Lighter Robots

[Ian Curtis]

Originally Posted by bardd

Also, if you want to use bolts, try and use the smallest possible. According to stories of the older guys in my team, in 2010 the robot was 0.5lbs overweight three hours before shipping, so they cut all the bolts and left only the length they needed, and that got them to just under 120lbs. Since cutting bolts is not recommended, becuase it makes them alot harder to open and close, you better use small bolts to begin with.

Thread a nut on before you hacksaw the excess off, then unthread it off afterwards. It may turn off pretty hard, but it will clean the threads up significantly.

Since steel is way denser than aluminum and teams often tend to use much larger bolts that necessary, this is probably the first course of action on Thursday when you try to meet weight.