I need a little help

[Stagfish]

i'm gonna make my first FW, i've already built a AW.

i dont know what are good parts, budget ect so please help.

[Helloher]

Re: I need a little help

A rough idea of your budget would be appreciated.

[Stagfish]

Re: I need a little help

um £150 maybe

[Stagfish]

Re: I need a little help

This is what i planned.
Maybe a little less tall and i will sharpen the edges of those poles.

[xtreme]

Re: I need a little help

That robot arena 2?
You should be able to make a robot for 150 but it wouldnt be that good. But everyone has to start some where.

[grant_ploughbot]

Re: I need a little help

My recomendation would be B&Q's cheapest own brand 9.6v drill motors. (about £10 a drill i think). Then using the Robo Challenge drill motor mounts and wheels will give you a drive system ready to work. If you've built antweights im guessing your have a tx and rx.
The sabertooth 10A controllers are pretty good, especially for low power use on some cheap drills. You can get those from technobots. We have our own custom Robo Challenge Sabertooth speed controller's, but for your use the standard versions will be just as good.

you can use the drills batteries to get started too - although 12v stick packs are readily available cheaply on ebay.

[xtreme]

Re: I need a little help

Talking to him on msn he doesnt really know what to get. I linked him to some cheap drills, and speedos, he dont got alot of cash so think hes gonna use the little blue speedos, also sent him links to 2 cheap 2.4ghz radio gear. Hes got 27mhz in his ant. Told him to get mounts from you.

[Stagfish]

Re: I need a little help

now that i've found alll the electronics, i will order them.

Bodywork wont be hard, my Grandad owns a metalwork/engineering company and my Dad works there so i can get metal poles and mechanical stuff from there. I know a company that does sheeting so it shouldnt be hard. I can weld, sorta.

[Helloher]

Re: I need a little help

Stag, post the electronics here first. These guys can tell you if they are suitable.

[Stagfish]

Re: I need a little help

So far i've found
Transmitter and Receiver: http://www.giantcod.co.uk/gianitcod-24g ... 03779.html

Motors, Batteries and Charger all from 2 drills: http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/p ... 418778.htm

speed controller: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2x-Marine-50A-Spe ... 2556cfba92

[George_TeamZog]

Re: I need a little help

Never heard of Giant Cod... So therefore I don't trust it.

Change the transmitter/receiver to Planet or cheap Futaba. Don't get the expensive one's you're not ready for them.

[joey_picus]

Re: I need a little help

A few ants have been using the Giant Cod 2.4ghz gear, there haven't been all that many issues reported with them - other than a slight issue with keeping transmitters seperate from each other - http://www.robotwars101.org/phpBB/viewt ... 75&start=0 has more info if you need it, Peter Waller's been testing them.

As for 'not being ready' for expensive radio systems...to be honest that's a bit rubbish, I had a DX7 before I'd actually got an antweight working properly and it's served me well, he's free to get whatever system he would like to get that satisfies the rules.

[RogueTwoRobots]

Re: I need a little help

I've had nothing but excellent service from GiantCod RC. Next day delivery, nice low prices and a friendly owner. One reason they can offer things at low prices is because they keep their packaging simple. My transmitter/receiver combo arrived in a jiffy bag but it was well padded inside and suffered absolutely no damage. If it had came in a large box like most other transmitters I would have had to pay more and then the box would probably end up in the loft or the bin. The £25 price of the 4 channel 2.4GHz unit also doesn't include a warranty. If it arrives damaged, they will replace it for you, but if you damage it you will have to pay to have it repaired (probably just as cheap to buy another one). You can opt for a warranty with it but, not surprisingly, it'll cost more.

I agree with Joey; you don't have to be 'ready' for a more expensive transmitter. The 4ch GiantCod one will get your robot moving, so will a £200+ top-of-the-range Futaba or Spektrum unit. The only difference will be in the number of extra features the expensive one will have, plus warranty etc.

I bought a £120 6ch Futaba unit as my first transmitter back in 2003 and it still serves me well today. It has some nice features but if I had the option of a 4ch radio back then for £25 I would've gone for that just because it would have been easier on a 14-year-old's bank account.

So to summarise; if you have the cash and want to splash it, by all means get a pretty good transmitter/receiver combo, but if you'd rather put more money towards your robot innards, spending £25 on the GiantCod transmitter/receiver combo won't be a bad investment.