RobotRobot: Expand into a practical guide to hardening brushed and brushless motors

2026-10-17T23:22:19Z

Expand into a practical guide to hardening brushed and brushless motors

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 The shocks and forces that combat robots endure during matches are far higher than in almost any other application. Just as you can pad the internals of your robot with foam, or have well-planned strain relief in your wiring, you can harden motors and make them more robust.
-== Reinforcing motor magnets ==
+Most hobby motors are designed for drones, planes and RC cars, where they never get hit. In a robot, the danger isn't usually a direct hit on the motor &ndash; your frame and armor deal with that. It's the huge acceleration when the robot is slammed by a spinner, or when a weapon spinning at thousands of RPM stops dead on impact. Those forces can reach hundreds of g, and they're what hardening protects against.[https://runamok.tech/AskAaron/motors.html] This page covers the common failures and the usual fixes. For choosing motors, see '''[[Motors]]''' and '''[[Insect Class Motors]]'''.
 With brushless motors, a common failure is the cracking of the motor's magnets on impact.
 Robert Cowan has a great video on how to use glass microspheres and epoxy to strengthen the magnets.
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 <br />
-== Replacing motor shafts ==
+Other approaches:
 It's not uncommon to reinforce shafts with an additional bearing or pillow block to resist side impacts on the shaft (radial impact). However, many builders have found that the design of the motor itself is a weakness to be overcome. Here's an example:
 {{#ev:youtube|https://youtu.be/273xHqf4efQ}}

Chklnk: Quality and links check

2024-10-06T03:52:43Z

Quality and links check

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:52, 6 October 2024
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	The forces ~~inside~~ robots during matches are ~~incredibly strong~~. Just as you can pad the internals of your robot with foam, or have well planned ~~out~~ strain ~~releif~~ in your wiring, you can harden ~~your~~ motors and make them more robust.		The shocks and forces that combat robots endure during matches are far higher than in almost any other application. Just as you can pad the internals of your robot with foam, or have well-planned strain relief in your wiring, you can harden motors and make them more robust.

	~~<br>~~
	== Reinforcing motor magnets ==		== Reinforcing motor magnets ==
	With brushless motors, a common failure is the cracking of the motor's magnets on impact.		With brushless motors, a common failure is the cracking of the motor's magnets on impact.
	Robert Cowan has a great video on how to use glass microspheres and epoxy to strengthen the magnets.~~<br>~~		Robert Cowan has a great video on how to use glass microspheres and epoxy to strengthen the magnets.

	{{#ev:youtube\|https://youtu.be/5MFjzSP5Oiw}}		{{#ev:youtube\|https://youtu.be/5MFjzSP5Oiw}}
			Links are provided by Robert.
			*[https://amzn.to/2krib2f Glass Microspheres] <br>
			*[https://amzn.to/2KYWvpB Loctite Heavy Duty Epoxy]
			<br />

	~~[https://amzn~~.to~~/2krib2f Glass Microspheres] <br>~~		== Replacing motor shafts ==
	~~[https~~:~~//amzn.to/2KYWvpB Loctite Heavy Duty Epoxy] <br><br>~~		It's not uncommon to reinforce shafts with an additional bearing or pillow block to resist side impacts on the shaft (radial impact). However, many builders have found that the design of the motor itself is a weakness to be overcome. Here's an example:

	~~== Replacing motor shafts ==~~
	~~<br>~~
	{{#ev:youtube\|https://youtu.be/273xHqf4efQ}}		{{#ev:youtube\|https://youtu.be/273xHqf4efQ}}
	==

User: Started Page - Pointing to 2 how-to videos

2021-10-28T04:29:56Z

Started Page - Pointing to 2 how-to videos

New page

The forces inside robots during matches are incredibly strong. Just as you can pad the internals of your robot with foam, or have well planned out strain releif in your wiring, you can harden your motors and make them more robust.

 
== Reinforcing motor magnets ==
With brushless motors, a common failure is the cracking of the motor's magnets on impact.
Robert Cowan has a great video on how to use glass microspheres and epoxy to strengthen the magnets. 

{{#ev:youtube|https://youtu.be/5MFjzSP5Oiw}}

[https://amzn.to/2krib2f Glass Microspheres] 
[https://amzn.to/2KYWvpB Loctite Heavy Duty Epoxy] 

== Replacing motor shafts ==
 
{{#ev:youtube|https://youtu.be/273xHqf4efQ}}
==

Hardening Motors - Revision history

RobotRobot: Expand into a practical guide to hardening brushed and brushless motors

Chklnk: Quality and links check

User: Started Page - Pointing to 2 how-to videos