Hi from Western Australia

@davidmcsweeney

Welcome... you forgot to add the: "howzit going" 😉

G'day Mate, or maybe from my neck of the woods it would be more like Howdy Y'all.  And here in Georgia (USA) it's in the low 30's (Fahrenheit).  Warmer weather still a month or two away.

Welcome to the forum!  DB1 was what really got me started with Bill's videos and now the forum.  My rendition of DB1 has been dubbed with the name Willy Nilly by my bride (of 55 years!).  And while there may be more than I'm aware of here on the forum that have DB1 in different stages of coming to life, the one other that I'm aware of that has made the most progress is @huckohio.  And a relatively new member that I just can't seem to recall his screen name has made quite a bit of progress on his DB1 assembly of late.

And we are all looking forward for some renewed episodes from Bill on DB1.  As well as all the goodies he has headed our way.

Again, Welcome to the forum and I'm looking forward to getting to know you better!

@codecage

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the post and the welcome. I've already tried sourcing the Actobotics materials for the frame (to start with). There is a local supplier but they seem to be out of stock of most items. Do you know of a good supplier in the USA that will ship to Australia (as long as the cost not too prohibitive)?

Anyway, I look forward to being in touch with you and others who are obviously a lot more advanced in building a robot. I'll keep in touch as I go along.

Cheers,

David

@frogandtoad

LoL! Sounds like too much hard work!!! 😆 😆 😆 

@davidmcsweeney

Got all my Actobotics hardware from ServoCity and everything was in stock when I first started ordering parts, so I didn't have a reason to look for a second source.  And I'm afraid I know nothing about shipping charges to AU, but can only imagine that they might be expensive.  My son made a trip to AU a few years ago and If I knew he was getting ready to return, I could always ask him to put a few stowaways in his luggage! 🤣 

I do know the geared motors that Bill was using in the earlier videos on DB1 are no longer available, but Mike (huckohio) has since used the latest geared motor, but the mounting of them are slightly different than that of the earlier model motors.

Good luck in your endeavors.

I think I just saw a snowflake, I better rush to the grocery store to see if I can get the last gallon of milk and loaf of bread!  I don't know about what happens where you live, but around here if the word "snow" is mentioned, you better not be in need of milk or bread, because it will all be gone before you can get to the store. 😎 

@codecage

Thanks Steve,

If my local supplier can't help then I will contact ServoCity. I'm just waiting to hear back from them.

Snowflake - there's more chance of seeing a snowflake in hell than in Western Australia. 20 years ago I lived and worked in Europe for a couple of years (Germany and then Scotland) so I am VERY familiar with snow; just not here. I remember returning to Australia and it was warmer here in winter than it was in summer in Scotland. 😎 

Cheers,

David

Hi David,

I am living in Perth close Westminster if you want make some project togheter let me know.

Bye 😉

@robby

Hi Robby,

I live out of town in Chittering (north of Perth). I know where Westminster is and sometimes come down that way.

What are your interests in terms of electronics and what projects are you working on (or have built in the past)? If we have some common interests perhaps collaborating may be a great idea.

You could email me directly at kombidad@protonmail.com if you like.

Cheers,

David

Hi David, Bobby and Steve,

I also live in WA - South Fremantle. Keen to collaborate or at least keep in touch with what you are up to, and share any  information re sourcing parts.

There is an online shop based here in Perth which appears/claims to stock everything on the electronics side.

On the hardware side I was looking though what shops on Alibaba had available re Aluminium extrusions - e.g. 80/20 etc.

Good to know there are some locals on this site, though everyone is always friendly and helpful.

@codecage Steve, Re snow, yes, I have lived in Alabama and even there I dealt with snow (and the 'excitement' of black ice) plus also did a stint in Germany. I think I once saw some snow on bluff knoll in the Stirling Ranges in WA but otherwise David is 99.99% about seeing snow in this state.

My emails is michael-shea@live.com if any of you want to drop me a line. In the meantime I will look up that local online supplier located here. I intended to ask to go out and meet them sometime. 

Cheers,
Mike

@mks3945

Hi Mike,

Great to hear from you. (I'll also email you in a bit.)

You're right about Bluff Knowle - I've heard of it snowing there but haven't seen it myself.

The one supplier of robotics gear that I found in Perth is https://www.robotgear.com.au/. They seem to be strictly online and have not posted any physical location information on their website (probably a small operator running from home). Most of the Actobotics gear is shown as "Supplier out of stock"). I emailed them on Friday night so hopefully will get an answer early in the week.

I use Altronics and/or Jaycar for many electronic components and have bought from RS Components as well. RS Components are much bigger while the first two tend to concentrate on hobbyist gear. I'd be interested if you know of any other Australian suppliers for robotics gear (Actobotics, drive motors, etc).

Love to collaborate if we can find some common project(s). I've just posted a new project I am planning entitled "Water Distillation Project". I've started the design process today so any thoughts you may have on this are always welcome. I also want to build a robot down the track which is the initial reason I joined this site. Seems like there are a lot of interesting things to do.

Cheers,

David

@davidmcsweeney, @mks3945

Took me a second or two, but finally came to the realization that the WA you were referring to was Western Australia!  In the US we use a two letter abbreviation for all of our states, and the two letters "WA" here stands for Washington,  The state of Washington.  And our capital, where those atrocious and quite embarrassing riots happen last Wednesday, Washington DC (DC is the abbreviation for the District of Columbia) is just referred to as "DC," although it isn't even technically a state, yet that is, but there is talk of it becoming an official state. I live just outside of Atlanta in GA (Georgia).  And Mike, since he once lived in Alabama (AL), knows exactly where that is.  I live just outside the city limits of the village of Stone Mountain, not to be confused with the large state park of the same name right next door.

And that snowflake I thought I saw, it was either the only one or my vivid imagination,  So no "black ice" to deal with.  But there was some snow in the higher elevations in North Georgia.

For both of you, the forum has a feature referred to as a PM (Private Message) that once you've posted at least 10 times that you can send a PM to another member (that has posted at least 10 times as well) so you can share information that maybe you might not want to share with the world.  Such as phone numbers, actual addresses since you do live in somewhat close proximity to each other, email addresses (which you have already shared with everyone 😀), or other things that might not necessarily need to be shared in a public post.

David, it looks like you've reached the 10 post threshold already, but Mike you have a little ways to go.  Get busy! 🤣 

And David, that water distillation project looks very interesting, and if your planning document is any indication, then I think it is going to be a big success.  And as for two batteries, well with all the sun you guys have that might be OK, but here with rain and clouds way more often I would probably go for two or maybe even more in parallel to be able to supply the current needed over a longer time period.

G'day Mates! 

@codecage

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your post. Yes, we are in "WA" not "WA" - very confusing as you pointed out. We are probably one of the furthest points from you on the earth. I was in the USA a couple of times in 2018 and it was a VERY long flight (or series of flights).

Thanks for your encouraging remarks about my water distillation project. I am going to build and test the actual physical components first (the distillation unit itself) before I automate it with electronics. I'll keep posting my progress on the forum regardless.

Well, it's time for bed over here. I know I'm 15 or 16 hours ahead of California so you can figure out the time difference for yourself from that. You're probably still in the morning.

Have a great day

David

@codecage

By the way, Steve, are you able to look at my circuit design (see a later post in my project) and questions and offer some suggestions? You sound like you know what you're talking about. I'm strong on the planning and software side of things but very much a novice on the electronics.

Cheers

Are you referring to the charge controller circuitry?  I'll have to watch the video that accompanied that post and get back to you.

I have a 12V 75W solar panel that I use from time to time to power some radio gear, but that uses a commercial charge controller.  I'll have to take a look at what you are referring to a little more closely.  I'm also assuming you would be using a somewhat larger current capable panel than the one I have.