We didn't get anything done over the weekend on the 'bots, as we had some pretty big issues to deal with at work, but this evening we decided to see if we could wrap up the antweight Poor Punctuation 2.0. We need to install the weapon speed controllers and finish the wiring - ugh. Hit Back after viewing an image.
Unfortunately the bushings we ordered for the idler gears haven't arrived yet, so we'll approximating with some random bronze bushings and installing the weapon ESCs around them.
The ESC is a 12A HobbyKing cheapie, but light, and does come with a programming card. It can be programmed via the card to run in reverse, so we're going to be soldering the connections to the motor, as we won't need to undo them to switch direction if the leads are hooked up wrong. Here we're testing that the R/C connector we put onto the cut-down Y-cable works - success!
With one side done, we turn the 'bot through 180 degrees and start on the other side. We're trying to make sure that the spacer closest the wheel is keep clear for the idler, as we route wires, etc.
At this point we're verifying that both motors do run in the same direction: the don't. But on the plus side, our Y-cable works, and our soldered connections from ESC to motor are good, so we can move on.
To fix the motor direction we flipped the jumper on the card, applied power to it, and connected the ESC to it - took a couple of tries, but eventually we had it sorted out, and moved on to the rest of the wiring.
Not trusting our soldering skills to hook up five wires for negative in a single connection and the same for positive we decided to break out the ring terminals and go that route. Sure, they add weight, but last time we checked we had about an ounce spare, so no problems. The main issue is that they take up space, and that is a precious commodity inside this 'bot, but we managed to squeeze everything in, and we were ready for a quick weapon test!
After verifying that the ring did actually turn (and yes, we were kneeling behind polycarb while that test was being run - the white sparks at the end were due to the ring coming off the motor gear) we bolted down the lid and tried again, but this time there was too much friction for the ring to spin up. On review the cause of the friction isn't the UHMW buffers, but cabling inside the 'bot catching on the motor gears and not letting them get up to speed. There's also the issue of the ring getting out of alignment because one motor spins a touch faster than the other.
So close! All we need are our idler bushings, and we're going to have to hit YouTube for a crash course in soldering so we can neaten up the wiring and make everything fit inside the 'bot! But this 'bot will be finished by the weekend, and we'll be on to others ...
Subscribe
