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Unread 25-05-2014, 15:15
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CENTURION CENTURION is offline
King of unreasonable designs
AKA: Evan the Shop Princess
FRC #1306 (BadgerBOTS)
Team Role: Mentor
 
Join Date: May 2010
Rookie Year: 2009
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 278
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Re: FTC - Tetrix kit vs. Matrix kit?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chief Hedgehog View Post
As an FRC Coach that is ready to start one (possibly two) FTC teams in the Middle School ranks - I am a bit concerned after reading these posts.

I thought that by going with one or the other kits (Tetrix vs. Matrix) either would be a great building block.

Now I am concerned about spending that type of money on either if they both have severe disadvantages.

Where do I go from here? I do not want to strap my future coach(es) with sub-par equipment.
Working around the inadequacies of the system is a challenge, one that I think it's good for the students to deal with. Either way, you're going to have to use one of them at least for your electronics.

The Tetrix system isn't terrible, it just has a few shortcomings here and there, which provide a good opportunity for the students to learn about which systems work, and which don't. As I showed with the drivetrain earlier, it's possible to find a happy balance between Tetrix and custom parts. There are actually some kind of cool things built into the system, like how the motor output shafts are eccentric, it provides a built-in chain-tensioning system.
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FRC #1306 - BadgerBOTS - Mechanical/Machining/Safety/Marketing Mentor
FTC #6806 - Ratchet Robotics - Head/Founding Mentor
2010 - Wisconsin Regional Chairman's Award Winner - Wisconsin Regional Quarter-finalist - Curie Division #5 Seed, Quarter-finalist
2011 - Wisconsin Regional Innovation in Control Award Winner - Wisconsin Regional Quarter-finalist
2012 - Wisconsin Regional Engineering Inspiration Award Winner - Wisconsin Regional Semi-finalist
2013 - Wisconsin Regional Chairman's Award Winner


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