Legownz

The Ship of Theseus is one of my all-time favorite paradoxes (I swear this connects back to Lego trains). For the unfamiliar, it goes like this: Theseus is an ancient Greek hero and he has a ship. As time goes on, parts of his ship begin to wear out and decay and he must replace them one by one. After some time, he has replaced every single part on his ship. The question raised is: Is it still the same ship?. If not, when does it become a new ship? When half of the pieces are replaced? When the final piece is replaced? It's an interesting thought experiment for sure. So, how does this circle back to Lego trains? I have been building Lego trains since I was little and while most of my old creations are long gone, some survive. Specifically, two small switchers from around 2012/2013. For the sake of this post, I'm just going to focus on the larger and more interesting one. Please excuse the photo quality. This is the best I could find. I remember being quite proud of this at the time. Funnily enough, it uses my fictional railway's color scheme of blue and white completely on accident. Back then, I built with whatever colors and parts I had on hand, and I chose blue and white at random. I ended up really liking the combo of those colors (As well as the variety and commonality of parts), so when I chose an "official" color scheme a few years later, this was an obvious choice. Anyway, back to the locomotive itself. It was based on a British Rail Class 04 with side skirts, inspired by a particular TV show and a particular character. At this point, the locomotive was not powered and functioned purely as a "push train". As the years went on and on, I made little tweaks and big redesigns to it. However, I never thought about taking it apart completely, only improving it. I'll skip all of these in between versions for sake of not boring you! Fast forward to today, 12 years later, and I have the latest version of my little switcher. Version number IHaveLostCount. On the whole, the locomotive is a fair bit shorter and a little bit taller than in its original form. Usually, I am a fan of longer, lower locomotives, but for this switcher, I really do like the current silhouette. For some reason, I decided the design directly prior to this one was just too simplistic. So, I started adding details and weird building techniques just because. I never normally build like this, but it was an interesting challenge. In addition, I gave myself the restriction of only using parts I had on-hand, so no Bricklink orders. I got super invested in creating this angle using car doors. The big challenge came when i had to fill in the gap it created at the top. The solution I went with involved cheese slopes on their side, but just trapped inside, free floating. With techniques like these, the model certainly looked more interesting, but it feels less sturdy than it used to, which I am not a fan of. There is barely any space in the cab with the electronics, but I wanted to at least fit in a figure and one control panel. With the roof removed, we can see the recharging port for the Circuit Cube that is powering this little guy. The back section also comes off easily to access the power switch. This also reveals the trick that the engineer has no legs! Honestly, ever since the first powered version with Circuit Cubes, I could never figure out how to get the minifig legs to fit in too. So, I always omitted them. Here I've removed some of the side skirting so you can see the motor mounted below. It just uses one basic circuit cubes motor driving the rear wheels. Maybe one day I'll try making it dual motor or something, but that's a while away. I did take a video of it briefly running. The top speed is not all that fast, but this thing can crawl quite well (Both shown in the video), which makes sense for a small switcher like this. In terms of pulling power, I haven't tested the limits of it, but it hasn't struggled when I've hooked it up to a handful of cars. So, with all these changes over many years, is this switcher of Theseus the same switcher I built in 2012? I would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for looking!

I haven’t noticed issues driving it over switches, but I’ll take your word for it! Next iteration of this will have a new motor position. Did you rotate your motor by twisting it 90 about the output shaft? Or did you move it to be directly above the drive wheels facing down? Ooh! Those do look similar!! I like those little guys a lot!

Hello! Back in 2020, I made a model of an Alco DL535e (With many liberties taken and entire parts of the design changed to look more like a GP-38 or something similar). Recently, I decided to update it and make it closer to the Alco prototype, specifically with the nose and cab. I was relatively happy with the rest of the body save for a few minor tweaks. I also had made a dummy unit for double headers, but with this update, I decided to power it as well. To save you from having to search/read through my old posts, here's a photo of the old 2020 design. And here is my new design. I changed the base and handrails to match the livery for a new look, but also so I could get a second train base plate (Needed to make the second unit powered) for $1.50 instead of $25. Hey, it was a thrifty change, but I like how it looks more now. Also, here is a photo of the prototype for reference. It's a decently obscure loco and I did not model it perfectly, but I'll talk about the issues later on. I feel like I can already predict some reactions regarding the nose design, so I should explain. This is not the original design. I wanted to do warning stripes on the front of the loco and went through many designs and I finally settled on one. Then, I come to find that the 2x2 triangle tile in blue had no listings on BL that would ship to me. So, I slightly changed the design and accomplished the look with a custom sticker. Not the biggest fan of this solution, but I kept the funky design of the nose in case I decide to go back to the old stripe. This is the current design with the sticker. And here was the original nose design in Stud.io. It kind of looks like the engine has a moustache, I had to admit, but I found that aspect rather charming. Unlike the old model, I put a little detail in the cab. Nothing to write home about, but I do like seeing a minifig behind the controls through the glass. And since I have two of them, here's a photo of them in the double header formation. This is likely how I'll run them most of the time. Now, to mention the issues. For starters, keen eyed readers or anyone with knowledge of these locos will note that the bogies are completely wrong. My models are 4 axle, standard gauge locos, while the prototype is narrow gauge and has 6 axles. I wanted to run these with my regular trains, hence making them standard gauge. In terms of the axles, I would love to make these 6 axle, but I can't think up of a compact, powered 3 axle bogie design. I don't want to go to using regular, non-train motors, but I may have to experiment with them in the future. Besides that, there are many other inaccuracies compared to the prototype, such as a missing side door, vent locations, and handrails (though I kind of like the chunky, old school look of these ones), among many others. However, I'm okay with those for the moment since the locos aren't even the right gauge or wheel configuration. Because of this, they're "DL535e adjacent" in my mind and I've started calling them DL540s. In reality, there's no such thing, but a little imagination and making stuff up never hurt any toy trains, right? Overall, I think these are an improvement over my old design and I think it shows how much I've grown as a builder since the start of the pandemic. As per usual, feedback is welcome and I have uploaded the Stud.io file to my bricksafe page. If you would like to take a look at the model, tinker with it, or even build it yourself, please feel free. If you do tinker or build, please post it here, as I'd love to see it. Thanks for looking! Link to my Stud.io Models folder. Make sure to click on the new "2024 DL540" file as the "2020 DL535e" file is still on there.

Thank you! I agree, they are certainly one of a kind. I'm personally a big fan of the vent boxes sticking up past the roof. And the color palette is to match the rest of the locos from my fictitious railroad company fleet. Originally chose the colors for part availability and price, but I've grown quite fond of it as time has gone on! Yeah! I was surprised to find not many people have modeled this locomotive. It seems like they barely even get called by their name even by people who own the LGB G scale versions of it. Thank you for the compliment on the colors! I admit, sometimes I worry about constantly using the same livery for all my trains, but I do really think it looks nice. Also, I believe a few of the prototypes wore blue and white liveries, though it's hard to find photos of them. I found this PDF with decent photos of the two liveries on pages 16 and 18. I couldn't get the photos out of the document, so apologizes for linking the whole thing. Maybe one day, I'll try and replicate these liveries more closely just for the fun of it. And I'm glad you also like the moustache look! I'm going to order the parts as soon as I can and make it so I can switch out the designs with ease. Thank you! I agree they both look good. I think when I get super focused on one detail, I have to make it absolutely perfect and ignore the fact that many solutions can look good.

Hi Everyone! Normally, I'm over in the train forum, but I do like doing town MOCs too. Here is my latest (and largest) town MOC. I've loved the modular series ever since Cafe Corner and I've always wanted to do my own. I have tried a few times over the years, but they were never very good. This time, I designed the entire thing on Stud.io and then got parts after (Which is how I've been doing a lot of my train MOCs for the past few years). This building takes inspiration from a building in my hometown, but I tried to make it its own thing. It was only later that I realized how similar the whole thing looked to the Town Hall set. Bah. Either way, I wanted to do a camera store for a very specific reason. When my brother and I were kids, we built a Lego camera store together and it was something we were both very proud of. We didn't have many of the actual camera pieces and instead used part 4070, the classic headlight brick, as our cameras. Even today, I still call them camera pieces in my mind. Anyway, I wanted to do an homage to that so here we are. First, some exterior shots. I'm very proud of how the front looks. I think the clock tower is very striking and makes the building way more interesting. I also am so glad I added the Fabuland camera above the door. I'm always a fan of funky store signage, so I needed something like that. The trees were a very last minute addition. I had completed the entire building in real bricks and then realized the sidewalk needed more green. I'm happy with these small, simple designs. The flower boxes were always in the plan, though. A view of the facade detail. I like how the cornice detail turned out. A closer view of the clock tower. I wasn't sure if the Bowser shell piece would fit in above the clock faces, but I was surprised at how well it worked out. The back of the building is extremely boring and I'm not the biggest fan of it. I don't know what would spice it up, though. Maybe some ivy? A floorplan view of the first floor/store. In the bottom left, you'll see an original camera from my childhood store. I made the decision early on to have a wood floor, and unfortunately, the color I felt looked best was dark orange. I think it was worth it though. Also, you'll notice the shop cat. I really wanted it to be a black cat as I used to have a black cat as a kid, but alas, they were pricey, so I went with an orange kitten. We also see some film canisters and old tape reels for sale here, as well as a variety of lenses and a big flash near the windows. The radio on the shelf is meant for music for patrons. The computer in the back is used for inventory management and whatnot. A closer view of the computer. Happy how this turned out. Here's the display case showing off all the new models. Wish there were more camera molds, but ah well. A better view of the checkout desk with a variety of photos hung up, showing off the quality of the cameras for ads and what not. The boxes against the window are all cameras still in their boxes, as the store has no stockroom. I wanted this store to feel like it's been here a while and just have a variety of stuff, but I really don't think I captured that well at all. I think I need to add more stuff and interior detail in the future. Anyhow, now we move on to the upstairs apartments. The door outside leads to a cramped staircase. The floorplan of the second floor apartment. The checkerboard tile totally dates the building and I love that. No railings on this one as it would make the stairs smaller, but I should probably still add them. This apartment opens into a cramped living room/kitchen. I like how the glass coffee table turned out here. The fridge is ok, but could be improved on. I love funky interior design, so the idea of everyone in my city just having a white kitchen was boring to me. Thus, black kitchen. The bedroom has a nice big bed, though, along with a dresser and artwork on the walls. The door past the desk leads to the small balcony on the front of the building. The bathroom here, I love. I think the tub especially turned out well. Now, we're onto the third floor. This apartment is the same size as the one below, but it feels much smaller to me. Tried something different for the fridge and kitchen here. Again, artwork on the walls. And again, limited space combined the kitchen with the living room. The guys here invested in a flat screen TV though. Despite this bedroom being cramped, I really like it. I think the bed turned out well and this was my first time attempting a hanging closet. I think it looks good, but someone needs to pick their dirty socks up off the floor! Gross! The bathroom here is off of the bedroom, unlike downstairs. It was hard to get a shot of the shower, but it really isn't anything to write home about. And that's it for the interior! Lastly, I wanted to shoot it next to a few modulars to give a sense of scale. Thanks so much for looking/reading! I really appreciate it! This was a super fun, yet expensive, project! I have other custom modulars I'm working on and want to build, but those will be much further down the line. Comments, questions, and suggestions are greatly appreciated! Also, if anyone wants the Stud.io file to check out for themselves or to build their own version of this building, I can provide. I only ask that you credit me. Thanks!

Hi all! I am a longtime lover of the ALCO PA diesel locomotives and I've wanted to have a model of one for a while. This model has been in the works for years, though most of that time, the file just contained the bogies and the front nose. Just recently, I decided to finally finish a first pass at a completed model. First, some reference images of the real thing. And now, my model. There were a few challenges and goals I had in mind for this project. For one, this is the first time I've done a 6 axle diesel locomotive. I've wanted to do one for a while but I wasn't sure the best way of tackling it. I went with a fairly common approach of using the motor bogie piece with an extra axle trailing behind on a turntable, so it can still navigate turns. I think this model can navigate R40, but I haven't tested it. The second goal I had was to do all of the livery and detail work with bricks. I love my U36B to death, but that thing used a fair number of stickers and specialized printed parts. I wanted to avoid that as much as possible here, so the train logo, the numbering, and all the striping and detail work of my custom livery are brick built. Also, this is the longest locomotive I have built by far. It dwarfs my U36B and DL-535 by quite a lot with a length of about 50 studs. Looking at it from the side though, I feel like it may be a bit too long, or the proportions aren't quite right. More on my issues with this model later. I was pretty happy with how the nose turned out and it was by far the easiest part to do on the locomotive. I feel like the shapes lend themselves well to being "Lego-ified". A shot from the rear where you can also see more detail including the roof. I'm not 100% satisfied with this model and I feel like some areas could be improved. As mentioned before, I feel like something isn't quite right with the length or proportions of it. Secondly, I feel like the roof curvature and detail lets the model down. I couldn't find a part/technique to get that small curvature to the roof edges like the prototype and as such, the roof curve on my model is way too pronounced. In general, something about this model doesn't sit quite right with me. I think it could use some improvements, but I think those will have to come later as I need this design to sit on the metaphorical shelf for a while before I can attack it again. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions of improvements, I would love to hear them! As always, here is a link to the files of all my current MOCs. This one is just labeled as "ALCO PA" in the folder. If you'd like to download it to tinker around with or to build it yourself, please feel free to. Thanks for reading!

I do like that there are no exposed studs on the side now. In a perfect world, I'd have it all flush to the side and there would be something filling the gaps in between, but I don't think the parts exist to do that/I didn't want to have to rely on crazy techniques.

Finally got some time to update the model and change some things. I changed the roof to use cheese slopes, which I think I like better. I also changed the nose a bit and messed with the color blocking/livery a little. Lastly, I switched the rear bogie around as @LEGO Train 12 Volts suggested. I considered that I might make this an A-A set someday, but I'll figure out the problems with those bogies if I chose to make a second one, let alone buy the parts for the first! Might do some real world tests to make sure I like the design before ordering parts, but we shall see!

I don't know why I didn't see these comments until just now, but thank you! That's a really good point on the front and side windows. Now that you pointed it out, I can't unsee it! I definitely think that's part of the "off"ness about it. I'm also noticing now that I forgot the round window right near the back. Oops! I might mess around a bit and see if I like the cheese slopes better, but I do like the curved roof a lot. Thanks! And that's a great point I hadn't even considered! I have very limited experience with 3 axle trucks like this and I haven't tested it much. If I do the orientation where the two free axles are behind, would that complicate running the locomotive through switches in reverse? When I get a chance, I think I'm going to need to experiment more! It seems like I have some work to do, and I'll need to go back and revise my design a bit. I'll update the post when I have a new version. Thanks for all the helpful feedback, everyone!

Thank you!! Thanks! I am pretty staunchly a 6w builder. I like all of my models to fit with each other and with official train sets. Plus, it helps save money and that matters a lot to me. However, if you'd like to take a crack at making it 8w or ordering the parts yourself, the Stud.io file is at the bottom of the original post and you are more than welcome to do what you wish with it. If you do make any modifications to my model, please post it here! I'd genuinely love to see it done in an 8w format. It's just not my style so I can't take full advantage of the extra studs.

Thank you!! Thanks! Glad to hear! I don't tend to do a lot of brick built lining and details like this normally in my MOCs, but it's something I envy in other builders and want to do more of!

To me, this makes the most sense and it's what I'm hoping for. If it is 8w, I will probably still pick it up, but I'll be grumbling the entire time I'm converting it to 6w.

Hi Everyone! Life has been busy for me recently, so I haven't gotten much time to build. However, I found some free time recently and put a small something together. There's a little bit of a story that goes along with it. Many months ago, I realized I had an odd few train pieces in my collection that I didn't know what to do with. More specifically, it was 2 left doors from the Metroliner (Bricklink Entry) and the angled base piece to the Railway Express locomotive (Bricklink Entry). Out of curiosity, I attempted to use those parts with a spare train motor I had to make a small locomotive in the same color scheme as the Metroliner. I didn't get super far before realizing I didn't have exactly the parts I wanted to make it right. I stepped away from it, but it had been in the back of my mind since then. So, when I had some free time recently, I decided to try making it digitally. This time I was able to get it closer to what I was envisioning: a 90s/9v styled small switching locomotive in the Metroliner livery and would spend its days shunting Club Cars! The interior has 2 small, printed console pieces and a yellow chair that are identical to ones found in the Metroliner set, though it's a little more cramped here. I know the rear railings aren't 9v era, but it was one of the main ideas I had when I first tried it in bricks, so I wanted to keep that one modern element. Also, the rear door doesn't open due to it sitting on that wedge plate and I didn't want to make it any taller than it already was. All the colors did work out for parts, except for the light housing on the front which was never made in light gray. However, I don't think I'll actually make this in real bricks (as it was a "just for fun" thing and I have no plans to start running 9v trains in the future), so it doesn't matter too much. At the very end, I decided to try integrating the large access doors from the Metroliner set into it and create a "high hood" switcher, similar to a BR Class 08. Here was the result: This was definitely not my prettiest model, nor my most complex, but it was a fun little experiment and I think it was worth spending the time on and indulging in the idea. If you have any further ideas on this design, I'd love to hear them! Thanks for looking!

Thank you! I'm honestly surprised the second version is the crowd favorite! I thought it was the uglier of the two by far. I might go back to this project then in the future and put some more detail on the inside and refine it further. Ooh! That's a good idea! I just stuck with the 9v since it fits the Metroliner theme, and I don't plan on making it in real bricks.

NPU for the bucket handle as truck detail! Looks great! Are the drive wheels going to be the ones from the new HP Hogwarts Express?

Love the use of the wedge bricks on the ends to get that shaping! Also enjoying the use of the trapezoidal flag parts on the trucks. Very cool build!

If I remember correctly, the croc sold out within a few hours of going on sale, which seems like a good message/sign to send to TLG.

Very nice work so far! I loved seeing the evolution and different iterations! You haven't made things easy for yourself with the prototype, but it seems you are plenty up to the task and have plenty of tricks up your sleeve! Looking forward to seeing it completed for sure!

I think it's a great looking model! The grey looks good, but the orange is stunning! I always love seeing posts and models that have personal history with the builder. I can't wait to see it in real bricks!

I was lucky enough to come to the show on Sunday and see the layout and the Daylight in person. Both are much more impressive when you see them with your own two eyes. Very cool stuff! On a slightly unrelated note, I was pleasantly surprised with the number of trains at this year's BW. There seemed to be many more than in any previous years, as far as I remember.

Thanks for the tip! The search function on this site has been driving me crazy! I do agree with others thought that message does feel a little harsh. We are a niche of a niche and it's hard to grasp sometimes that we really are this small of a community. However, I will say that small as the Lego train community may be, I've seen some amazing work come out of it and the people in it are incredibly hardworking and dedicated. I'm not really sure where else you would post Lego train builds though. Most other platforms don't seem to have a large following for that sort of thing. I guess there had been a bit of traction on YouTube recently, but this still feels like the ideal place to post.

I've done 4 wide models of a Subaru Impreza wagon and a Saab 900 before...I'm not saying they were good or that they looked like those cars, but I did "technically" make them

I love this! May need to make myself a 4 wide version of my own older Outback...

It would, but this has been a standard for Lego passenger trains for a while now, right? Nearly every passenger train set since the 12v era that I can think of either was A. 1 locomotive and 2 passenger cars B. 2 locomotives with passenger compartments and 1 passenger car I do appreciate that they've gone back to the "A" formula though. Makes it easier to buy 2 sets and add more passenger cars.

I’m very much a fan of long 6w trains so I’m a fan of the proportions!