pic: Coaxial Swerve Drive Module with 2-speed Ball Drive and Nitrile Tread

[Jared Russell]

Originally Posted by Tyler2517

2 speed shifting is nice but you have decreed mechanical efficacy and a higher center of gravity.

If 2451 truly gets about 82% of the theoretical free speed out of these transmissions, that's in the efficiency ballpark of most FRC skid-steer drive trains. Some teams can hit the low 90s, but that is the exception rather than the rule.

Also, the intuition of "what's too fast for high gear" is somewhat different for an independently steered/driven swerve than for a skid-steer drive train. Your wheels never need to fight each other, so you are asking less of your drive motors than in a 6/8WD where you need to force wheels to slip sideways in order to turn.