Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THIS.

We are thinking about doing this with belts and just using the 1x3 as the mount plate for the third stage with larger standoffs. Which would allow for the pulleys to be contained in the 3rd stage of the gearbox.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

I made this yesterday, but I think we might be pursuing a different option at this time.

The ratio on this is

12:50 1st Stage - CIMs
14:50 1st Stage - Versaplanet 4:1 (I like just putting it in on the plate just to have the option.)

50:44 High
34:60 Low

30:40 3rd Stage

Edit: Probably should have added another view to be more descriptive.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

I'm picturing a wider custom version of the 3rd stage add-on that Vex sells. Put your two sprockets inside and change the 3rd stage ratio to be appropriate for direct drive. Sounds like a fun winter break project.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

If you are able to remove the hex output shaft pressed into the ball shifter shaft and replace it with your own, you could just add some pulleys/sprockets and a couple standoffs like the attached picture. The picture shown has 30 tooth pulleys and the clearance with the 4 standoffs is close... to get more clearance with smaller pulleys/sprockets you could rotate the entire gearbox slightly about the output shaft and use the 2 standoffs in the upper left/lower right corners (2nd picture). Would be good to work in some more support for the cantilevered gearbox.

Attachment 13286
Attachment 13288

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

If I remember correctly, the output speed of the ball shifters without the third stage is a bit too fast to direct drive.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Posted CAD of the implementation here.

This is a real rough model showing our concept for mounting the ballshifter only, it's a bit clunky now and if we ran with this we'd likely refine the mount a bit more.

Don't interpret this as a specific decision by 973 to do 8wd with that spacing, those wheels, etc... but rather focus on the ball shifter interface, and that we're switching to 1/2" hex all around in hex bearings.

Hopefully this helps a few people.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Adam, unfortunately my cad is not working :( could you add a picture or rendering of what y'all have come up with? Also... I see Hodgepodge and Viper, what are those? Again my Solidworks isn't working so I can not see these models.

P.S. I didn't mean to put that purple smiley next to the post... and I don't know how to take it off.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Adam,
Can you post a screen shot or two?

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Sheesh, nobody is ever satisfied :rolleyes:

Here is an iso with the frame supressed, and then with the mount plate made transparent.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Thanks for the pic. thats essentially what we do with supershifters, but this got me past a mental block I had with implementing the 3 stage ball shifter.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Yup! Trivially different from what we did w/ SSers in 09.

The biggest pain was how to cleanly attach to the face of the ballshifter w/ the extra standoff we had.

It's clear in CAD, but not in the pic. The lower hex standoff doesn't attach to the ballshifter, but rather to that .25" thick plate with a hidden flathead 1/4-20. The plate then attaches to all 3 ballshifter mount holes and is a large bearing surface on the face. This should really adequately handle the moment reaction.

Since we don't have one on hand, we were unsure of the strength of that face. We assumed that since IFI put in hex bores for standoffs, that small local face contact for moment reaction would cause damage. So right now we're assuming we need that large plate to touch so much.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Thanks for posting the pics. (It's great to be able see what you're talking about without downloading it and waiting for SolidWorks to load.)

Is that plate supposed to be flush with the 2x1 tubing? If so, there's going to be some interference between those two button head screws and the tubing wall. Also, how would you plan to remove the gearboxes in competition?

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

The CAD is very clear here. The plate is flush, the bolts go through the tube, through the plate, into the tapped standoff.

We remove the bearing block faceplate, remove the two 1/4-20 buttonhead, and the gearbox is removed. Identical in function to our current designs. We consider the bearing block an integral part of the gearbox.

None of this is untested, all we did was make the ballshifter the same black box more or less as our current designs.

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

I'm satisfied now:D

Re: Incorporating the vex ball shifter into a WCD Drive
 

Are you looking at using belts or are you thinking strictly chain-drive?