So, I have a general construction question. I understand most of the parts of assembling various kinds of weapons (except for pneumatics/hydraulics) but one thing that eludes me is how you put hubs and wheels and stuff onto driveshafts. I would imagine a press-fit would easily come apart, which makes set screws an obvious choice. But not every motor has a "D" head.That leads me into my next question, how are the actual blades getting mounted on their weapon shafts? $50 follow-up, how are free-spinning axles built?The "lower" tech the solution is, the better. I'd like to actually build a lightweight if the sport makes a comeback, but I'm not really keen on spending tons of cash on motors and batteries and all that. I take the Team K.I.S.S. approach to things and just pick parts from junk/scrap. That said, are Power Wheels batteries allowed? They are SLA's. (I'm terrified of batteries and working with electrical components, so having a robot that charges by literally plugging it into the wall is nice.)edit: Let me clarify "low tech". The other day I was trying to take a motor and its belt/pulley assembly off of a clothes dryer that was being thrown out. (I stopped because I ended up slicing a finger open on part of the metal frame.) Being realistic here, what's the feasibility that the pulley assembly would have been of any use to me in making a spinner? I would assume the motor is a bust because it needs 110V or something, it was the pulleys I wanted.
Oh I'll be doing some banging.......
For once the mods did something right
Would kickflip/10I love stuff made out of found objects. Robot combat is way too engineered for someone like me to be able to compete nowadays. Props to you for keeping the dream alive.
Thread necro with some new content and some old content that I've never posted before. This content is cross-posted from the Facebook page for my team, Twilight Foundry Robotics. There are some extra pics and stuff in the albums there, in most cases.Up first is Metalhead, the first robot I ever built (in 2000). Its innards have long since been repurposed and/or destroyed so only its shell remains. It's photographed here with a stand-in "weapon" to show roughly what it used to look like. (Ironically, a couple of weeks after we took these pictures we actually found Metalhead's original blade under a bunch of crap.)(Image removed from quote.)Metalhead was built to compete at an event sponsored by and held at a local school. Most of the bots there were built from toys or model kits. Metalhead was the only one with a spinning active weapon and it almost didn't get to compete because people were worried about it breaking off and hitting someone or something, but we were able to fight with it anyways. After passing safety, its weapon motor died literally a few seconds into its first ever match meaning we had to fight as a wedge the rest of the tournament. Still managed to win though. Yay?Metalhead was rebuilt two more times, but never managed to make it beyond the Round of 16 (a.k.a. literally round one) at the events it was brought to. Metalhead 1 was far too slow, so the second version used a lighter chassis made mostly of compact foam and layered cardboard; its Hazard-style blade was also swapped out for two tilted horizontal blades at its front spinning in opposite directions. In Metalhead 2's first fight it got put up against a quick rammer, the eventual runner-up, and its frame ended up getting destroyed which knocked it out. Metalhead 3 was just a wedge made mostly of cardboard and lost in a close judges' decision to another wedge.Metalhead is currently being rebuilt as a 3 or 6 pound robot to compete at the upcoming "DARC" event in Dallas, TX.-----------Next is Terminal Impact, built in 2001. When we built Terminal Impact we basically took everything we had learned from putting Metalhead together and ramped it up to 11. Terminal Impact was an immediate favorite at the second event held at the same school and ended up becoming the champion.(Image removed from quote.)After winning one event we made some changes to Terminal Impact's weaponry, namely replacing its disc and flails with another helicopter blade that was ridiculously long (like three feet long). Terminal Impact managed to beat one opponent in this configuration, but lost to the same rammer it beat an event prior; they stayed in too close and the robot's blade never really got spinning up to full speed. We swapped the blade out for a disc at Terminal Impact's final event, however we had an electrical issue with the robot and were forced to forfeit.Terminal Impact is officially retired, however a design for Terminal Impact 2 has been drawn up. It's not very high on the list of priorities however, but I'll keep you posted.----------Now onto the new stuff.This is a WIP shot of the frame of The Demolition Machine, the newest robot I've been working on.(Image removed from quote.)Demolition Machine is being built with some of the parts that went into the original Metalhead. Since not much is left from that robot, and because this is my first robot in quite some time, I've elected to make a simple pusher out of it. Eventually, Demolition Machine is going to have a chassis not unlike Punjar from BattleBots.----------This is a toy trick ramp I tracked down specifically for a rebuild of one of my old robots, now named The Real Crash Override.(Image removed from quote.)Crash Override, originally designed and built in 2001, was scrapped before it ever competed. I wasn't happy with how the build came out and instead went with rebuilding Metalhead out of those parts at the time. Its original design and iteration was a boxy wedge with a saw set inside the ramp, kind of like Ankle Biter just with a longer chassis.In the robot's new iteration I'd like for its design to be a "spiritual successor" of sorts, that's where this goofy ramp comes into play. They were manufactured about a decade ago for the "Fly Wheels" rip cord toys, but they're made of soft plastic that deforms without cracking. Ever since I first saw one in a store I'd had my eye on it for a potential robot design. Now I have to get them on eBay. :P All of the robot's parts fit inside the "shell" nicely, it just needs to be mounted and all of that. I intend to cut a slot in the deeper curve (that's the front) and set up this rad dado blade I have.Since this photo was taken I've since peeled off the original stickers and laquered it down to remove all the sticky residue and such. I haven't yet settled on a proper design for the robot's paint job.The Real Crash Override will eventually be a 3 or 6 pound robot for the DARC competition in Dallas, like Metalhead 2016.(PS: The robot is called "The Real Crash Override" now thanks to some unsavory net-dwellers commandeering the name for some stupid front of theirs. I came up with the name first and I intend to keep using it.)
What was Metalhead 1's original weight?
Ian's bots are tough, i do not envy you for having to fight both of his beetles. For a bot made out of wood it seems like Kill Switch held up well!
that's actually really cool. if only you could make it invertible it could be pretty tough to beat.
Where did you get the tread pods? I'd be interested to get some to disassemble and make a more robust/lighter version for a beetle design I'm working on.