42043 - Mercedes-Benz Arocs 3245 Rating  

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  1. 1. How do you rate this set?



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Excellent review!!

i think ill grab like 6 of the long cylinders once they reach BL

also it is nice to see that my replica was about 95% accurate

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i think ill grab like 6 of the long cylinders once they reach BL

Me too, wont buy this set, but will burn my account buying around 10 of fat and around 6 of thin long cylinders, probably will cost me close to the actual set, but I want just the cylinders.

Edited by Milan

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Excellent review Jim! Enjoyed every point reading it.

While new cylinder input/output nozzles are seem to be bigger in diameter the length that actually hold the hoses is shorter now. Wouldn't that be an issue in cases of higher pressure in the system?

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Jim I was asking on the other tread but no luck. When straighten arm out fully is it straight ? Doesn't look to be in the video.

Edited by davidmull

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Seems to be an excellent set, though the front suspension is a bit fishy to me. Both the shocks and the two trailing arms will bend slightly if the suspension is articulated.

Anyway, I don't think I'll buy it, too big and expensive.

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the end of the outriggers looks a bit flimsy for me, so i think i will change it to this

19328792155_572e18f812_c.jpg

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Jim, thanks for a great review.

I will probably buy 2 sets, 1 to build and 1 to begin experiments with the new parts. I have uses for the extra panels and I identified uses for the grill support pieces when I bought some Exo-Suits.

I will have to test the differences between new and old nozzles with recent (Unimog onwards) and older tubing and also 3rd party tubing, to check for hold-on and pressure characteristics.

I have a new air compressor so plenty of capacity for pressure testing :sweet: At over 3 bar it can blow the silicone grease out of the valve switches - definitely too high! Stick to 2-2.5 bar.

The inner diameter of the nozzles will be interesting to see if it's the same as the old parts. Also to see if the diameter is the same all the way into the cylinder (top nozzle visible). On older parts there was often a burr that could be drilled out with care (mind the top seal).

From what you say about slowness and jerkiness of crane operation it seems the stiction has not been reduced in the new parts. TLG probably stuck with the proven technology of the pistons.

I guess the pneumatic parts would not be available separately till January 2016.

I look forward to seeing whether there will be a new 48mm cylinder in the coming years. Since I do logic systems with pneumatics, the longer cylinders are most useful for actuation, rather than moving other valve switches. This means I would buy some but not too many (compared to 10x 8455 with 10 cylinders and 7 switches in each set).

Mark

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I don't have any set with pneumatics, so I'm not familiar with how they work. Looking at Sariel's video, I had the impression that the controlling mechanism is not a valve but a small axle that compresses one hose or the other. is that so, there's no two-way valve? And when he releases the boom it falls. Is that the only way to operate it or is there a way to bleed out the air more slowly?

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I don't have any set with pneumatics, so I'm not familiar with how they work. Looking at Sariel's video, I had the impression that the controlling mechanism is not a valve but a small axle that compresses one hose or the other. is that so, there's no two-way valve? And when he releases the boom it falls. Is that the only way to operate it or is there a way to bleed out the air more slowly?

Air pressure is built up using the pump, that blue cylinder thingy. It contains the one way valves needed to create pressure. And yes there is a way to lower the boom slowly. If you watch the video closely you'll see that he quickly moves the lever all the way to it's extreme position, letting all the air out quickly. However if you move the lever slowly you will eventually hear air slowly start to release. Stop the valve in that position, where you hear air slowly being released and the arm will lower slowly. The valves are proportional in that respect.

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I don't have any set with pneumatics, so I'm not familiar with how they work. Looking at Sariel's video, I had the impression that the controlling mechanism is not a valve but a small axle that compresses one hose or the other. is that so, there's no two-way valve? And when he releases the boom it falls. Is that the only way to operate it or is there a way to bleed out the air more slowly?

Some quick search video, this will help you to visualize in 30 seconds how pneumatic works. Oh and for full enjoyment, push the volume up :)

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Incredible work on that review Jim. I appreciate all the effort put into this ... for an unbelievable set.

For me the best LEGO Technic set to date. Can't wait for August.

Thanks Jim!

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Oh and for full enjoyment, push the volume up :)

I did that in the hopes of hearing the air hiss through the valves. But what I got was so much... different.

:D

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My first impressions

  1. Those tires look like they could have been a tiny bit larger, but I understand how it's better to reuse than have a new size from a cost point of view
  2. I had not realised until the review, that the outriggers were not in line with each other, it makes sense, but something I had not picked up
  3. It's great to see the steering solution being done using a different method,
  4. The rear Diff is clever

Overall, I love it, and the B model is worthy of an investment in a second copy as well!

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Thanks for the review, Jim.

The nervous nelly in me worries that putting all the V2 pneumatics into one bag is going to pose a problem for some unlucky folks... Way too easy to steal what, for many people, is the biggest selling point of the set.

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My first impressions

  1. Those tires look like they could have been a tiny bit larger, but I understand how it's better to reuse than have a new size from a cost point of view

It would have been nive to see the slightly larger 32003 tires from the Black Cat and Racing Truck make a return. You can always mod the Arocs, of course, but ten of those tires will set you back dearly...

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I think this Model is nice, but I like the Volvo better, idk why. I definetly like the outrigger design more than the 42009 crane (that was not the best). I like the steering on the Mercedes, it seems interesting. As for the b model I like it, for a b model haha

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Thanks so much for the review. My only complaint about it is that it wasn't me who got to review it!

A couple of things I noticed:

  • At long last LEGO has taken our advice and started outlining the black parts in the instructions with white lines. This makes it 100x easier to tell the difference between black and dark gray.
  • The new stepped ports on the pneumatics have the same ID but an effectively smaller OD at the tip. This may make it harder to modify them for LPEs.
  • The head end of the new large actuators is longer and is now only 1 stud wide instead of 2.
  • There appears to be a new black rod end on the big actuator which is taller than the old rod end.

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Air pressure is built up using the pump, that blue cylinder thingy. It contains the one way valves needed to create pressure. And yes there is a way to lower the boom slowly. If you watch the video closely you'll see that he quickly moves the lever all the way to it's extreme position, letting all the air out quickly. However if you move the lever slowly you will eventually hear air slowly start to release. Stop the valve in that position, where you hear air slowly being released and the arm will lower slowly. The valves are proportional in that respect.

Some quick search video, this will help you to visualize in 30 seconds how pneumatic works. Oh and for full enjoyment, push the volume up :)

Thanks for the info! Since I never built one I wasn't sure how the control valves work, but they look to be pretty smooth.

I did that in the hopes of hearing the air hiss through the valves. But what I got was so much... different.

:D

My thoughts exactly! I just didn't commit seppuku right away because my 8yo was in the room.

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Spectacular review, first class quality!

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And the 2016 LEGO Flagship :wink:

mercedes-benz-actros-silo-truck-34244919.jpg

First time ever RC truck with trailer :classic: ?

Great review, this Arocs looks like challenging build so Im deciding to buy it.

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the end of the outriggers looks a bit flimsy for me, so i think i will change it to this

19328792155_572e18f812_c.jpg

Hi Efferman,

This looks good. I would like to try a pneumatic one.

The fenders you designed would look great on the Arocs.

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