Tips and tricks!

[Mechbuilds]

If you have discovered a great tip, please post it here!

I'll go first!

You know that feel when you join two plates like in the image:



Well fear not! I have a simple solution for this.
Take a very thin bladed x-acto knife and put the blade on the middle. 
Just a simple light push will not damage the piece but the metal in the blade itself will separate them enough so your fingernail can fit in between. 

I've used this trick for years and not damaged a single piece. 
The key to this is simply just not pushing too far for the blade to actually touch the stud. 

[deraven]

OK... but why would you use a dangerous tool that could damage the brick or the human when you could just use brick separators as they're designed for that job?

So I guess that would be my "tip" for those who aren't aware - here's an example (with the old style separators - new ones are even better, but same technique):

... let's see... if you don't have a brick separator (or 2), you can use 2x2 or 2x4 bricks on the top and bottom of the stack, put a lot more pressure on just 1 side and do the the same prying motion as in the gif above and they'll usually come apart without having to dig something in-between them.  

 

[Mechbuilds]

As you already guessed, i don't have any brick separators. But then again, i always made technic builds so i never needed them. 
Might need ones in the future though. As for now i'm using system again. 

Anybody got any building tips and tricks? Would be awesome if we could collect all them here so it's easy to browse trough if you're stuck with a moc. 

[Capparezza]

Like @deraven already mentioned: You do not have to have a brick seperator. This happens frequently when my youngster "builds". Later on I'm called in and need to solve this "plate on plate" situation. Just stick any bigger bricks or plates both on top and underside and pry the plates apart with the help of the added LEGO elements. Works like a charm. I'd never let any sharp metal object touch those precious ABS!

 

At topic:

Have short technic pins stuck in your Technic bars? Instead of trying to grip that small piece protruding, just take a long Technic pin or an axle and shove the "piece of resistance" out from the other side.

Edited February 26, 2018 by Capparezza

[fastlindyrick]

The clutch power of the side holes on technic bricks is greater than the clutch power between two plates.  This is useful when removing plates from places where you can’t attach a brick separator without taking the build apart.  For example, if you have a large tiled floor with occasional 1x1 plates, you can remove the plates by placing a sideways technic brick on the 1x1 plate and then lifting it straight up.  This will work for any 1xN plate, though not as well for NxM plates.

 

Credit: I think I saw this in a post by Chris McVeigh.

Edited February 26, 2018 by fastlindyrick

[Mechbuilds]

15 hours ago, Capparezza said:

Like @deraven already mentioned: You do not have to have a brick seperator. This happens frequently when my youngster "builds". Later on I'm called in and need to solve this "plate on plate" situation. Just stick any bigger bricks or plates both on top and underside and pry the plates apart with the help of the added LEGO elements. Works like a charm. I'd never let any sharp metal object touch those precious ABS!

 

At topic:

Have short technic pins stuck in your Technic bars? Instead of trying to grip that small piece protruding, just take a long Technic pin or an axle and shove the "piece of resistance" out from the other side.

Any tips how to remove two technic 3x3 thin L shape's off from an axle pin?  
Especially when you have an axle pin in both ends. 

[Capparezza]

@fastlindyrick Nice find!

@Mechbuilds I'm not too into Technic, anyhow it's mostly old Technic stuff I own. Any picture or link of those "thin L" shapes? I'm not familiar with those, sorry.

[Mechbuilds]

8 hours ago, Capparezza said:

@fastlindyrick Nice find!

@Mechbuilds I'm not too into Technic, anyhow it's mostly old Technic stuff I own. Any picture or link of those "thin L" shapes? I'm not familiar with those, sorry.

Two of those stacked on top of eachother and an axle pin in each of those axle holes. 





Only way i could get these things off was by biting the pin end and just pulling the axle away from the L piece.. But this will damage the pin. 
I mean, sure you can push and axle from the other side but it's really fiddly.

Anybody got a quick fix that's easier?

[deraven]

1 hour ago, Mechbuilds said:

Only way i could get these things off was by biting the pin end and just pulling the axle away from the L piece.. But this will damage the pin. 
I mean, sure you can push and axle from the other side but it's really fiddly.

Well, even though it is fiddly, I would use a (current) brick separator to push the pin through from the other side.  Not the easiest thing to do, but it does work and won't damage anything.  You can do it with just a regular axel as well, but the brick separator gives you better control and makes the task much easier.

Failing that, you can use something small but not too pointy or sharp (like a ballpoint pen or the tip of a small screwdriver if it's blunt at the end) and push right in the middle of the axel (there's usually a small molding dimple there that makes it a little easier to stay on-target) and put pressure on it until it comes out just a millimeter or so.  Once that lip of the pin is exposed, you should be able to get under it with a fingernail and pull it out (or at that point since the axel end is pushed in slightly, you can more easily get another axel in there to push it the rest of the way out).

[The LEGO Communist]

Fill the interior of walls with bricks with holes for technique pins. Works great for castles!

[Johnny1360]

I let the fingernail on my right hand pinkie finger grow out a bit longer and shape it with a file, works great for disassembling bricks and plates. 

I also have a stick with half of it wrapped in merino wool hide, like a feather duster but better, looks like a fluffy raccoon tail, that I use to dust my sets with. Works very well, gets in all the nooks and crannies without scratching the plastic. It does occasionally snag on greebling though so you have to be gentle.