nothing, and it appears the motor is also either full on or full off. It has a feature where you cannot run the vessel unless it is in the water. While this may seem like a good feature for little kids who might stick their fingers into a moving prop, for anyone else it is a nuisance.CAVEAT EMPTOR: While Motion RC was willing to accept the return, I found that I would have to pay shipping, and the cheapest shipping back to Motion RC would be almost half what I paid for the model! I do see on the Web a lot of pages devoted to the stories of people who have upgraded this tug with better radios and ESCs, so I guess I'll keep it and do my own upgrades.THE VERDICT: The Heng Long tugboat was a product I desperately wanted to like a lot more than I do. I honestly think they should've put in a better radio and esc, and they could've probably still sold a ton of these at $200. As it sits the boat is a tug that may entertain the littles, but is largely a snooze for more serious model boat enthusiasts. Do not recommend.”
