[WIP] Foremost Delta Wheeled Carrier (offroad 3-axle crane truck)

[nico71]

Totally inspired me for building a articulated vehicle, thank you erik and good building !

[captainmib]

That is some sexy building.. Chassis looks amazing.

Color choice is nice.

[Superkoala]

On 08/02/2018 at 6:04 PM, Erik Leppen said:

Cool to see other people working on similiar projects! I think you should also post a WIP if you're ready for it, it really enhances the fun :)

Also, I didn't raelly think of it but I think you're correct about the engine. I guess the real engine is behind the cabin, but I want to put the battery box there.

In fact my commander is almost complete and I should be able to finish it this week when back home, so i will only post the final MOC. It is just a test for the tri-axle system (Here) so no big machinery inside.

[Erik Leppen]

I think, @Horace T, that this is a model that lends itself particularly well to a modular approach. There're clearly separate sections joined together. Building for example a supercar modularly would be much harder, because those are usually much more intricate due to limited space. Especially with more unconventional functions like steering modes or ride height adjustment.

Also, thanks of course and also to @nico71 and @captainmib

By the way, next update will be the crane. No pictures yet, but I copied the geometry (and gearing) of the 8258 crane, but everything else is changed - a few connections (the joint between the 2nd and 3rd segment is strengthened), the paneling, of course the color, and the third/fourth boom section.

[Maaboo the Witch]

I love this thing! Nice job Erik! Makes me wonder why the 42070 B wasn't something like this. The tyres would be a perfect fit, especially considering the image of the Delta you've used.

(Not that I'm being too hard on 42070 B - I'm one of the few people on this planet who actually like it )

Edited February 12, 2018 by Maaboo35

[Erik Leppen]

I had a few days of absence, because I was doing other things (making music). But I have a big update, consisting of three parts:

• Seats
• Crane
• Outriggers

Let's start with the first. I went with yellow seats instead of blue, because I didn't want to add yet another color, and yellow already exists in the springs. Also, I used a part I don't have in blue (brick 1 x 2 with studs on 2 sides).

Another thing you might notice is that I use a mix of studded and studless. I am trying to do that more now, because I think it is sort of a waste to have all those system parts and not use them. They can improve a model sometimes.

I also changed the windscreen (the underside is raised 2 studs) so the proportions are better. That gave me room on the interior to add a steering wheel.

Second update is more substantial: the crane. As I said, i copied 8258, but made a lot of changes. Obviously, the color - I used teal where possible, and black to fill it up. I think this give a pretty cool combination. Actually the only piece I would have liked to have in teal is the triangle beam.

I also made the base one stud lower.

As you see, I also changed the paneling. I again used a few system bricks to fill up the things and to add the paneling to the second boom section (controlled by the bottom LA). But more importantly, I changed the connection between the second and third boom segment (controlled by the second LA). In 8258, it is optimized for easy attachment, but as I was changing the third and fourth boom segment anyway to be less bulky, I also changed this connection. I discovered that using a 5x9 bent beam sideways works very well here, and fortunately these exist in teal.

The last segment and the winch are operated by the tan gears and work on friction, similar to 8258.

OK, the last addition: the outriggers. What I think will come a bit as a surpise: they are pneumatic. (Also, as you can see, I also added the fuel tank-like things at the sides. They do nothing, except cover that ugly diagonal beam.)

I doubted long enough, but finally ordered pneumatics on Bricklink. I went for the complete set, with 2 of each cylinder (only V2, so I don't have the short 2x2 ones) and one of each pump, and the necessary tubing and switches. I got the idea for pneumatic outriggers a while ago and I liked it for various reasons.

• After reading about all the enthousiasm for the updated pneumatic in reviews and on the forums, I wanted to try it out, and this seemed like a good opportunity.
• A linkage or gear based outrigger foot would have a knob on the outrigger itself, which I'm not a fan of (I know I did the same in the crane though. That won't change.) Doing pneumatics allow me to operate the outriggers from the vehicle itself (preferably from the front end), without needing elobarate geartrains thorugh the steering joint and sliding stuff to allow for the horizontal extension
• I did linkage-based outriggers often enough, I liked the challenge of changing up this time
• I was thinking of joining the small pump to the motor. In the end, I went for the manual pump, because an electric pump would cost too much space and make the front too bulky.

The main disadvantage of pneumatics is that it's much harder to do instructions. But I went for it anyway.

Laying out the tubes nicely was a challenge, but I think I got it down pretty nicely. Both the extension of the outriggers themselves, and the steering were problematic and required pretty long tubes with the ability to be "rolled up" in a way. Unfortunately, the steering angle has been reduced slightly. And, of course, being a purist, I only used official pre-cut lengths of tubing, occurring in either 42043, or 42053.

By the way, I put the pump sideways for a specific reason: the vehicle's suspension. The sideways pump invites the operator to use a finger and a thumb to pump, "holding" the pump. A vertical pump would invite pumping with one finger, pressing it down without "holding" it, which would be cumbersome because you would be pressing the suspension all the time.

There is a slight problem though, which is the motor has trouble extending the outriggers now. The geartrain is clicking. I know the source, but haven't solved it. That will be the next challenge, and actually, one of the last. Things are nearing completion :)

 

 

 

[Maaboo the Witch]

I love this! The use of teal really works in the model's favour, and the pneumatics look like they'd be great fun to use. Excited for the final result! 

[schraubedrin]

This is great.

I haven't seen this color since 8257. And never in such a fitting combination with red.

I'm eagerly awaiting a picture of the assembled model.

[Leonardo da Bricki]

Dang... All those unusual colors, but it is looking awesome! Love the improved crane and the pneumatic outriggers. Cannot wait to see the end result!

[Maaboo the Witch]

10 hours ago, Leonardo da Bricki said:

Dang... All those unusual colors, but it is looking awesome! Love the improved crane and the pneumatic outriggers. Cannot wait to see the end result!

TLG should bring back teal. That crane has a definite Rock Raiders feel to it.

[BrickbyBrickTechnic]

On 2/8/2018 at 12:04 PM, Erik Leppen said:

And, of course, the moment @BrickbyBrickTechnic wanted to see:

 

Wow. Saw your latest update as well and I have to say that this is undoubtedly one of the best MOCs I have ever seen. Can't wait for the big finish.

[Maaboo the Witch]

13 minutes ago, BrickbyBrickTechnic said:

Wow. Saw your latest update as well and I have to say that this is undoubtedly one of the best MOCs I have ever seen. Can't wait for the big finish.

Me either. It's gonna be one heck of an unveiling!

[AFOLegofan66]

Very nice MOC...will be really cool to see the finished product!! I think the colour scheme is great!!

[Erik Leppen]

Cool to see so many enthousiastic replies by everyone! I feel honored :) I put everything together and shot some photos of the whole model, but please bear in mind it's not done yet.

As you can see, I added red "boxes" with 4x4 tiles below the front end of the bed.

To start with the bad news: somehow, the gearbox is clicking when trying to use the second crane function (topmost LA). So I have to dig into that again and see if anything can be done. But at least there's room to add a 12:20 pair to make the movement slower and the required torque a bit less. But I don't know if that'll be enough. The gaertrain to the topmost LA is rather long (as with 8258) and a lot of the L motor's power is lost (and I really don't want to use XL. The L motor fits so nicely right now)

The good news is, the clicking of the outriggers has been solved, mostly. It's as good as it gets. There's no 24t clutch gear and no room for that, so it now clicks at the worm-to-8t pair deep inside when the ends are reached, with no room to fix that. But at least they extend and retract OK now. The pneumatic tubes add a lot of friction, but nothing can be done to that I think. Also, unfortunately the outriggers extend/retract rather fast, and there's no room anywhere to slow it down. From the motor, it's 16-16-16, then through the steering joint, then 12-20, then from the driving ring it's 16-16, then worm-8, then 20-12-12. That last one can only be changed to 12-20-12 if I loose the 3x3 gear bracket but then there's no room to reinforce it properly I think, and that would not improve things. Right now, if it clicks, at least I know that both outriggers stay aligned with each other.

The better news is that the outriggers actually work. The pneumatics are strong enough to provide a really good support, and the long cylinders mean it has enough ground clearance while retracted. That would have been much worse with the old cylinders. So happy with the new pneumatics, they work really smooth :) (Digitizing it will be a challenge though.)

So, again, it's not finished yet. The attentive reader may have noticed that there are only photos from the left, and that the rear right wheels are the Porsche tyres :P I only have 4 of those wheels, so will have to order 2, or switch wheels when I take pictures :P

To do: solve clicking problem in gearbox, and add lights (no PF, just transparent parts). Am I forgetting anything?

[Leonardo da Bricki]

Looks awesome! Seeing the whole thing assembled is great, I don't think anything is missing here. Except those wheels.

[Ivan_M]

I have been checing you build silenty and so far I like it. I don't find you solution of outridges very appealing though. I would wrap the cylinders with some liftarms, add larger foot and somehow made them appear more robus. The single rack is not looking (on such truck) very strong as well. I know it will not actualy improve the strength/support of the truck, but it seems you are focusing on looks quite a bit so I thought I would mention it.

[Maaboo the Witch]

Well, this is not in the least bit disappointing! Like @Ivan_M has said, though, the outriggers look a tad anaemic. If they do the job, though, then fine. Great stuff! 

[Erik Leppen]

I showed the MOC on our local LUG's meeting and got many positive replies. There was one problem though with a gear running off an axle during prolonged use of the functions, but that should easily be fixed by putting an other element in the way so it doesn't slide off. I can change this digitally when doing instructions, as it's not visible on the model anyway. After adding some lights, I declare the MOC finished and took some final photos before disassembling (indeed - it's already gone. I need the parts for new projects). I have everything as a digital file, but doing the instructions wil be a challenge due to the pneumatic hoses. I do want to make instructions, but I don't know when I will have them. Also I seem to be drawn to a certain new project that I will be posting too :)

Anyhow, here's a final few pictures.

 

I also thought I should do a picture of the underside. It's Technic, after all :)

 

[nico71]

Nice !

Use ldcad for the pneumatic hose (and for all also), with the nested mode it is very easy to generate soft axle and hose !