where do you get your major tools ie mills lathes drill presses etc? did you buy them with team money are they owned by your school, by your sponsors?
*Originally posted by Rickertsen2 *
**where do you get your major tools ie mis lathes drill presses etc? do you buy them with team money are thye owned by your school, by your sponsors? **
We have some owned by school, bought a mill/lathe with team money, and had a TIG welder month’s rental donated by Long Beach Praxair.
Our awsome sponsor!!
Alcoa Fujikura Ltd.!!! They are probably one, if not the, coolest sponsors out their! Giving us our every whim… Using tools when/how ever we want. It’s awesome!
Thank you AFL!!! You guys rock!!
All our hand tools (and a Dremel) were brought in by students, and they need to go back… Our mentor brought in his drill press for us to use, we didn’t have access to a mill nor a lathe… Mentor’s brother works in/owns a shop, so we had our frame welded there. The only thing we used that belonged to the school were rooms, A/V carts, and goggles.
We long for the day that we get access to a CNC mill, a lathe, and a welder. (A plasma cutting torch would make me happy, too…) However, we’re trying to get the school to give us three dedicated computers right now.
Mmm… building bots the old fashioned way.
*Originally posted by Vincent Chan *
**However, we’re trying to get the school to give us three dedicated computers right now.
**
This is our seventh season. In all past years there wasn’t a computer at our facility. This year sponsor donated old laptop, lent pc, then another mentor brought in for six weeks his brand new computer. My husband managed to get internet access into the auto shop for the first time this year.
http://www.gamers-forums.com/smilies/contrib/Jason/juggle.gif
And yet “RUHS is the only high school in the nation with student run ISP. Many schools have students working with IS and networks, but no others are responsible for running an ISP and for managing the district WAN” complimented by the Futures Academy, a telecommunications lab dedicated to internet-based research and training.
If you’re in bad need of computers, P1-133’s can be found for about $15. That’s how much I got mine for 
Also, factories and large companies upgrade their computers having them old ones with no purpose. They normally get sent to recycling places, but I’m sure if asked, they would donate them. (I spent a week or so building and upgrading about 12 computers…we had spare parts from random places and just put them in machines that needed better stuff)
As for tools, we have the use of a wood shop. That gives us a drill press, band saw, scroll saw, a lathe, and bunches of badly-abused hand-tools. After being around for 7 years, we have somehow managed to assimilate many hand tools. Many were bought by the adults and just given to robotics. Some of the engineers bring in their own tools to use then take them back home with them. We currently have no welding supplies.
We have access to the full machine shop of a local communiy college. All our own tools our school bought for us at Home Depot. I bring all my own tools because I’m too lazy to find the ones at school. We occassionally get some things from www.harborfreight.com and lucky for us there is a store close by.
*Originally posted by evulish *
**Also, factories and large companies upgrade their computers having them old ones with no purpose. **
You’re right. Raytheon had submitted a lengthy list of many parts, including computers, they were “getting rid of” to our school district technology director. Luckily she was familiar with our program and quickly gave us first pick. The computers weren’t going to work for us, but a few other things did.