Hi All, I’m new here and looking at building a beetle weight. I’ve a working knowledge of what I need to get something moving, am currently in the ‘scrawl design ideas’ phase.
What do you think is the best weapon for a first time builder to try? Making that decision obviously impacts the design so need to make my mind up!
The best first weapon is probably none!
Glib but pretty true. There is absolutely no shame in running a weaponless wedge or ram bot to start off with. I had about an 8 year gap building beetles and my first one coming back was weaponless and I had a great stress free time with it and it set me up for better understanding what I wanted and what the class required weapons wise.
Other than that it’s probably going to be a servo powered lifter for pure simplicity. Standard size servos can come phenomenally powerful these days and there are high voltage options that will let you run on 12v so they tag straight off main voltage. You could also look at motor driven ones - check out some of the build diaries here for inspiration!
Another perspective and one I’m all for is this. You tell us what you really want to build (because I’m sure deep down you have some inkling) and we can help you with the most intuitive, relevant and cost effective way to move forward.
There you go, three completely conflicting paragraphs not making your decision any easier. Welcome to the forum!
Nah skip weaponless push bots.
Servo powered lifter is A* first project imho.
Far more interesting but still achievable. Can be done with simple garage type tools, drill, hacksaw (jigsaw is better tho)
Check the BBB parts list guide. That won’t steer you wrong. Also snappy build video on YouTube is a great intro into building and well worth a watch
Cheers for these responses! That video’s a great one for making the process seem less scary.
I’ll look at some designs with a lifter in mind. I’d be tempted to try a front hinged one, possibly. “Direstorm” is too good a name to pass up on.
Small update: Been shredding a lot of cardboard building some sample designs out. We’re going for it. Front hinging lifter powered by a servo. Hopefully a fun introduction. Will b sure to document everything along the way!
Sounds excellent, best of luck with the build 
Do check out our full beetle guide here for how you’ll want to wire up etc!
Have bought everything I’m going to need - just need a steer on charging equipment for the Lipo. I’ve bought an 850mAh battery with a JST-XH plug. What should I be getting?
Hi Josh,
The JST-XH is just the balance plug so you’ll need to make sure you have an adaptor to use with the connector that is on the main battery leads (normally deans, XT30, XT60)
I don’t know how much you know about lipo batteries and charging so I won’t tell you how to suck eggs and just skip to recommendations.
There are an awful lot of chargers on the market for RC batteries and a surprising amount are just rebadged versions of the same sorts of things with odd little gimmicks and casings along the way. For something simple, intuitive I would look at an Imax b6. They’ve been around a while but I’ve never had any problems or found anything it couldn’t do for robot purposes.
Make sure you pick up a lipo charging sack or bag too! You should use one for peace of mind when charging in the home but they are essential for charging batteries at events too.
It’s my first time working with lipos so went on a bit of a deep dive there and feel like I’ve caught up. Will pick one of these up. Had already ordered a charging bag, don’t fancy fire very much.
Thanks a lot for the help and the rec. Haven’t even turned a screw yet and got plenty of help from you guys!