Is a shifting transmission really necessary?

[Steve W]

I believe that shifting is a nice luxury to have. Should all teams attempt to build one? This would be a yes. The issue is when should they try. I am with Team 188 and this year we had a shift on the fly transmission with 3 motors per side. This was the 1st year that we have successfully put one on the field. Last year we attempted one and failed. It was an excellent learning experience. It ended up teaching us not to wait so long before leaving the idea and that a gearbox can be built in 2 nights. The fact that we tried at this point shows that we did not jump headlong into it. Our team has been learning and growing and this was just another step in our growth curve.

Every year a team should look at it's resources and decide what they can and cannot do. This is not limited to just transmissions. Our team tried to do everything this year and we had the manpower to try. Everything was not perfect but we were proud of our team and robot. That is what FIRST is all about. I helped teams that did not attempt nearly as much and yet when they were finished they were just as proud of their accomplishments as we were.

I don't believe that there is any right or wrong here, but dreaming, that is what makes FIRST great.