Quote:
Originally Posted by ksafin
It's also not nearly as flexible for construction, given it's only a straight 1"x1" rod really.
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You really shouldn't write off box extrusion simply because it's less "flexible" - there's a lot that you can use it for. In fact, its lack of flexibility makes it a prime candidate for building robot frames. Pretty much every robot my team has built uses box extrusion as the primary structural member. We've only recently started using gussets, but in the past we used both 80-20 triangles and L brackets to join pieces together. For flexibility, we just cut it up - a saw and drill are all you really need to manipulate it however you want. It just requires more caution and imagination during the actual fabrication process.
Besides, there isn't really such a thing as "more advanced structural materials". Most people use some form of extrusion, be it 1"x1" or 1"x3". There
are teams like 148 and 217, yes, that have practically completely eschewed the use of materials like extrusion because their resources afford them that advantage, but that doesn't mean that sheet metal is better. You could even argue that a lot of the work they do with sheet metal is spent making it mimick extrusion - just look at their arm last year.
The point, in short, is that you're limited more by
how you use a material than
what that material is. Simbotics went to 2011 Galileo semis with a hockey stick.