I'm wondering if you think that you would run this drivetrain again considering the following:
- weight gain for the extra stage rectified by the less weight of belts
- efficiency loss for the extra stage mildly rectified the the greater efficiency of belts
- more prone to over turns mildly rectified by better software
- more prone to over turns mildly rectified by more space on the inside of the chassis
- 1 more point of failure mildly rectified by less maintenance in general
- harder to implement encoders mildly rectified by less machining required
- harder to replace belts mildly rectified by easier to replace gearboxes
- more expensive(extra gears for extra stage and for encoders) rectified by less machining
Out of all of these things there are a few pretty nice benefits(that still outweigh, at least imo, any negatives associated with them): less machining and less maintenance.
However you lost some one of the most important benefits of a classic WCD to me: the prototype with old drivetrain parts without keeping a large stock of parts(ie belts).
Did you think the trade off was worth it? Do you think for next years you would go with a more conventional belt drive, or maybe even a classic WCD?