Wood Chassis vs. Kit Frame

[dtengineering]

Our very first chassis (2004, prior to the introduction of the KoP frame) was made of 3/4" plywood, and... well... not particularly elegant.

Since then we've used the KoP frame each year, although never in the "out of the box" configuration. We've always chopped it, flipped it over, machined it out (slots for chain tensioning, etc.) and always, always, welded it up. You get extra stiffness and save the weight of all those bolts.

This year, though, we're thinking of going back to wood just because we've built just about everything we can out of wood (manipulators to motor mounts), except the chassis. Mind you, aluminum will still play a big part in our design, and we certainly could use the KoP frame if we wanted to, but this year we wanted to do something a bit different and show how much we've learned since that first plywood chassis.

Jason