Gearboxes? Help!

[Billfred]

Originally Posted by JVN

What wheels do you want to use? Why?
What configuration do you want to use for your gearbox? (direct drive? gearbox + chain?) Why?
Do you want to push? Why?
Do you want to have a high top-speed? Why?
Do you want 1-speed or 2-speed? Why?

You missed one (arguably) relevant question: How long does it have to run? If it only has to run ten seconds at the end of the match, that's one thing. If it has to run all two minutes, that's another thing. If it has to run all day at a demo, that's yet another thing. (We learned this nearly the hard way; after the season we stripped two CIMs off of our 2011 robot and used it for driver practice. Let's say we didn't get all the runtime we wanted before the motors were too hot to touch.)