Boring Brick

[mrsam]

I've been on the phone with the train company and to put it bluntly they won't let Hatchet on a train regardless of how well things are protected/strapped down/anything. So at this point it looks like this year was a giant waste of time and money, hope you guys all have fun at the champs

[mrsam]

Right, well i guess if i can get away with it there's no problem, other than the fact that i have no battery as of yet, although a few people have offered so hopefully i'll have SOMETHING to work with.

[maddox10]

Dave W regulary takes the train, even into the deep dark outback of Vilvoorde. And that with 1 to 3 feathers, or equivalent in parts.

[Max]

You can always put the robot in a small bag/suitcase along with your tools/toolbox. Or put it in a cardboard box, or wrap it up like a parcel/ present and no one will know!

[mrsam]

Need some help do ya , having never taken a robot on a train before (obviously) it's hard to say how they would react, everything has sharp edge protection that needs to and the axe has a locking bar to stop it moving over, and obviously there aren't any batteries in there because well mine are toast. Anybody had any experience with trains and robots?

[ChrisKazoo]

I'm sure as long as you had sharp edge protection on the axe head it would be fine on the train? You can't leave me in the arena alone with Mr Mangle and Binky!

[mrsam]

Cheers Matt but right now there isn't much point as i doubt i'll even be able to make it now. My idea of stuffing the bot into my toolbox seemed a great idea at the time but now it doesn't fit, and i doubt i can just plonk it on top and get away with it on a train, obviously i could take the axe off but that would mean gutting the whole robot everytime i want to get it to and from the event, so short of somebody giving me a lift up there which at this short notice i doubt will happen it looks like i won't be attending.

[mattsdragons]

I can bring an 18V pack?

[mrsam]

If i was borrowing someone else's battery i'd obviously make sure it was properly held down and protected

[mrsam]

Upon taking the robot apart i've discovered the true cause of the battery failure, my electronize are bolted to a plate of polycarb above the batteries and one of the bolts had pierced the battery casing and thus created a short and smoke. i've ground down the bolts now and taped over them so it doesn't happen again.

[Max]

Are you sure you didn't some how plug one of the batteries in the wrong way? Eg. By plugging them into the removable link instead of battery connectors. It seems odd they would give off smoke if nothing has changed. Maybe a short circuit somehow across a dodgy soldering joint to the deans or exposed terminals?
Are you able to run it on just the one good battery?

[mrsam]

Deans

[geeza]

Sam what connector are you using on your packs?

[mrsam]

So i've put the packs on a discharge/recharge cycle and the one is fine, discharges and charges perfectly, the other pack has been on discharge for about half an hour now and has only had about 200ah taken out, it's not getting hot or anything but i think there's definitely a problem with it.

[mrsam]

Harry could you send me a picture of the 18v pack? need to see if it would fit