[quantcyg]

Originally Posted by thatprogrammer

Thanks!
I had a few questions.

1. What was the reasoning behind using a mix of pneumatic and colson wheels?
2. How do you mount your bumpers?
3. How did you manufactor your hubs for your shooter wheels?
4. Where did you get your bumer material? I asked you and one other member of your team at world's but some media group came to interview you while I was asking.

Thanks in advance for your answers

Thanks for asking!

1. We went for a ten wheel drive and six inch wheels so that we could achieve the desired wheel configuration (with a four-Colson drop) while still being able to clear the Class B and D defenses. The pneumatic wheels absorb shock during crossings while the lowered Colson wheels provided a stable turning base for our shooting align.
2. We mounted the bumpers to two sheet metal plates that were attached to the front and back of the drivebase and bent vertical. Those places interfaced with bolts mounted to the inside of the bumpers and wing nuts that we tightened on each match. Between the plates, we also added some 1/2" tube to support the 1"x1" frame that made up the bumper structure (and was attached to the bumper).
3. We manufactured our hubs from stock Delrin round on a lathe to an OD few thou over the ID of the roller, then drilled, reamed, and broached before pressing the hub into the wheel. The press fit was more than enough to keep everything together. In fact, we had more trouble with the wheels de-laminating from the stock tube hub than anything.
4. At our Regionals, we used the ballistic nylon that we have used in previous years from Rocky Woods. At Championships, we switched to a thicker Sail Cloth much like 254 uses.