Today August 21, 2017, we were treated to about 80% solar eclipse. In spite of the smoke, the weather cooperated so we couldn't miss this event. Pinhole projector boxes were made out of cereal and shipping boxes: Fancy ones were mounted onto a tripod, and a phone camera recording a time lapse video was taped to […]
New GMPW Wheels!
Dave Hrynkiw
June 21, 2007
No more rubber band tires for us! We've invested in getting our very own wheels made for us, with molded-on thermoplastic rubber wheels!
These wheels are slightly larger in diameter than the old style, measuring 69.2mm (2.72") diameter and 7.65mm (0.30") wide. Ah, but how good are they? They're definitely better than the old style! We know from head-to-head tests that these have better traction than the rubber-band tires (definitive numbers are coming...). We've also spun them up on our lathe to see how true the mold process is, and they're quite true - no visible wobbling!
A new enhancement is a built-in opto-reflector 32-step pattern! Built to be bolt-on compatible with the Wheel-Watcher series of wheel-encoders, all you have to do is paint the groove white (for dark plastic wheels), and scrape away the raised surfaces to generate a sharp, accurate 32-stripe pattern!
Did we mention that there was no increase in price for all these enhancements too?
MORE POSTS
New Motor!
We've been very fortunate to be offered a limited supply of the amazing Portescap MU915L gear motor. Sound familiar? They should - they're the motivators for the legendary "Walkman" by Mark Tilden. We don't have a huge number of these, so if you're interested, order soon! (Limit 5 per customer)
Transistor turns 50!
Well, 50 years ago today, the Regency TR-1 transistor radio was unleashed on the masses. As the first transistor-based radio on the market, it made a splash. And here we are, 50 years later, making robots out of the same technology. Regenchy TR-1, Solarbotics salutes you!
Marble Catapult, New Product
Check. This. Out. Don from Ontario sent this video our way, of a marble catapult machine he made that uses the GM18 30:1 Mini Metal Gearmotor. He goes into great detail on the mechanics and engineering, and the action starts around the 3:37 mark. We can't believe how intricate the design is, and can't even […]
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Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.