How to get Reverse on my dad's RTR

[Birdman1337]

My mom bought my dad an RC boat for Christmas not knowing it didn't have reverse. We wanted to trade it for a different one that had reverse but the Hobby Town RC store in Happy Valley, OR where we bought it won't help even though it's brand new and not opened. so anyway, trying to figure out how i can get Reverse on this for my Dad. Do i need a new ESC? if so does that mean i need a new RX/TX as well? I also saw something that I can change the connnectors around to potentially get reverse but my thought would be it would just change the polarity and not actually add reverse.
The Boat is a Rage Velocity 800BL

 

[biggman100]

My mom bought my dad an RC boat for Christmas not knowing it didn't have reverse. We wanted to trade it for a different one that had reverse but the Hobby Town RC store in Happy Valley, OR where we bought it won't help even though it's brand new and not opened. so anyway, trying to figure out how i can get Reverse on this for my Dad. Do i need a new ESC? if so does that mean i need a new RX/TX as well? I also saw something that I can change the connnectors around to potentially get reverse but my thought would be it would just change the polarity and not actually add reverse.
The Boat is a Rage Velocity 800BL

First question, what ESC did the boat actually come with? If its the Rage series 60A, then n it wont do reverse. However, before setting up that boat to go in reverse, which would require a new water cooled ESC, you need to know if the boat is capable of going in reverse without pushing itself under water. Some boats are made not to go backwards on purpose for that reason.

 

[Birdman1337]

thanks biggman100, Yes it should be the Rage series 60A (100% stock and that's what's listed, we never opened the Box and I'm not there anymore to check). The reason he wants reverse is just if he gets stuck in/near the reeds near the shore at the local pond. But yeah, i've seen other boats we've used kinda tank a bit in reverse. How would we test that, just kinda push it backwards by hand from the front?
So if we were to get a new Water Cooled ESC - we shouldn't need a new RX and/or TX though correct?

 

[tntpoof]

Id only start with a new esc that can be programed to use reverse. not sure you would need a new radio and rx.. if its a modular electronics as in the esc and servo has a 3 wire plug that plugs into old rx. the new esc should be calibrated for the old radio gear..mght even go up in esc amps. as long as it can handle batteries your using with a low voltage setting if using lipo

 

[biggman100]

thanks biggman100, Yes it should be the Rage series 60A (100% stock and that's what's listed, we never opened the Box and I'm not there anymore to check). The reason he wants reverse is just if he gets stuck in/near the reeds near the shore at the local pond. But yeah, i've seen other boats we've used kinda tank a bit in reverse. How would we test that, just kinda push it backwards by hand from the front?
So if we were to get a new Water Cooled ESC - we shouldn't need a new RX and/or TX though correct?

As long as the receiver has a spot to plug in the 3 wire connector for the ESC, then you wont need anything except the ESC. I'm not sure what RX is in that boat, since i dont have one, but, any decent boat will have the capability to swap the ESC without having to change anything else. If you go with a new ESC, i would recommend the SeaKing series from Hobby Wing, either the 130A or 180A. If it was me, for longevity, i would go with the 180A. They are programmable, and has both forward only, and forward/reverse settings, and also has a few other settings that can easily be changed, such as LVC. As for how to test what it will do in reverse, just pushing it by hand may not be enough. You may actually need to use another boat, if available, to pull it backward, but, you may also be able to find that info online.