8043 Excavator - Lego update

[Daniel-Technic]

Mine arrived yesterday. Will have to rebuild.....

Dan.

[Blakbird]

Wow, I'm very unimpressed. I just got back from Brickcon where I used the excavator (with the old actuators) all weekend. It was slow, but it worked. When I got home tonight the service pack was waiting for me, so I installed the new actuators. The excavator is no better now and may actually be a little worse. I have heard reports from others that the mods helped, so I'm not sure what's going on. I put in fresh batteries and even tested the voltage, so that's not it. It may be that the motors operated so near stall for so long (days) that they are essentially ruined and therefore the new actuators don't help. I don't have a new set of 4 motors to try though.

[d66n]

For your information, having built the set with my parts, I wanted to get hold of the new actuators so that I could rebuild it with these. Lego direct were not able to sell individual replacement actuator (4638508) but were willing to sell me the service pack for GBP15 + P&P.

[hoeij]

Wow, I'm very unimpressed. I just got back from Brickcon where I used the excavator (with the old actuators) all weekend. It was slow, but it worked. When I got home tonight the service pack was waiting for me, so I installed the new actuators. The excavator is no better now and may actually be a little worse. I have heard reports from others that the mods helped, so I'm not sure what's going on. I put in fresh batteries and even tested the voltage, so that's not it. It may be that the motors operated so near stall for so long (days) that they are essentially ruined and therefore the new actuators don't help. I don't have a new set of 4 motors to try though.

So far I've only built the B model (I decided to wait with the main model until I received the service pack). The service pack arrived on Friday. I tested them by putting them in the B model, and it lifts almost twice as much weight now.

[jason-l]

Have any folk in the UK received their Service Pack yet? I received confirmation that I would receive a pack in an email from LEGO dated 21 August... just wondering whether I should be expecting it soon?

[rgbrown]

Have any folk in the UK received their Service Pack yet? I received confirmation that I would receive a pack in an email from LEGO dated 21 August... just wondering whether I should be expecting it soon?

Likewise anybody in New Zealand? I wasn't certain from the wording of my email from LEGO that I'd been added to the list properly

[JunkstyleGio]

Wow, I'm very unimpressed. .........It may be that the motors operated so near stall for so long (days) that they are essentially ruined and therefore the new actuators don't help. I don't have a new set of 4 motors to try though.

Maybe a little phonecall to the guys and girls of the LEGO customer Service will solve your motor-problems.

[AndroTech]

I received my service pack last Friday and I must say, that the difference is obvious.

[AndyC]

Have any folk in the UK received their Service Pack yet?

Yes, got mine the other day, haven't got round to trying it yet though.

[Jetro]

Obvious in what respect?

[Blakbird]

Maybe a little phonecall to the guys and girls of the LEGO customer Service will solve your motor-problems.

I'm not sure that I have motor problems. That would be difficult to confirm. All I can say for certain is that the new actuators did not help.

[JunkstyleGio]

I've read various reviews on the 8043 servicepack on which it was said that performance of the excavator increased massively with the new LA's. So i guessed it must have been the well-worn/heavily-used engines.

Yet i can't confirm the above mentioned performance increase because I haven't received my SP yet.

Made a call today to LEGO Customer Service on the servicepack delivery. It was said to be sent out in the next few days/weeks. "Multiple-thousand SP's are ordered; so you might have to wait a bit...." was their answer.

[Front]

Maybe we could try and set up a measure of the performance of the excavator. With all Linear Actuators at minimum lenght (boom fully extended) measure the time it takes to fully extend the two inner LA's, though only activating that single function.

With improved LA's and Energizer Industrial used for about 2 weeks mine does it in about 13.0 seconds.

Edited October 6, 2010 by Front

[bord4kop]

I bought my 8043 set last wednesday form a local -small- toy store in The Netherlands.

Completed the build and tried it. Seems to work ok, but problems occur after certain time I read.

Is there a way to see if my set is the upgraded one, or the original?

e.g. serial numbers or such?

I think the set was is in this shop for some time, hence the question

Edited October 7, 2010 by bord4kop

[Arfman]

I bought my 8043 set last wednesday form a local -small- toy store in The Netherlands.

Completed the build and tried it. Seems to work ok, but problems occur after certain time I read.

Is there a way to see if my set is the upgraded one, or the original?

e.g. serial numbers or such?

I think the set was is in this shop for some time, hence the question

I'm 99% sure it is the original version, the updated versions of the boxes haven't shipped yet IIRC.

[dolittle]

I bought my 8043 set last wednesday form a local -small- toy store in The Netherlands.

Completed the build and tried it. Seems to work ok, but problems occur after certain time I read.

Is there a way to see if my set is the upgraded one, or the original?

e.g. serial numbers or such?

I think the set was is in this shop for some time, hence the question

Updated version is expected to be out in the USA on the 22nd and in Europe, beginning of November.

[Erik Leppen]

Is there a way to see if my set is the upgraded one, or the original?

As far as I know the only way to see this is to check the serial number at the bottom of the linear actuator (near the orange axlehole); the new actuators have code 36X0.

[bord4kop]

Thanks all for the prompt replies

Will check tonight when @home

and probably have a call with Lego customer support after

[DLuders]

The Lego.com Technic Designers Blog has posted 3 videos on their "fixes" to the 8043 Motorized Excavator set: http://technic.lego.com/en-us/Designers/Blog/Default.aspx .

Changing Actuators in Motorized Excavator #8043

September 30, 2010

Dear LEGO Technic fan

As you probably know, some of you have had problems with lifting the main arm on the excavator. We have solved the issue and are sending out a service pack with 4 new actuators. The shipment of the service packs has started, it will be shipped to all customers that has been in contact with our consumer service, regarding the problem.

To assist all of you changing the 4 actuators in the model, we have made 3 small videos. The videos shows you how to change each actuator the easiest way.

Happy building

Ricco [Ricco Rejnholdt Krog]

Go to this Lego.com webpage to see the three videos:

Video 1: "See how to change the actuators that lift the main arm."

Video 2: "See how to change the middle actuator."

Video 3: "See how to change the actuator that the controls the bucket."

[Zerobricks]

I wouldnt toss those LA's away... They are still usefull!

[LegoDejc]

I also wouldn't toss them away, this is nonsense.

[dolittle]

I also wouldn't toss them away, this is nonsense.

I don't understand why in the movie they are throwing them to the "lego garbage" ?

I know LEGO doesn't lack parts :)

But we do...

Those LA are ok, just not for this model.

[allanp]

I don't understand why in the movie they are throwing them to the "lego garbage" ?

I know LEGO doesn't lack parts :)

But we do...

Those LA are ok, just not for this model.

No LA, old or new, is good for any model

[GuiliuG]

Rectification : for you ;-)

Personnaly, i prefer La to pneumatic cylender because they are very accurate and reliable.

But the two are usefull, it depends on the case.

[fmmjqtft]

The sound and scrollbar do not work! They seem to have used Lego Movie Player v.2.10.01 instead of v.2.08