WhAt batterys and where to get metal

[Thunder arrow]

Hi a couple of Q

What r the best battery type to use in a conpetion???

And Where is the best place to get metal from (in Norfolk preferly if shop) and don't care where on the Internet????


Theo

[Metal Demons]

What kind of batteries do you want? A123 are probably the best compromise of ease of use (not as finicky and, indeed, prone to blowing up if misused as lipo, and more energy density than nicad/nimh) and you can find them most commonly on ebay - you'll need to solder them up into packs though, have a look at http://www.terrorhurtz.com/a123/build.aspx for a vague overview of how to build up one style of battery pack. You'll need a suitable charger too.

What kind of metal are we talking about? Hardox? Metallica albums? 6-4 titanium? Mild steel? Bog standard (1000 series or whatever) aluminium? Engineering aluminium like 6061-t6 or even 7075? Tinfoil? You'll be getting different materials from different people probably - and then there's always the scrapyard

[Thunder arrow]

Hi I am prob going to build with almiunim (I probely spelt it wrong) And my robot is nearly ready to build (when I got the metal And batterys)

[Thunder arrow]

whats the best website to get metal

[razerdave]

There is usually a selection of Metal fabricators in the yellow pages, or indeed, you can google 'Metal suppliers in Norfolk'. If you want a reputable supplier in Norfolk, talk to Terry Miles (Toxic 2, http://www.toxicrobot.co.uk/).

As for batteries, I'd recommend Overlander (Google: Overlander batteries), you should be able to find a selection of NiMH batteries which are used most frequently in feathers. I use a set of 3000mAh batteries in my robots, they will suit for most FW's.

[Thunder arrow]

thank alot
just need metal to start building
i will be entering 2011 competions

SO WATCH OUT

THEO

[Leonardomayo]

Have you got a reasonably sized piece of wood around? I would suggest making a template for the body of your robot out of wood before cutting up metal. If you make a mistake on the template then it isn't as bad as a mistake on your armour.

[Thunder arrow]

thanks for the idea, i have some wood around somewhere

[Thunder arrow]

What do people think i should use?
steel, aluminium, hardox, hdpe or what

[RogueTwoRobots]

It depends what your working conditions are. I would love to use thick aluminium for my chassis with hardox armour over it but the only way I could achieve that is if someone else built it for me, because I don't have good enough facilities to cut/drill those materials with any degree of alignment or precision. The cost of getting someone to do it would make for a very expensive build too.

So I opt a lot for plastics. They cost less, are easier to work with and are readily available from the likes of Direct Plastics in a range of thicknesses. And a well-built robot made from plastic can be just as good as any built from steel, aluminium or titanium. All you need is a jig-saw (but can also be cut with a hand-saw), a cordless drill and a workbench or unit to work on and you can build a robot quite easily out of the stuff.

Stiffer materials such as Nylon and UHMWPE can work well for chassis construction, while the likes of HDPE is a good source of cheap, thick armour that resists spinning blades quite effectively. You can also use HDPE for the main chassis construction but it is not as strong when it comes to load-bearing parts and can deform more easily.

And if you still wanted some metal on your robot, you can put sheets on top of HDPE that wouldn't need to be as thick since you have the plastic behind it as another layer.