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paul needham wrote:
>
> But can the actual battlers give the reasons why they think suspension
> is needed ?
>
I think that suspensions have risen to the top of our list of
improvements for a couple of reasons.
First, we've successfully tackled the problem of building reliable track
systems with at least three high-quality options being used now (i.e.,
TTS, Roller Chain, Plastic Conveyor ). It is generally agreed that each
of those alternatives work well and don't need extra attention this winter.
Second, the raw power provided by the EV Warriors, wheel chair motors
and drill motors is capable of moving our heavy vehicles around the
battlefield with good mobility. It looks like we've started to zero in
on the right combination of motors, batteries and gears, and although
we've got some more lessons to learn in those areas, we're fairly
confident that we are in the right ballpark.
Third, we have lots of implementations for speed controls, gun mounting,
rotating, elevating and magazines, each of which are working good enough
to enjoy the battle. Although many people will be improving lots of
these systems over the winter, there probably won't be major changes,
just lots of minor tweaks and improvements.
So, that leaves us with only one major technical area left to explore
... suspensions. Although I originally had a swing arm suspension on
the Tiger, it was removed prior to the first battle with Will, because
it was too flimsy and I didn't want to deal with it at the time. So,
there has never been a suspension used in battle and we don't know if it
will improve life or make things more unreliable.
Yes, we battled all year without suspensions. And yes, we have no
direct evidence that indicates they are absolutely necessary. But, when
you watch and hear a 100+ lb tank going over rough terrain (especially
the hard dirt in the last battle), something primal inside says "that
can't be good for the vehicle". That is, everything on the vehicle is
taking a pretty good pounding and it is only a matter of time before we
see some major failures. Shock mounting the internal systems helps them
out, but the drive systems are taking some pretty good shocks when
100lbs slams down on the other side of a 4-6" obstacle or hits a rut
moving at full speed. (Will and I noticed last night that the aluminum
support brackets holding the axles on the Tiger are not 90 degrees
anymore ... evidence of some heavy abuse.)
Few battlers have subjected their vehicles to the types of abuse that
we've seen in the battles (including me) and I think we are all thinking
that we've simply been lucky up until now. Until you can "confidently"
drive your tank repeatedly over a 4" obstacle at full speed, your job is
not done. Currently, I think twice before taking such a jolt with the
Tiger and that's not a good thing during a battle.
In summary, no hard evidence yet that suspensions are needed or that
they will increase reliability ... but our gut says "let's give them a try".
Frank P.