Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Cut Right Foot Shell for Drivetrain, Countersunk Screws in Motor Mounts, Battery Box Setback

Today I cut the right foot shell to accommodate the drivetrain.



On Mike's advice, I countersunk some new screws into the motor mounts, to allow more breathing room for the gear to spin.



The good news: The right foot shell surgery was a success. The bad news: The right battery box will not conceal the entire motor. On the left foot, this was not a problem, the end of the motor points toward the back. On this right foot, the end of the motor points to the front, exactly where the battery harnesses go. There really isn't enough room to slide the battery box forward, and even if I did, it would look funny compared to the left foot.

I have already set Plan A into motion, I have sent an e-mail to Craig Smith begging to get on a list for a set of longer battery boxes. I am formulating Plans B and C in my head now, but they are not attractive (cut & extend, or scratch-build).

Dang, I was so close.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

damn, so near!

Anonymous said...

I think you can move the mounting plate for the motor further to the rear to adjust the motor position.

It wouldn't involve as much work as a new batt box, unless I'm missing part of the picture...

Mike Senna

Victor Franco said...

I thought about that, but the 22-tooth gear would move with it, and there's no more room to move that closer to the rear axle, unless I were to relocate the motor mount bracket so that it stays in the same place relative to the rear axle. Plus I'd have to redrill the channels perfectly to move the mounting plate back. It may be me overworrying again, but it seems like a lot of precision redrilling would be required, at the risk of ruining the drivetrain.

Whenever we disagree, your track record is 100% and mine is 0%, so I'm certainly not saying you are wrong or this is a bad idea. But, if by some miracle Craig can put me on the short list for longer battery boxes, I'll take them. We'll see.

-Victor

Victor Franco said...

I wrote:
"...unless I were to relocate the motor mount bracket so that it stays in the same place relative to the rear axle."

That makes no sense, then the motor wouldn't move, and I'd still have the same problem.

Anonymous said...

Let me know what Craig says. I do have some extra pieces you can use to extend the box.

Don't worry, it is a detail item, not critical for installing the RC!

Mike Senna

Victor Franco said...

Yeah, I think we are still on schedule for the RC. I still need to drill the center foot at 0.4" from the top like you said, but I'm stalling on that while I work up the gumption.