Favorite Technic Part

[Aventador2004]

So far many good parts chosen in a wide range 

Thanks

[TechnicRCRacer]

For me, small panels 1 and 2. They are just so useful! They give structural support as well as looks. If I chose a motor, it would definitely be the RC buggy motor.

[aeh5040]

13 hours ago, aminnich said:

Mine is the iconic black friction pin.  I am not sure if any of you die hard technic fans have ever seen one, so I will post a picture. 

OMG, how did you manage to collect so many!?

4 hours ago, dhc6twinotter said:

Differential, particularly the older ones.  There are some pretty awesome mechanical things that can be done with them!

Hear hear to that!

I don't really have a favorite, but I'm a fan of this guy (very useful for those awkward connections):

12 hours ago, Appie said:

I feel like I am cheating every time I use it...

 

I know what you mean...

[Didumos69]

 

This is also one of my favorites. It's the smallest part that can connect pins in all three dimensions. To me, all parts that are able to connect pins and axles in more than one dimension are interesting.

Edited April 1, 2017 by Didumos69

[Boulderer]

Does anyone else find it odd that the differential is the only "gear" that has been mentioned so far? 

[Appie]

9 hours ago, Blakbird said:

I actually kind of hate this part.  While it does open up a lot of build possibilities, it can also be really difficult to install.  This is partially because of the stiff plastic used and partially because it rotates out of the way and has little to hold onto.

Yup that too. Besides it feeling like cheating it can be a hard part to mount. 

On another note to be clear since my post is being quoted alot out of context in this topic. That part is not my favorite part, it's the one Mahjqa linked. Mahjqa's part I really like and have been calling 'superstukje' (Dutch for super part) since I found out it existed. 

Edited April 1, 2017 by Appie

[Jeroen Ottens]

It is interesting that so many of you feel that using the pin with pinhole feels like cheating. Why is that? One of the things I noticed is that this is the first part in the technic assortment that allowed for a 1 stud 'distance' (for lack of a better word) between a beam and an axle. All parts until then always needed at least one stud extra in a direction (the crossblock needs an extra stud to mount, the #1 conector gives an offset of one stud). So it allows for a compactness in the build that has never been possible before. Maybe that is the reason for the feeling of cheating. Subconsciously we always have taken into account that extra stud for the connection and now it is not needed anymore.

I like it a lot, even with it's disadvantages of the difficult mounting (allthough I use it for extra strong connections on purpose sometimes because of that) and the inability to right itself, still I find myself always using 50+ of them in all my models.
 

[ludov]

1 hour ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

It is interesting that so many of you feel that using the pin with pinhole feels like cheating. Why is that?
 

For me (and I only can speak for myself), it is because before this piece I could spend hours trying to find a way to get a pinhole somewhere where I needed one, without compromising the rest of the structure (too much). Now, If some structure doesn't have the holes where I need them, I can just use this piece and be done with it. It's like cheating a puzzle by looking up the answers. But, agreed, it is very useful indeed and can make things much more compact. I feel ambivalent about this piece 

As far as Technic pieces are concerned, I think the superpiece of Appie is the best. I keep finding it useful again and again.

[Victor Imaginator]

I found that part extremely useful, but i force myself to use it only in situations where i need not 90 degree angles. Like absorber shock mounts, or some weird angled bodywork panel. And i don't like most of 'official' 90 degree uses of this part.

[Appie]

1 hour ago, Ludo Visser said:

For me (and I only can speak for myself), it is because before this piece I could spend hours trying to find a way to get a pinhole somewhere where I needed one, without compromising the rest of the structure (too much). Now, If some structure doesn't have the holes where I need them, I can just use this piece and be done with it. It's like cheating a puzzle by looking up the answers. But, agreed, it is very useful indeed and can make things much more compact. I feel ambivalent about this piece 

Exactly this. 

If I found out I needed a pinhole somewhere in the structure before this part it would result in an overhaul of the entire structure surrounding it. Now it's: I need a pinhole and slap in this part and done. 

This part fits the trend that we basically get a pin for every problem and now we have all options for a pinhole with pin or axle mount too. 

I do like the part though, but I can't shake the cheating feeling. On the other hand plenty of cases where it solves something I wouldn't know how to fix otherwise. Like the rear suspension of my little 8865. I wouldn't know how to do differently than using this part for a strong suspension and also, like Jeroen, I like that for such cases the connection is so stupidly strong with this part.

[Leif]

My favorite piece is the differential. Old and new versions. I feel that the differential is the most central key to build realistic vehicles. Since I am old and built in the 80's I am used to build with only beams, studs, axles and pins (more or less), so even if I appreciate many of the new elements mentioned here, the differential was a technic marvel and we learned so much about real life vehicles from it!

[Erik Leppen]

5 hours ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

 

It is interesting that so many of you feel that using the pin with pinhole feels like cheating. Why is that?

I think because it does in one part where previous previous solutions always required at least 2 parts. Both the angle connector and the cross block require an additional pin or axle to mount. This part is pin and connector at once. Being a single part, there's less room needed, and less play.

It's also my own favorite part. I use it most, after the normal pin, the 3L blue pin and the 2L red axle (another favorite). I have a 700 piece model with about 45 of those pins.

 

Also, interestingly, this part allows a rotating axle directly along two sides of a beam, while the part that Mahjqa mentions allows a rotating axle along the other two sides of a beam :)

Also, the fact that it has a stronger hold than other pins makes that you can sometimes leave away the bracing that would be required otherwise. At least, that's what I sometimes do. The pin holds together by itself much better than other pieces. This could also be a form of "cheating".

Honorable mentions go out for

 

Edit: below is an example of why the pin with pin hole is so great. Below is a frame for a four-function switchbox that I once used. Each pair of 5x7 beams is connected by 8 pins and 2 axles, and the middle beam has 6 pins to add holes in the right place. Total piece count in the image: 34, of which 22 of those pins. Technically it's not "braced" because it can theoretically be pulled apart just by pulling out 4 of the 8 pins between two beams. However, in practice, this will never happen because the pins hold so tight. So only minimal extra bracing is required, mostly to keep the square from deforming.

Edited April 1, 2017 by Erik Leppen

[jorgeopesi]

I think I had seen another thread like this but anyway my favorite parts are those that facilitate almost  indestructible MOCs .

  

Edited April 1, 2017 by jorgeopesi

[Aventador2004]

@jorgeopesi I haven't seen something like this but it probably would be topic bumping otherwise.

Edited April 1, 2017 by Aventador2004

[agrof]

11 minutes ago, Aventador2004 said:

I haven't seen something like this but it probably would be topic bumping otherwise

Sorry, but your comments are recently confusing. What do you mean here by that? Is it a question, or is it a statement? Missing "?" or "." or "!" at the end of your sentences.

[Aventador2004]

@agrof sorry for that i was trying to contribute to conversation.

Edited April 1, 2017 by Aventador2004

[N-4K0]

I too believe I have seen an already existing thread about this topic, but if there is one, I guess they'll be merged eventually.


My favorite part among the currently existing ones has to be the pin hole with pin. It's so versatile.

[dr_spock]

 

[offroadcreations]

I don't think about it often, but I have to agree that the pinhole with pin is my favorite part.

[nerdsforprez]

I don't have much to add to the discussion on the pin with pinhole, despite it also being one of my favorite parts.  I don't see using it as "cheating" - and think that the history of Technic building is interesting here as the progression of pieces changes how we build.  Things that once were built one way are bound to change and pieces are updated and revamped.  I think over time this feeling of "cheating" is bound to occur not because of actual cheating but due to a simple evolution of pieces. 

One piece that I would like to add to the discussion however is the 3x3 perpendicular pin connector

Not as strong as a 5x7 frame, but offers a perpendicular arrangement of pins and connectors with a different arrangement than the frame and potentially in a smaller spot.  I find it particularly useful when liftarms need to be at 90 degrees to eachother without adding another level (like the use of other connectors will do)

[Jay Psi]

On 4/1/2017 at 7:53 AM, Boulderer said:

Does anyone else find it odd that the differential is the only "gear" that has been mentioned so far? 

Differential aside, gears don't offer much versatility. They are obviously vital in Technic, but apart from going round in circles or being used decoratively there isn't much else to them.

It's hard to argue with the sheer utility of the pinhole with pin, but personally I'd go for the dog-bone frame. It's a useful frame piece with a surprisingly compact footprint.

 

[Didumos69]

20 hours ago, nerdsforprez said:

I agree this part can be very useful in some use cases, but to me this part is even more controversial than the pinhole with pin. When I want to build a rigid main structure - say a chassis - I usually build in 1-stud layers: Odd layers are for length-wise beams and even layers for width-wise beams, or the other way around. This allows for beams to run through the entire structure, length-wise as well as width-wise, which adds to cohesion. If I find myself in need of this particular part, I regard that as a 'bad smell' and a reason to redesign my main structure. Only after establishing a rigid and cohesive whole, I can imagine using this part, just to realize a secondary structure. But until now I never used it. I don't even have one.

Edited April 3, 2017 by Didumos69

[RohanBeckett]

87408

So very useful for a quick gear/axle angle change..

[Appie]

6 hours ago, RohanBeckett said:

87408

So very useful for a quick gear/axle angle change..

Not to mention this part and its smaller brother (the one with pins) are practically impossible to get a gear grinded in. Awesome part where you 100% don't want a driveline to fail.

[Aventador2004]

@RohanBeckett and @Appie I agree that the 87408 is very helpfull. Most popularly used in manual cars as a hog connection with rare slippage!