LEGO spinning tops

[jam8280]

Looking for fellow LEGO top-makers here on Eurobricks. Very little posted on this building genre so far, but I'd very much like to change that. Special Themes seems to be the best fit.

Over the last 2-3 years, I've designed and built at least 1,000 working tops and still have well over 700 in my collection. As you can see from my MOCpages top folder and the videos below, the visual and mechanical design possibilities with this simple kinetic art form are truly endless -- especially in the LEGO realm.

Since tops are mostly about motion, I'll embed a few of my less conventional spintop videos as an introduction. No need to watch any of them all the way through.

 

 

 

 

 

Yuri Fassio held annual top-making contests for several years on MOCpages, ending ca. 2012, but there was never much activity between contests, and all but a handful of the tops posted there in recent years have been mine. It'd be nice to have some company.

[BrickbyBrickTechnic]

Awesome! I've seen all of these on YouTube. I especially like the mechanism to spin the spinners.

[Eggyslav]

My goodness, these tops are absolutely Mesmerising, great Job on them. Question though: What music did you use in Centrifugal Tops and Reflector tops videos?

[jam8280]

6 hours ago, BrickbyBrickTechnic said:

Awesome! I've seen all of these on YouTube. I especially like the mechanism to spin the spinners.

Thanks! Planetary spinner video below...

Detailed photos on their MOCpage, which also discusses what I've learned about LEGO planetary transmissions.

[jam8280]

5 hours ago, Eggyslav said:

My goodness, these tops are absolutely Mesmerising, great Job on them. Question though: What music did you use in Centrifugal Tops and Reflector tops videos?

Very kind!

Centrifugal top music = Mozart, Divertimento No. 17 in D major - I. Allegro

Reflector top music = Mendelssohn, Concerto for Piano, Violin & Strings Orchestra in D minor - III. Allegro molto

Mozart and Mendelssohn allegro movements and top videos just seem to go together in my head -- especially the Mozart. Part of it seems to be some kind synergy between transitions -- for the tops, the transitions from one wagon-wheel illusion to the next.

Edited June 28, 2017 by jam8280

[Eggyslav]

Ah my two favourite composers, I instantly recognized Mozart, but Mendelssohn is suprising!

Edited June 28, 2017 by Eggyslav

[Henchmen4Hire]

Is there a way to build tops so that they whistle or hum as they spin?

[jam8280]

On ‎8‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 3:22 PM, Henchmen4Hire said:

Is there a way to build tops so that they whistle or hum as they spin?

I've been trying to think of a way to do exactly that, but so far, no luck. However, if you make a top that's very dirty aerodynamically, it will definitely hiss if you spin it fast enough!

[jam8280]

The only thing better than one long-spinning LEGO top to play with is another stacked on top of it...

 Both tops are based on Spike wheels with dish fairings to reduce air resistance, the main cause of spin decay.

The lower "carrier" must have a large axial moment of inertia and a high launch speed to make the upper "rider" this easy to launch by hand and this tolerant of knocks and manipulation.

After video above, fitted the carrier with a permanent rider mount greatly improving ease of use and therefore play value.

The starter (below left) and detaching stem (right) for finger play now engage the carrier through a 2-pronged drop-out dog clutch.

Many other rider designs work, but rider weight can be neither too heavy nor too light.

Purist alert: Fine black carrier tip cut from 4L antenna.

Edited December 10, 2020 by jam8280
Addendum

[MAB]

That's great. Presumably because of the transfer of angular momentum they have to spin the same way - so what happens if you spin the rider the wrong way? Does it remain in place and reverse its direction or does it drop?

And how about stacking a third one? In this case, can the mass of the second rider be the same as the first (as the combined mass of the spinner plus first rider is still large).

[jam8280]

26 minutes ago, MAB said:

That's great. Presumably because of the transfer of angular momentum they have to spin the same way - so what happens if you spin the rider the wrong way? Does it remain in place and reverse its direction or does it drop?

And how about stacking a third one? In this case, can the mass of the second rider be the same as the first (as the combined mass of the spinner plus first rider is still large).

Yes, it's all about  angular momentum transfer through the pivot bearing friction between carrier and rider. If you started the carrier in one direction and then the rider in the opposite direction, the rider would slow and fall before reversing speed, as it needs a certain critical spin rate to stand against gravity, regardless of spin direction. That critical speed is the same whether the rider's on the carrier or on the ground.

Doubt a 2nd rider would stay seated long. A rider with even half the carrier's mass would probably be too heavy to carry, but this is a complicated question involving moments of inertia and launch speeds.

Edited December 10, 2020 by jam8280

[jam8280]

Visually, tops and winter holiday ornaments have a lot in common. The ornament can then be the toy, and the toy the ornament. Made these simple working tops with that in mind.

Poinsettias at rest and at speed...

Top at upper left at speed...

Dreidel marked for the traditional Hanukkah put-and-take game...

Various tops with holiday color schemes...

Octagonal 10x10 plates are a great starting point...

Same top at speed...

Edited December 11, 2020 by jam8280