[Rick TYler]

Aside from chain problems, it has a pretty high center of gravity, which argues against that layout. First, the idlers would probably weigh as much as another sprocket, and, second, this year keeping CG low is going to be a big problem -- especially if you plan to climb the ramp. Move the motor down inside the frame rails, driving the primary chain to the center wheel, and then run lighter chains (if you want you could just use #35 chain instead) to the front and rear wheels. Titan Robotics (492) has used this VERY successfully for the last two or three years. In fact, this is a lot like what we are doing this year. Our transmissions are only going to stick up about an inch above the frame rails.