Note that the free Bimba cylinder coupons EXPIRE at the end of the build (it’s “use it or lose it”!) AND… We are looking for a LOT more cylinders, for a special pneumatics project.
SO… LET’S DEAL!
If your team is NOT planning on using your free cylinders this year, don’t waste it! I’m VERY interested in TRADING something for the use of your unused “cylinder coupon”. Since the cylinders can be directly shipped anywhere, given your permission for us to use your coupon, we can have them shipped directly to us (IOW, it won’t even cost your team a cent to do this, and you get something for it!)
Therefore - If you’re not going to use it anyway, let me know what you’d like to swap for our use of your coupon. BTW, this offer is not limited to just kit items. I have other things of value too (like long hanks of that hard to find FIRST legal PWM wire, and how to make your own custom PWM cables that actually WORK!)
Please contact me with your needs by using this “send email to kmcclary” link below (not CD’s PM):
I think it is really cool to do some neat projects using pneumatics and such, but let me just throw this thought out there…
To the best of my knowledge Bimba has graciously donated a ton of parts for teams this year including air cylinders and such. In case you haven’t priced their products, an 1.5" air cylinder, 10" long retails for $65. This adds up for them, so might I suggest not using the coupons for non FIRST related projects.
Maybe a better solution is too simply trade items for cylinders in which teams are no longer using or from past bots.
Just a thought. I would sure love for Bimba to return as a major sponsor of FIRST.
Oh, no… Don’t get me wrong… This IS a FIRST project!
We’re investigating the design a new type of FIRST gripper/arm technology for next year. It’s great for low and smaller sized field objects. It’s not so great for the giant Trackball though, so we didn’t try it this build.
To pull it off though, it requires a number of the tiny cylinders in addition to some sophisticated controls. Any one of the cylinders isn’t really that expensive, but we’d rather help out other teams (especially those with financial problems) by offering things they need rather than see them waste their coupons this build season.
If you think about it, this is actually a win/win for everyone! IF this prototype works out, teams seeing it in action will want to copy it. If they do, in the long run Bimba will get a lot of money from it as well, since it requires more than three cylinders to build it.
[edit]
The reason I’m asking NOW is that unused coupons EXPIRE. We once tried to save our coupon for fall R&D, and then found out Bimba wouldn’t honor it later. It didn’t seem fair, but in essence we lost our coupon. That’s why I’m asking TODAY if anyone is NOT planning to use it, now that everyone is done building.
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Keith McClary cdf:kmcclary
Chief Engineer, Team 1502 “Technical Difficulties”, Chelsea MI
It’s not truly a “coupon” nowadays since it’s now online ordering, but it **used **to be, and a lot of teams typically understand the reference. (Kinda like calling the CIMs “Atwoods”, etc…)
Maybe a better way to phrase it MIGHT have been “if your team has NOT requested any cylinders this year (and doesn’t PLAN to), would you be willing to request them to our specs, and then swap some parts with us? This would help us both out with FIRST projects…”.
But, I didn’t want see anyone wasting money with double shipping across the country, so I did NOT phrase it that way.
OK. So that means this would not apply to your team. This offer only applies to teams that are NOT going to use their pneumatics this year. We are offering to mutually help each other.
Keith McClary cdf:kmcclary
Chief Engineer, Team 1502 “Technical Difficulties”, Chelsea MI
