View Single Post
  #19   Spotlight this post!  
Unread 28-12-2013, 10:02
StevenB StevenB is offline
is having FRC withdrawal symptoms.
AKA: Steven Bell
no team
Team Role: College Student
 
Join Date: May 2005
Rookie Year: 2005
Location: Stanford, CA
Posts: 416
StevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond reputeStevenB has a reputation beyond repute
Re: Nothing but Dewalts???

To echo what everyone else has said, the recent offerings from AndyMark, VexPRO, and others make Dewalts a poor choice for a drivetrain. I built a drivetrain with them back in the summer of 2007, and we competed with it at a couple off-season events. They were nice solid transmissions, but there were a number of little issues (size, mounting, manufacturing) that make them less attractive today. Shifting with a servo worked, but wasn't particularly smooth. In my experience, using a servo to shift a DeWalt isn't better than an AM. In both cases, the servo moves slowly and with relatively little power (relative to pneumatics, which go, "Bang. Done!").

Dewalts may still be a good choice for a manipulator of some type because of the anti-backdrive or clutch. However, given the effort involved to actually make them work, don't make the decision based on cost. In FRC, spending three or four days to save $50 is rarely worth it.
__________________
Need a physics refresher? Want to know if that motor is big enough for your arm? A FIRST Encounter with Physics

2005-2007: Student | Team #1519, Mechanical Mayhem | Milford, NH
2008-2011: Mentor | Team #2359, RoboLobos | Edmond, OK
2014-??: Mentor | Looking for a team...