MOC - Claas Axion 960 (3rd party wheels)

[TeamThrifty]

Soooo, before i take it to pieces i thought i'd share a mostly finished moc of the Claas Axion 960.

First thing to mention is the use of 3rd party rear tyres. These allow the scale to be 1:16.5 which means squeezing in features is much easier! Also mean the Xerion wheels are the correct size to be used as front wheels.

Here is a link to a flickr album.. if i work out how to embed sensibly sized images i will also - https://www.flickr.com/gp/152155419@N02/229t54 

Features:

Full RC drive, steering, Pneumatic pump and 3 point linkage - 4 motors.

4 wheel drive, engaged via driving ring clutch

Rear Diff-Lock engaged via driving ring clutch

Realistic 3 point linkage... 42054 had a very none-real arrangement.

Rear PTO engaged via driving ring clutch

Narrow (3L) waist to allow 45 degrees of steering lock while retaining a to-scale track width - just realised there's no pic of this, i'll add one.

Rear wheels will not be to everyone's taste! But to get a decent scale, i think its needed.. all the supercars are around 1:8 or 1:10 scale which gives you room to fit things. even with these 130mm tyres, its still only 1:16.5.

One of the biggest squeezes is getting the track width narrow enough with 4wd and steering.. its actually about 0.5L to wide, the axle will allow a narrower track but then the lock will be 30 degrees or something equally poor.

Its 39cm long and 23cm wide, not weighed it yet. Piece count is totally unknown.

I'll take a vid of all the function and add it to youtube in the next day or so before i dismantle.... I've got plans to build a proper Xerion with 3 difflocks. Axle is already built so i'm itching to start!

I know tractors are a fairly niche category, but i love building them.. all comments welcome!

20180908_181504 by Team Thrifty, on Flickr

 

Edited September 8, 2018 by TeamThrifty
pic link

[1gor]

If LEGO would only look up to you and make something like you did. It is very nice moc 

[suffocation]

Great work there!

Have you got a link where to buy the rear wheels?

[TeamThrifty]

The hubs need a small modification, i'll post some pics on what/how tomorrow. Its only a 10 min job to do it, but if you're not against 3rd party wheels, at 130mm they open up a few options!

@I_Igor ..maybe they could add the finishing polish and detail?! I'm bored of this moc now, need to start the next one!

 

[zoo]

1 hour ago, TeamThrifty said:

Features:

Realistic 3 point linkage... 42054 had a very none-real arrangement.

Rear wheels will not be to everyone's taste! But to get a decent scale, i think its needed.. all the supercars are around 1:8 or 1:10 scale which gives you room to fit things. even with these 130mm tyres, its still only 1:16.5.

One of the biggest squeezes is getting the track width narrow enough with 4wd and steering.. its actually about 0.5L to wide, the axle will allow a narrower track but then the lock will be 30 degrees or something equally poor.

Sweet build! Tractors are the best! Nice to see a more realistic take on the 3 point hitch. Many MOCs lack this feature I find. :)

Sometimes I feel there is too much focus here on Eurobricks getting all the proportions just right compared to a real machine/vehicle. Why not just build something with the parts that are available and if it doesn't fit exactly right to make it proper scaled, just let it become its own machine in the lineup. For example, what if there is no Axion 955 in the real world, why not let your LEGO model fit that empty space in the lineup? Maybe CLAAS would have built the Axion 960 with a wider track if it wasn't for some regulations in the real world that we don't have to concider a this alternate LEGO Technic reality? I hope I'm making enough sense here. :)

[1gor]

There is also this type of 960 axion

...and could be built with 100% LEGO parts (but is not my favorite)...

@zoo no offense but IMHO is very important that (my) mocs feature proper scaled width, so in case of 1:16.5 scale front axle should be 2 studs more narrow to gain 15 studs front track (distance between middle of tire). This model has width (at the front) for 1:15 scale because real tracks that are allowed to drive on road are max 2550mm wide  

Of course that is how I see making mocs influented by real thing, but there is a freedom of choice and LEGO limitations. 

 

[TeamThrifty]

I'm currently trying to source some rubber tracks as the lego ones a) aren't wide enough b) aren't rubber and c) don't have the right tread pattern... this version of axion, plus the Case IH Row track and quad track would be interesting build then!

51 minutes ago, zoo said:

Maybe CLAAS would have built the Axion 960 with a wider track

I know what you mean, but i line the key dimensions to be right (wheelbase, length, height and width/trackwidth). The 0.5L is fine as the quoted track width is just the standard, they are of course very adjustable, but importantly, the wheel height to width maintains the correct look and feel. Same with the rears, if you look at the pic of the back of it, the very tight/narrow track gives it realistic proportions..

 

55 minutes ago, zoo said:

Nice to see a more realistic take on the 3 point hitch

I'm always disappointed when i see this feature not recreated properly. its way easier to build it is the LA's are horizontal, but on the real machine they're vertical... once you've got fat tyres, narrow track and difflock its a real squeeze to get everything in! 

The link below is for my new axle that i'm using in my Xerion moc - it's scaled to use the 130mm tyres and has drive (yellow), steering (black) and difflock (red) using the new orange spiral selector thingy... just thought i'd share the axle, still kind of wip but i think its nearly there

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmrFL5D1

[zoo]

59 minutes ago, I_Igor said:

no offense but IMHO is very important that (my) mocs feature proper scaled width, so in case of 1:16.5 scale front axle should be 2 studs more narrow to gain 15 studs front track (distance between middle of tire). This model has width (at the front) for 1:15 scale because real tracks that are allowed to drive on road are max 2550mm wide 

None taken.
To each their own. :)

23 minutes ago, TeamThrifty said:

I know what you mean, but i line the key dimensions to be right (wheelbase, length, height and width/trackwidth). The 0.5L is fine as the quoted track width is just the standard, they are of course very adjustable, but importantly, the wheel height to width maintains the correct look and feel. Same with the rears, if you look at the pic of the back of it, the very tight/narrow track gives it realistic proportions..

Well, like you say it's important to get proportions close enough, or else it might not even look like a tractor anymore. :)
However, there ought to be quite some play room when it comes to proportions and scale. To me, it is more important to build something that has the right looks, shapes and feel rather than prioritizing getting everything 100% in scale with a real life model.

[terryli]

Great build. I love the tractor too.

[martinnygaard]

Great looking tractor - nice to see some more farming equipment. 

Looking forward to see the video :-)

I have been looking for a rear wheel like that for ages - Would you reveal where you bought them?