build your own bot…

You design it, you build it! We provide all the hardware, materials and training our students need to make their own battle-ready bot. Classes are structured to give students the knowledge and skills they need, when they need it, to build a successful battle bot. We don’t use kits or pre-assembled bots — Students use real tools and their own ingenuity to make their bot come to life.

add weapons & armor…

Will your bot be an offensive attack dog or a defensive dynamo? Students have the freedom to choose their own solutions to learn what works and what doesn’t. We encourage creative problem solving where there is no “right answer.” We believe you learn as much from design failures as from design success so give students the time and freedom to explore their own solutions.

then the battle is on!

This class features a number of opportunities to test your bot and piloting skills against the competition — then we end the class with a massive battle bot tournament! It’s every bot for themselves and anyone can come out as the battle bot champion!

OPEN CLASSES :

Got questions? We have answers!

CAN ANYONE JOIN?

We recommend that students have taken our Electronics Exploration and/or some level of our 3D Printing classes to prepare for this Combat Robot class — but that’s not a requirement and any interested student aged 11 - 17 is encouraged to join.

IS EVERYTHING INCLUDED?

Yep! We provide all the materials needed to make a battle-ready combat bot, including the remote control transmitter, motors, receivers, servos, and any 3D printed parts designed by the student. Everything is provided to build their battle-bot.

CAN WE BRING OUR OWN MOTORS/WEAPONS/ETC.?

Though we do not use kits for this class, we do want to have a level playing field between bots and use the same sets of motors, servos and other parts between bots. However, we certainly encourage creative solutions and are happy to accommodate any requests that don’t give an unfair advantage to any one student. So that 56,000 RPM motor or pocket-sized chainsaw may have to stay at home. :)

DO STUDENTS GET TO KEEP THEIR BATTLE BOTS?

We try to keep the prices of our programs as reasonable as possible by making the purchase of a bot optional for the majority of programs. Check the description of your workshop to see if the bot is included as a Robot Materials Fee. If the bot is not included, it can be purchased for $100 at the end of the workshop.

If you choose to purchase the bot, your student will go home with a working battle bot of their own design, including all motors, servos, microprocessors, receivers and the remote control transmitter needed to operate the bot. We use rechargeable LIPO batteries for the bots at Bolts & Bytes, but those require special chargers to recharge them. We’ll send home all bots with 9V battery conversions so no special charger is required. If you’d like to use the LIPO battery instead, we can recommend an affordable charger.

I WANT IN! HOW CAN I REGISTER?

Check out the links at the top of this page or visit our Current Class Listings page.

SOMETHING WE DIDN’T ANSWER?

We’re happy to help! Just contact us by email or phone.