Wallop was a beetleweight robot built by Team Nightmare which competed at the 2004 BattleBots-sanctioned NPC Charity Open.
The team's first entry for the 3lb category, it was a black and silver, four-wheel drive robot armed with a servo-operated aluminum lifting plow. The plow itself was designed with angled corners to counter powerful horizontal spinners, and with a high enough leverage to potentially lift opponents out of the arena. Another key feature of Wallop's design was a set of neodymium magnet wheels giving it maximum traction on arenas with steel floors. According to Jim Smentowski, this enabled Wallop to also drive upside-down on steel surfaces, as well as in a vertical or sideways orientation on steel walls. The magnets could be exchanged for wheels with 'high-traction' rubber tires for fighting on other arena surfaces.[1]
Wallop performed well in the NPC Charity Open, winning three battles in the main Beetleweight bracket before being defeated by Buzzkill. Upon facing One Fierce Upper-Cut in the Loser's Bracket final, Wallop lost again, finishing the Beetleweight competition third overall with a 3-2 record.
Prior to its BattleBots appearance, Wallop enjoyed a successful debut at the 2004 ROBOlympics, earning the Silver medal in the 3lb combat tournament.[2] This was followed by outright victory at the SacBots-sanctioned Gilroy Bot Gauntlet, just a month before the NPC Charity Open took place.[3]
Following its brief BattleBots run, Wallop was completely rebuilt by Jim Smentowski, receiving a new titanium plow, a narrower all-carbon fiber chassis, and a secondary static wedge protecting the rear wheels. By this time, the robot utilized four B62 gearmotors for drive and lithium polymer batteries delivering a maximum voltage of 22.2V. Like the original, this incarnation immediately proved successful, going undefeated in the 3lb division of the 2004 RFL National Championship. Wallop continued to fight at various North American live events until August 2011, entering retirement following its last appearance at the Gulf Coast Robot Sports 8 event in Bradenton, Florida.[1][4]
Robot History[]
2004 NPC Charity Open[] |
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Wallop vs. One Fierce Weed Wacker Wallop's first match in the NPC Charity Open was against the undercutting bar spinner of One Fierce Weed Wacker. Very little information is available, though Wallop ultimately won to progress to the next round of the main bracket. |
Wallop vs. Nemo Wallop next faced another undercutting spinner in the form of Maim Robotics' Nemo, again emerging victorious. |
Wallop vs. /dev/null Following this, Wallop fought the four-wheeled wedge rammer /dev/null, picking up its third-consecutive win in the main bracket to reach the semi-final. |
Wallop vs. Buzzkill Facing the pneumatic flipper of Buzzkill, Wallop picked up its first loss at this crucial stage, consigning it to the final of the Loser's Bracket. |
Wallop vs. One Fierce Upper-Cut Facing One Fierce Upper-Cut - a vertical spinner from Fierce Robots - Wallop lost its second-consecutive fight at this stage. Thus, it was eliminated by the would-be NPC Charity Open Beetleweight champion, finishing the tournament third overall. |
Results[]
WALLOP | ||
NPC Charity Open 2004 | ||
Beetleweight Championship 3rd place (3-2) | ||
Main bracket | vs. One Fierce Weed Wacker | Won |
Main bracket | vs. Nemo | Won |
Main bracket | vs. /dev/null | Won |
Main bracket, Semi-Final | vs. Buzzkill | Lost |
Loser's Bracket, Final | vs. One Fierce Upper-Cut | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 3
- Losses: 2
Competition | Wins | Losses |
---|---|---|
NPC Charity Open | One Fierce Weed Wacker | Buzzkill |