July 31, 2007
We've
moved to a new house, and the tank now lives in the garage (new shop is
new smaller shop). The wood pillow blocks failed, so I replaced
them with aluminum, and the old muffler scheme was roasting the
battery, so I installed a new one. Also, I started making
additional body panels. See the updates.
April 17, 2007
The
steel tubes that the tank rode on failed, so I replaced them with solid
3/4" steel bar. I found a source other than Lowes, so the
mounting scheme is much simpler. See the suspension page.
Mar 25, 2007
I've
added an antenna mast and several EMC fixes to the motor controller and
remote control receiver. The range is now much greater.
Mar 15, 2007
The motor cooling scheme I came up with was a bust, so I'm trying plan 'B'. See the D-Pack page.
Dec
29, 2006
The
tank has
been out several times now w/o any kind of failure. Looks
like
I'll have to start bragging more! The turret and drive gears
have
been painted, and my son is now asking to play with the tank daily.
Even my wife is showing an interest - something is going on
but
I'm not bright enough to figure it out...
I've received some tank videos from my friend (his camera was in the
shop for repairs, hence the delay). The files are huge, so
when I
figure out how to chop them up I'll post them.
The fans for the motors are showing a benefit, but I need more airflow.
Time to do some experiments to see if I can up the air
pressure.
Dec
25, 2006
The
kids are in
their rooms playing with their new toys, and I had some time to update
this site. I've made some mods to the motors, see the D-Pack
page.
Nov 20, 2006
Added
page describing the D-Pack electric motor.
Nov
4, 2006
The
controller worked flawlessly, able to
handle stalls and all other conditions without complaint. The
heat sinks must have been good medicine because the circuit breakers
never opened.
Nov
3, 2006
The
motor
controller has been repaired and reinstalled. The tank is
able to
move back and forth in the shop, ready for tomorrow's fun. A
friend is bringing over his son and the boys, of all ages, will be
playing with the tank. He has a digital camcorder so I'll be
able
to post video in a few days.
Oct
16, 2006
I
received the radio control and the tank had its maiden run!
For
20 or 30 minutes my son and youngest daughter rode around the back and
front yard of our property having a great time. The tank
performed better than expected, with plenty of power. With my
son
aboard the tank could easily do in-place 360's on asphalt and grass
(not too much of that though, the turf really taking damage).
Our
side yard has a steep hill which the tank had no problem with, and all
the while the engine never bogged down.
But good things do come to an end. While starting from a
stop,
one track jammed, stalling the motor, and instead of backing up to free
it, I added juice only to fry the motor controller. See the
motor
control section for more info. I have received replacement
parts
but have not completed repairs. A minor setback that I hope
to
overcome in the next week.
