First bot advice

[Ocracoke]

Hey there, welcome to the forum!

In a basic 2WD rammer, you'll need something in the order of:

• 2x motors (something with gearboxes, I can highly recommend Gimson motors for this)
• 2x Electronic Speed Controllers capable of handling the current and voltage you want to supply, such as a hacked set of TZ85As
• A set of batteries that complies with the rules and can deliver the power you need. For what it is worth, The Honey Badger 2.1 runs off of 2x 2S LiFePO4 batteries wired in series to get to 13.2v.

You'll also want a transmitter capable of mixing (so the robot can be driven on the one directional control stick). You may also wish to invest in a set of electrical connectors such as the XT60 to make strong connections and your removable link and a LED with a resistor to make the power light with.

As for armour, the world is your oyster but I would recommend going with HDPE as a starting point. It is reasonably cheap and, when thick enough, can easily stand up to a fair bit of punishment in the arena. It can also be worked on with low speed woodworking tools. The Honey Badger 2.1 (my Featherweight) can attest to how much punishment HDPE can take.

As you note, do read through the build diaries to see what works and, more importantly, doesn't work. IC Feathers are very rare (I don't think I've ever seen one) and you'll need to know that if you do progress on to a spinner, some live events won't allow them due to safety concerns and others may place restrictions on how fast they can spin.