Given that VEX does not sell high-strength bar locks, how can I attach a high-strength axle to a channel for my lift? I tried using gears but it promptly turned them into little pac-men. (See picture) I also tried punching a square hole in a channel but the steel is not strong enough to hold up to the torque and it just rounds out.
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High-strength lock bars are available from Robosource.net.
Reinforcing the gear with a HS lock bar on each side will go a long way to eliminating pac-men!
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Given that they are made from straps, would that not be similar to what I have already tried? I suppose I could use the two in combination though.
They are potentially the same, but the hole is precision broached to exactly fit the HS bar. Many teams put one or two on each side of a gear for reinforcement. It “holds the gear together” so it doesn’t break, therefore the bearing surface of the gear’s hole helps hold the load as well, making a really strong assembly,
Another alternative is using a High Strength 60t gear and cutting it in such a way that it may fit into a channel (assuming the previous 36t lockbar setup was used to power a lift of sorts). This will fare better compared to just bolting a channel to a 36t gear as the 60t is wider in size and having it fit into a channel will allow the arm to prevent breaking the gear.
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