JLiu15

Eurobricks Knights
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About JLiu15

  • Birthday 12/01/2000

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    Iowa

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  1. Thanks! I also feared the front would look too bulky - the bevel gear driving the front panel of the bi-parting passenger door sticks out to the front quite a bit, and the front end actually has a cutout in it for the gear with only a single plate/tile thickness on the outside. Still I'm satisfied with the end result, especially with working around the gears/linkages for the door.
  2. UPDATE 1/22/24 The model is about 95% complete, with the roof being the only part I still need to build. The roof will be a simple construction made mostly using Technic 5x11 panels. After a year and a half since I started working on the model in August 2022, the model should be finished this week. Since the previous update, I have built and installed the right side panel, the rear panel, as well as the front and rear edges of the roof. I was concerned that the right side panel would obstruct the opening of the bi-parting passenger door, but the door opens with no issues. In fact, the bi-parting door is one of my favorite parts about the model - I designed the mechanism with no idea if it would work but not only did it work as intended it never has any issues (e.g. jamming). The rear end was built entirely using SNOT techniques with the rear panel/grille being split into two submodels along with the bottom silverside part. The position of the rear lights and the geometry of the black section could've been better (the wedge pieces I used have a slope that is steeper than how it appears in the real MCI D4500CT) but the result is still recognizable as a post-2007 MCI D-series coach rear (older models had a simple horizontal grille in the rear). If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos: Right side (passenger door closed) Right side (passenger door open) Rear view Left side (showing the roof that still needs to be built) Left side
  3. UPDATE 1/10/23 I made some major progress since the last update - the left side body panel is installed. The front and side destination signs, which are removable, are also installed along with some window pillars. The passenger door is also installed and fully functional. I also made some major changes to the chassis, which was not easy as it involved taking a lot of the chassis apart. Due to the weight of the model the front suspension was sagging, so I upgraded it to use two shock absorbers per wheel. This involved some major modifications to the chassis directly above the front axle as the previous design only had enough room for one shock absorber per wheel. The drive axle, which previously used the yellow 22-tooth heavy duty differential, was changed back to the red 28-tooth heavy duty differential. I wanted to make sure the Control+ XL motor driving the model had enough torque as this is a very heavy build, so the change from a 14:22 to 12:28 gear reduction gave it a lot more torque; the drive motor doesn't struggle at all even as the model's weight is increasing with body panels being installed. I'm overall satisfied with the way this build is progressing. The passenger door mechanism works exactly as expected - I had no issues with it jamming and there is minimal backlash in the mechanism. After upgrading the front suspension, the model is handling its weight perfectly and the change back to the 28-tooth differential means the drivetrain has plenty of torque to move the heavy model. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos: Left side (with body panel installed) Right side (passenger door closed) Right side (passenger door open)
  4. Yes, the M angular motor did work well for steering. The finished build is in the MOC topic:
  5. UPDATE 12/9/23 I made quite a bit of progress on the physical model. All silverside panels are in place, along with the front body panel. The roof support frame has also been modified with attachment points for the side body panels. It has also been extended forward for the front destination sign attachment. I added a new function - the destination signs can now be easily changed (the front sign is removed by pushing an axle and the side sign simply connects using pins). This way I can have the destination signs display multiple routes (or simply be blank in "off" mode). Note the pins on the top - those will be used to attach the roof which will be made using mainly 5x11 Technic panels. The front and rear bumpers are also in place. Overall I'm pretty satisfied with the direction the model's going. While not the hardest part to build, the silverside panels were a real challenge as there is not a large variety of pieces in metallic silver, especially tiles. I was able to get a large number of them thanks to Pick A Brick, but still they weren't that cheap. It looks like metallic silver is another color where there's color discrepancies - the 1x4 tiles I received has a noticeable shade difference compared to the other metallic silver pieces. Note the "handles" for the luggage compartment doors on the real bus are still missing - I want to use the ingot piece in metallic silver as their shape allows them to stand out in the silverside panels, but they were only used in four 2013 sets and aren't the cheapest. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos:
  6. Thank you! The front panel was actually quite difficult to make as there is a "cutout" in the backside of it to not interfere with the bevel gear for the front door panel. The doors are made with Technic elements and are in Metallic Silver (like the "stainless steel" side panels) and the Metallic Silver palette is quite limited (there's unfortunately still a LBG piece here and there). Still I'd rather have most of it in Metallic Silver than have all "stainless steel" parts be LBG. And yes, the bus will have decals! It will be in New Jersey Transit livery (like my New Flyer XD60 Articulated Bus model). The NJT order of new MCI D4500CT cruisers are part of a six-year contract, and I'm thinking of making my model one of the 2021's as the 2021 order (year five) was by far the largest. More info about the order here.
  7. UPDATE 11/20/23 Since my previous update two days ago, I found some time to model the rear and now the Stud.io model is pretty much done. I've included a few renderings below. I'm pretty happy with how the design turned out - I may have to make some changes in the final model, but overall it should look pretty similar to the renderings. The current part count is 6050 (I realized I forgot the side destination sign in the renderings, and this part count is with the side sign included). If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos:
  8. UPDATE 11/18/23 A year after creating this topic, I am close to finishing the Stud.io model. Except for the rear which I still have to design, the design is pretty much complete. I finished modeling the roof and front portions - the roof is made of Technic 5x11 panels to reduce weight (the edge is still made using curved slopes) and the destination sign is similar to the one from my previous New Flyer Xcelsior models. Designing the mirrors was challenging as the real bus has them attached to the windshield pillar, with the right one also mounted on a cantilever. This was difficult as the windshield pillars were made using rigid hoses held at an angle, which does not allow for a very robust connection. I like how the design turned out, although I will have to see if the solution is practical on the finished build. I've attached a rendering of the model below, viewed from the front where everything is pretty much complete. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know.
  9. UPDATE 11/13/23 I've installed the roof frame, so the entire inner "skeleton" of the model is done. I had to do some modifications to the chassis to install support poles through the length of the model for the roof frame, as the original design was very flimsy. The frame has also be reinforced so that it is 2 studs thick for most of its length. The support poles for the roof frame is placed at locations where they will be "hidden" by a window pillar and not be obstructed by a passenger seat. I was only able to include three pillars (two on the right and one on the left), but this gives the roof frame a good amount of support. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos:
  10. UPDATE 11/5/23 I've gotten a good amount of the bodywork done, and the model is really starting to take shape now. The front body panel was challenging as it had to account for the bevel gear for the front passenger door panel, and there wasn't an easy way to relocate it. There is a "cutout" in the front body panel for the gear to be able to rotate freely while still maintaining the aesthetics. I don't like how the headlights stick out, but the way they're placed makes it rather difficult to make them flush with the body panel and just a plate further back on the right side would interfere with the bevel gear. Modeling the side body panels was important as this allowed me to determine where the window pillars will be so I can add a support pillar for the roof frame where there is no passenger seat. The roof frame was quite floppy last I tried putting it on due to how long it is, so the support pillars should help with that. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos:
  11. UPDATE 10/27/23 Worked on the Stud.io model a little more, and now all of the metallic silver stainless steel panels are in place. I've also designed the front and rear bumpers. Haven't started working on the main bodywork yet, but the model is starting to take shape. Thankfully, most of the metallic silver pieces are available on Pick A Brick. Still it's gonna cost around $80 to get all of them, and that's not including the discontinued ones that aren't available on there... If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know. Photos:
  12. Thanks! It does seem to be heavier towards the front right now as the hub is right behind the front axle, but this may change as the bodywork is installed. Thank you. As per usual for my MOCs, I will continue to make updates throughout the building process :)
  13. UPDATE 10/24/23 The chassis is complete with all 57 passenger seats in place, as well as studs on the sides for SNOT connections (the silverside panels will go here). Additionally, the wheel arches are also in place - they placed at a half-stud offset so they will protrude from the body slightly once the model is complete. Note the white axle pieces along the length of the model - they will be used to attach the body panels with 1x1 bricks with axle hole, similar to my MTA New Flyer XD40 model which allows for a seamless finish without any pins showing. I redesigned the front section to house the passenger door motor in the chassis instead of in the roof frame. The previous design had the motor first connected to the rear door panel, through a set of bevel gears and then to the front panel which meant the front panel had significantly more backlash. Now the motor and worm gear mechanism for the door are placed beneath the passenger entryway, which allows for a much more direct connection to the door mechanism and allows all motors to be placed in the chassis. The front section was also reinforced, as it had a tendency to bend due to the space in the chassis for the front suspension. It still bends a little, but not as much as before. Once again, please let me know if you have any suggestions for me.
  14. UPDATE 10/3/23 I've done a full rebuild of the chassis in front of the rear axles since the last update. This is because I had to move the Control+ hub back two studs, and it sits deep in the chassis and acts as a structural element. I had to move the hub back because while my original design had the front axle suspension mounted from the front, I changed it to be mounted from the rear to allow for the gearing for the door mechanism (previously the steering motor protruded into the passenger entryway space too much). Much of the chassis is complete at this point. I still need to include the passenger seats and the motor for the front door (it will be located in a roof frame similar to how I designed my other bus models). I was worried that the passenger entryway is not reinforced enough as there's not much space for reinforcement between the front axle suspension and the chassis. There is some bending, but the chassis is overall quite rigid and this should improve once the bodywork is put on. Any suggestions are appreciated! Photos:
  15. UPDATE 9/7/23 After nearly 9 months without progress on this model, I am happy to announce that work on the model is once again underway. As I noticed in my March update, the entire model was reworked in Stud.io without the wheelchair lift mechanism and gearbox. The rear 3/4 of the chassis is complete as of this update, with the front 1/4 and front axle still yet to be built. The chassis also has a Cummins X12 engine model in the back. The seats (along with the supports they're attached to) are not installed yet, as I'm waiting for the chassis to be finished before building anything on top of it (e.g. seats, wheel arches, etc). The build is going well so far. The chassis is very robust thanks to the use of 7x11 frames along the sides of the chassis - it's built like a tank. The area above the drive and tag axles is also reinforced well enough that the chassis does not bend much when the suspension is compressed. Any suggestions are appreciated! Photos: