Tank Project

[tate0301]

Here is my latest project. I have a very nice off road go cart sitting at home and I thought it would be a shame not to turn it into a tank. The plan is to; weld steel barstock onto the frame making the frame slightly larger, stronger, and easier to apply the outer shell to. Then I will sheath the frame in foam pipe insulation(to reduce squeaks and rattles, and to eliminate any gaps between the shell and the frame), and build the outer shell out of either plywood or fiberglass. For the wndows I will use plexiglass with netting over it. A portion of the plexiglass will be hinged to fold down leaving only net. So when someone hoses my plexiglass winsheild, and I lose all my visibility I simply flip down the hinged portion and I can see! The hinged portion will be closed most of the time so that paint dosen't fly into the cab. The roof will be built so that two opposing halves of the roof flip up to a vertical position. Both halves will be plexiglass with netting attatched so that when upright the netting will stretch tight creating a completely enclosed area with portholes to fire from. The roof will fold flat when not in use. The whole front will be hinged at the top to get in and out of the tank. I will mount two main guns infront of the passenger/gunner seat. The guns will probably be two cheaper electros wired to shoot in tandem. The rocket launcher will be mounted above the main gun close to the ceiling. I will also put portholes on the sides and one in front of the driver.I also want to get some bigger mud tires for better traction. This go cart can go up to 40 mph so I am going to have to adjust the gas pedal so that it bottoms-out at a slower speed. I can go full speed on the tank on tank battles though. I'll be running circles around the opposition. Anyway I hope to have it ready by spring. This is my first tank so any and all tips are appretiated. Tell me what you think!

[Brain]

A couple of points to help. You can never go more than walking speed at any time on the playing fields. Tank versus tank battles are not an exception.
You will need a way to limit its speed to a constant walking speed.
As for the body, plywood will be heavy but you can get some inexpensive alternatives from Lowes or Home depot. Also plexiglass breaks VERY easily so get the thickest that they make.
Good luck!

[spyderman84]

dude i can't wait to see that thing in action! lol sounds like its gonna give the bug a run for its money!

[tate0301]

Originally Posted by Brain

A couple of points to help. You can never go more than walking speed at any time on the playing fields. Tank versus tank battles are not an exception.
You will need a way to limit its speed to a constant walking speed.
As for the body, plywood will be heavy but you can get some inexpensive alternatives from Lowes or Home depot. Also plexiglass breaks VERY easily so get the thickest that they make.
Good luck!

I talked to Robert from Bearclaw and he seemed to think that you can go as fast as you want when it's just tank on tank. I can easily adjust the speed by calibrating the gas pedal to hit the floor at walking speed. Thanks for the tips. I'm sure I'll be posting a lot of questions as I work on it.

[tate0301]

Originally Posted by spyderman84

dude i can't wait to see that thing in action! lol sounds like its gonna give the bug a run for its money!

yeah man, I can't wait to try it out. I won't be driving it all the time cause I still like ground pounding though.

[JesterTLS]

BearClaw does a tank only scenario dont they??? If that is the case, I can see the reason for the exception. I would still take it easy on the horses.

[tate0301]

Originally Posted by JesterTLS

BearClaw does a tank only scenario dont they??? If that is the case, I can see the reason for the exception. I would still take it easy on the horses.

If anyone has a used JCS launcher for the tank, I'm interested

[MrWizard]

Originally Posted by JesterTLS

BearClaw does a tank only scenario dont they??? If that is the case, I can see the reason for the exception. I would still take it easy on the horses.

Tank on tank battles with no crunchies. Sure....go as fast as you want if you think you can shoot at speed. Walking speed on the field with kids and big men,lol.

[Brain]

I was told at the last BC event by Ben to go no faster than walking speed during the tank only battle.

[JesterTLS]

10-4 I have got to get up to BC. Hear its pretty sweet.