LEGO - Tank climber test

[Kelkschiz]

Ow my, that was so funny. Yet insightful at the same time!

[Philo]

Excellent video, understandable even by a French guy like me ;D

Love the improvement progression!

[oracid]

You look like someone who's interested in the overall mechanics of life in a broad sence ;) an autodidact perhaps,.. wouldnt be surprised if you paint aswell.

Haha. ;)

You are a fine psychologist !

Kelkschiz, thank you, you're one of my favorite references for everything related to the tanks.

Philo, thank you, greatly flattered !

[oracid]

Here is the second video of my series on testing of a climber tank.

This time I propose a solution that is closer to reality by using window sticker seal. As the elastic, this solution comes at a very low cost.

In France, and perhaps in other countries, window seals often have the profile of the characters D, E, P and V. They are found under that name in DIY stores. Here I use a D seal.

The advantage of this solution, unlike elastics is that it does not impact the interior of the track and any bearings located on either side of its axis.

After some tests, I quickly found that the grip on the incline was not good. So I decided to cut the curved portion of the D. There, the result exceeded my expectations.

Note that the material that I used to make the staircase and the incline is not cardboard, but plastic sheets. You should know that these leaves are very slippery.

Thank you in advance for your comments.

[sonar]

Another excellent video! Also these window seals can be found made of different materials and the grip between surface and tracks could be adjusted accordingly.

Might I suggest increasing weight of the model and testing the performance. Right now these are just bare bones of any tracked vehicle. In my experience even dual XL motors struggle on the finished model when I add body and other mechanisms (pneumatics, compressors and what not) to the similarly sized vehicle. Adding another kilogram could change performance drastically I think.

Edited January 19, 2016 by sonar

[oracid]

Adding another kilogram could change performance drastically I think.

Yes, of course, the weight of the tank has some bearing on the outcome. But already, weight for weight, we see they are solutions that are better than others.

Intuitively, I would say that if we want to increase the weight of the tank, then we must also increase the contact surface of the tracks, so their width.

I'm making a big tank, a very large tank, and I have some ideas on the issue. Of course, I will come back.

For now, I am waiting for material, besides, I am always waiting for material. And I still have many ideas to test.

Then the next step will be to double the steps size from 5cm to 10cm ...

Edited January 20, 2016 by oracid

[Sylvian]

I dont completely agree.. making the tracks wider also decreases the ground/surface pressure. Which 'could' mean a decrease in grip depending the type of surface.

[L3gonut]

Good solution, like the video, seen it B4,

keep it up.

[oracid]

I dont completely agree.. making the tracks wider also decreases the ground/surface pressure. Which 'could' mean a decrease in grip depending the type of surface.

Your comment is interesting.

Note that I said "intuitively". And I am very suspicious about my intuitions.

Must be tested.

[Gimi Carnage]

Nicely done, and I love the video!

Next stop: Weight/Friction balance?

[oracid]

Next stop: Weight/Friction balance?

The weight is a big problem, but what do you mean by friction balance?

Could you be more specific?

[oracid]

Load testing with a window D joint.

The load capacity of the tracks of a tank climber have to be evaluate. For this, I had the idea of using nuts placed on the chassis on blue pins.

The window D joint, introduced in my previous video, is a very effective solution.

In this new video you will judge its effectiveness with a load of 1500g to which we must add the 800g of the tank itself, a total of 2300g.

[JJ2]

Very informative video yet again, but man I feel bad for though's XL-motors.

[oracid]

Very informative video yet again, but man I feel bad for though's XL-motors.

Don't worry about XL motors. Look at this : http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=110051

But the lithium battery is sick. I can't anymore modulate the speed.

[oracid]

In this new video I show you how to make a very effective tank track.

In the previous version using a window D joint, it come off easily when the tank was rubbing on the floor.

In this new version, the new thing is that the D joint is folded on the back of each track link, which gives resistance to all tests.

If the D joint double-sided adhesive tape did not stick enough, you must use your own double-sided adhesive tape, applying it only to the back of the track link, as not to create extra thickness on the in front of.

Thank you in advance for your comments.

Edited February 7, 2016 by oracid

[Samer]

Many important stuff to learn.. Thanks.

[oracid]

In this new video, I present the most effective solution, the cheapest and easiest to implement.

My only regret, why I have not thought of it before?

I always use a D joint, but I cut into slices of 1.5 Lego stud. The diameter is perfect and the adherence is great.

At the end of the video, I suggest a store that sells D joint on eBay, for areas in the world this is not usual. Of course, I have no interest with this retailer and there are certainly many others.

Thank you in advance for your comments.

Edited February 14, 2016 by oracid

[Sylvian]

Defenitely the best looking solution aswell...

[Vorkosigan]

Excellent videos and design. Though I think your solutions are very cost effective and probably provide better traction, I have to wonder if you have you considered using part bb704 in all the tank tread holes:

It currently only appears in set 70317 and is prohibitively expensive, but may be a useful in the future.

[MacKaiwer]

I like that solution at test tank climber 5, very clever and effective And those videos and your style, just pure fun, way to go

[oracid]

Excellent videos and design. Though I think your solutions are very cost effective and probably provide better traction, I have to wonder if you have you considered using part bb704 in all the tank tread holes:

It currently only appears in set 70317 and is prohibitively expensive, but may be a useful in the future.

Thank you everybody.

As far as I know, this piece is not yet available. Do you have any news ?

Of course, I will test it. I hope it will not be too expensive.

[Vorkosigan]

Yes it is available, it comes in the Nexo Knights Fortrex which was released Jan 1st and there are several sellers of this piece on bricklink: http://alpha.bricklink.com/pages/clone/catalogitem.page?P=bb704#T=S&C=11&O={"color":11}

However the lowest price at the moment is ~0.27 euros so it is very costly to put 2 or 3 of these in every tread piece. Hopefully as the piece is more widely used it will come down to a reasonable price.

[sonar]

Thank you for your updates on the research. That is an excellent solution!

[oracid]

Thank you all for your support.

Yes it is available, it comes in the Nexo Knights Fortrex which was released Jan 1st and there are several sellers of this piece on bricklink: http://alpha.bricklink.com/pages/clone/catalogitem.page?P=bb704#T=S&C=11&O={"color":11}

However the lowest price at the moment is ~0.27 euros so it is very costly to put 2 or 3 of these in every tread piece. Hopefully as the piece is more widely used it will come down to a reasonable price.

Indeed, it is too expensive for me.

[Joefraser]

I have enjoyed this series from episode 1, you have helped a lot with my current build.

Your method of overcoming the language barrier is perfect, your gestures are informative and entertaining every time - I look forward to further updates :).