DalaGStanator's Customs, Mods and Experiments

Made a second (technically third) version using the black gearbox I'd normally use for drive, at the same width and length for the base. However, the motor couldn't be placed behind the tank due to the driveshaft's angle. Otherwise, the gearbox would have to be modded to accept a motor from the left or right. Like a drill chuck, a specific tube-ended gear from a clock mech was used to hold the shaft with the worm gear. While one end was the right diameter, the other needed some more glue but still made it wobble a bit. Besides that, it was stable enough that it didn't have to be fixed to the tank.



Speaking of the tanks, my idea to use the other one for power instead of a truck/coach worked surprisingly well with a 2x AAA; perhaps even with a drive motor, though it (currently) only seems like it might fit. One thing that wouldn't be easy to do in Plarail scale. For access, it would likely have a panel that could be unscrewed/taped to the side. The tank under the shaft was modelled after the pack for consistency.



Now that it had enough torque and a lower speed, a rough version of the jib was also made and glued onto the gear to see how it performed. It could do a whole 360° under its own power, though it had to be pressed against the shaft to stay engaged. As a result of the (very) mild wobble, it ended up stopping for like a millisecond after each turn before starting again. Barely noticeable in real time, so not as jerky as it may sound. One minor advantage was the ability to manually move/reset the jib if needed.