6WD Pros and Cons

[Cory]

Originally Posted by nuggetsyl

If you gear it right, 6 wheels are better for most first games. But not always.


P.S. do not lower the middle wheel on a 6 wheel drive robot.

C'mon Shaun. You have to know this statement is totally misleading.

The vast majority of teams who do 6wd need to drop the center wheels (even if only slightly) to allow their robots to turn. In the past, we have had turning issues, even on a robot with dropped center wheels.

As stated before, by dropping the wheels you effectively have shortened the wheelbase to 50% it's previous length, as your weight is being supported by 4 wheels at any given time. By shortening the wheelbase you make it much easier to turn.

Every year you guys claim your robot turns perfectly without a dropped center wheel. You are known for your high traction wheels, and you have a wheelbase length that is twice that of most other teams. While many teams have low gears for turning, you have only a single speed which is geared to 9+ fps.

Until you can show everyone the physics or math that validate that system, stating that no team should run a 6wd system with dropped center wheels just means that anyone who takes your advice will find themselves wondering what good it did to add 2 more wheels, when their robot still won't turn. Clearly your exact setup works well for you, but to claim categorically that you should not drop the center wheel is just plain wrong and totally misleading.