BrickLink/Peeron Element Cross-Reference?

[davee123]

Is anyone out there aware of any cross-reference between element ID's in Peeron and BrickLink? For example, in BrickLink, you've got part ID "4342", which is the french bread loaf. But in Peeron, it's "x395". I've got a very short list (a few dozen) that I've compiled of these, but I was wondering if anyone has anything more comprehensive?

While I'm at it, is there any cross-reference done between LEGO Design ID's and BrickLink and/or Peeron IDs? In the example above, I assume that "4342" *matches* the LEGO Design ID (both BL and Peeron always intended for that to be the case, whenever possible). But then we've got elements like the camel from Prince Of Persia, where the BrickLink ID is "camel", and the Peeron ID is "x2001", neither of which are the Design ID (which I don't know).

DaveE

[le60head]

Hello!

Here is what i know:

Every part produced by TLG has a Design ID and an unique Element ID.

The Design ID is the same for all parts with the same shape.

The Element ID is unique for each color of the same part.

The bricklink id is USUALLY the same as the LEGO Design ID, but not always.

You can see the LEGO Element ID of a part in bricklink in the "view small images" page .

here's an example link: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogColors.asp?itemType=P&itemNo=camel&v=2

So, the LEGO Element ID for the camel is 4580496 for Dark Tan color and 4589494 for Tan color.

the design ID is unknown to me.

I have no knowledge of the peeron ID system :)

Hope i helped, if you have any addidional questions i'll be glad to help with what i know.

Regards,

legohead

Edited December 9, 2011 by le60head

[davee123]

The Element ID is unique for each color of the same part.

Pretty much-- I'd qualify that with the fact that some Design ID/Color ID combination CAN be represented by more than one Element ID (AKA "Part Number"). So (for instance) 4612985 and 4613928 are two different Element ID's that both refer to the SAME Design ID and Color ID.

I have no knowledge of the peeron ID system :)

The history goes something like this:

1) LDraw discovered the Design ID's of elements in the 1990's and decided to use them as Part Numbers. The LEGO company didn't communicate with the fans at the time, so the LDraw numbering scheme became "standard" among fans. Some parts didn't have known Design ID's, so LDraw invented them. I don't have a good example, but something like the "Ponytail" element, which got called "x104".

2) Peeron created an inventory system, and attempted to use LDraw numbers, so that the two systems would always line up. Of course, the admins at Peeron weren't the same folks that maintained LDraw (but there was a close relation), so some parts didn't line up correctly between the two systems, but were MOSTLY complete.

3) BrickLink created an inventory system, based on Peeron and LDraw's numbers. Again, the admins at BrickLink didn't really check with Peeron or LDraw when they needed to add a new part (they were on a much faster pace, since there were sales involved). So again, most numbers matched, but over the years, BrickLink's numbers have diverged a lot from Peeron and LDraw.

4) LEGO started to reveal their internal numbering systems, mostly with the Part Numbers/Element ID's being listed in instruction manuals (and sometimes Design ID's and Part Numbers being shown in their online tools). So there's been some action on the part of BrickLink (and to a lesser extent Peeron and LDraw) to retro-fit their systems to allow the cross-reference, and correct any non-matching numbers.

Anyway, the way things stand, there's 4 different systems that SHOULD match, but don't:

- LDraw Part ID's

- Peeron Part ID's

- BrickLink Part ID's

- LEGO Design ID's

And then there's also 4 different color systems that... sorta... line up:

- LDraw Color ID's

- Peeron Color ID's

- BrickLink Color ID's

- LEGO Color ID's

Those are tricky, though, because in LDraw, let's say, things have a Color ID like "Black". But LEGO actually keeps track of that more particularly, with both a Color and a Material (like "rubber", or "ABS plastic", or "Polycarbonate").

And then there's the Part Numbers, where (fortunately), the other systems do NOT invent-- only LEGO mandates them.

Crossref of color data exists (see the Peeron Color Chart), and the crossref from LEGO Part Numbers to Design ID's is ~sorta~ available via BrickLink (where known). But what I'm hoping for is a crossref for the Design ID numbers between the systems.

DaveE