Sawppy the Rover is a project done out of love of our interplanetary robotic explorers Curiosity and Perseverance. Sawppy's design and instructions for construction are shared with other rover lovers free of charge under the permissive MIT license.
Some very generous people have offered to donate to help the project. I have declined offers of direct donation, but I have set up an Amazon Affiliates account based on suggestion. If an aspiring rover builder buys components from Amazon (USA) using the links below, they will pay the same price but Amazon will send a (very small) percentage of the sale to me as sales commission. Here is the boilerplate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
I have other links to Amazon products scattered throughout Sawppy documentation, but they are generic links that do not earn commission. This is the only page with affiliate links.
| Name | Specific | Generic | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mechanical | |||
| LX-16A Bundle | Hiwonder | Each bundle includes 5 servos and 1 BusLinker. A rover needs 10 servos and 1 BusLinker. | |
| LX-16A | Hiwonder | Individual replacements, or if bundle is not available. | |
| BusLinker | TTL Board | Only one needed per rover. Do not need to buy separately if buying LX-16A bundle. | |
| Turnbuckle | Hobbypark | Eyes at end should fit M3 fasteners | |
| Bearings | SACKORANGE | 608 | Inexpensive generics are fine |
| M3 Heat Set Inserts | Initeq | 3D printed parts are sized to this outer diameter | |
| Cable sleeve | Techflex | Wire management | |
| Electronics and Communication | |||
| Raspberry Pi | Pi 3 Model B | Raspberry Pi | 3B+ now available, Pi 4 should also work |
| microSD Card | Sandisk Extreme 32GB | For Raspberry Pi | |
| Wireless Router | Asus RT-AC1200 | (Optional) Easier to find a channel on 5GHz WiFi in crowded places. | |
| Arduino Nano | ELEGOO | Other Clones | (Optional) backup wired control |
| Joystick module | WMYCONGCONG | (Optional) backup wired control | |
| Power System | |||
| Battery | Floureon | 2S LiPo | Typically sold for remote control cars/boats/aircraft. |
| Battery Connector | Adoreco | Deans T Plug | Commodity plug |
| Inline Fuse Holder | Nilight | Holds automotive style blade fuses | |
| Fuse Assortment | BESTTOYHOME | 5A fuse allows normal operations while protecting against abuse | |
| 5V Regulator | Qunqi | MP1584EN | Converts raw battery power to 5V for Raspberry Pi |
| Battery Charger | Tenergy TB6-B | LiPo Charger | Cell balancing capability preferred |
| Power Switch | Conwork SPST | (Optional) This one fits in my power panel | |
| Voltage LED | Baite | (Optional) This one fits in my power panel | |
| Low Battery Alarm | Woafly | (Optional) Connected to battery's balancing plug |
- Name used in Sawppy documentation.
- Specific This is the specific item for my own Sawppy and I am happy with my first hand experience.
- Generic This is the general category of items. Not specifically on board my rover but they should all work just fine. (If it's a link to a specific item: I was not happy with my experience, but it was nominally usable.)
- Comments Addendum