Scrapbot Smackdown
Scrapbot Smackdown
Part of the Doin' the Dale Avondale Music and Arts Festival Thursday, February 26, 2026
Scrapbot Smackdown is the latest iteration of Pumping Station: One's long-running tradition of wind-up motor crappy robot competitions. Inspired by Japanese Hebocon (“shitty robot”) events, Scrapbot Smackdown celebrates ingenuity, absurdity, and the joyful triumph of questionable engineering.
Event Details
- Date: Thursday, February 26, 2026
- Location: Pumping Station: One - Neverland / General Area (3519 N. Elston Ave)
- Construction Begins: 6:00 PM
- Tournament Starts: 8:00 PM
- Calendar Event: Add to Google Calendar
Participants will build their scrapbots starting at 6 PM using craft materials and a wind-up toy motor. At 8 PM, the tournament begins.
Entry & Donations
Entry is pay-what-you-want as a donation to Pumping Station: One.
- Suggested donation: $10
- No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
The goal is accessibility, chaos, and community building. Hopefully we raise some funds along the way.
What Is a Scrapbot?
A scrapbot is:
- Powered by a wind-up toy motor
- Constructed primarily from craft materials (hot glue, popsicle sticks, cardboard, random detritus, etc.)
- Delightfully imperfect
Advanced robotics, microcontrollers, or precision engineering are strongly discouraged. This is a celebration of charming failure.
Wind-up motors, 3D printed additional gear reductions, hot glue, and misc. craft materials will be provided. Feel free to bring your own craft materials or other junk "serious robot parts" as well.
You can find a rough 3D model of the motors as well as the provided gearing here:
Tournament Format
The tournament will run as a double-elimination bracket.
Matches are “sumo” style:
- Two scrapbots are wound up and placed into the ring.
- A participant may continue holding the pull spring to maintain tension.
- The official counts down to begin the bout.
- Bots are released simultaneously.
Bout Structure
- A bout ends after 3 rounds OR after 1 knockout.
- If a knockout occurs, the victor immediately advances.
Knockout Definition
A knockout occurs when:
- One bot successfully pushes the opposing bot out of the ring
- AND the victorious bot remains inside the ring
The following do NOT count as knockouts:
- Both bots leave the ring
- Neither bot leaves the ring
- A bot propels itself out of the ring without intervention from the opponent
Determining Victory (No Knockout)
If no knockout occurs after 3 rounds:
- The winner is determined by a non-scientific cheering poll
- The crowd response is conducted and judged by an event official
- The fan favorite advances
Enthusiasm matters.
Spirit of the Event
Scrapbot Smackdown is:
- Silly
- Low-tech
- Community-driven
- Loud
- Improvised
- Procrastinated
It is a spiritual successor to PS:1’s earlier wind-up robot competitions and part of the broader tradition inspired by Japanese Hebocon events.
Failure is not only acceptable, it is often rewarded. One of the finalists at the first of these events was "Holy Frijoles", a can of baked beans, with a lot of personality, released to roll down a ramp.
Footnotes
This event page was originally written by Joe 'theJuggler' Mertz with the assistance of ChatGPT.
