Question about 8043 excavator and its actuators..

[Crtlego]

Okay. I took advantage of the discounts that Lego was offering and made the decision to order the new 8043 Motorized Excavator from the Lego Shop At Home site. After receiving my confirmation email the description said this.. "8043 Motorized Excavator V140" Of course.. the letters weren't actually bolded or underlined... But does anybody know what V140 is supposed to mean?

I was thinking it might mean that this is the version with the new actuators and newer instructions.. but I wanted to know what the rest of the community knows about the subject..

And if anybody is curious.. It hasn't arrived yet.. When it does I will say whether it is in fact the newer version.. I would hope that it is..

It would only make sense ordering it from Lego that they give me the correct version!!

Edited December 1, 2010 by Crtlego

[Blakbird]

Okay. I took advantage of the discounts that Lego was offering and made the decision to order the new 8043 Motorized Excavator from the Lego Shop At Home site. After receiving my confirmation email the description said this.. "8043 Motorized Excavator V140" Of course.. the letters weren't actually bolded or underlined... But does anybody know what V140 is supposed to mean?

My guess is that V140 means that you get 140 VIP points for buying it. That would make sense since it matches the cost.

[Crtlego]

My guess is that V140 means that you get 140 VIP points for buying it. That would make sense since it matches the cost.

That is a good guess. I don't know exactly how the VIP system works but I know that the price I ended up paying was $154 after applying gift cards and savings.. Depending on how the system works in the event of savings/ promotions that might very well be what it means...

[weeble1688]

As a Lego Store employee, I would guess that the 'V140' is indeed the corrected version. My store doesn't have any new ones on hand yet, but usually the 'V139' version is a North American version, I believe. The 'V129' version is a European version, if there are differences of some sort. But I am not certain, so please don't take this as "the word according to TLG". It is merely one person's observations and opinion. I would like to know which version you get once it arrives, if you would be so kind. I'd like to know whether I am even close to correct. Thanks!

[Splat]

When I ordered my 8043 Excavator from the Australian Lego S@H (in November), it had a V29 after it in the Order Summary email - and it had the new linear actuators with 36X0 stamped on them.

At the same time I also ordered 8263 Snow Groomer and it also had V29.

When I ordered 8258 Crane Truck it also had V29.

The Power Functions items that I ordered had V22 or V46 after it.

These were all ordered from the Australian Lego S@H.

With a previous order from the US Lego S@H, all of the sets had V39 after them, and the Power Functions items had either V46 or V95.

If you go to the Building instructions page on the Lego website, it says:

Building instructions labeled “NA” or "V39" may be printed on US standard letter size paper (8½ in × 11 in, 215.9 mm × 279.4 mm).

Building instructions labeled “IN” or "V29" may be printed on EU standard A4 paper (210 mm × 297mm,. 8.3 in × 11.7 in.)

I'm in Australia where we use A4 paper, so I just figured that sets ordered from the Australian Lego S@H had V29 to indicate that the instructions were printed on A4 paper.

My guess is that the V## indicates the version of the set and/or instructions, and this may also be used to ship different versions of the set to different regions around the world. I don't think it has anything to do with VIP points.

[rgbrown]

From:

http://us.service.lego.com/en-US/BuildingInstructions/default.aspx (e.g. search for 8043)

"If you plan to print the building instruction, please be sure to download the correct version:

Building instructions labeled “NA” or "V39" may be printed on US standard letter size paper (8½ in × 11 in, 215.9 mm × 279.4 mm).

Building instructions labeled “IN” or "V29" may be printed on EU standard A4 paper (210 mm × 297mm, 8.3 in × 11.7 in.)"

Sheds some light

[Tobbe Arnesson]

TLG don't sell the old version any more, they're all fixed. It might still be on some shop shelves if the store did not return the set to get it fixed.

[Crtlego]

I have just received my shipment and may I say WOW!! THAT IS FAST SHIPPING!! I placed my order Monday night.. And here it is 3 DAYS LATER!! Might I remind everyone that I selected the free shipping option which was given during the Brick Friday Weekend.. Now back to business..

I have opened the box and am blown away by the quantity of parts.. Its actually not that much compared to other expensive sets but it looks like a lot

Turns out that the linear actuators are all labeled 38X0..

I also found that the instructions are placed in a bag with a cardboard sheet.. for protection I guess..

I remember reading somewhere that the instructions were updated but I don't remember where. If anyone can tell me where I should look to see if it is the new version that would greatly appreciated..

[DLuders]

I remember reading somewhere that the instructions were updated but I don't remember where. If anyone can tell me where I should look to see if it is the new version that would greatly appreciated..

The updated Building Instructions for the Lego 8043 Motorized Excavator was discussed on this Eurobricks post.

[Crtlego]

Okay.. I found the online instructions that were presumably updated and they match.. I guess that means I have the new version... Hooray!

[davidmull]

Okay.. I found the online instructions that were presumably updated and they match.. I guess that means I have the new version... Hooray!

Does the new box,s now come with the new instructions and new actuators as im buying one this month(mid december),Also were all the sets with problems recalled that time and how do u know if ur set is the latest version?im in ireland.

[Out of Sight]

Does the new box,s now come with the new instructions and new actuators as im buying one this month(mid december),Also were all the sets with problems recalled that time and how do u know if ur set is the latest version?im in ireland.

I got mine few days ago. Supposedly it is the updated version, checking by the LA's stamps. All 4 on mine are '38X0', and with the new instruction manual. I'm currently in the process of building it. If you buy your Lego from an authorized Lego dealer, they most likely sell the updated #8043 on the shelf. I got mine from Bricksworld during my visit to Singapore.

I don't think there's a way to distinguish the old one to the new one just by looking at the box or is there? Most authorized Lego dealers should have the updated #8043 by now, and most likely that's what you'll be getting.

[Crtlego]

Does the new box,s now come with the new instructions and new actuators as im buying one this month(mid december),Also were all the sets with problems recalled that time and how do u know if ur set is the latest version?im in ireland.

As I am only a customer I can only tell as much as I know.. To know for sure a lego official would have to clarify but here goes..

I compared the instructions that were provided in my set to the "updated" ones on Lego's page and they match up. That is good I guess..

My actuators were all labeled 38X0 and after using them they seem to be much smoother than my actuators from the 8258 Crane Truck or the Telehander...

I don't know whether all of the sets were recalled I assume they were.. And after looking at the facts I presented I made the conclusion that it was the new version..

I got mine few days ago. Supposedly it is the updated version, checking by the LA's stamps. All 4 on mine are '38X0', and with the new instruction manual. I'm currently in the process of building it. If you buy your Lego from an authorized Lego dealer, they most likely sell the updated #8043 on the shelf. I got mine from Bricksworld during my visit to Singapore.

I don't think there's a way to distinguish the old one to the new one just by looking at the box or is there? Most authorized Lego dealers should have the updated #8043 by now, and most likely that's what you'll be getting.

I'm not exactly sure but I don't think there is a way of knowing from the outside..

Ohh.. I forgot to express my thoughts about the finished excavator..

The build was quite awesome. It only lasted 3 hours and couple minutes but it was quite interesting. As I didn't have that much time to build it I decided to speed build it and by doing so I was not able to spend the time trying to understand the positioning or use of every part and because if this the set looked very complex!!

When I finished and I first turned it on.. I immediately noticed that all four of the M Motors were EXTREMELY smooth. Compared to the "smoothness" of the M Motors I have gotten from Lego Shop At Home the new ones are like AMAZING!!

Although one of the receivers that came in my Lego was faulty.. One of the motor ports wasn't working.. I replaced it with one of my old ones and continues playing with the excavator! It was very nice and I really liked the amazing quantity of functions that could be packed into such a small set. I plan on making many mods when I get the time.

I did however feel limited by the movement of the tracks.. I felt like disconnecting the bottom portion and just playing around with the excavator's enormous bucket! I'll probably make it an offroad excavator and use the 8297 Offroader's wheels but time is so very limiting..