Fasteners extending outside the FRAME PERIMETER

[GaryVoshol]

Originally Posted by Joe Johnson

As to the rivets below the bumper zone, unless they were lined up with ones in the bumper zone then they would have always been illegal. Am I right on this?

Not precisely. Previously if you had a row of rivets along your FRAME PERIMETER, they would have extended the PERIMETER along that side. Any rivet above or below the BUMPER ZONE, but still within the horizontal limits of that row, would have been protected.

Originally Posted by EricH

You could also try getting some balsa wood. That's pretty light--in fact, a lot of R/C airplanes are made from it.

Originally Posted by Rick TYler

6mm Okoume plywood in a 1" wide strip around the robot would add about .6 pounds. Double-layer corrugated cardboard might even be lighter than that.

Can you say "Squish!" Both of these materials would negate the whole intent of the reason for exempting protrusions in the first place, which was to ensure that bumpers were firmly attached to a solid frame member. I don't see anything that would prohibit the use of the materials. It's just that by using them, you make the bumpers less stable, not more robust as was noted for the reason it was changed in Team Update 6.

Next question, how are inspectors going to measure this for compliance? The old see-what-touches-a-vertical-wall-first test doesn't work. How can an inspector tell that your lower frame is or isn't really 1/8" smaller than your frame in the BUMPER ZONE which defines the FRAME PERIMETER?