Who uses Ben Fleskes' custom train wheels?

[simonwillems]

Title says all really, while browsing lugnet I stumbled upon Big Ben Bricks with the custom trainwheels.

I have a few questions about them:

~ do they run smoothly on Legotracks?

~ Are they worth buying?

~ Are they sold anywhere in Europe?

Hope to hear some reactions from trainbuilders.

[SavaTheAggie]

I would never have built a steam engine without using BBB wheels. And since all I ever seem to build are steam engines, I probably would have never built a single train MOC had it weren't for them.

Here are my steamers:

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=174415

(I'm working on another one, but I've only posted pics to my Flickr account thus far)

~ do they run smoothly on Legotracks?

Yes! Some people complain about the small wheels having problems negotiating points, but I've never had that problem. I have more problems with LEGO's small train wheels. As long as you position them correctly, use blind drivers or adequate spacing, in my experience they run flawlessly.

~ Are they worth buying?

Yes! The whole point in building a steam train is to have the pistons chugging along while it goes down the tracks, otherwise its just a crummy diesel. :-D They're expensive, but they're top notch quality and in my opinion worth every penny.

~ Are they sold anywhere in Europe?

I don't know, but Ben charges a flat $5 shipping to anywhere in the world regardless of order size, which is REALLY hard to beat nowadays (unless you just buy one wheel, I suppose).

--Tony

[3D LEGO]

As far as obtaining them in Europe, here is the page you would use: That is if you can read Deutsch!

Big Ben Bricks 1000steine ordering/info page:

http://www.1000steine.de/marktplatz/bbb/

Just a note: He lives in Portland Oregon so everything people have in Europe is shipped there. I hope that helps.

[simonwillems]

Thanks for the explanations, really helpful!

Here are my steamers:

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=174415

Wow! They look great, especiallly the Western one! Those wheels seem indispensable for making these kind of trains.

As far as obtaining them in Europe, here is the page you would use: That is if you can read Deutsch!

Thanks, I don't have paypal so i I'd rather do business with European sellers concerning bankmoneyorders. Deutsch is no problem, I can read it like my mothertongue....

[Brickthus]

Title says all really, while browsing lugnet I stumbled upon Big Ben Bricks with the custom trainwheels.

I have a few questions about them:

~ do they run smoothly on Legotracks?

~ Are they worth buying?

~ Are they sold anywhere in Europe?

Hope to hear some reactions from trainbuilders.

I found that using a file to eliminate any moulding attachment points on the flanges can help to avoid the flanged drivers jumping on 9V metal curves. This was a precaution only, and is only required if you intend to run trains at the limit of the wheelbases that will stay on the track (up to about 12 studs apart if you have blind drivers between 2 pairs of flanged drivers).

They're definitely worth buying if you want to make steam engines or diesel shunters with wheels that are on the track, instead of using 40-tooth cogs or model team wheels with tyres for your driving wheels. If you build to 8mm scale the drivers are equivalent to 3'9" diameter, larger if you build smaller scale trains.

Since the wheels are mail order from the US, I got most of mine as part of a larger order when someone from the Brickish Association (UK AFOL club) was putting an order together. After 2 such orders, I have about 20 drivers, 10 blind drivers and 20 small wheels, as well as some pneumatic non-return valves that were also on Ben's website. It takes a while to put them all into MOCs :-) but here are the ones I've used them in so far:

An 0-6-0 diesel http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=121842 This is an 8mm scale model of a Class 14 diesel shunter. It uses a bogie of 4 wheels and a bogie with 2 wheels and the jack-shaft, which is kept in the correct orientation with a link to the 4-wheel bogie. Power on Technic axles from a 43362 gearmotor is sent to the wheels through 4x4 turntables over each end pair of wheels and the rods do the rest. The flex parts allow the rods to vary in length on the curves. I'll put 9V train motors in an adjacent wagon to pick up the power. There are 9V connectors above the couplings on both ends of the loco.

An 0-4-0 diesel chassis http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=2346438 This is a prototype for a Class 02 diesel shunter.

Basic chassises to try out: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=241797 Mind the overhang at the ends of the 0-10-0 chassis as it could foul anything that's too close to the track.

I reckon to use the 30.4mm wheels for train wheels in the range 3'0" to 4'9", with 40-tooth cogs or model team wheels for wheel in the range 4'9" to 6'0". We need some larger wheels like the BBB ones but ones with flanges would not be practical on LEGO rails. I've asked Ben for flangeless ones of 49.6mm diameter because, being 19.2mm bigger than the 30.4mm wheels, they would be mounted exactly 3 plates higher in a loco. They would be 6'2.4" in 8mm scale so they would cover all sizes up to 7'0". I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has asked Ben for any larger wheels.

My experiments with the smaller wheels have shown reduced friction compared to some standard wheelsets, plus the advantage of not having to modify the standard wheelset housing to do wagons without standard suspension equipment.

I have more plans to use the wheels but I'll wait till I have a MOC before I tell you what they are :-)

Mark

[MatthewUSA]

I was wondering where the steam locomotive modelers were getting those wheels. I thought they were from old sets Lego made several years ago. After seeing this post, I checked out the Big Ben website. The wheels look really cool. Thank you for telling us about this site *sweet* . I can finally begin creating my circus train idea I have had for 6 months.

[simonwillems]

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=121842 This is an 8mm scale model of a Class 14 diesel shunter. It uses a bogie of 4 wheels and a bogie with 2

An 0-4-0 diesel chassis

Thanks for the technical explanations, you show that it is also possible to build dieseltrains with those big wheels next to steam-engines, that is great work!

I am very seriously thinking about buying a set of Big Bens wheels, they look so good...

:-)

[Brick Miner]

hey, im glad this topic got started... as this is something we haven't talked about on EB before.

i had seen these custom train wheels before on ebay, but i didn't know you could buy them from the maker himself (didn't know if they were still in production)... so this is a nice thread/resource to have !!!

personally, im building a steam engine for the WW theme, and while the wheels themselves looks nice, i just don't like using the technic liftarms as pistons... i would say that is the only downside to the custom wheels, is that we also need custom pistons.

i really wish LEGO would have re-introduced the components of steam engines to the 9V line. it seems like building a steam engine is a necessity in a train replication hobby. it would have been a great idea to have released these new elements in the hobby train set 10183.

- BrickMiner

[SavaTheAggie]

If technic liftarm pistons aren't your thing, there are a few alternatives.

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=970255

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1386923

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1806104

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1900655

Though I like liftarms, myself, especially when mixed with a technic plate and a tile:

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=2371103

But that's just me.

--Tony