8043 Excavator clutch switching problem

[DarkShadow73]

Hi all-

I am having an issue with my 8043 Excavator fully switching from the boom functions to the driving/rotation functions. All of my IR's are working fine, I can see the green lights blinking when I use the remote, but for some reason I can't get the clutch fully engage when I press the function change lever on the remote. Do any of you have this problem on your 8043? This is a stock-built, non-modified version, and since this problem is not a motor/LA problem like what we experienced earlier in the fall I can't figure it out. Sometimes it takes 2 presses on the remote lever to get it to fully engage the clutches into the respective gears, most times it will go into the neutral position then I have to press the lever again to fully engage in either function position. I have tried new batteries in both the remote and PF battery box, no difference. When I built the model I went slow and careful, making sure none of the gearing was too tight ot too loose and I tested every gear as I went along, so I'm at a loss to figure out what the problem might be. Any ideas or similar experience?

[Zerobricks]

Bad batteries?

[rien]

build the ultimate poroblem solved

[owl]

it is a strange system with the two odd gear parts instead of traditional parts to perform this

i noticed its stifness also, most of the friction comes from it having to spin on a blue pin - ridiculous as its just too strong

[RockeTeK]

You could try to replace the blue pin which holds the switching system with an older OldGray pin

(or a light-tan pin, but that might be too loose and will cause motorissues).

[owl]

i have just been building this model for the first time - its my first new technic model in a while and i had never come across blue pinstill yesterday!

in the build i noticed that blue pin problem and tested the machine today- it refused to go into gear. how ridiculous is this? ive just had to break the back motor section off and replace the pinwith a grey one. it works ok ish now but at least it works. unfortunitely the build breaking has weakened the structue so all my care yesterrday was for absolutely nothing. why did lego designers get away with this ridiculous oversight?

if a build simply doesnt work why wasnt it spotted in testing? quite frustrated now.

[efferman]

maybe they wanted the friction to prevent the self switching. A few days ago i had want make a gear switch without friction and after a while it switched alone.

[Wookiepelt]

build the ultimate poroblem solved

Hi all,

My first post here and also my first stab at the Lego Technics range again after almost 25 years! I too had this issue with the non-engagement of the switch and initially thought I had built it incorrectly! But after reading this post, at least I know I'm not alone! Can anyone here provde the part reference to the older grey pin replacement that has been suggested?

I've now ordered all the parts for the "Ultimate 8043" build and have received all the bits except for the rechargeable battery box which is on back order with Lego. I now intend to change the blue pin to the grey one (after I get it), have a go with that and probably break it down to build the "B" model while waiting on the back-ordered battery box.

[Out of Sight]

maybe they wanted the friction to prevent the self switching. A few days ago i had want make a gear switch without friction and after a while it switched alone.

Exactly!If you operate heavily loaded function such as the boom, you can see the red driving ring is forced to seperate from the clutch gear due to the torque. Having a frictionless pin, will make the driving ring 'self shifts' to neutral. I run rechargeable NiMh batts, which extracts serious torque from the M motors, shifting has never been a problem with mine.. and yes the friction pin is actually there for a purpose.

[I_Got_The_Last_Set]

I have this set, too. The first time I built it with minor modification from one of the post advised, the clutch function worked perfectly. The modification will change (Book 1 - Page 79 - Step 35 ) 2 16's teeth gears to 12 and 20 teeth with 12 teeth gear connect to the input and 20 connect to the clucth with the friction pin to the cross gear. This made the motor rotated a little more with torgue to engage the clutch.

Also, I think the motor tendered to stop at centain position due to the internal "core and rotor". You need to find that "sweet spot" as the end point of the clutch.

Please search "8043 Modifications 6 Simple mods to make the 8043 work & look better" for modification #2

Edited February 9, 2011 by I_Got_The_Last_Set

[RockeTeK]

Can anyone here provde the part reference to the older grey pin replacement that has been suggested?

#656202

[DarkShadow73]

Had Duracell Alkalines in first, then tried Energizers, heard they are better. No change.

Bad batteries?

Man - too bad, I dumped most of really old Technic a while ago, wish I had kept a few of the old gray pins. Guess I'll try the mod, but that means basically re-building the whole thing, which took a long time to do. I might try to find NiMH batteries and a charger.

#656202

[Out of Sight]

Had Duracell Alkalines in first, then tried Energizers, heard they are better. No change.

Man - too bad, I dumped most of really old Technic a while ago, wish I had kept a few of the old gray pins. Guess I'll try the mod, but that means basically re-building the whole thing, which took a long time to do. I might try to find NiMH batteries and a charger.

Better brands alkalines don't guarantee a better shifting, since alkalines have much lower discharge rate. Anytime the M motor is pulling above 1A, the voltage plumets. Hence my usage of rechargeable nimh. Find good quality ones, preferably those of digital cameras.

LOL, i'm currently looking at 10 of these grey old axle pins atm. I salvaged them from my older Technic sets...which dates way back in the late 80's. The older grey and black friction pins have MUCH better grip than the current flimsy newer ones. Maybe kids are not as athletic nowadays, and having trouble pulling the old pins apart.

Edited February 10, 2011 by Out of Sight

[imajor]

I now intend to change the blue pin to the grey one (after I get it), have a go with that and probably break it down to build the "B" model while waiting on the back-ordered battery box.

Don't forget that it is not the only place where there is friction in that function, as it was stated for example here. But I don't understand why is it not working for some people, for me, it can do the switch smoothly even with all the 3 stud length friction.

[Out of Sight]

Production tolerances I guess....I had found certain friction pin to have more or less grip than others. Anyway, try lubing the friction pins before inserting them, it should ease up the tension a little.

[DarkShadow73]

Good idea, but ah comes the topic of lube again. What is a good lube to use on the pins? I tried the olive oil on my old LA's and found that it didn't work so well after a while, then somebody mentioned mineral oil, so I got some of that. What is your best suggestion for lubing the pins?

Thanks...Eric

Production tolerances I guess....I had found certain friction pin to have more or less grip than others. Anyway, try lubing the friction pins before inserting them, it should ease up the tension a little.

Out of Sight - what do you suggest for good quality NiMH batteries and I assume they come with a charger? I am totally unfamiliar with these types of batteries, heard of them, but never used them. I assume you can just pull your PF motors out, and just charge the batteries, then re-install? In other words, I don't have to buy the expensive Lego S@H battery charger, do I? Can I just pick one up somewhere? If so, what brand and where to buy?

Thanks in advance...Eric

Better brands alkalines don't guarantee a better shifting, since alkalines have much lower discharge rate. Anytime the M motor is pulling above 1A, the voltage plumets. Hence my usage of rechargeable nimh. Find good quality ones, preferably those of digital cameras.

LOL, i'm currently looking at 10 of these grey old axle pins atm. I salvaged them from my older Technic sets...which dates way back in the late 80's. The older grey and black friction pins have MUCH better grip than the current flimsy newer ones. Maybe kids are not as athletic nowadays, and having trouble pulling the old pins apart.

[RockeTeK]

I would not recommend the usage of any oil, simply because I like to keep my Lego clean.

Do as you like, but consider the gray pin first ;)

[davidmull]

I have no issues with my switching ether but I am using the more expensive energiser lithium aa batteries,my 8043 is used everyday for the last 7-8 weeks and it still has the great power and torque as the day I put them in,alkalines are a waste of money ,lithiums don't ever drain and last 8 times longer and I always have great power.

[Out of Sight]

Good idea, but ah comes the topic of lube again. What is a good lube to use on the pins? I tried the olive oil on my old LA's and found that it didn't work so well after a while, then somebody mentioned mineral oil, so I got some of that. What is your best suggestion for lubing the pins?

Thanks...Eric

Out of Sight - what do you suggest for good quality NiMH batteries and I assume they come with a charger? I am totally unfamiliar with these types of batteries, heard of them, but never used them. I assume you can just pull your PF motors out, and just charge the batteries, then re-install? In other words, I don't have to buy the expensive Lego S@H battery charger, do I? Can I just pick one up somewhere? If so, what brand and where to buy?

Thanks in advance...Eric

Eric, lubing lego components if done properly will not..again I repeat, will not make the set messy. Lego purist can't tell if I lube the gears of my 8043 or not, but they're wondering why mine performs silky smooth under huge loads .

I always apply small amount of RC model car shock oil, the lightest weight such as 5-20wt. It's 100% percent silicone, so plastic (Lego plastic) is impervious to it, meaning totally SAFE Silicone oil is clear in colour and not greasy nor attracts dirt. Cleaning is a simple swipe of tissue paper. You can obtain them at your local Radio Control hobby shops, just ask for 'shock oils'. I also use it for the old style LAs,perform admirably for months, you don't need to dunk them overnight. Retract the LA,submerge the 1/4 length of the LA from the front (shaft side). Leave for 5 mins. Pull it out, have few paper towels ready. Now put the LA in an upright position so the shaft is facing up and the orange axle input facing down. This will allow the oil to flow down inside the LA and lubing the whole component inside without the oil oozing out when the LA is left overnight. Now that's messy. Cycle (retract/expand) for a couple of times. If you do get the silicone oil all over the LA's body,just wipe it with paper towels or facial tissue. It will make the LA clean, greasless..unlike messy olive oil which is greasy. I use small 5mm wide flat artist paintbrush to apply small amount of silicone oil on the gears, pins, axles and friction pins in your case. Tiny amount should suffice since silicone oil has a great capillary effect which ensures the oil is distributed evenly.

As for Ni-MH batteries, some come with a charger, any well known brand with 2200mah capacity is good, such Sanyo,Energizer,Duracell etc. Mine is AA Energizer Ni-MH battery 2450mah, with quick chargers. Remember only charge Nimh battery in a Nimh charger. You can't charge Nimh in a Nicd or Lipo charger. So it's safer to purchase battery pack that comes with a charger. A 4x energizer battery + charger packs, will set you around US$15 and $25 for Quick Chargers, you might need to purchase 2 more batteries (comes seperately without charger) for around $5, since the PF battery box requires six of them. A quick charger will see full capacity in less than 2 hours for a 2500mah batteries, which worths around 1 full week of diggin'time

If you have cash to burn, than the Lego 8878 Lipo is the one to go..but $70 for a charger and adapter is less tempting for me atm, although some said you can use regular 1A 9v adaptor.

[DLuders]

Yes, I agree with Out of Sight. The NiMH AA Energizer 2450 mAH Rechargeable Batteries are really good -- they are what I use. I've seen them for sale in supermarkets.

Edited February 11, 2011 by DLuders

[DarkShadow73]

Thanks guys for the suggestions, funny I just went out and bought these exact Energizer batteries, man they aren't cheap, around $10 for a pack of 4 AA's or AAA's. I had to buy 2 NiMH chargers, the Energizer quick charger only held 4 batteries at a time, so I'll have to charge up the AA's first for the battery box, then the AAA's for the remotes. Suppose I could have bought 3 chargers and gotten it all done in 1 shot, but at $16.99 for each charger, I couldn't afford it right now, but on the plus side the chargers came with 2 AA's and 2 AAA's, so I only had to buy 2 packs of each size separately. Did buy them at a supermarket right up the road from me instead of going 10 miles to a Walmart or Target, I live in a large city with lots of traffic, so the amount I would have spent on gas and such would have made the trips to a larger store that most likely would have had them cheaper kind of pointless. I see the chargers have lights on them to let you know the status which is nice. Only bad thing is in my 8258 Crane Truck, that battery box is a pain in the a-- to get out and that one really needs the better batteries. So figure I'll power my excavator and crane truck with the NiMH's and my other models that don't draw so much juice with the alkalines or maybe upgrade to lithiums, I saw them at the store too. Yeah I can't see spending $70 on the Lego charger box.

Eric

Yes, I agree with Out of Sight. The NiMH AA Energizer 2450 mAH Rechargeable Batteries are really good -- they are what I use. I've seen them for sale in supermarkets.

Edited February 12, 2011 by TechnicFreak

[dr_spock]

I use Energizer rechargeables and chargers too. I stock up on them whenever they go on sale. They're handy for all the battery eating electronics stuff my kids have. I save the disposable alkalines for TV remotes, clocks, stuff that can last a year or so on a set of batteries.

[Wookiepelt]

#656202

Thanks!

[DarkShadow73]

Hi guys-

I'm going to rebuild my 8043 and burned out the NiMH batteries long ago from extensive use and repeated charging. I'm going to try and change what many have, replacing the blue axle/pin with the old light gray version. Problem is I'm not sure where in the instructions changing this part is located.

Upon looking at book 1 and finding where the clutch changing assembly is there are actually 2 blue axle/pins on both page 78, step 34, and page 79, step 35. Do I replace both the blue pins? I don't want to build it all up only to find I'm wrong, then have to disassemble to get to these parts.

I realize this is a topic from early 2011, but if anybody recalls and can help I'd very much appreciate it.

Thanks

[Appie]

Iirc you only need to change the blue one that is on the axle of the selector M motor (really going by memory here). I don't know for sure why this topic suggests an old gray over a tan pin, since they are technically the same. I modded this part of the model as well since it didn't work properly, but I think I went with the different gear ratio that one of the poster's mentioned to provide more torque for the switch motor.