Almost one in two Youpi constructors is a complete beginner. The construction does not require a lot of material, but rather a little care. To put it simply, you will need white "exterior" wood glue, slow "araldite" type epoxy glue (in syringe) for gluing. For woodworking, a good cutter, sandpaper, brushes, a little steel wool for maniacs. On the "product" side, you can paint the youpi with your favorite paints, I have used car spray a lot and it works very well. You will also need a hard base (easy to find in DIY stores), satin varnish ... And that's about it. Oh no, a little elbow grease too. Let's add protective tape. And if you have a small drill that's even better.
How long does it take to make a youpi from the kit?
It all depends of course. To give you an idea, the record for building a Youpi from the kit to its launch is 5 days. Others took 3 years. In the idea, count between 50 and 60 hours to put your Youpi on the water and see it evolve. If you order a ready to sail, it will take about 4 minutes before launch.
What radio equipment for a Youpi?
The ready to sail is delivered with its mounted radio. For the kit, it is up to you to obtain this material or to use your own. You need a 2-way radio, and 2 servos. Today these radios and servos can be bought on the internet for around 60 €. Of course, there is no limit to the price of radios, but a programmable radio will get you nothing more. On the Youpi 200 (my personal copy), the radio is a basic 2-way Futaba, from which I removed the sails control spring (simple operation). The steering servo is a futaba 3003 and the sails servo a 3305. The reliability is perfect and the force allows years of playing with the Youpi without tiring the servos.
What if I need a helping hand during construction?
Good news: we are always available by phone or email for information or guidance (unless you speak German or Chinese etc). That said, you will see that the assembly instructions are full of photos. In principle everyone is doing very well.
Are there Youpi plans that allow you to build it yourself?
No :-) If there were, we would give them away, but here it is: the Youpi was designed without any plan. To obtain its shell shapes you must necessarily order the shell (which is possible). In addition to this, you will need to know more about it.
Good construction!