Question about 8480 Space Shuttle

[Loe]

I decided to build my old 8480 again, but found out that I am missing some rubber bands. Is it possible to use gears instead? I guess the band is there to slip on the wheels so the motor doesent take damage, but can I use three small gears instead? And try not to overrun the motor manually.

Edited April 7, 2014 by Loe

[TinkerBrick]

The use of gears is possible, but try some ordinarily household rubber bands first.

[Blakbird]

Rubber bands are necessary on the pulleys to allow slippage to protect the motor. Rubber bands are also necessary on the electrical switches. Just go buy some.

[Loe]

Guess I will try to find some bands with the correct dimensions, that fits in the pulleys. I do have 4 out of 7 red bands, and I have both the white ones for the switches. So as a temporary solution I could drop the two that goes on the fiber optics motor and use them in the "more important" places.

Edited April 7, 2014 by Loe

[DrJB]

Might be even easier to get some O-rings from your local Home-Depot / Lowes or local hardware/plumbing store.

Edited April 8, 2014 by DrJB

[Loe]

Another question, is it possible to use the this motor http://brickset.com/sets/8735-1/Motor-Set-9-V instead of this motor? http://brickset.com/sets/8720-1/9V-Motor-Set

[DrJB]

You can, but it'll be slower as the old 9V motor spins faster (no internal gear reduction).

The other 'difficulty' is that the two motors are not 'drop-in' replacements of one-another .. and you'd need to adapt the construction to accept the newer 9V motor.

[Loe]

You can, but it'll be slower as the old 9V motor spins faster (no internal gear reduction).

The other 'difficulty' is that the two motors are not 'drop-in' replacements of one-another .. and you'd need to adapt the construction to accept the newer 9V motor.

Yeah I know, the newer one has a weird shape, with the bulk on the bottom. You see there is a problem with my old one, the motor spins, but when I just lightly touch the pin, it stops..

[DrJB]

looks like you have no choice then. ELse, those old motors sell on eBay for $10-20 a piece ... or even cheaper in 'lots'.

[Loe]

Finished!

Edited April 16, 2014 by Loe

[Lundgren]

Darn it, I have one mib, you just made me thinking about build it.....

It looks sooooo good!

Edited April 16, 2014 by Lundgren

[DrJB]

Nicely done. I got mine from ebay only few months ago ... been on my wanted list for a while. It's one of my favorite sets.

One thing I noticed though, the 4L half-thick liftarms are starting to crack ... no clue why.

[UniverseBoy]

Awesome, i remember this set while i was a kid. saw it in a lego book... Funny to see it again:) you paid a high price for it?

[Blastem]

I think this Easter I am going to re-build this set. Ready for Launch!

[Loe]

Awesome, i remember this set while i was a kid. saw it in a lego book... Funny to see it again:) you paid a high price for it?

Well, I got it for christmas as a kid in either 1997 or 1998, so I didn't pay anything ;) But I had to get a new white battery box and some rubber bands from bricklink. Some yellowing on 17-18 year old white bricks!

[captainmib]

i just build the b-model the previous week. pure awesome if you ask me. got the set a year ago on my b-day. great set