Product Review: Spektrum DX5e 2.4 GHz Transmitter
May 2012, Page 31
The 2.4 GHz spread spectrum transmitters and receivers have transformed the R/C market.

PARTS IS PARTS: Product Review
May 2012, Page 30
Product Review: Turnigy Simplex 1 - 4 Cell LiPo/ LiFe AC/DC Charger.

EVENT REPORT: “Beware the Hobby that Eats” (Benjamin Franklin): Franklin Institute 2011
February 2012, Page 31
The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, PA (www2.fi.edu) was host to the Northeast Robotics Club’s (www.nerc.us) 5th Autumn Event last year on October 15th.

DRILL BABY, DRILL. OR, THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY
December 2011, Page 35
For about a decade or more, it has been possible to get cheap cordless drills from Harbor Freight (www.harborfreight.com).

PARTS IS PARTS: Fine-Tuning a Brushless Electronic Speed Controller
November 2011, Page 30
My 12 lb Hobbyweight bar spinner Surgical Strike had a problem at the last couple of events...

EVENT REPORT: Clash of the Bots 2 by Pete Smith
October 2011, Page 32
The Schiele Museum (www.schielemuseum.org) in Gastonia, NC held their second “Clash of the Bots” open day on Saturday, July 23rd.

End Of The Alkalines
October 2011, Page 41
Iwrote an article about programming cheap 2.4 GHz HK-T6A transmitters that appeared in the January’11 issue of SERVO. In that, I commented on how it’s probably a good idea to convert from the standard AA alkaline batteries to rechargeable batteries.

BUILD REPORT: A Team Building Exercise
October 2011, Page 29
My Kitbots bot hockey team “Team Scotch Pies” had competed in one event and taken part in a couple of demonstrations, but the bots were retasked for a summer camp and were less than ideal.

BUILD REPORT: Trilobite — a Tough Beetleweight Brick/Wedge
October 2011, Page 26
Ihave long held the opinion that a good wedge/brick is the best type of bot for most beginners in the sport.

BUILD REPORT: Building a Better Beatle Beater Bar — Part 2
August 2011, Page 28
This month, I will show how to create the axle, drive pulley, and flanges.

EVENT REPORT: Robot Rumble
July 2011, Page 32
The Museum of Life and Science in Durham, NC held its fourth annual “Robot Rumble” on Saturday April 16, 2011.

BUILD REPORT: Building a Better Beatle Beater Bar – Part 1
July 2011, Page 30
A higher rotational speed gives a bigger hit but it also reduces the bite.

The Reality of TV
June 2011, Page 32
An Opinion Piece by Pete Smith

EVENT REPORT: Motorama 2011
May 2011, Page 31
Each February, the Northeast Robotics Club (www.nerc.us) hosts their biggest competition of the year as part of the Motorama motorsports extravaganza and custom car show (www.motoramaevents.com) in Harrisburg, PA.

MANUFACTURING: Hobbyweight Weapon Blade and Hub
March 2011, Page 32
Hobbyweight Weapon Blade and Hub

Affordable 2.4 GHz
January 2011, Page 23
The principal radio frequency for many years in USA combat robotics was 75 MHz PCM.

EVENT REPORT: Franklin Institute 2010 – Rise of the Melty Brains!
December 2010, Page 34
The Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia and NERC (www.nerc.us) presented their fourth annual robot event on Saturday, October 9, ‘10.

EVENT REPORT: Clash of the Bots — Schiele Museum 2010
November 2010, Page 33
Walk in the front door of the Schiele Museum (www.schielemuseum.org) in Gastonia, NC and the first thing you see is a full size replica of the skeleton of a T-Rex!

PARTS IS PARTS: O-Ring Wheels for Ants
October 2010, Page 33
Antweight (<1lb) combat robots use a variety of different drive motors and finding small, light, and robust wheels for them can be a problem.

BUILD REPORT: Bigger Better Beetle Blade
August 2010, Page 28
The first blade I had created for our 3 lb beetleweight, Pure Dead Brilliant, had been done in a big hurry to meet weight for its first competition.

EVENT REPORT: Power Play! Robot Rumble 2010
July 2010, Page 31
The Museum of Life and Science, in Durham, NC, hosts this one day event each spring. Last year, three local teams got together to put on a “show and tell” about combat robotics as part of the museum’s much bigger robotthemed event.

PARTS IS PARTS: Data Points: Fine-Tune Your Bot’s Performance
June 2010, Page 28
Knowing exactly how well your bot performs in a particular configuration would be very useful ... like, exactly how fast is the blade turning? What current is the weapon motor drawing at start-up and at cruise? How much does the battery voltage sag at full power?

BUILD REPORT: Reversing the Trend
May 2010, Page 26
I recently completed our first drum bot — Weta, God of Ugly Things. And while it is a pretty conventional design, it does have one feature rarely seen in bots of this type: The drum is reversible, so it can spin in either direction.

How to Prepare For - and Maybe Even Win - a Robot Competition
May 2010, Page 42
Get some insights and helpful tips from a veteran of robot combat.

Pattern Routing of Plastic Parts
March 2010, Page 29
The easy way to do these parts is to have them watercut by a company like Team Whyachi (www.teamwhyachi.com), but if you need parts quickly and your time is cheap, then with a little careful design you can route the same parts using just a router and a pattern.

No Gain Without Pain - Franklin Institute 2009
January 2010, Page 31
The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, PA (www2.fi.edu) holds their “World Space Week” each autumn and hosted the Northeast Robotics Club’s (www .nerc.us) big autumn competition on Saturday, October 3rd.

Increasing The Speed And Power Of A Combat Robot
November 2009, Page 26
I wrote an article for the November ‘06 issue of SERVO describing how to convert a cheap cordless drill into a drive motor for a smaller robot.

Wheels For Drills
September 2009, Page 31
Iwrote an article for the November ‘06 issue of SERVO that outlined how to convert the motors and gearboxes from cheap cordless drills for use as the drivetrain in smaller combat robots.

Mounting Weapons: Blades and Pullys
August 2009, Page 25
Alot of builders dream of creating a bot with an active weapon but are put off by the apparent complexity. How do you attach a blade to the axle?

A Color To Dye For
July 2009, Page 27
UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) polyethylene is an increasingly popular plastic for use in robotics in general, and combat robotics in particular.

Ask Mr. Roboto | March 2008
Column: Ask Mr. Roboto
March 2008, Page 20
Your Problems Solved Here.

The Appliance of Science | The First Annual Franklin Institue Event
April 2008, Page 64
The Northeast Robotics Club (www.nerc.us) has held a very successful event every February in Harrisburg, PA and this year, they partnered with the Franklin Institute Science Museum (www2.fi.edu) to add a second major event. The Institute is a modern, hands-on type of museum situated in the center of Philadelphia. It houses many large exhibits in a bright modern building which also includes an IMAX cinema. It is, in many ways, an ideal venue for a robotic combat event with a regular audience ...

Judgement Day
Column: Appetizer
September 2008, Page 76
I have competed in many robotic combat events and taught classes about the basics of that part of the hobby, but I have never judged any sort of competition. It was with a little trepidation then that I accepted a request to be a judge at a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Regional Championship held at the NC A & T State University in Greensboro, NC...