Time for change is what I've been hearing a lot of on the election coverage today after the landslide victory for Democrats. Being very happy with the election results, I considered the current robot I was working on. Time for change ....
After installing the shoulder pads yesterday, it was apparent that the bars the pad were on would have to be moved up about 2-3 inches because of the padding. And while trying it on, I thought it was a pretty snug wiggle to get my arms out of the beast. So changing my original plans seemed appropriate. Better now than down the road. Time for change.
First, I'm going to squish the robot to give it the oblong look instead of round. This was advised by another builder. It will also give my arms a little more room to move around inside the robot. Plus, it will get my head closer to the torso which will be better for seeing where I'm going.
It's not easy squishing a sonotube. I laid heavy stuff on it but it only bent slightly. I have some large threaded rod which I will use with some 1 x 4's and bolts to crank down on the sonotube and let it sit for a few days squished about 5-6 inches. After it loosens up and reforms (hopefully) I'll mount some more of those bars that I used for the should support. Since they're adjustable and bolted to the sonotube, they should act to hold the tube's shape after I remove the squishing bolts.
Change is good. When I build robots, I never completely stick to a plan. I keep the plan loose and am never afraid to admit when my ideas don't work. Better to change and improve than continue down a wrong path. And I never thought building a Robot and politics could have so much in common.
It's a good day today.
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