Rookie Team 4946 Shooter (Wheel material)

[stefanp]

Hey guys, I'm one of the team captains from team 4946 and I just wanted to share our shooter with you guys. It's pretty awesome and went around 30ish feet far and 20ish feet high at around 75% power. We are spending time now to tune that shot into a good pass, goal shot, truss shot, and low goal shot. I have one question for you guys, is there any good material to put on your shooter wheels to not tear/burn the fabric of the ball?

Here is a link to our shooter!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRK8UGR3vpI

[TheKeeg]

What kind of wheels are those? It is hard to tell in the video.

[Chadfrom308]

Wow, that looks really good! What kind of motors and wheels are you using? It shoots higher than ours, how high does yours go? It looks like 15-20 ft!

[stefanp]

Originally Posted by TheKeeg

What kind of wheels are those? It is hard to tell in the video.

Aluminum custom made.

"Wow, that looks really good! What kind of motors and wheels are you using? It shoots higher than ours, how high does yours go? It looks like 15-20 ft!"

It went about 20 feet high, we haven't done a max power shot but we figure 25 high and 37ish feet far.

[Qcom]

Last year, our team took some andymark pneumatic wheels, took out the inner tubes, and put in some pool noodles. Worked like a charm, and remained consistent without having to be reinflated constantly.

I don't know how it would fair with an excercise ball (this year we opted for a pneumatic launcher), but it would be something worth testing if you think you have the time.

[stefanp]

Originally Posted by Qcom

Last year, our team took some andymark pneumatic wheels, took out the inner tubes, and put in some pool noodles. Worked like a charm, and remained consistent without having to be reinflated constantly.

I don't know how it would fair with an excercise ball (this year we opted for a pneumatic launcher), but it would be something worth testing if you think you have the time.

Thanks, I'll speak with my mentors about it. We might not have time to get the parts though cause we are in Canada and shipping time.

[JamesCH95]

No-slip drawer liner or carpet underlayment can work really well.

[stefanp]

Originally Posted by JamesCH95

No-slip drawer liner or carpet underlayment can work really well.

That seems to work quite well, thanks a lot!

Here's a video with the material on, not a scratch on our balls after putting it on. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yrCe...ature=youtu.be

[JamesCH95]

Originally Posted by stefanp

That seems to work quite well, thanks a lot!

Here's a video with the material on, not a scratch on our balls after putting it on. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yrCe...ature=youtu.be

You're welcome, glad to help. Lookin' pretty good with that shooter too.

Bring lots of extra material, it is easily shredded and will wear out eventually.

[xForceDee]

That looks like an awesome shooter! Great job guys! It was one design I initially had doubts about after hearing about teams popping balls. I guess I was wrong. To the OP or any team with a similar design, what steps or considerations were taken to mitigate or completely remove this problem? I notice the tread material, but what else? How much compression do the wheels put on the ball? What RPM? ETC... I am curious how some teams achieve these results while others just destroy the game piece.

[stefanp]

Originally Posted by xForceDee

That looks like an awesome shooter! Great job guys! It was one design I initially had doubts about after hearing about teams popping balls. I guess I was wrong. To the OP or any team with a similar design, what steps or considerations were taken to mitigate or completely remove this problem? I notice the tread material, but what else? How much compression do the wheels put on the ball? What RPM? ETC... I am curious how some teams achieve these results while others just destroy the game piece.

We figured out that we only rip the ball if we let the wheels touch the ball before we are firing so I made a metal bracket that prevents the wheels from touching the ball unless we are firing. The material on the wheels is also important but I don't think as critical. We compress the ball about 2 inchs I believe, and the rpm for 18ft is 1750. We can shoot at 30+ft if we increase the speed of our shooter. A lot of our energy comes from our wheels weight which gets converted into momentum while requiring less speed. (p=mv)