BattleBots(R): The Official Guide [Paperback]

Mark Clarkson (Author), Bill Dwyer (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: Official Guides (Osborne) | Publication Date: April 25, 2002

View the metal-crunching destruction from the front lines with this fully authorized guide to one of today's hottest TV shows. Browse through photographs of every major BattleBot - including construction diagrams - and get details on weight, speed, and weapon type. Meet the people behind the crowd-pleasing, spark-flying robot demolition and get step-by-step instructions for building your own fierce fighting machine. Informative and entertaining, this book kicks Bot!

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

What does one get when one combines engineering ability, mechanical parts, excess testosterone, and a lot of free time? Battlebots! Appearing on TV's Comedy Central (the earlier Robot Wars appeared on both BBC and PBS stations), well-armed robots duke it out for supremacy in a hazard-filled arena dubbed the Battlebox. Robots have names like Atomic Wedgie, Hexadecimator, and Death by Monkeys, and some are armed with saws and hammers while others are wedge-shaped to flip their opponents. Much of this title is devoted to the history of the Battlebots show and to descriptions of robots and their design teams. A section for wannabes on robot construction includes brief information on batteries, radio controls, wheels, and more. While not an essential purchase, this is a very fun book with a potentially large audience because of TV exposure. It is sure to appeal to teens as well as adults (such as this reviewer) who have never grown up.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Back Cover

The fully authorized guide to the world's most destructive sport--as seen on TV

Robotic combat has served to inspire countless movies, novels, comic books, and daydreams. In the last decade or so it has become a reality, thanks in large part to BattleBots, the world's most popular robot fighting tournament and one of the highest-rated shows on cable TV. From the first official BattleBots competition in 1999 to its current 4th successful season on Comedy Central, BattleBots has become an obsession for people of all ages and from all walks of life.

Sure, some of the builders are what you'd expect--mechanical engineers and computer geeks--but just as many are artists, musicians, high school students, and retirees. This destructive sport puts athletes and couch potatos on equal ground. In BattleBots, an eleven-year-old girl can kick a grown man's ass.

And the surprises don't stop there--wait until you see the bots. Beetle-shaped bots. Spider-like bots. Beautiful bots and ugly bots. Bots with turrets and arms and spikes and chainsaws. Bots on wheels and tracks and feet. Bots that spin, hop, punch, hammer and chop. Bots that can lift a car. Bots built by large teams in machine shops, and bots built by one guy working weekends in his garage.

So step inside, and view the metal-crunching demolition from the front lines with this behind-the-scenes guide to BattleBots--the hottest robot competition in the world and hit TV show on Comedy Central. Packed with full-color photographs, battle statistics, and exclusive profiles and interviews, this book gives you an inside look at the electrifying world of robot combat. Browse through photo-filled profiles of major BattleBots and get details on their weight, speed, weapon type, and what it took to build them. Read about the different robot types--including RamBots, SpinBots, ThwackBots, and Wedges. And, meet the people behind the crowd-pleasing, spark-flying destruction: BattleBots founders Trey Roski and Greg Munson; your favorite builders, including Carlo Bertocchini, Christian Carlberg, and Mark Setrakian; announcer Mark Beiro; and Pete the Mechanic, builder and operator of the famed BattleBox arena. You'll even get step-by-step instructions for building your own fierce fighting machine. As informative as it is entertaining, this book kicks BOT!

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Osborne/McGraw-Hill; 1st edition (April 25, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072224258
• ISBN-13: 978-0072224252
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,428,669 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you wanted to know, May 3, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: BattleBots(R): The Official Guide (Paperback)

Great book! The history and the personalities behind Battlebots are really interesting. The machines are given the level of attention you always wanted to get on the show. Great looking too. Put it on you coffee table; guests will actually pick it up (and spend half an hour with it!).

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have for BattleBot and Robot Fans, May 3, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: BattleBots(R): The Official Guide (Paperback)

If you or someone you know likes BattleBots, Robotica, or Robot Wars, this is a great book. It has tons of high quality still and action photos. It also has great descriptions and pictures of famous bots and bio's of their builders. Find out how much your favorite BattleBot cost or how long it took to build! The book also has basic instructions on how to build a bot plus simple examples of different design types. It also has the Win-Loss record plus stats (like # of Knock-outs) for every bot. This book has something for everyone. It has enough "meat" to it that die-hard fans will love it and the photos and stats will keep even young kids engaged.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bot Lover, May 3, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: BattleBots(R): The Official Guide (Paperback)

This glossy coffee table book is packed with photos, robot CAD drawings and a thorough history of the BattleBots competition. The abundant photos, in depth builder and robot profiles and stylized design caputres the real spirit of BattleBots. I love the chapter on "How to Build a Bot"- the step by step tutorial and comparison of materials provides solid advice to newbie builders like me. It is the best book on robotic combat I have ever seen. A must for all robot enthusiasts.