Different Types of Balls?

[dsalvucci]

Team 23 didn't look into it since there was nothing we could do about it to help our situation at the time, but we noticed that by the end of qualifiers in WPI almost none of the balls were the same size anymore. At the same time, however, there were some that still fit into our cannon like brand new despite being torn apart. Whether it be different balls or just being worn down at different rates we are not sure.

Unfortunately for our team, being driven by fan power on a shooter, that meant our scoring power was severely crippled. We went from being one of the best scorers in the early matches to being one of the worst by the end. Had it not been for our ability to balance, Team 23 would've been dead in the water.

[Hawiian Cadder]

At what level of wear have the refs been replacing the balls? We had problems powdering them when a jam occurs, how much wear is acceptable?

[dsalvucci]

In WPI's case, the balls were not replaced until the elimination matches(long enough for our robot to struggle enough to fall out of the top 8). Once the balls were replaced we started scoring well again.

PS I do not want this to come off as a rant. I enjoyed my time at WPI tremendously and would recommend it to anyone, im just providing seemingly relevant info

[SamMullen]

Originally Posted by dsalvucci

In WPI's case, the balls were not replaced until the elimination matches(long enough for our robot to struggle enough to fall out of the top 8). Once the balls were replaced we started scoring well again.

PS I do not want this to come off as a rant. I enjoyed my time at WPI tremendously and would recommend it to anyone, im just providing seemingly relevant info

At Chesapeake we replaced balls that had chunks taken out of them, but were hesitant to replace ones that only had scuff marks. We replaced all of the balls (regardless of level of wear and tear) for the elimination matches though. I would assume replacing the balls then is standard procedure, but I would love for someone else to back me up on that.

[Karibou]

Originally Posted by Hawiian Cadder

At what level of wear have the refs been replacing the balls? We had problems powdering them when a jam occurs, how much wear is acceptable?

I was told to replace balls with chunks missing from them. I believe that we also replaced a few that had evidently been through significant wear (lots of black streaks on the outside was a pretty good indicator). I'm sure that ball replacement standards will be different for every event, though, so take that with a grain of salt.