BristleBots Workshop

Preparing for a Bristlebots Workshop

Note, that the Amazon links have my affiliate code, and by buying through them, you help support my work (and pay the same as if you didn’t!)

The motors are a little trickier. They vary greatly in quality and price (and you can’t tell by price.) If you have time I find it’s good to order a few from someone, and then if they are good, order a bunch. If you can get some with longer leads, it makes them much easier to work with. If the voltage range is 1.5 -3V they will be more energetic than 3-4.5V

A good search term is “flat vibrating motor 3v”

Here’s an example of the “pancake” style motor. They range in price from $.40  to >$2.00

pancake motors

I also like to add color changing LED’s for eyes. They are pretty cheap if you buy them in quantities of 100 or more on ebay. Note that these are polarized components, unlike the motors, they won’t work if you put them on the battery backward. The long lead goes on the positive side of the battery.

Note that if you need kits fast, they can be had for about $3 each (not including shipping) with Maker Shed’s  BrushBot Party Pack

 Tools

Scissors for cutting the foam tape (you probably already have these!)

Diagonal cutters for chopping the heads off the toothbrushes. Bigger cutters make the job easier.

Wire Strippers are needed to expose more of the wire from the motors for taping to the battery. The tricky thing is that most wire strippers only go down to 22 gauge, and you need 32 gauge.