My team is building a scissor lift this year, and to help reduce friction, we were going to use Teflon bearings. This is my question: are we allowed to use Teflon in FTC? The manual says “Standard bearings and bushings”, but what exactly does that mean? Are Teflon bearings considered “standard”? ::rtm:: 
They are referring to the standard bushings you get in the KOP.
Ask in the Q&A forum, they can give you an official answer
Just wondering, why Teflon bearings? and not ball bearings which I assume are legal and would perform better.
Also this is an **FTC ** question just for anyone that didn’t catch that.
Mrjones,
Under R02, d
d. The following additional structural parts, fasteners, and materials are allowed provided that they don’t violate other rules, such as safety, entanglement <R03>, etc. This includes no limits on quantity and size of the following materials:
- Standard bearings and bushings.
I would interpret this as COTS devices listed as “bearings” or “bushings”. The way you phrased your question, I am guessing you plan on using teflon bushings at the joints of the scissors lift. Under this rule I would expect them to be legal. The Q&A is the final answer however.
Ryan, the KOP bushings would be covered under R01 since they are “TETRIX, LEGO, and/or MATRIX” parts.
ummm, ball bearings would work, thats why… ball bearings are more of a joint in themselves. Teflon bearings would just go between two pieces of metal.
First you should ask this question. What is the advantage of using Teflon over either a oil impreginated bronze bushing or a standard ball bearing?
What is the load that is going to be applied to this joint?
Will the Teflon carry that load with a safety factor?
What are the material properties of the Teflon I am using.