What to use for ballast
 

Our team needs to add some ballast to our robot, and we're trying to decide if we can use some donated sash weights from old windows. Does that count as a COTS part? What about weights from old barbells? What does your team use for ballast?

Thanks!

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Whatever you do, don't use bird shot as ballast.

#crossroads2014

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Ballast?? How nice it would be to have to add.. In our 5 years we have only had to add weight once.. And we used steal bar since it was easiest to weld on attachment mounts.

I am interested in what others have to say about this..

Good luck!

Aloha.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

A table top vice clamped to your frame works nice.....

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Weld all your scrap metal together and duct tape it to your robot. That works right..?

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Extra batteries, oh wait..... :rolleyes:

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Our team melted old tire weights we got from an auto repair shop and filled 1x2 aluminum tubing with it. An 8" piece ended up around 4 pounds when done. Worked well for us and is easily mounted into the chassis plus it fits with the theme of the game...right? Reuse and recycle.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

In loose thin pooly attached plastic baggies that is. :eek:

I hear bench press weights work well.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

We haven't to add extra weight on our root in FRC but our one of our BEST teams needed to add extra weight, they added 10 lbs of pennies. We might just add 10lbs of pennies if we need it.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

In 2013, we zip-tied a .5"x18" steel bar to the back of our robot. Basically any easily-mounted steel object will do just fine.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

On the BOM do you list the pennies as a whole, or are they exempt because each one is under $1?

We were going to use 3 or 4" PVC pipe with a cap glued on one end and a spin off on the other, and fill with sand. Easy to secure and you can adjust the amount of sand if needed. Oh and easy to source and cheap!

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Re-position the battery to shift the robots center of gravity. Otherwise a chunk of steel should do the job

Re: What to use for ballast
 

Be careful when using sand per R8-J. I don't interpret that as a hard ban on sand, but it's definitely not legal if it can get all over the field.

Re: What to use for ballast
 

On the subject of adding pennies for weight (which I actually suggested to my team on Sunday, half jokingly, but for decoration instead...):

1 penny = $.01 = 2.5 grams
1 Nickel = $.05 = 5.0 grams
1 Dime = $.10 = 2.268 grams
1 Quarter = $.25 = 11.340 grams

1 Pound = 453.592 grams.

This means to get 1 Pound of ballast weight using each common U.S. coin, you would need:

Pennies: 181.4368 = 182 = $1.82/lb
Nickels: 90.7184 = 91 = $4.55/lb
Dimes: 199.9964 = 200 = $20/lb
Quarters: 39.99929 = 40 = $10/lb

(Source: http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint...specifications)

Therefore, the most economical coin to use as ballast would be pennies. But if you really want to show off, use Dimes!

Even more fun: You can probably get MOST of those pennies for free...have every student check under their couch! :p

Or, if you are really rolling in the dough, use the Presidential or Native American $1 coins, needing 56 to make just over a pound!