unable to connect certain bricks in LDD - Advice needed :)

[CrashHelmets]

Just wondering if you experts have any advice?

I am finding that I cannot assemble something in the Lego digital designer, that assembles perfectly in real life. It won't even let me position the bricks in the right place.

Is there any way around this? Perhaps I can over-ride what it thinks is a legal position for a brick, and stick it there anyway? Can I type in the exact coordinates or something?

I have also had the opposite problem where LDD lets me connect something in a certain way, but in real life it is clearly not designed for that and just falls apart.

I can take photos if more clarity is needed.

Thanks

Edited March 28, 2016 by CrashHelmets

[Umbra-Manis]

Yes, please do take photos. Then someone should be able to help.

[SylvainLS]

Yes, screenshots and knowing what bricks are involved would help….

Edited March 28, 2016 by SylvainLS

[CrashHelmets]

Thanks! I have built the project and all is well. But I need to make instructions for it, hence needing to get this all in LDD properly.

Ok here goes ... :)

1) This is the first one. It works perfectly with real parts. I guess the connector pegs are expected to go all the way through a brick with holes, so I am trying to do something a bit unusual by holding them halfway into the brick. But like I said it all holds together very solidly. I am normally really fussy about fitting parts together securely, and this seemed fine to me.

2) This one is interesting as it locks in place very securely. I can appreciate why you might not think that, but once you assemble it, it feels solid. I can make a photo of the real thing if that is helpful. I guess the reason LDD doesnt like it is because the black rod/wand fits into the circular holes in the red parts, but not in the centre of those holes. It aligns off centre.

3) pretty straight forward. No idea why LDD doesnt like this.

4) Now this is the opposite problem. In LDD it snaps together perfectly. It was an annoying surprise for me after I ordered the parts and the red circles just fell out. It's not just very loose, they are clearly not designed to fit together. So I guess there is no advice/solution I need for this, it's probably just a bug in LDD. :)

Thanks for your time :)

[Calabar]

The first image show an illegal building.

While it works with real part, il maintain the pin compressed and damage them.

The second imange... I don't know.

The third image is another illegal technique. Technic pin and normal pin are not perfectly aligned. In real live you can force this connection, but it damage the bricks.

It is acceptable instead to connect a single hole instead than two as in the figure.

The forth image seems to be an inaccuracy in the shape of the digital brick. It is not strange anyway, in LDD is quite common to find weird connections.

[SylvainLS]

2. Feasible but not connected.

Remove the 2x2 plate, replace the 4070 and bar with a 8541 and a pin to correctly align the construct horizontaly.

Re-place the 4070 (not the bar yet).

Place a bar somewhere else, vertically. Connect something with a clip (e.g. a 48729) to that bar.

Select the 2x2 tile and attached bricks and the clip-thingy.

Grab the clip-thingy to move the selection vertically lower to make place for the 2x2 plate.

Replace the 2x2 plate on top.

Use the clip-thingy to move the construct up, flush to the 2x4 plate.

Replace the bar.

Et voilà.

Edited March 28, 2016 by SylvainLS

[CrashHelmets]

This is really useful thanks Calabar.

Ok I think I can get all the functionality I need in picture 1 a different way.

Pic 2 ... is there a way to position a specific part at specific coordinates? (Eg disable the LDD auto position snap)

Pic 3 ... I don't get it. They do seem aligned to me, and connecting them doesnt require much force. Which part will it damage? Please explain further, as I have often wondered why official Lego sets never connect parts this way.

Thanks again for the help.

Edited March 28, 2016 by CrashHelmets

[SylvainLS]

You can still edit the LXF (XML file, any text editor will do). But LDD may remove the parts when loading (collisions).

About the “only one stud in a technic hole,” the problem is that a 7-year-old would have difficulties prying the parts apart if there’re more than one stud because technic holes are a little smaller than a(n anti-)stud.

It’s explained by Jamie Berard in his presentation “Stressing the Elements” p.12. (Google for it. Very useful and enlightning.)

[CrashHelmets]

Remove the 2x2 plate, replace the 4070 and bar with a 8541 and a pin to correctly align the construct horizontaly.

Re-place the 4070 (not the bar yet).

Place a bar somewhere else, vertically. Connect something with a clip (e.g. a 48729) to that bar.

Select the 2x2 tile and attached bricks and the clip-thingy.

Grab the clip-thingy to move the selection vertically lower to make place for the 2x2 plate.

Replace the 2x2 plate on top.

Use the clip-thingy to move the construct up, flush to the 2x4 plate.

Replace the bar.

Et voilà.

This technique worked perfectly. Very clever. Thanks very much!

It’s explained by Jamie Berard in his presentation “Stressing the Elements” p.12. (Google for it. Very useful and enlightning.)

Thanks I will read it and learn. I appreciate the help.

[Calabar]

@CrashHelmets

About your questions:

Pic 2

In LDD is often necessary to place parts that when the software don't recognize a connection (typical example: place a car over a street).

In all these situation you have to use a scaffolding. The principle is simple: if you select more bricks together, you can move them together, so you can take advantage of a recognized connection to place something where there is not a connection.

SylvainLS showed you an example of scaffolding made using a stick and a clip, but you can create more complex scaffoldings for more complex situations (for example using ball joints). For more details, search for "scaffolding" in this forum.

Pic 3

Follow the suggestion of SylvainLS above.

[CrashHelmets]

I read the Jamie Berard document. It is really interesting.

Here it is if anyone else fancies a read.

[CrashHelmets]

I wonder if this is illegal too?

[SylvainLS]

IMHO, not if the two parts are not transparent (acrylic).

10246-1 has a 47905 brick with two 30374 bars. Okay your question is about 1 bar going through but as it’s legal to put one part in each hole, the only thing I see that could preclude using only one part for the two holes is if the grip were too strong, which I think it’s not.