Wing Body Truck Building Instructions

[afol1969]

As I've recently tried to step an LDD file imported into MLCAD, I have made the experience that stepping existing parts take even more time, so I've stopped an began by zero. And it was more quicker and a better result.

So I'll continue the work tomorrow.

In general I finish projects to the final step, I don't like wasted time. I think that I'll be finished in the next 2-3 weeks.

Greetings

Alex

[Alasdair Ryan]

I was just thinking about it, if it would really make a difference. Maybe building again is even easier, but I don't really have any experience at all, stepping an already built file...

Have you finished the back section,If so do you have the file to share ready?

[legolijntje]

Well, I almost finished building and stepping the back. I had to add a few more parts and I had to export all the submodels and import them in mlcad to make a correct mpd that Lpub can recognize as submodels (I work with SR3D Builder Groups, which LPub sadly can't read...).

There's only 1 problem. I've bought a new ssd (Samsung 840 EVO 500gb). My plan was to put it in my machine next weekend, because I also have to put in my other motherboard which has SATA-III. And, alongside that, I wanted to start clean on my ssd and install a fresh installation of Windows 8.1 (currently I use Windows 7, so that would be a big step...).

But... the damn thing suddenly didn't want to start up this morning. My first reaction: My second reaction: damn it, it fails 1 week to early

I think I can fix it, but I didn't really have time today, so, I can't really finish it at the moment. I'll try to finish it this week, so I have it ready before I go of the radar on saturday

[Alasdair Ryan]

Well, I almost finished building and stepping the back. I had to add a few more parts and I had to export all the submodels and import them in mlcad to make a correct mpd that Lpub can recognize as submodels (I work with SR3D Builder Groups, which LPub sadly can't read...).

There's only 1 problem. I've bought a new ssd (Samsung 840 EVO 500gb). My plan was to put it in my machine next weekend, because I also have to put in my other motherboard which has SATA-III. And, alongside that, I wanted to start clean on my ssd and install a fresh installation of Windows 8.1 (currently I use Windows 7, so that would be a big step...).

But... the damn thing suddenly didn't want to start up this morning. My first reaction: My second reaction: damn it, it fails 1 week to early

I think I can fix it, but I didn't really have time today, so, I can't really finish it at the moment. I'll try to finish it this week, so I have it ready before I go of the radar on saturday

Ah I just do parts in sub-models,then my plan was to force MLcad to recognizance them as sub models.

I am happy to do the cabling,if someone can join my section with legolijntje's and take it up to were most of the cabling starts.

Oh and just for the record I am working from a laptop.....

Edited December 15, 2013 by Alasdair Ryan

[jantjeuh]

Blakbird: can you extract a (semi-accurate) parts list from that MLCAD file?

Edited December 15, 2013 by jantjeuh

[Blakbird]

Blakbird: can you extract a (semi-accurate) parts list from that MLCAD file?

I extracted a Brickstore inventory from the CAD file and compared it with the previous inventory I had made manually from Madoca's photos. They differed by about 20 parts after I corrected a couple of issues in the CAD file, so at this point I consider the Brickstore inventory as accurate as it is going to get until someone builds the model.

[jantjeuh]

I extracted a Brickstore inventory from the CAD file and compared it with the previous inventory I had made manually from Madoca's photos. They differed by about 20 parts after I corrected a couple of issues in the CAD file, so at this point I consider the Brickstore inventory as accurate as it is going to get until someone builds the model.

Cheers. Need a few more parts and then I'll start building :)

[afol1969]

The truck has big dimensions, that maybe it must change the page layout to get the complete model on the pdf file. Has anyone tested which page size to take in LPUB?

As the container modeling makes good progress (I've already made the main side doors), so I'in further time I want to use LPUB for the submodel and callout placement, so at first I must know the nesessary page dimensions, that we 'll use.

But I post my personal LPUB preferences, so you can see, what to change:

0 !LPUB PAGE NUMBER FONT GLOBAL "Arial,36,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB PAGE DISPLAY_PAGE_NUMBER GLOBAL TRUE

0 !LPUB PAGE SIZE GLOBAL 11.5000 8.0000

0 !LPUB PAGE NUMBER MARGINS GLOBAL 0.1000 0.1000

0 !LPUB PAGE NUMBER PLACEMENT BOTTOM_LEFT PAGE INSIDE

0 !LPUB PAGE TOGGLE_PAGE_NUMBER_PLACEMENT GLOBAL TRUE

0 !LPUB BOM ANNOTATE FONT GLOBAL "Arial,16,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB BOM INSTANCE_COUNT FONT GLOBAL "Arial,16,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB BOM MODEL_SCALE GLOBAL 0.5000

0 !LPUB CALLOUT SEPARATOR GLOBAL 0.03125 Black 0.1 0.1

0 !LPUB CALLOUT MARGINS GLOBAL 0.1000 0.1000

0 !LPUB CALLOUT INSTANCE_COUNT FONT GLOBAL "Arial,16,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB CALLOUT BORDER GLOBAL SQUARE Black 0.02 MARGINS 0.1 0.1

0 !LPUB CALLOUT PLI PER_STEP GLOBAL FALSE

0 !LPUB CALLOUT INSTANCE_COUNT MARGINS GLOBAL 0.2000 0.2000

0 !LPUB CALLOUT STEP_NUMBER FONT GLOBAL "Arial,16,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB PLI BORDER GLOBAL ROUND Black 0.02 20 MARGINS 0.1 0.1

0 !LPUB PLI ANNOTATE FONT GLOBAL "Arial Black,16,-1,5,87,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB PLI ANNOTATE FONT_COLOR GLOBAL "#0000ff"

0 !LPUB PLI CONSTRAIN GLOBAL COLS 2

0 !LPUB PLI INSTANCE_COUNT FONT GLOBAL "Arial,16,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB ASSEM MODEL_SCALE GLOBAL 0.7500

0 !LPUB ASSEM MARGINS GLOBAL 0.3000 0.5000

0 !LPUB RESOLUTION GLOBAL 150 DPI

0 !LPUB STEP_NUMBER FONT GLOBAL "Arial,24,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB CALLOUT PLACEMENT LOCAL RIGHT CENTER ASSEM INSIDE 1.36896 -0.0164967

0 !LPUB ASSEM PLACEMENT LOCAL CENTER PAGE INSIDE -0.12196 0.134615

0 !LPUB PLI MODEL_SCALE GLOBAL 0.6000

0 !LPUB PLI PART MARGINS GLOBAL 0.1000 0.1000

0 !LPUB MULTI_STEP ASSEM MARGINS GLOBAL 0.3000 0.5000

0 !LPUB MULTI_STEP STEP_NUMBER FONT GLOBAL "Arial,24,-1,5,75,0,0,0,0,0"

0 !LPUB MULTI_STEP MARGINS GLOBAL 0.1000 0.1000

0 ROTATION CENTER 0 0 0 1 "Custom"

0 ROTATION CONFIG 0 0

0 STEP

0 !LPUB INSERT PAGE

0 !LPUB INSERT BOM

0 !LPUB BOM CONSTRAIN LOCAL HEIGHT 6.12

0 !LPUB BOM ANNOTATE FONT_COLOR GLOBAL "#0000ff"

Greetings

Alex

[legolijntje]

First off, I don't think it's neccesary to start thinking about the whole LPub styles. Let's first make the steps

But, I think it's best to keep it at A4 size, so someone who wants to print it, can print it. Instead, we should change the scale of the bigger steps.

[Blakbird]

I've made a few corrections to both the parts list file and the CAD file that I posted. For anyone using my files, the corrections were to a couple of parts it the submodel "Cab.ldr" and the doors of the cab "Door6.ldr" and "Door7.ldr".

First off, I don't think it's neccesary to start thinking about the whole LPub styles. Let's first make the steps

But, I think it's best to keep it at A4 size, so someone who wants to print it, can print it. Instead, we should change the scale of the bigger steps.

For a model of this size and aspect ratio, you will need to use landscape orientation as suggested by afol1969. When trying to zoom in on a model, you are going to run into an LPub bug that I discovered and discussed in the LDraw forum here. I recommend you read the thread because it will save you a lot of time. Basically, when zooming in LPub won't let you translate the model to be looking at anything other than the center of the image. This is a big problem because, for instance, you will need to be able to zoom in on the front of the truck to work on the cabin. There is a workaround discussed at the link which I used for Dikkie's tow truck instructions, but it is painful. See below for an example of how it finally came out.

By the way, I also have pre-made files that I use for parts list images of LEDs, pneumatic tubes, and extension wires. If you'd like to use them for the instructions, let me know.

[Stephan]

For those of you who want to see the actual model: I build this truck in LDD:

LXF file

There are a few errors, but the model is about 99.96% complete :)

WARNING!: this model uses a lot of bricks, it can really slow LDD down or shut it off.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Stephan

[Balrog]

First off, I don't think it's neccesary to start thinking about the whole LPub styles. Let's first make the steps

But, I think it's best to keep it at A4 size, so someone who wants to print it, can print it. Instead, we should change the scale of the bigger steps.

A4 is fine for people who print it, but I want to suggest this to be landscape format. I have seen many instructions being A4 and upright, which is kind of dumb to view on a widescreen monitor - lots of wasted space. Just my 2 cents.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Balrog

[Blakbird]

I've made a bunch more renders of the truck from various angles, and in various configurations (open, closed, without box). Tiny versions below, big versions at my Bricksafe.

I'm also working on a new type of animation in which the camera will sweep past the truck to make it look like the truck is driving. It will take a while to generate the 100+ frames, but I'll post the result when I am done.

Edit: Finished it!

[Alasdair Ryan]

That is a cool render Blakbird.

I am heading back up the road this week to the family so I don't know how much time I will be able to spend on this truck until after the new year.

[legolijntje]

I've made a few corrections to both the parts list file and the CAD file that I posted. For anyone using my files, the corrections were to a couple of parts it the submodel "Cab.ldr" and the doors of the cab "Door6.ldr" and "Door7.ldr".

For a model of this size and aspect ratio, you will need to use landscape orientation as suggested by afol1969. When trying to zoom in on a model, you are going to run into an LPub bug that I discovered and discussed in the LDraw forum here. I recommend you read the thread because it will save you a lot of time. Basically, when zooming in LPub won't let you translate the model to be looking at anything other than the center of the image. This is a big problem because, for instance, you will need to be able to zoom in on the front of the truck to work on the cabin. There is a workaround discussed at the link which I used for Dikkie's tow truck instructions, but it is painful. See below for an example of how it finally came out.

That LPub "bug" looks indeed very annoying. I've never encountered it myself, luckily

Did anyone tried the solution that first came into my mind: place 1 brick far away from the model, so the center of the image would change? I don't know if it will work, and of course it creates other challenges, such as removing that brick from the parts lists, remove the brick when it's not needed anymore to reset the center, make sure the brick is not visible etc.

[TinkerBrick]

@ Blakbird

The renderings are beautiful. But the animated gif looks like the trucks front wheels skid due to being locked during an emergency break.

[afol1969]

Here my last progress:

As you see, the picture ist depassing the page border even in landscape mode, so for myself I search for another page scale.

I make also the first experiences with arrows and buffer exchanges. But it needs too much time to place the arrows correctly, normally I use a picture program to make signs and arrows in my own instructions, but in this case I'll try to make all in MLCAD code, that it can be modified by others.

@Blakbird: It would be great that I can have your pre-made files for my instructions . Do you have the same for PF motors too?

Greetings

Alex

[Blakbird]

Did anyone tried the solution that first came into my mind: place 1 brick far away from the model, so the center of the image would change? I don't know if it will work, and of course it creates other challenges, such as removing that brick from the parts lists, remove the brick when it's not needed anymore to reset the center, make sure the brick is not visible etc.

It seems like what you are suggesting would be possible with a buffer exchange that spans a large number of steps. However, the final solution I used worked very well once I got the margins adjusted and the resize script written.

@ Blakbird

The renderings are beautiful. But the animated gif looks like the trucks front wheels skid due to being locked during an emergency break.

I noticed the same thing after 5 hours of rendering. I could fairly easily straighten the front wheels, but they would still be skidding. Making them roll is technically possible, but very difficult since all the motion would have to be programmed by hand. Perhaps in the future!

I did create a newer version of the animation with 300 frames instead of 100 so it is more smooth. However, it is also correspondingly larger so I won't embed it here. Link.

@Blakbird: It would be great that I can have your pre-made files for my instructions . Do you have the same for PF motors too?

Send me a PM with your email address and I will send them to you. Put them in your parts folder. For the motors I just use the standard LDraw parts without the wires for the parts list.

[Blakbird]

I spent the night working on a new animation which also includes the wheels rolling so it is much more realistic. The file so big that I decided to make it a YouTube video instead of an animated GIF. Let me know if it was worth the effort!

[Blakbird]

Last night I completed construction of Madoca's wing body truck. I don't throw around the word "perfect" very often, but I think this might be the perfect MOC. Every part is braced, every part has a purpose. Everything is lined up, strong, and functional. Everything looks great, even the wiring. Occasionally I would find a section that was different on one side than the other and I would think "Aha! I finally found a mistake!". But in every case there turned out to be a very good reason for the asymmetry and it was in fact genius. My congratulations to Madoca on an incredible model. Below are a few of my photos. More (and larger) photos at Bricksafe.

Here is a shot of the massive pile of parts. I don't think I've ever seen more liftarms or panels for a single model.

Here is an interim photo of the chassis. In the center of this chassis all 9 motors are sandwiched in close proximity.

Here is an image of how carefully the wires are routed. Madoca's photo instructions are VERY good. It is going to be hard to improve upon them.

Final model before the box is added.

And the completed model. Later this weekend I make take some photos of this model with other models to show the scale. Any suggestions on models for comparison?

[jantjeuh]

8258, 8285, 8110 ;-)

I'm going to start building this one soon - I already know from Madoca's previous MOCs that he is a genius builder, so I'm expecting a lot! If there ever was a MOC'er who needed to be hired by TLG ASAP it would be him.

[Junpei]

Those piles of frames and panels... That model looks AWESOME! By the way, how do you control 4 receivers with 2 remotes?

[Blakbird]

Those piles of frames and panels... That model looks AWESOME! By the way, how do you control 4 receivers with 2 remotes?

By switching channels on the small remote. You could use more remotes, but there is really no reason to ever use channels 2, 3, or 4 at the same time anyway. Channel 1 (the speed control remote) controls a V2 receiver for driving and steering. Channel 2 is the wings of the truck (left and right). Channel 3 is extending and raising the lift gate. Channel 4 is tilting the cab and turning the lights on and off. By the way, this is the first time I have ever seen someone use a motor to turn lights on and off. The motor turns a mechanism which operates a pole reverser switch. The mechanism is stopped so it can only go one way and not go past center. Clever. If anyone has done such a thing before, it would be Sariel. I know he used a motor for flashing lights.

I've made some renders of the internals of the truck, both electrical and mechanical. In the electrical image you can see how densely the motors are spaced. Perhaps someday after Alasdair synthesizes the wires I'll update this one. The other one shows all the mechanical functions including suspension. As always, bigger versions at my Bricksafe.

[Jetwee]

I agree with blackbird about this moc. Despite its size the truck is built very strong and sturdy. Congratulations to Madoca for creating such a wonderful model.

I've played with this model so much the u-joint snapped!

[Lipko]

This is the first MOC that's not mine that I feel I want to build. And I'm not even into trucks.

This is pretty much the most awesome Lego model I have ever seen. Big, but absolutely manageable sized, functional (with really meaningful and practical functions, not just functions for their own awesomeness), looks awesome, looks to be built very well.

Not going to build it though, because it would be a big money, space and time investment.

Thanks guys for making the instructions and renders/photos, otherwise I would have never realized how awesome this model is.

I envy the crap out of this guy (too... To much envy, maybe I should give up on Lego....)