From The Ground Up (Advice Thread)

i beleive you mean sprockets and chain compared to belts and pulleys :) not sure what one would be best but i beleive you can get a higher amount of teeth on a pulley for the diameter than a sprocket.

i am firmly against tabs, mainly as i can't use expose with them (one of my favourite features of a mac) but also as it insists with opening 12 small web pages that i've visited recently instead of opening google (my home page). the opening of 12 mini web pages often crashes my computer aswell :angry:

Jamie what was that combo you used to convert your 40meg system? Wouldn't mind using my old futaba system at the champs :)

It was the Corona DIY conversion kit: http://www.giantcod.co.uk/corona-24ghz- ... 05857.html

It used to come with an 8ch receiver but that's no longer supplied with the kit (hence the kit being cheaper) so you have to buy it separately. There are three available:
4ch: http://www.giantcod.co.uk/24ghz-corona- ... 03381.html
6ch: http://www.giantcod.co.uk/24ghz-corona- ... 03382.html
8ch: http://www.giantcod.co.uk/24ghz-corona- ... 03383.html

I had some powering up issues with mine but I believe that to be a faulty receiver, as the Nipper guys used the same system without any problems, but once it was powered up, it worked well. For the relatively low cost it's certainly worth a punt though.

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Originally Posted by Roland

Talking of chains, would a cog and chain (What's the technical term?) Be more efficient supplying the other wheels than a belt and sprockets?

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Yeah as Jonny has mentioned, it tends to be sprockets with chains and pulleys with belts :)
I consider both chains and belts to be pretty efficient in terms of transmitting drive. Chains are less forgiving, so if you try to push something that's too heavy there could be a risk of stressing out part of your drive system, whereas pulleys and belts might act like a clutch and slip, relieving some of the stress and protecting your components. Belts and pulleys are the lighter option although sometimes it's cheaper to buy chains and sprockets. I'd say either arrangement would work for your drive.

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Edit: Sorry I didn't see your post Jamie! Hmm, I think also that if I get a DX5e it'll last me longer, and therefore will end up being a better buy, by mixing do you mean you can change the drive type? Or max speed of the motors?

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Yeah I'd say the DX5e will probably be more durable and last longer so may be worth the investment (still got my £120 radio from eight years ago that works a treat).

Each axis of movement on a transmitter is one radio channel, and each side of drive on your robot uses one channel. Conventional tank-style steering is where the left-hand stick forward/back moves the left-hand side of the drive forward/back and likewise for the right stick/drive. So to drive forward, you push both sticks forward. Mixing allows you to have your drive controlled from just one of the transmitter sticks, much like a computer gaming joystick. So pushing the stick forward moves the whole robot forward, pushing the stick left turns the whole robot left etc.

The max speed of the motors is something that can be changed using the Dual Rates function (or Hi/Lo function as it seems to be called on the DX5e). Normally you set the rates to a percentage of the full power - say 50% - and you can toggle it with a switch, so for example you can turn it on during a battle and cut the top speed of the motors to 50% should you need a bit less speed and more control.

Sounds like a plan! Almost everything prepared. What I'll do is buy the majority of stuff I need and then get back to speed controllers later. Unfortunately I can't go to the FW championship this year because I'm in Greece! Hope everyone has fun though.

thanks again everyone. :D

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Originally Posted by Roland

Off topic - Jamie, what CAD did you use to design drumroll, and the robots in your misc album in photobucket, and how much did it cost?

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Sorry, clocked this earlier but completely forgot to reply. The CAD program I use is called Solid Edge, and the copy I have is an academic version obtained through uni. It cost £5 for the license, but naturally the full commercial version will be much more expensive.

One of the main industry-standard CAD programs is Solidworks. I used to have a copy but lost it when my laptop broke, but I would say it is better than Solid Edge. Again it is very expensive to buy the full program but you could either download it...ahem..legally....or get someone to do it for you and put it on a disc. But if anyone asks, I didn't tell you that :wink:

Just going back to the RC thing I would really reommend the planet T5 for robotics as it is quite cheap and reliable(I use it ). If you have more money go for the Dx5e as it has a built in failsafe and extra cool features.
I have both of them and prefer the Dx5e as it is overall better but the t5 is fine.

Both solidworks and solid edge don't work on macs and I can't be bothered to download a virtual pc just for cad software. Thanks for the info though, I'll bear it in mind if I buy a new laptop, I'll probably get one or the other.

I'll probably stick with DX5e Ben, it's not overly expensive and it's all I really need to be honest though we'll see, might end up going tight for cash.

Will the motors need custom gears making or can you buy pre made ones?

Thanks everyone. :)

Wondering what people's thought's were on using hinges? Either skirts as themselves, or fitting them onto sloped sides for 0 ground clearance? Do they tend to bend when hit by spinners? Or do they manage ok? Piano hinges preferably.

Thanks :D

I wouldn't bother. Have one side, the front, skim the ground and you should be fine.

Yeah the dx5e is fine, what are you using hinges for?