BrickTracks: R104 Switch Kickstarter is LIVE!

[coaster]

Hi Everyone, forgive the shameless self-promotion, but a lot of people (including EB mods) have encouraged me to post this in its own topic instead of just the BrickTracks thread.  Long story short, we have finally launched our Kickstarter for the the R104 switches.  It's something we've been working on and been asked about for years, so we're finally ready to make it happen.  If you don't know about BrickTracks, our tracks, or these switches, you can read all about us and the project here.

We've had a tremendous start to the launch, hitting almost 20% in less than a week, but we still have a long way to go.  Why do we need so much?  Frankly, injection molding tooling isn't cheap.  Yes, I'm aware of 3D printing options, but for all the 3D printings I have used, both professionally and for BrickTracks prototypes, I've not found one that can stand up to the wear and tear.  The early track prototypes that were originally too snug have all but lost their clutch power entirely.  To do this properly, we need to mold the parts, and that tooling is expensive, especially for something this large and intricate. 

We often complain that LEGO doesn't cater to the train community enough.  There's little we can do about that, but we're not helpless.  We can take care of ourselves.  Let's work together and fill in the gaps in LEGO's offering.  And who knows, maybe if we get enough backers we can get LEGO to sit up and take notice, too.

 

[supertruper1988]

Supported since day one for the 4 or each tier!

Coaster and team are good people and he is good for the product once it goes into production. He has demonstrated that with his products already available that have been slow to be launched but once they are available, the order fulfillment happens seamlessly. I am really looking forward to these and the R56 curves!

[HoMa]

 Feel free to use my video showing the prototype I got a while ago.

Someone newer mentioned Jang ... that is this channel worth more then 1.000.000 subscriber at YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/user/LEGOJANG

Good luck from  supporter #22

HoMa

 

[Stash2Sixx]

Great stuff here. Those of you on the fence, don’t be! Quality product from a quality person!!!

[dylanfarrow]

Superb! Backed and promoting where I can ?

[cptkent]

It may help to put some photos up on Flickr as well, and the train threads there.

Dont be concerned about “shamelessly self promoting” - it’s the only way to reach everyone.

[M_slug357]

I'd say this topic should get the front page treatment!!

[pirzyk]

Here's my photos of the prototype switches before they were sent to PennLUG: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=574683

[JopieK]

3 hours ago, cptkent said:

It may help to put some photos up on Flickr as well, and the train threads there.

Dont be concerned about “shamelessly self promoting” - it’s the only way to reach everyone.

I don't see a reason for that, if you play by the rules you get a Frontpage Spot, probably not only here but at a lot of other places too :).

@coaster I already saw you action on Kickstarter. Nice job again... Hope you will make the goal in time.

[SavaTheAggie]

I backed the project as soon as I saw it.

--Tony

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

These switches are fantastic!

[legoman666]

I tried to add coaster as an authorized user on my credit card but my wife caught me. 

[Cale]

You can see PennLUG testing the prototype R104 switches for the first time at Philly Brick Fest last year in this video.

https://youtu.be/3Z9dRRWW7dM

And again here.

https://youtu.be/3Z9dRRWW7dM

We've had them for over a year now and the performance has been flawless. Several members have already backed for their own personal use, and the club will also be backing for use in our group layout. These are going to be a game changer for the hobby.

Cale

Edited July 1, 2018 by Cale

[legoman666]

I've thrown my wallet at the screen several times now and nothing has happened. What is the next step?

[pirzyk]

5 hours ago, legoman666 said:

I've thrown my wallet at the screen several times now and nothing has happened. What is the next step?

Find others to do the same thing.

[CrispyBassist]

On 7/1/2018 at 6:36 AM, legoman666 said:

I tried to add coaster as an authorized user on my credit card but my wife caught me. 

 

14 hours ago, legoman666 said:

I've thrown my wallet at the screen several times now and nothing has happened. What is the next step?

You either need a new credit card, or a new wife ?

[Cale]

4 hours ago, CrispyBassist said:

 

You either need a new credit card, or a new wife ?

He could always sell a kidney on the black market.

 

Cale

[coaster]

16 hours ago, pirzyk said:

Find others to do the same thing.

This^.  I'm spamming the boards and Facebook groups quite a bit, but any and all word of mouth will help.

[Captain Genaro]

@coaster At our last LUG meeting, someone brought some 3D printed Lego track, including curves and switches. They seemed fine to me, but I would be interested in knowing what advantages yours provide. Higher quality? Lower cost?

I wish you the best of luck getting the funding you need for this project. 

[coaster]

5 hours ago, Captain Genaro said:

@coaster At our last LUG meeting, someone brought some 3D printed Lego track, including curves and switches. They seemed fine to me, but I would be interested in knowing what advantages yours provide. Higher quality? Lower cost?

I wish you the best of luck getting the funding you need for this project. 

The 3D printed ones are ok, but the surface finish is definitely not the same thing as the LEGO ones.  The bigger issue is they don't hold up to repeated use.  We 3D print a lot of parts when we prototype, but after a bit of use they lose clutch power, both in the studs and in the track-to-track connection.

[pirzyk]

30 minutes ago, coaster said:

The 3D printed ones are ok, but the surface finish is definitely not the same thing as the LEGO ones.

Also with the surface being a different texture you have color matching issues, depending on how much OCD you have.  The BrickTrack curves are closer in color to LEGO track than the ME Models track is or any 3D printed track I have seen.  The 3D printed track does stand out to me, like the ME models did.  The BT curves you can't tell are not LEGO unless you recoginze the shape is nothing that LEGO produces :)

[Captain Genaro]

Thank you for the information. We have a train show this weekend, and I'll be sure to pass this information along to my LUG. 

[zephyr1934]

On 7/11/2018 at 9:17 PM, pirzyk said:

The BT curves you can't tell are not LEGO unless you recoginze the shape is nothing that LEGO produces :)

Not true, if you get close enough you can see where the studs should say "Lego" they actually have a BT logo. (grin... but true, they are that good)

[Mestari]

I have never taken part in kickstarter before. Can someone tell me what happens if the project does not reach the goal - the money is simply not charged from my credit card and that's it?

[Chipstertrain]

That is how I understand it, I'm also a first time backer and I'm sure it said you will pay nothing if it does not reach the full amount.