Asked — Edited

Next Steps - Recommendations?

Hi all,

My EZ-B v4/2 Developer Kit arrived! Huzzah!

So I wanted to ask the community on what you all would recommend my next steps are? Where should I start?

1. What project should I make first? e.g. Should I buy a Wall-E and use that?

2. What tools does everyone recommend I buy? e.g. Glue Gun, Soldering Iron, Precision Screw Drivers etc etc

3. What other recommendations do you all have?

Thanks for your time!

Regards, Simon


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Belgium
#1  

hi simon

a lipo batterie and charger is very good to have.

batt&charger

wally E project is good.depending on the skills you have. also the ez robot boxbot is a good start. solder iron;glue gun ,phillips screwdrivers,is a good start. you learn along the way what you need.

#2  

Hey there Simon and welcome to the community!

Personally I find it very hard to suggest what kind of project you should start with, as we all have different ides and dreams about certain robots to build. The EZ-Robot platform is great in the sense that it allows for people with little or no prior experience to immediately go for rather advanced projects, so really it's just up to you what kind of robot you want to make and then go for it!

My best advice really is that you take one step at a time and don't worry if your project involves doing something you don't currently know how to do. The EZ-platform supports you with all the things that would take years to learn, so all you need to do is be creative and learn the hands-on things as you go. That can be things like soldering, 3D-printing, just general understanding of electronics, it all depends on how ambitious robots you want to build and what your prior experiences are.

About the tools, I'd give similar advice as I did above. The things you listed are all very useful and a good place to start, but get whatever tools you need once you're at that point in the project. When I started out I made a huge list of things and sent for all of them at once, that lead to me getting lots of stuff I didn't necessarily need at that time. Since I hadn't started my build properly yet I couldn't take that into account when sending for all those things, leading me to now have a bunch of things that I might never use, or in the very least they'll sit around for a long time before I need them.

So I guess that's the best advice I can give, take one step at a time, learn new things as you go, get the tools and hardware you need once you actually need them, hehe. Looking forward to see your future creations!

#3  

generally I recommend buying a toy and adding your electronics to an existing body.

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Synthiam
#4  

Yeah! I agree with the toy approach. Of course that’s my goto for building a robot. Bringing a toy to life! Get a soldering iron, hot glue gun and dremmel. That’s all you need :)

#5  

Tools

  1. Dremel or similar rotary tool

  2. hot glue gun high temp

3, soldering iron

4 wire stripers + crimpers

  1. battery power drill + unibits, stepper bits

  2. heat shrink tube kit

  3. micro screw driver set

  4. crimp tool plus crimp set for making connections or adding connectors that can be quick disconnects in the future for things like batteries. heat shrink tube kit

  5. heat gun ( great for shrink wrap and also heating up plastic to bend or flex, also plastic welding)

  6. servo ext cables on hand , always a must. assorted hookup wire kit ( 4-7 colors light gauge, 18-22)

#6  

Thank you all for the advice. I bought a toy robot which I think will be perfect for my first bot. I am looking forward to stripping it down.

Stealing @jstarne1 's list and adding extras.

Tools

1. Dremel or similar rotary tool Got: https://www.amazon.com/Hyper-Tough-AQ85000G-Lithium-Accessories/dp/B075VG9RV7

2. hot glue gun high temp Check!

3, soldering iron Working on it!

4 wire stripers + crimpers Working on it!

5. battery power drill + unibits, stepper bits Working on it!

6. heat shrink tube kit Need to research!

7. micro screw driver set Check!

8. crimp tool plus crimp set for making connections or adding connectors that can be quick disconnects in the future for things like batteries. heat shrink tube kit. Need to research!

9. heat gun ( great for shrink wrap and also heating up plastic to bend or flex, also plastic welding) Need to research!

10. servo ext cables on hand , always a must. assorted hookup wire kit ( 4-7 colors light gauge, 18-22) Need to research!

11. Lipo battery Will use store bought rechargeable until I've "leveled up" my robotics (got a basic bot functionally chasing my girlfriend's cats)

12. Thermoplastic I've used this in the past and I enjoy working with polymer clay. I've got some ideas of what I can do with mold-able plastic!

#7  

@jstarne1 Great list, thank you dude!