42128 - Heavy-Duty Tow Truck

[Bartybum]

19 hours ago, AVCampos said:

Just out of curiosity, and considering I'm European and therefore don't see this kind of trucks on the road: aren't the front grille slits supposed to be vertical?

Also, regarding the fuel tanks, they seem to me built from wheel rims instead of beams.

Personally, I think they look better when vertical, but luckily it's a 6x6 frame so it should be extremely easy to change!

[Timorzelorzworz]

3 hours ago, Dylan M said:

It's  MK's work...👍👏 

But I'm expecting him Behind CAT😔

Well anyway,  did this set release in US on Aug1 also? Tnx 

Me too. No MK for the CAT. Maybe the 42131 is a collaboration between Uwe and Michel T.

[Ngoc Nguyen]

These days I've been thinking about what alternative models can be produced from this set. A few ideas that came to mind are:

- A smaller 42043 A
- A smaller 42043 B
- A smaller 8258 A
- A smaller 8258 B
- A smaller 8421 A
- A smaller 42009 B play set

Imagine the possibilities 

[paul_delahaye]

Seeing the video with all the functions, this is a really stunning set, great old school technic functionality throughout, although I'm still amazed we have not seen a set yet to use up all those spare dumb battery boxes they must have left over from the ospray ;-)

[KevinMD]

As a cross-theme buyer that does not prioritize technic in the top 3, this may be my favorite set of the year.

[R0Sch]

6 hours ago, Timorzelorzworz said:

Me too. No MK for the CAT. Maybe the 42131 is a collaboration between Uwe and Michel T.

Agree that if MK is behind the tow truck, the CAT was designed by someone else in the team since it's usually 1 big model/designer/year. I suspect Olav or Luke since Uwe is more into cars nowadays. I don't think Michael T.J. since we didn't get to see anything since 2018 from him.

[Ullum Zurt]

Not sure if this was mentioned before (and I missed it), but since there isn't going to be a new air tank, would there be enough space to squeeze in the old blue/white air tank? 42053 had space for a tank under the black panels at the back, and that made play more enjoyable.

[allanp]

1 hour ago, Ullum Zurt said:

Not sure if this was mentioned before (and I missed it), but since there isn't going to be a new air tank, would there be enough space to squeeze in the old blue/white air tank? 42053 had space for a tank under the black panels at the back, and that made play more enjoyable.

If you're willing to shorten the steps by a couple studs then you could fit an air tank either side instead of the fuel tanks. If not it looks like there should be enough room on the sleeper cab area.

[Ngoc Nguyen]

Saw this comment on brickset.

"So which set will be cancelled this time round?

Unfortunately, the Tow Truck is being cancelled. The words Tow Truck imply that something is being towed against its will so therefore the set will be cancelled. They cant even change it to helpful assistant vehicle, even thats too offensive!"

[zoo]

42 minutes ago, Ngoc Nguyen said:

Saw this comment on brickset.

"So which set will be cancelled this time round?

Unfortunately, the Tow Truck is being cancelled. The words Tow Truck imply that something is being towed against its will so therefore the set will be cancelled. They cant even change it to helpful assistant vehicle, even thats too offensive!"

Get over it already.

[Timorzelorzworz]

22 hours ago, R0Sch said:

Agree that if MK is behind the tow truck, the CAT was designed by someone else in the team since it's usually 1 big model/designer/year. I suspect Olav or Luke since Uwe is more into cars nowadays. I don't think Michael T.J. since we didn't get to see anything since 2018 from him.

Michael T. worked on the 42114 Volvo

[Ngoc Nguyen]

But why do tow trucks need dual winches tho?

[syclone]

26 minutes ago, Ngoc Nguyen said:

But why do tow trucks need dual winches tho?

My best guess after seeing some on YT: these are sort of a crane as well, and in case the load (truck, car, whatever got into an accident) is beyond being able to be towed on it's own wheels, these dual winches can be used to hoist the load onto a platform truck (efferman showed off that in a video of his MOC as well). Also, the load gets distributed onto two separate points, requiring less force per winch, and less stress per towing point on the accidented vehicle. Having two winches can also prove beneficial to straighten out/flip the towed subject in reference to the tow truck.

[Rebel_Lego]

I’ve seen the series Highway through Hell about Tow trucks in Canada. They often use two winches. For example, when a truck is in the ditch on his side, with a trailer attached, they use one winch for the trailer and one for the truck. Or they need to pull the front of a truck up while they also need to tilt it. So, in summary, they use two winches for either two objects to tow simultanously or two different directions of movement.

[mahjqa]

For an example why you'd need two winches, check this video at 27:00
 

 

[1974]

Thanx for the link, that was a rabbithole

These trucks are much more about recovery than towing. The crane boom (the "rotator" as they call it) must be very sturdy and wellmade to withstand all that abuse

Fascinating vehicles!

[Citromon]

Hey, I was rewatching Gone in 60 seconds lately, ant there were a couple of moments with this type of Truck)

[Polarlicht]

Noticed the second set of pulley on the axle boom lift thingy at the rear, to redirect the cables around and get an even lower angle to pull.

[Void_S]

On 7/5/2021 at 8:43 PM, Coolusername said:

Noticed the second set of pulley on the axle boom lift thingy at the rear, to redirect the cables around and get an even lower angle to pull.

Exactly, it's for a clear "pull" action rather than lifting something.

Those machines have nearly unlimited number of possible uses and (rotators especially) often used not only as tow trucks but as general purposed cranes for emegency services. This truck arrives, works as a crane to clean the stage, then takes the damaged car or truck and tows it to the nearby services station. So you need only a single truck with a single crew. 

[weavil]

On 7/5/2021 at 7:52 AM, 1974 said:

Thanx for the link, that was a rabbithole

These trucks are much more about recovery than towing. The crane boom (the "rotator" as they call it) must be very sturdy and wellmade to withstand all that abuse

Fascinating vehicles!

And also:

Basically I love them! and I can't wait to get this set. 

[1974]

Jeebus, how do you even drive (and turn!) that last one on normal roads?

Thanx weavil for the vids, will check 'em out during the weekend. If you got any more, please post the links

Cheers,

Ole

[howitzer]

1 hour ago, 1974 said:

Jeebus, how do you even drive (and turn!) that last one on normal roads?

Thanx weavil for the vids, will check 'em out during the weekend. If you got any more, please post the links

Cheers,

Ole

Like you would drive a bus.

[1974]

Buses here either have a steerable backaxle or are articulated

[MP LEGO Technic creations]

Just found this video including its speed build.

 

[AVCampos]

Someone jumped the gun two days early...

Anyway, not gonna watch until the reviewers I follow, such as Sariel, RacingBrick or JANGBRiCKS publish their videos.