Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

Team 4488 Shockwave is proud to present our 2014 robot: Wildfire




Reveal Video

Specs:
100 lbs
28.5” Wide x 27.25” Long x 30” Tall
6WD WCD using WCP gearboxes and 4” VEX wheels and belts – 10.5 FPS
Over bumper feeder - pneumatically actuated – 775 powered
Surgical tubing catapult powered by choo-choo technology
775 through 60:1 VersaPlanetary then using an 18:84 reduction – cocks in < 2s

PNW Oregon City District Results: 11-1 Qualifications, #1 Seed, Winner, Chairman’s

We will also be attending:
PNW Wilsonville District
PNW District Championships
Hopefully World Championships

Link to high resolution image.

Check us out on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ShockWaveTeam4488
Team Website:
http://glencoerobotics.com/

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

That is one amazing looking robot. Congratulations on your success!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

This robot is amazing looking and seriously fun to watch. Congrats on the chairman and we will see you in Wilsonville!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

They were the best robot at Oregon City and will be one of the best in the PNW District System this year.

They have the most refined RI3D/JVN clone bot I've seen. Being able to fire with the collector retracted is a major plus. Smart playing last week, great HP truss shots, great teamwork, great defense.

They walked out of Oregon City with 2 banners last week and the stats to back it up. A Chairman's as a second year team is huge. They are ranked 1st in current PNW standings and still have another district before PNW Champs.

They made my Top 25 this week, did they make yours?

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

How are the VersaWheels DT performing and wearing? Would you recommend them over the regular VersaWheels or another type of wheel?

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

Certainly one of the best looking robots I've seen so far in the PNW district. I'm sorry I didn't get to see any of your matches but look forward to seeing it play at the PNW DCMP.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

We played 19 matches in our first event. There is noticeable wear on the drive wheels but the feeder wheels are still looking great. We plan on rotating a few and swapping a few. On the plus side, they give us noticeably better traction than previous FIRST tires we've used. They were also a lot easier to use and maintain than custom wheels with tread. I think we'll be using the DT wheels again next year. I'd be happy to let you know more at the end of the season once we've thoroughly abused these wheels :)

I'll note that we stayed away from the regular W pattern VersaWheels because we were worried about the rate of wear. If your team has the budget to swap out wheels regularly then these might be a great option for you due to the extra traction.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

I have only been able to see your robot in action online, but was completely inspired by what I saw. The form and function of your machine is truly impressive. I'm eager to see you in Portland next month!

Hi Saw this robot mentioned by a fellow mentor in the FRC Top 25 thread. He called it our long lost fraternal twin!

We had a group of students push forward with a surgical tubing choo-choo based catapult till very late into the build process. It was an excellent shooter, but we ultimately had to make a decision, and the final robot ended up with an also excellent cam driven spring powered one. It's always difficult when one idea has to be chosen over another, but because of their work, we had two very strong catapult options to choose from instead of one.

I love being able to show my students robots which are similar, but which took the alternate design paths that we couldn't. It helps validate all the hard work that didn't end up on our final robot, and that's really important.

Congratulations on the amazing year so far! I know for a fact you've got at least a few fans here on 610 who are looking forward to seeing this robot at champs.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

Very impressive! Actually one of my favorite robots so far!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

You can never have enough 4's and 8's in a team number. :)

Nice job!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

One of the best robots this year so far. Very impressed with your performance. Performance at that level requires not just a good robot, but a good team in all other aspects.

Also, it's sad/hilarious (but typical) that you missed FRC "Top" 25. You guys are easily top 10 in the teams that have played thus far. The driver is clearly smart and great at getting through stuff. I added your matches to the playlist of videos for my drivers to review.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

How many pounds are you pulling back on the shooter? Also are you only using 1, RS-775?

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

I think there is around 200 lbs worth of surgical tubing at full pull. We are only using 1 RS-775 through a 60:1 VersaPlanetary. It has plenty of power, and draws about 25 amps while pulling back.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

I'm actually interested in knowing a little more about your team than your robot.

You are a second year team right? How did you get the ability to powder coat your metal? Did you scout for a potential sponsor who would do that for you? What made you decide to go with your own chassis and drive train, most second year teams stick to the KOP version for simplicity. Did you have a mentor who was very confident in building it yourselves? It looks like that design took some CAD work, if so how did you get your students that proficient in CAD in only 2 years?

Looks great by the way. Solid performer and even solider image :D

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

One of my favorite bots this season!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

Yes this is just our second year as a team. We have a decent amount of mentors that have been around FRC for many years, so we have had experience with powdercoating and custom drives. For the powdercoating, it was graciously donating by the company one of our mentors works at. As for the drive, we even ran a custom chassis last year as well. The reason is that our mentors have much more experience with custom WCD's then the KOP chassis, and we felt much more comfortable going with what we knew then going with the kitbot. It allows us to be much more customization to our needs, and it performs great. And with kids that know how the custom drives work, I don't see us ever going to a kitbot, because the team is fairly fast at machining all the parts needed.

As for CAD, the robot was 100% cadded by the students before we built it. Over the summer we ran CAD workshops to teach the students more about what was needed. Many of those students wanted to know more, so they actually learned more CAD during their free time before build season. We had dedicated students that wanted to perform, so they did everything they could to prepare for the season.

I'm amazed and absolutely impressed by what the students were able to pull off this year. They all did a great job, and we are so proud of all of them.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

You should be. Keep it up! I'm expecting a state champs out of you guys.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

We also have a lot of support from our school, and a well stocked shop at the school. We have a few mills, a CNC mill, a few lathes, and a welding booth, with students that know how to use it. All of the welding was done in house by students. All of the machining, except for the baseplate was done in house as well.

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

You were an absolute riot at Oregon City. I'm almost a little relieved you won't be competing with us in Corvallis.

Good luck in Wilsonville, 4488!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

My favorite robot to watch this year!!

You guys are great... I thought you were good last year (so did everyone else) but WOW ... I guess one would expect this from last year's Curie Rookie of the year!!

Great teamwork this year!!

We hope to get a chance to play with you at the District CMP. It could be a lot of fun!!

Again congrats on all of your well deserved success!!

Re: Team 4488 Shockwave Introduces: Wildfire
 

Great job 4488! It was a lot of fun playing with you at Oregon city, and I'm glad we made it into your unveil video. :D

Your robot was incredibly efficient and refined for the first competition of the year! We hope to make up some ground on you guys for Wilsonville.

Good luck on further refinement, and see you in a week!