Intersting wheels on 1089… what are they?
Also, can we get more pics of 25’s practice base?
You want more pictures of their practice base? Go take photos of their robot…
It’s the same base (obviously rebuilt in the spirit of the FIRST competition).
And we use 7" lawnmower wheels from Home Depot on each side (I think). We filed down the tread that came with them and glued & fastened on our own strip of tread. I’m not sure of the details, but come check it out in the pits! Someone there will be able to explain it better!
Yeah you can buy those wheels at any home depot/lowes store…i used them on a little robot i made back in high school with the tread that comes on them…they work great
We used 4 wheels last year on each side (2 groups of two) with the tread that came with them. They did work wonderfully!
The wheels are 6 or 7 inch plastic lawnmower wheels found in Home Depot.
We machined off the plastic lawnmower tire tread and placed on it raised/ridged conveyor belting, which is glued with a silicone based adhesive(don’t quote me on that, but they are indeed glued) and screwed to the wheels so they will not slip or slide. They are for certain now 7inch wheels.
This provides excellent traction, and greatly increased resistance and friction when in a pushing shoving match.
Are those AndyMark two speeds? If so, I have a hard time believing that’s all the reduction you need for those large wheels. Does it turn in high gear? What is the diameter of the wheels and how many teeth do the sprockets have?
EDIT: I guess I mistook the wheels as being larger. Now that I think about it, that does seem right. Nice work, and good luck!
Adam- visit our pits in Galileo- we have 1/2 of that practice base sitting on a table for all to look at
WC
If you want to check out our drive train, we will actually have one of the drive modules from the practice base on display in our pits in Atlanta (as we did at NJ and UTC). Feel free to stop by and look at it. We’d be happy to answer any questions you have about it!
Yes, they are Andy Mark 2-speeds servo shifter gear boxes.
The wheels are 7 inch in diameter after our modifications to them.
Yes, it turns in high gear.
I do not recall what the gear ratio on the chain and sprocket to the wheels is, but it is less than 3:1. I remember the discussion about the ratio, but I don’t remember the final number.
Is 1089’s chassis made from 80/20 Quickframe or similar? If so, how has that held up? I’ve been looking at it for 2008, but I’ve been a little unsure of its durability if subjected to multiple competitions. (Wierd, this is my 1089th post)
We haven’t had any major dents in it this year. The addition of the bumpers has significantly reduced the impact of other robots smashing into us. Comparatively, we used a frame almost identical to this in 2003 (Quicksilver), and that one got bent and bruised a LOT more.
How much are you guys selling it for? 
… I will definitely stop by, I have been a fan of the evil machines since I joined FIRST.
Thanks, that’s good to hear.
Arefin-
there is no need to sell it. The plans are in the new book- for the most part.
With a little luck we will be helping a lot of teams make them over the coming summer…
WC 
heh…we took a page out of your books and tried the 6 wheel drive again…i dont think we used any of the plans, we just tried our own 6 wheel after seeing and running with you guys for the past few years…after winning NJ last year, we realized that those caster had to go! with that said, i know 25 has been a big help to other teams and their drivetrains, but 103 is also available for questions…check us out in galileo!
6wdisn’t a problem for team 1345. I just would like to know how to turn on dime without lowering your middle wheel. Thank you for your offer and I will definitely like to look into the chassis you guys designed this year. =)
What about a slightly (just slightly) larger center wheel? That would slightly lower the center (less than a lower hole), but could be compensated for. Then again, you would run into issues with the wheels running different speeds. (Easily solvable, but not pretty if not solved.)
You are right, but I was told that team 25 never lower their middle wheel when they design a 6wd. I would like to know how…
A lot of thought go into our machines. The simple answer to why we can do that is ‘Brute Force’. But I am sure you do not want to hear that. We pay close attention to detail - the materials we use for gears and the alignment/construction of the drive train. We do all this simply to ensure peak performance or in engineering terms - efficiency. Another thing we do is make the drive train as modular as possible. Therefore, if we do make a mistake, we have a chance to correct ourselves during the season without any major re-designs.