pic: Cyber Blue Twins - R1 (right) and R2 (left)

[Chris Fultz]

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[BPetry234]

Oh Ronnie and Ruther, the lab won't be the same until you are reunited. Since R1 and R2 were a little to impersonal so we named R1 Ronnie and R2 Ruther. Rex was their little brother from the preseason who is saddly not pictured.

[Dan2081]

Looks Great! You guys ready for bmr??

[MGoelz]

Originally Posted by Dan2081

Looks Great! You guys ready for bmr??

We'll definitely be ready for the BMR, but first we have to get through the DC Regional.

[2642 boss man]

hey we r a 2nd year team....how in the world do u get enough money and supplies to build 2 robots

[Chris Fultz]

This is the first year we have built two robots. Except for the new electronics, thse are pretty low cost machines - square aluminum channel, the kitbot chassis, pvc rollers and some lexan.

In general, it was a little more expensive for teams to build 2 this year, since nobody had a second (aka last years) set of controls, but N1 had a discount for teams to buy the second set at a lower cost.

We have thought of building a second robot for several years and decided this year was the year to do it. So far it has proven valuable -- we were able to get a running machine quicker, programming and electronics got quicker access, and we we able to make some improvements for strength, weight and looks for the final version.

For example, R1 is heavier (about 10 pounds over), has some extra holes (mounting locations that moved), and it has 'homemade' belts.

[artdutra04]

Originally Posted by 2642 boss man

hey we r a 2nd year team....how in the world do u get enough money and supplies to build 2 robots

I'm not affiliated with Team 234, but here's how my team does it.

Except for purchasing a new control system, 228 built our nearly-identical (only cosmetic differences) practice and competition robots for $1500 each. As for supplies, everything was bought from either McMaster, AndyMark, Yarde Metals, or SDP/SI (in order of how much was purchased). The money was earned by the students and mentors on our team working very hard from April through October selling a lot of BBQ at country fairs and other large events.

It takes a lot of hard work to be able to build practice robots, but it's well worth it.