Construction materials

[RogerR]

Originally Posted by Cory

When they say "distributor", I think they're referring to finished parts, not semi-raw materials.

At any rate, bicycle tubing is probably fairly hard to work with. I know Scandium isn't easy at all to weld. It's also extremely cost prohibitive. A plain bicycle frame made of the stuff is around $2000+. After all is said and done, for FIRST exotic metals probably wouldn't offer much of a tangible advantage over plain aluminum when used properly.

since they've gone and put part numbers on all of the tube sets, i'm hoping that's an indicator that they're available to the general public. either way, i suppose i'll find out when i contact them.

i agree that exotic metals probably won't give me an upper hand; i'm still trying to get the most out of Aluminum 6061. but it sure is fun to dream of 'bots made of scandium and carbon nanotubes...

[Andrew Blair]

Originally Posted by mechanicalbrain

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium cool stuff really. What would FIRST say if we told them our robot was made of magnesium (I know, I know, Its near impossible to burn the bulk stuff) Much lighter than aluminum.

or some reason I thought that magnesium was a banned material... not sure though. I have a pair of magnesium snowshoes actually, and they are pretty neat.