Guide to K'nex Ball Machine Multipiece-paths and Tunnels

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the guide to K'nex ball machine paths and tunnels that use multiple pieces that are most often remaining after one finishes his or her K'nex ball machine. Especially green connectors, red connectors, orange ladder connectors and flexi rods are most often left. This guide shows some options for paths and tunnels that uses these pieces in greater number.

You can ask any question in the comment section below.

Enjoy this guide.

15knexLaz

Step 1: Large Octagonal Green Connector Tube

This tunnel uses loads of green connectors and white rods. Both types of balls can use both the top path and the inner path. Rigid rods are recommended. You also need 12 blue-black or blue-green hinges per grey-rod-length of the tube. I made the tube three grey rods and one red rod long. The weight of that is about 7 kg.

Step 2: Light Grey Connector Oval Tunnel

This tunnel uses loads of light grey connectors which are attached to long flexirods. The connectors on the side can be varied off course.

Step 3: Parabolic Orange Connector Tunnel

This tube uses loads of orange connectors on a long flexirod matrix. The width of the tube is exactly one blue rod. While three orange connector lengths is equivalent to one yellow rod length.

Step 4: Square Orange Connector Tube

This tunnel again uses many orange connectors next to some dark grey oneway connectors and red rods. The bottom is pretty smooth and balls will run by itself even with a very small angle of incline. Both types of balls are possible on this one.

Step 5: Pentagonal Flexi-rod Tube.

The pentagonal flexi-rod tube uses lots of medium flexirods (three colours exist). Also many red connectors are needed, next to some red rods.

Step 6: Parabolic Red Connector Tunnel

The name of this tunnel can be misleading. The grey-granite connectors I used are the same as the more common red connectors. The tunnel can be used in two ways. The bended part can be used as the roof for the orange-gold-rod path beneath, or the whole thing can be turned upside down to use it as a double-path system that rolls balls both on top and through the tunnel. An addtional railing is recommended if you use the upper path too, as shown in picture 4.

Step 7: Doubleparabolic Red Connector Tunnel

This tunnel is similar to the Parabolic red connector tunnel, but this one uses two equal parabolic red connector-long flexi-rod structures. The width is exactly equivalent to one blue and one green rod connected what makes integration into a ball machine easier. The drawback of this one is the use of white, purple, blue and yellow connectors and green rods. Those are usefull for many more things than a piece consuming tube.

Step 8: Flat Red Connector Path With Slopes

This path is very robust, strong and easy to integrate in a ball machine due to red rod-blue rod alignement in both length and width. A slope of one green rod heigth results in a burst of speed that makes a ball go very far. The drawback of this is the use of green rods. The more green rods you exclude between the red rods, the less robust it gets.

Step 9: Flat Green Connector Path With Slopes

This path is very similar to the Flat red connector path with slopes, but this one uses no green rods. With the proper outer skeleton this path is extremely strong and robust. You can use both grey rods and/or flexi-rods as the matrix for the green connectors, the strength of the structure is independent to this. This path is very smooth too. One green rod length of height reduction gives a burst of speed. When you want to get rid of green connectors it doesn't get any better than this.

Step 10: 37mm Wheel Path

This path uses 37mm diameter wheels that just rest on the red rods. This path needs to be in a straight position and carefully dealt with. The ball needs to have a considerable amount of speed to make it four red rods lengths far on this path.

Step 11: 37 Mm Wheel Stairs

Just a type of stairs made out of the same 37 mm wheels.

Step 12: All Terrain Trekker Wheel Path

This path is very inefficient unless you put some red rods over it in order to make it smoother. The wheels are not solidly connected to any rods but hang on two red rods extended with orange connectors and blue rods.

Step 13: Old Battery Motor Path

This is actually a double path. One path consists of the red batteryboxes all next to one another, three on one red rod. The other path consists of the translucent gearboxes, also three on one red rod.

Step 14: New Battery Motor Path

This path is made up out of the newer type of battery motor. The motors are connected by white connectors and a line of yellow connectors on top and underneath, to provide stability. Only the standard balls fit on this path.

Step 15: Medium Tire Stairs

This element is based on Thibault Arts Tire stairs, except this one uses only medium tires. You can make this as long as you want off course.

Step 16: Supported Tire Tube

This is a tire tube that is held together by an external structure with Y-clips holding the tyres on the right place. In my experience this is a very effective element. This photo also includes another multipiece element, the panel house. I was once very lucky to be able to buy loads of these panels at once.

Step 17: Tiny Gears and Wheels Spiral Path

This path uses lots of small push-on gears, K'nex man headtops and small wheels. both allignments are possible, to red rods or to grey rods.

Step 18: Wheeled Circulating Caterpillar Lift

More of this lift coming soon in a separate instructable.

Step 19: The End

This list will be updated frequently with new photos and elements. If you have any comments about anything concerning this guide, let me know in the comment section.

Thanks for watching and building.

15knexLaz