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Unread 17-12-2012, 19:35
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Paul Copioli Paul Copioli is offline
President, VEX Robotics, Inc.
FRC #3310 (Black Hawk Robotics)
Team Role: Engineer
 
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Re: Aluminum Strengths?

Patrick,

148, 1114, and 217 all use 5052-H34 aluminum for any item that is bent metal. We use 6061-T6 sheet metal for flats, depending on thickness. Our shop has 1/6", 0.090", and 1/8" 5052-H34 for the bent items.

The three teams have different philosophies on metal thickness so we use 1/6" up through 1/8" on the drive base.

217 uses more 1/16" and 0.90", except for the bumper mount, where we use 1/8" to try to get as close to the max bumper weight limit.

Anything fully hardened (T6, T651, etc.) is not appropriate for bent sheet metal. The half hard 5052 material is specifically used for sheet metal as it is a good balance between strength and ductility.

Paul
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In full disclosure I am the President of VEX Robotics, a division of Innovation First International.