Boring Brick

[mrsam]

If i can get Hatchet running by then i'll definitely try my best to get up there, it's not much more than an hour on the train so it's possible. I've watched the gladiator battle back and that 18v battery made the axe look really powerful so at least a 5s lipo will be going in, if not 6s, it depends what this version can handle.

[Flag Captured]

Well, you've got the weight (and space, if you buy the right ones) for a dual battery setup, maybe 4/5s drive, 6s axe? The only worry would be overvolting the drills too much, they're not the most reliable things in the world as far as I remember... If you've got 18v drill motors though, go nuts!

[mrsam]

I'm thinking about some 18v drills but a dual battery set up might be a good idea, the 30 amp electronize i'm using for the axe is 24v max and a 6s lipo fully charged is around 25ish, i know that No Toy runs that set up but his axe runs on a bigger ratio with smaller gear motors so maybe it's easier on the ESC that way, besides the way that Hatchet's axe ran on the current ratio on just 16.8v Nimh proves that it has the power already so if i increase the ratio slightly and up the voltage to 5s i reckon it'll have more than enough power without being over the top.

[mrsam]

Had a chance today to sit down and draw up some design ideas for Hatchet 2 and also priced up the majority if parts that i'll need and overall it's not too bad if you consider i have almost a year to build it. The new look chassis design i have is radical to say the least and makes Hatchet 1 look a bit boring in comparison, i'll be keeping that under wraps though until i start building. Here's a list of the specs i'm currently considering..

4mm Aluminium Baseplate
20mm Hdpe bulkheads with 8-10mm Hdpe bent and wrapped around the whole body in a single piece
15mm nylon axe bulkheads with bushings/bearings to really free the axe up
5s 2650mah 65 - 130c Turnigy nano tech lipo, don't believe the rating for a second but it's a good price
Tz85 drive speed controllers
12v drill motors for the drive, still not ready to fork out for gimsons although i'll see what money is like.
Same axe as before but much more powerful, 5 - 6:1 reduction instead of 3.5:1 and 8mm chain rather than 6, couple that with the higher voltage and the switch to lipo and i think i'll have an awesome weapon.
80mm wheels this time rather than 100 as i feel they were a little exposed this year.

Let me know what you think

[Flag Captured]

Sounds a good list of parts! Only things I would mention though is the wheel size and your drive - I think personally you'd be fine with 100 still, mine were 80 and they seemed a tad on the smaller side, unless of course you're making the machine less tall in which case that's fair enough! Then the 12v drills may be a little pushed on 5S in terms of their overall reliability, you might want to look for 18v drill motors or similar if you can find any suitable ones. Other than that, sound! Also, are you still using the hardox scoop on this new machine?

Do like the sound of a single piece of HDPE wrapped round the body though, I do recall that there's a machine in the US that works a bit like that, it's got layered armour and it's fed into the front somewhere, improves strength I'm told - that's definitely a good thing!

[mrsam]

The machine will be less tall hence the smaller wheels yes and a few machines this year used 12v drills on 18v no problem, tehy will of course be on the edge but the smaller wheels with make it easier on the gearboxes. Still be using the scoop yeah it's too nice a thing not too, i'll get some money over to you when i get paid next month for it.

The wrapped Hdpe idea actually came from Carcinus, it just gives that extra bit of stuff for a spinner to chew on without damaging the actual main chassis, plus it covers all of the joins on the body so there's less to grab on to.

[overkill]

What Matt said .

Those Turnigy nano tech Lipo batteries are getting better, particularly the A-spec ones. The local experience is that the current delivery is fine but they don't last as long as the big name brands.

[harry hills]

Make sure the first stage of gears is metal if you are overvolting.

[mrsam]

All of my gears were metal at this years champs anyway, i'd never use anything but. I've got tonnes of metal gears spare so i shouldn't have a problem, it may be that i look at 18v drills at some point if i find they aren't coping and also i may stick a 6s lipo in for the uk champs next year depending on whether i feel the axe is stupidly powerful enough, at which point 18v drills would be a must.

[Flag Captured]

No worries, whenever you're alright to pay that's fine! No rush
Regarding the gearboxes, they might have run well this championships, but I don't know how much they've worn - they'll definitely have a reduced lifespan at 18v - wouldn't suggest going any higher though! Could always make a gearbox like mine and use those 850 Torpedo motors too if you fancied something different/more powerful - drills are fine but it's always an option!

Ah yeah, Carcinus is pretty good at sponging hits from the spinners, I think we had NST on the run in the champs - we'd have had him if he hadn't gotten my link (still want that rematch btw)
If you can maintain the angles on the front with the scoop and that on the back, you'll have a very tough machine to take on I think, might not be able to outright deflect spinners as much as say Tiny Toon or HardWired can, but having that extra bit of material for them to chew onto is always a good tactic.

[mrsam]

I did consider making my own gearboxes, still a possibility I suppose, that or I could get some of those bosch motors that 360 uses as they sell on ebay sometimes for quite a good price. I think I could do with a more powerful drive system in Hatchet 2 just in case the axe fails, that way I can use the scoop and push stuff around.

[plargen]

if yo go for a set of ryobi drill, i use them in all my featherweights and they did quite well when shoving things round

[mrsam]

Awesome thanks mate very helpful advice

[plargen]

if your going for 6s then i would get the 18v drills and 100mm wheels and you should get between 8-10 mph depending on the battery's charge


on a quick brows i found this 1 which i think is the 18v equivalent of the 1s i have
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ryobi-18v-...item48650ad3e7

[mrsam]

I'm still undecided what motors to use for the drive, the bosch 35w look nice but the need for a custom wheel mounting option is a bit tricky and drill motors have let me down once already, i suppose better quality drills would solve that though for the most part