[epic fail MOC] Rough Terrain Crane (with video)

[suffocation]

This must be RTC week. 42082’s coming out (officially, at least) and it looks great. Another brilliant RTC on the way is @BrickbyBrickTechnic's.

If you have some weird hankering for an eyesore, though, read on and see what an RTC should NOT look like.

This is a rough terrain crane I began working on a few months ago (I started a WIP thread but can’t seem to find it) and then dropped for a number of more or less serious reasons. Yesterday I managed to force myself to throw a few beams and panels on the chassis so I could convince myself I’d seen it through to the end (not quite closure, but close enough for now). I also need to see the finished product in order to understand what to improve, so if I manage to solve a few personal issues I’ll make a second version which will hopefully look and work better (some of you gave me precious advice but I was in no condition to implement it this time around). The black quarter-gear racks from 42082 would be a welcome addition.

Edit:

- random WIP pictures here: https://bricksafe.com/pages/hateofallhatreds/rough-terrain-crane

- hi-res pictures here: https://bricksafe.com/pages/hateofallhatreds/rough-terrain-crane/done

 

 

 

The model is fully RC. I’m usually not too keen on full RC – in fact, initially I was going to use a six-switch gearbox driven by one XL so I could have some nice gearwork going on. Then I realised that a full-RC, 8043-style gearbox would actually be more complex, so I went with that instead.

What I like about the model:

-          lots of functions, most of which work decently, especially the suspension.

What I dislike about the model:

-          the looks – it’s boxy, unimaginative, disproportioned, ugly, you name it; admittedly, nothing looks right.

-          The superstructure turns too fast.

-          The boom reaches a mere 45° angle.

-          The winch drum is too far back.

-          No high-low gear.

-          No fake engine.

-          No working lights.

-          Outriggers don’t extend outwards enough.

-          Too much black.

-          And so on and so forth.

Some stats:

-         Weight: 4.5 kg

-          Length: 58 cm

-          Width: 21 cm

-          Max height: 100 cm

-          Carrier motors: 2 XLs geared down 1:9.8 (drive), 2 servos

-          Superstructure motors: 1 XL, 2L, 1 M

-          Carrier power source: 1 BuWizz v1.0 + 2 PF IR receivers (the BuWizz unit’s BT is a half-dud, so I use it as a battery box and yes, it can still run at 9V)

-          Superstructure power source: 1 rechargeable battery box + 2 PF IR receivers

Carrier functions:

 -        4-wheel drive

-          4 steering modes: front-wheel, rear-wheel, 4-wheel, crab

-          Pendular suspension on both axles

Superstructure functions:

-          Boom raising/lowering

-          Boom extension/retraction

-          Winch raising/lowering

-          Cab tilt

-          Superstructure rotation

-          Outriggers

 

Feel free to fire away.

 

Edited August 4, 2018 by suffocation

[1gor]

Do not worry, we all have failures more or less epic, but look from this side: you have courage to share it with us and that is something 

[Ngoc Nguyen]

This looks more right than 42082

[grum64]

Actually I like it.

[BrickbyBrickTechnic]

This is by no means an epic fail. The superstructure is definitely out of scale, but that is the only real problem I see with this MOC. Great implementation of functions, and the black works fairly well I'd say (better than red at least).

Oh, and thanks for the mention!

Edited July 30, 2018 by BrickbyBrickTechnic

[Jeroen Ottens]

I have no idea why you would call this an epic fail...

From what I see (albeit from a rosy perspective of being on a camping in the sunshine enjoying a good local Belgian beer), I see a well functioning, well endowed (functionwise), well executed model. I think there are a lot of people on this forum that would love to be able to pull this kind of model of.

 

[Maaboo the Witch]

I think it looks cool! Nice job. 

[Jubuilder]

It looks much better than the LOG official set 42082

[andythenorth]

+1 to the other comments, this isn't epic fail.  It has character.  

[zux]

Well, if you call this an epic fail, I cannot imagine how should we call 42082 designed by TLG...

Anyway, it looks brutal and full of functions. I understand you planned to cram few more, but it is already impressive what you have done with this implementation.

btw. your WIP topic is here ;) 

[suffocation]

Wow... I'm overwhelmed by the kind comments. I guess the pics cover up the flaws better than I thought

6 hours ago, I_Igor said:

Do not worry, we all have failures more or less epic, but look from this side: you have courage to share it with us and that is something 

The one thing that's still great about being British is our innate ability to laugh at ourselves

5 hours ago, Ngoc Nguyen said:

This looks more right than 42082

1 hour ago, Jubuilder said:

It looks much better than the LOG official set 42082

Ha ha, thanks, guys  I wish it did but if you look carefully, especially at the back shot, you'll see the shape is just... boring. The bodywork on 42082 might not be especially realistic but at least it's dynamic, whereas my model is far too boxy and disproportionate, not to mention severely lacking in details.

5 hours ago, grum64 said:

Actually I like it.

Thank you, Grum!

5 hours ago, BrickbyBrickTechnic said:

This is by no means an epic fail. The superstructure is definitely out of scale, but that is the only real problem I see with this MOC. Great implementation of functions, and the black works fairly well I'd say (better than red at least).

Oh, and thanks for the mention!

Thanks! Yes, the superstructure was really frustrating. Dealing with the inherent asymmetry exacerbated everything and precipitated my throwing in the proverbial towel.

2 hours ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

I have no idea why you would call this an epic fail...

From what I see (albeit from a rosy perspective of being on a camping in the sunshine enjoying a good local Belgian beer), I see a well functioning, well endowed (functionwise), well executed model. I think there are a lot of people on this forum that would love to be able to pull this kind of model of.

 

Thank you so much, Jeroen - it means a lot coming from you. I'm pleased enough with the functions but terribly disappointed with the bodywork. It's one area I really have to work on.

2 hours ago, Maaboo35 said:

I think it looks cool! Nice job. 

Thank you!

47 minutes ago, andythenorth said:

+1 to the other comments, this isn't epic fail.  It has character.  

Thanks, Andy. I do agree that it has character - I have to thank the guys who advised me in the WIP thread (thanks for unearthing it, Zux!) to cut down on the orange since it would actually stand out more against the black.

40 minutes ago, zux said:

Well, if you call this an epic fail, I cannot imagine how should we call 42082 designed by TLG...

Anyway, it looks brutal and full of functions. I understand you planned to cram few more, but it is already impressive what you have done with this implementation.

btw. your WIP topic is here ;) 

Thank you, Zux. I dunno, I really like 42082, especially the dynamic bodywork and all the little details. Functionwise I can't really compare the two because my model has some €350 of PF elements alone.

[Erik Leppen]

I think in your big list of things you did or didn't like, there's one thing you forgot, which is that you finished it! This may sound harsh but I think pulling a model through to the end is an achievement by itself, and a valuable lesson. Now you know what the challenges of such a model can be, so you're now better prepared for your next MOC. I still haven't finished my mobile crane ;)

Actually I think the model isn't half bad. Yes, it's a bit bulky. This was already a concern in the WIP, so you're now aware of that for your next model. Maybe you didn't need to cover everything om panels. On many great MOCs, beams are showing through.

About the color, I think the sunshine in the photos makes it look worse. I think on a cloudy day you'd let a less "intense" black, on which you could see things a bit better.

I do agree a bit on the outriggers; I think they're not the way you envisioned them. I think it's very hard to pull off the geometry in such a way that they extend nicely outward. To better this skill, you could look at some outriggers in official sets that work that way. 42054 Claas springs to mind, even though the outriggers are manual you'll see how the linkage works.

The low boom angle is a compromise you can't avoid if you use LAs.

I think what's cool about this model is that you managed to make so many functions motorized, and have suspension as well, which 42082 at 4000 pieces doesn't have. Your model at 4.5 kg, I would guess, is somewhere around 3500 parts (accounting for weight of PF stuff). But thep endular axles take a lot of room that you had to build your chassis around, making it taller than ideal. But seeing the WIPs I think you took a good lesson of structural integrity, because it looks like it's pretty strong with all the dogbones and diagonal bracing.

Oh well, you can't have it all. I'm glad you showed your MOC here and I think it's a fine model. Remember, often you yourself are your most critical judge :)

[gate]

Really like the color scheme!

Working on a crane of my own and it's a pain to get all the functions together in such tight space, you have managed to do it just well

[aminnich]

Wish my epic fail builds looked like this. 

Sure it does not look like 42084, but I would buy it as a set, maybe a different color scheme though 

Nice work!

[1gor]

15 hours ago, suffocation said:

The one thing that's still great about being British is our innate ability to laugh at ourselves

The great about being Croat is that we are capable of defending ourselves against most extreme aggression as defenders in our Land and stop genocide even poorly armed like in first half of 1990s and we do not laugh at anyone and help people in need

Edited July 31, 2018 by I_Igor

[suffocation]

23 hours ago, gate said:

Really like the color scheme!

Working on a crane of my own and it's a pain to get all the functions together in such tight space, you have managed to do it just well

Thanks! One of the first prototypes actually did include a high-low gearbox and a central diff lock, but the model was so heavy that high gear didn't work well, low gear was less than crawling and the diff lock jammed the whole transmission at the slightest curve.

20 hours ago, aminnich said:

Wish my epic fail builds looked like this. 

Sure it does not look like 42084, but I would buy it as a set, maybe a different color scheme though 

Nice work!

Thank you!

23 hours ago, Erik Leppen said:

I think in your big list of things you did or didn't like, there's one thing you forgot, which is that you finished it! This may sound harsh but I think pulling a model through to the end is an achievement by itself, and a valuable lesson. Now you know what the challenges of such a model can be, so you're now better prepared for your next MOC. I still haven't finished my mobile crane ;)

Actually I think the model isn't half bad. Yes, it's a bit bulky. This was already a concern in the WIP, so you're now aware of that for your next model. Maybe you didn't need to cover everything om panels. On many great MOCs, beams are showing through.

About the color, I think the sunshine in the photos makes it look worse. I think on a cloudy day you'd let a less "intense" black, on which you could see things a bit better.

I do agree a bit on the outriggers; I think they're not the way you envisioned them. I think it's very hard to pull off the geometry in such a way that they extend nicely outward. To better this skill, you could look at some outriggers in official sets that work that way. 42054 Claas springs to mind, even though the outriggers are manual you'll see how the linkage works.

The low boom angle is a compromise you can't avoid if you use LAs.

I think what's cool about this model is that you managed to make so many functions motorized, and have suspension as well, which 42082 at 4000 pieces doesn't have. Your model at 4.5 kg, I would guess, is somewhere around 3500 parts (accounting for weight of PF stuff). But thep endular axles take a lot of room that you had to build your chassis around, making it taller than ideal. But seeing the WIPs I think you took a good lesson of structural integrity, because it looks like it's pretty strong with all the dogbones and diagonal bracing.

Oh well, you can't have it all. I'm glad you showed your MOC here and I think it's a fine model. Remember, often you yourself are your most critical judge :)

Erik, thank you so much - your feedback is always so accurate and insightful

Yes, the most important thing was to finish the model. It's amazing how easier it is now to see where and how to fix things than while I was building it. I'm not very good at thinking ahead (I could lose a chess game to a broom handle) and I don't enjoy building digitally, so one of the most precious lessons for me here is that if I hit a Lego wall, the most effective, least frustrating way around it is to carry on building regardless, see it through and then start over.

I hope you manage to finish your mobile crane soon. I love your models - they always have something unique and inspiring going on, be it in terms of mechanics, lines or even just colour combos.

[suffocation]

Modified the front and the superstructure a little before shooting a video:

[1gor]

Well honestly no one accepts that such machine wins beauty contests, so there is a possibility that there is similar in reality.

BTW, did you think of trying to replicate some real model?

[Eclipse]

^ I agree, rough terrain vehicles aren't meant to be pretty, it's very much "Form follows function" , so looks good to me

[suffocation]

- removed -

Edited August 4, 2018 by suffocation

[suffocation]

Got the black quarter rings from PaB, so I'm rebuilding the whole thing from scratch.

Done a very, very rudimental carrier chassis for now. Features independent suspension (unrealistic but allows for a lighter, tougher chassis), planetary reduction, 120 mm RC tyres, fake engine and an unusual take on two-stage outriggers. Kitty doesn't look impressed.

 

 

 

[1gor]

Functions look good, specially 4 way steering like on original. Usually mobile cranes have suspension, so you did nothing wrong and big scale model allows lots of functions. Green engine is nice detail 

[Aleh]

Hi! It seems I've missed this issue. If it epic failed - I will no comment functionality. Only I like to say - color theme black with orange looks great!