MOC - city vehicles

[Criga88]

Hi all, after an extended break from designing and building that went too far into the New Year, I'm back with some more additions to City vehicles. The inspiration for these two came from an episode of Top Gear in season fifteen where the team has to buy everyday second hand saloon cars that can also be used on track days. On the left is James May's selection, a Mercedes-Benz 190, with Richard Hammond pleased with his BMW M3 on the right, and since Jeremy Clarkson was the last to arrive for the start of the challenge it's only fitting that his Ford is still a WIP and not ready to show yet.

The two cars are built up on the same basic frame which is slightly smaller than the modern 4 wide cars in LEGO sets and my other MOCs, so they should fit in with most peoples collections. The lower profile of the cars compared to my usual work forced me to improvise a bit for the floor panel (which is a panel piece) and the steering wheel design was taken from the Mini Cooper polybag since there are no studs in the front of the cabin. Minifigs can sit in the cars, although they have to be reclined to fit in, and it may be possible to squeeze them in with hair or hats on if you recline them further.

The .lxf's for these two are on my brickshelf page for all but they are missing a technic pin with stud under the 2x2 tiles on the bonnet (LDD didn't like it). There'll be more to come soon, including Jezza's Ford Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth, so keep an eye out.

[lightningtiger]

AWESOME.....lets just hope the real done comes in Lego one day eh 'Criga88'.......Brick On Drive On.......hmm, hey wait James was first ?

[Criga88]

Thanks LT, I can't see myself building too many things in the brick for the next couple of months due to moving house. I'll keep the renders coming though and once I'm settled in I'll play catch-ups. It hadn't occurred to me before but you're right about James being first, maybe he found the start line by accident?

[Criga88]

Hi all, while settling into my new place I've seen the Channel 9 News helicopter fly past a few times over the last couple of days. Drawing on it for inspiration I smashed out this mod of my Squirrel helicopter to kill some time between cleaning and waiting for furniture to be delivered, and it only took about 2 hours in total to do this render and the markings.

This version of the helicopter has dual 'sliding' doors to access the rear of the cabin, with a tiny bit more headroom for the pilot up front. It has two camera mounts on the underside to record the action around the City and only a few other minor changes to the original Squirrel design for the sake of realism. Depending on how much time I have tomorrow and what parts I can find lying around I may be able to piece this together, and maybe some of the other vehicles I have yet to build.

[gazumpty]

I really like your computer work...be interesting to see these items make the jump to real bricks!

The helicopter is fantastic...really makes me miss my classic helicopters of the 80s/90s.

[Criga88]

Thanks Gazumpty. I actually started building a few of the models this week but need to scour bricklink for the right wheels, windscreens and the last few parts in the correct colours. I'll take some pics after the orders arrive

[lightningtiger]

Excellent design 'Criga88'........brick-building it in the future ?

Brick On 'Criga88' !

[Criga88]

Thanks LT, the heli's done with the exception of a dozen parts that I need to get in the right colours. I'll be on bricklink this arvo to get them ASAP along with parts for the Top Gear everyday track cars.

[lightningtiger]

Thanks LT, the heli's done with the exception of a dozen parts that I need to get in the right colours. I'll be on bricklink this arvo to get them ASAP along with parts for the Top Gear everyday track cars.

Ah, but are you going to allow Clarkson in or suspend him too ?

[Criga88]

Ah, but are you going to allow Clarkson in or suspend him too ?

Of course he's allowed in, he did that challenge after all, plus I don't play by the BBC's rules

Edited March 12, 2015 by Criga88

[Criga88]

A quick update for everyone, parts for the Top Gear everyday track cars and the finishing touches for the Nine News helicopter are on their way. There's also a couple of other cars due to be completed with the parts but I'll save that for when everything arrives. I'll post pics when they're all complete.

I've also made an Ideas project based on the AS350 helicopters design and includes lots of different accessories for the helicopter. Read more about it and feel free to support the project here, there's also more info on the specifics of the helicopters accessories on Flickr.

[wooootles]

Your BMW M3 is spot on, the 4-wideness and the kidney grille captures it perfectly

[Criga88]

Your BMW M3 is spot on, the 4-wideness and the kidney grille captures it perfectly

Thanks Wooootles. It took ages to work out how to get the grille right, although the 2x2 tile on the bonnet isn't attached because of it, but it does stay in place until you flip the car

In unrelated news, I came up with another livery for my AS350:

This was the National Parks and Wildlife Service's "Park Air 1", in its old livery. It's fitted with a hook and mirrors for carrying sling loads which were mostly bambi buckets during the bushfire season. I'm pretty happy with how she turned out so I'll be pulling apart a few of my older helicopters to try and scrounge the parts to build her.

[lightningtiger]

Another excellent copter 'Criga88'.....Brick On !

[Criga88]

It's been a while between posts since I've been settling into my new place and the new work routine, but a few bricklink orders arrived over the week so I've been able to throw a couple of builds together. First up is the three cars from Top Gears everyday track day cars, a Mercedes-Benz 190, a BMW M3 and a Ford Sierra Sapphire RS Cosworth. I couldn't resist making my own car at the same time since it's an E46 model, like the M3.

The next is still a WIP but it's had enough done to be recognisable. I present the Holden Torana in HDT colours.

There are a couple of AS350 helicopters almost done as well but I can't remember where I put all of my rotor blades so they'll have to wait until I've sorted out my LEGO room a bit better. I'm also in the planning stages for building a City to display vehicles and aircraft but that's still very early in the process. As usual, keep an eye out for more updates and new creations.

[Criga88]

Just a quick update for this arvo, I finally got around to finishing and taking pics of my news chopper. Up until this weekend I've been too preoccupied by organising my LEGO room and starting a city layout. It's straight back to work now so the pilot's taking off to report on the progress of "Studney"

[lightningtiger]

Another nice copter 'Criga88'.......you have a thing for copters like I do for hardware stores !

Brick On 'Criga88' !

[Criga88]

Thanks LT, aviation's always been a passion for me. I have a couple of new heli's on the drawing board for after I've made a bit more progress on my City layout and Fire Station so keep an eye out

[Criga88]

Well, I know I've been a bit quiet lately, but I'm starting to get myself back on track for MOCs, starting with a quick redesign of an older WIP of a Mercedes-Benz G-class that was plagued by overly complicated building techniques.

The new build fits two minifigs, one sitting behind the other, and has space in the boot for most accessories that you may want to throw in. The roof is relatively easy to remove for access to the inside as well. On the back is a spare tyre but I couldn't work out a way to attach it while still on the rim so a minifig head and smaller tyre are holding it in place, it does the trick though.

For anyone else wanting to spoil their minifigs the .LXF and instructions are available from here.

Comments, criticism and questions are welcome, and keep an eye out for more.

[Criga88]

I've been lurking in the background of the forums over the Xmas break but have been keeping very busy laying the foundation for my LEGO city, Studney, and any city in the making needs the right equipment for each job, so I present my current range of construction equipment.

Starting on the left is an asphalt paver because naturally roads need to be laid down for all of the cars that I already have to fill the streets. The loader beside it is the real work horse of my construction sites so far with a variety of attachments for it to use. The forklift is more of a proof of concept that still needs a bit of work to extend the vertical reach but right now it can reach the back of the flatbed trailer. The mini excavator was made last night to use up the rest of my track links and they are a handy little piece of equipment, once I make more attachments for it though.

The prime mover is based on a Mercedes-Benz Actros and fits the construction equipment requirements thanks to the flashing beacon mounted on the roof. The flatbed trailer was a quick build based on my city scaling and is currently transporting two pallets of oil, with the pallets made from CMF bases to try and use up some of the vast quantities of them that I have lying around. The other structure on the flatbed is a section of a future MOC of mine, a tower crane. The tower section is a sturdy build and fits into a 4x4 footprint so it doesn't take up too much real estate. I still have to develop the boom and cabin of the crane and of course a mobile crane to erect it.

The dump truck on the end was sitting in a half complete state for at least a month and a half but I finished it up and added a dog trailer for it over the weekend. The cabin is loosely based on a Volvo truck front with greebles added to the back to fill in the empty space under the tray. The dog trailer was thrown together as a quick concept but works as it should, including a steerable front axle.

I've uploaded the instructions and LXF's for the Actros, Loader, Forklift and Excavator. I'm still working on uploading the others so bear with me.

Comments, criticism and questions are welcome, and keep an eye out for more.

[coffeefund]

I like the cars. You have inspired me to build my own city cars!

Edited January 13, 2016 by coffeefund

[Dutchiedoughnut]

Thank you for building my car! (An e30 :) )

[Criga88]

I like the cars. You have inspired me to build my own city cars!

Thanks, glad to hear that!

Thank you for building my car! (An e30 :) )

No worries

[lightningtiger]

Now that's an impressive collection of machinery and trucks 'Criga88', the excavator and hot box tar layer are my favourites.

Brick On !

[Criga88]

Thanks LT, I need all of the equipment to lay a solid foundation for my own city