Andymark Plaction wheels vs IFI wheels

[Chris Fultz]

Originally Posted by BrendanB

As mentioned above, IFI wheels do come in varying widths which I hope our team can use in the future for more grip/pushing power.

If you do some testing you should see no difference between 1" and 2" wide. You are providing a bigger area but with the same total downward force (weight of robot) spreading over that larger area you don't gain. Traction is a tricky thing and some controlled tests can be cool.

To the op, we have used and had good success with all. We are using the am 4" performance wheels right now with blue tread from mcmaster. It is a little gripper than am or IFI tread but only comes in wide sizes so it has to be cut (I think 3" is the narrowest)

[AlexH]

colsons are another option and are much more durable than ifi/andymark plaction wheels.

[jwfoss]

Originally Posted by AlexH

colsons are another option and are much more durable than ifi/andymark plaction wheels.

While I understand the thread is AM Plaction vs. IFI Wheels, for a dead axle wheel, I can not recommend Colson Performa wheels enough. I may sound like a broken record by now but... We have run them for the last two seasons and I don't intend to use any other wheel again unless absolutely mandatory. The cost to go to a Colson wheel is less than an AM or IFI, the hubs are available through West Cost Products.

[Gregor]

How are AM performance wheels compared to IFI wheels?

Originally Posted by Gregor01

How are AM performance wheels compared to IFI wheels?

Although they are called "performance" wheels, they generally have the same advantages/disadvantages of plaction wheels. Though they can be used easier in a live axle setup than plaction/iFI wheels.

[Hawiian Cadder]

Originally Posted by SuperNerd256

Although they are called "performance" wheels, they generally have the same advantages/disadvantages of plaction wheels. Though they can be used easier in a live axle setup than plaction/iFI wheels.

The performance wheels have noticeably more grip, partly due to lack of a draft from the molding that occurs in plasticon wheel manufacture, but also because the aluminum rim is not as large, and contacts the floor less than the plasticon retaining ring. I would go with performance wheels any day, as long as you keep to the 4 and 6 inch sizes they are not that much heavier or more expensive.

[Gregor]

So would plaction wheels or IFI wheels combined with blue nitrile tread be an ideal combination?

Originally Posted by Hawiian Cadder

The performance wheels have noticeably more grip, partly due to lack of a draft from the molding that occurs in plasticon wheel manufacture, but also because the aluminum rim is not as large, and contacts the floor less than the plasticon retaining ring. I would go with performance wheels any day, as long as you keep to the 4 and 6 inch sizes they are not that much heavier or more expensive.

Really? That's pretty cool. Didn't know that. Thanks!

Originally Posted by Gregor01

So would plaction wheels or IFI wheels combined with blue nitrile tread be an ideal combination?

Depends on how you use them. The wider the wheel, the harder it is to turn. With blue nitrile you have a lot of grip on the carpet, meaning a lot of turning scrub when you try and turn. So unless you're really experienced with them, you may find trouble turning with blue nitrile and wider IFI wheels, compared to the thinner plaction/performance wheels.

I've never had experience with the 1" width IFI wheels, so I can't say anything about them, but I've had experience with both wider ones, and plactions.

[Hawiian Cadder]

Originally Posted by SuperNerd256

Really? That's pretty cool. Didn't know that. Thanks!



Depends on how you use them. The wider the wheel, the harder it is to turn. With blue nitrile you have a lot of grip on the carpet, meaning a lot of turning scrub when you try and turn. So unless you're really experienced with them, you may find trouble turning with blue nitrile and wider IFI wheels, compared to the thinner plaction/performance wheels.

I've never had experience with the 1" width IFI wheels, so I can't say anything about them, but I've had experience with both wider ones, and plactions.

During our season this year we found that a lot of a robots ability to push other robots actually comes from bumper placement. Because our robot was designed without the requirement of crossing the bump, our bumpers were lower than most other robots by about 1.5 inches. When we ran up against them our bumpers wedged slightly underneath theirs as well as pushed their robot up onto ours due to torque generated on the robot body along the axis parallel to the interacting bumpers and the floor, robbing them of grip in this way allowed us to easily push robots with similar traction characteristics to ours. I think that this might cause some miss-information about the effectiveness of smaller wheels, smaller wheels usually lead to lower bumpers which leads to better pushing power in matches.

TLDR: If two robots were exactly the same, but one had bumpers 1.5 inches lower, it would be able to push the other.

[MichaelBick]

Originally Posted by Hawiian Cadder

During our season this year we found that a lot of a robots ability to push other robots actually comes from bumper placement. Because our robot was designed without the requirement of crossing the bump, our bumpers were lower than most other robots by about 1.5 inches. When we ran up against them our bumpers wedged slightly underneath theirs as well as pushed their robot up onto ours due to torque generated on the robot body along the axis parallel to the interacting bumpers and the floor, robbing them of grip in this way allowed us to easily push robots with similar traction characteristics to ours. I think that this might cause some miss-information about the effectiveness of smaller wheels, smaller wheels usually lead to lower bumpers which leads to better pushing power in matches.

TLDR: If two robots were exactly the same, but one had bumpers 1.5 inches lower, it would be able to push the other.

Yes. That is the reasoning for some of the very unique bumpers we have seen this year.

[MichaelBick]

Originally Posted by Chris Fultz

If you do some testing you should see no difference between 1" and 2" wide. You are providing a bigger area but with the same total downward force (weight of robot) spreading over that larger area you don't gain. Traction is a tricky thing and some controlled tests can be cool.

To the op, we have used and had good success with all. We are using the am 4" performance wheels right now with blue tread from mcmaster. It is a little gripper than am or IFI tread but only comes in wide sizes so it has to be cut (I think 3" is the narrowest)

While this is true, I have heard that the 2 in thick wheels wear better.