vliet Posted July 3, 2012 Posted July 3, 2012 I ruined one Axle 5.5 with stop, it is twisted. I think I put to much force on it using the axle in my trialtruck. I have a lot of those axles so I can replace them but I also got them in white, does anyone know if the grey axles are stronger than the white (or white stronger than grey) or is it just a different color and are they the same? I only did some test-driving with the truck on my desk, nothing in heavy terrain of steep slopes. Quote
Saberwing40k Posted July 3, 2012 Posted July 3, 2012 My,My,My. I don't think there's any difference aside from the color. However, if you're wringing axles just driving on the desk, it's time to redesign the truck. Quote
vliet Posted July 3, 2012 Author Posted July 3, 2012 It wasn't my own design I found the instructions on brickshelf, but maybe I did something wrong. Quote
nicjasno Posted July 4, 2012 Posted July 4, 2012 There's actually 2 types of 5.5 axles with stop. One uses a much harder plastic than the other. I test them always before putting them into engines. The ones with the softer plastic are immediately discarded. Quote
DLuders Posted July 4, 2012 Posted July 4, 2012 There's actually 2 types of 5.5 axles with stop. One uses a much harder plastic than the other. I test them always before putting them into engines. The ones with the softer plastic are immediately discarded. How do you find which axles are the harder plastic -- by a "thumbnail impression" test, by flexing the axles, or by some other method? Quote
Paul Boratko Posted July 4, 2012 Posted July 4, 2012 How do you find which axles are the harder plastic -- by a "thumbnail impression" test, by flexing the axles, or by some other method? I am not 100% sure, but it may have something to do with the length of the 5.5 axles... The older ones are shorter than the newer ones... Quote
nicjasno Posted July 4, 2012 Posted July 4, 2012 I put a 36 tooth gear on each end and twist. One feels solid and doesn't twist much, the other type is like chewing gum. Quote
vliet Posted July 4, 2012 Author Posted July 4, 2012 then I will try that (carefully) with my axles. The twisted axle was one where one of the wheels is mounted on so they are easily replaced. Quote
Paul Boratko Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 So Alex, have you noticed a difference in the plastic between the shorter or longer 5.5 axles or is it random...? It's the newer style that are just a bit longer... Quote
nicjasno Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 By a "bit", how much longer are they? 1mm ? I haven't noticed a difference in length, just torsional rigidity. I have noticed this from the very beginning of LPEpower, about 2008, that the axles are of different rigidity. Quote
Zerobricks Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 (edited) then I will try that (carefully) with my axles. The twisted axle was one where one of the wheels is mounted on so they are easily replaced. i think i know what you are building... A trial truck maybe? oddly enough same thing happened to me with mine, there are indeed different hardness of these axels. Edited July 5, 2012 by Zblj Quote
Paul Boratko Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 By a "bit", how much longer are they? 1mm ? I haven't noticed a difference in length, just torsional rigidity. I have noticed this from the very beginning of LPEpower, about 2008, that the axles are of different rigidity. Yeah, I would say 1mm is probably about right... You can tell the 2 different types of Dark Bluish gray by the end of the longer one(The 4.5L axle end) has an indentation in the tip, while the shorter one does not and it has some type of mold marking... I am just wondering if at a certain run they made a certain type out of a different type of plastic for a few years... It would explain the Length/strength issue... Now I just opened up a New Flatbed truck set from last year to check the 5.5L axle and it is the same length as the longer one on the left in the picture except it doesn't have the dimple in the same end, but it also doesn't have the mold marking that the smaller one has... Somewhere along the line this axle must have gone through at least 2 changes, so it wouldn't surprise me if they used a different type of plastic during these changes which is why you are finding different rigidity in them... The older style white ones are also shorter and have the same mold marking just like the one in the picture, so the shorter ones are most definitely the oldest original kind... Quote
Blakbird Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 Yeah, I would say 1mm is probably about right... You can tell the 2 different types of Dark Bluish gray by the end of the longer one(The 4.5L axle end) has an indentation in the tip, while the shorter one does not and it has some type of mold marking... There are a few instances in which this length actually matters. For example, in one of Paul's cars you can't make it right with the longer axles! Took me a long time to figure that out.... Quote
DLuders Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 That's useful to know. I just checked the 60 ea. "5.5L Technic Axles with Stop" that I have in my Parts Bin. I had 72% (18/25) of the longer, "strong" Dark Bluish Gray axles and 28% (7/25) of the shorter, "weak" axles. All of my 13 ea. Black and 22 ea. White axles are the "weak" kind. Quote
Saberwing40k Posted July 6, 2012 Posted July 6, 2012 That's useful to know. I just checked the 60 ea. "5.5L Technic Axles with Stop" that I have in my Parts Bin. I had 72% (18/25) of the longer, "strong" Dark Bluish Gray axles and 28% (7/25) of the shorter, "weak" axles. All of my 13 ea. Black and 22 ea. White axles are the "weak" kind. I did something similar, but some of my dark grey axles did not have an indent, but were still weak. Quote
88high Posted July 7, 2012 Posted July 7, 2012 Yes I have observed your problem. The older 5.5L axles in old gray and in black are weaker, you can mostly tell the difference due to the ends of the axle being more flat on top. The newer 5.5L axles are most oftenly found in light blueish gray, and their tops are a bit more rounded. Your trialtruck doesn't need a redesign neccesarilly. It just needs the latest axles. Quote
Technic Gearhead Posted July 7, 2012 Posted July 7, 2012 I'm currently building a modernized PF 8421 and noticed I had a small gap on one side of the cab and not on the other. I saw this thread and knew right away that must be the problem and sure enough it was - I had one of each on the model. I'm building the set from my inventory, so that is why there was a mix-up. I have one MISB but couldn't bring myself to crack it open just yet. Quote
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