Comparing Slingshots and Punchers for Rapid Ball Movement: Seeking Advice

VEX Robotics Competition Discussion VRC > Over Under (23/24)
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Hey everyone,

I’ve been watching a lot of matches this year, and it seems like many teams are opting for either a slingshot or a puncher mechanism to swiftly move the match load ball across the field. As someone still getting the hang of things, I’m curious about the advantages and disadvantages of these two approaches.

From what I’ve observed, slingshots appear to offer quick and dynamic ball movement. On the other hand, punchers seem to have a lot of power behind their shots, which could be great for covering longer distances. But I’m not entirely sure about the specifics and trade-offs of each option.

If anyone has experience with either a slingshot or a puncher, could you please share your insights? It would be awesome to hear about things like accuracy, consistency, reloading speed, and any other factors that might influence the choice between these two mechanisms. Also, are there any common challenges that teams face with either of these setups?

Additionally, if there are any resources out there that you’d recommend to a fellow team member trying to build a slingshot or puncher, please do share! I’m all about learning and improving, so any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance for helping out a fellow enthusiast!

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Slingshots: I’m not quite sure, but I think that they are pretty accurate. (Never thought about using a slingshot.)
Puncher/Launcher: Powerful, can get the ball under the net easily.
Overall you should choose which works better for your Robot’s design and what your team wants.

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Based off of many videos my team has seen slingshots seem to be accurate but lack distance, speed, and take up significantly more space.
A puncher seems to have tons of speed, takes little space, and is variable in terms of high arch and low arch. But they need tons of coordination between the teammates who will be match loading them, and their accuracy might be off.

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I’d say the most common launcher type is the slappapult.
When building one don’t try and achieve the fastest rate of fire possible. It’s more beneficial to use a slower rate of fire that your team can consistently keep up with when match loading. The more consistent you can make your scoring output the better.

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