legotownlinz

I'd also like to upgrade my trains to 7-wide so that they have a similar scale as MOCs. I've already made several coaches longer, but not changed the widths yet.

I thought about it, but I think it requires a lot of time to keep it in a good condition. Maybe in a few years...

Plants are not made from ABS. There is no replacement for ABS yet.

It's actually one layout across multiple rooms.

True. And I like competition in the LEGO market, too. I'm glad that tracks get cheaper now, I spend too much money on tracks anyway. The Trixbrix double straight track was a game changer for me, it allowed me to expand my layout quickly.

A few years earlier I would have started with Fx Tracks but now I own so many plastic tracks that it would be prohibitively expensive to convert to 9V (see some impressions of my current layout below). I couldn't use all the special elements that I enjoy a lot, but will never be available in a 9V version. Beside that, multi-train control is an unresolved issue of the 9V system. There are no DCC motors available and personally I hate the complexity of DCC and do not like to use it for my LEGO trains. Therefore, I do not see conversion from plastic to 9V to happen at a larger scale. Plastic tracks have far more advantages than disadvantages when compared to 9V.

I own moulded Trixbrix R56 tracks and can confirm that the quality is excellent. They are a bit more glossy than LEGO tracks. I also own BrickTracks R104 and R120 tracks. They are less glossy than LEGO tracks. Coaster mentioned that he switched from aluminum to steel molds which should make the tracks more glossy. As I have not ordered tracks from BrickTracks recently I cannot confirm it. BlueBrixx tracks looked warped on their YouTube presentation video. I never that warping issues with Trixbrix or BrickTracks tracks. The products of all three manufacturers are legal in the EU. In my opinion it is also morally ok to buy from all of them. 4dbrix was ahead of Trixbrix in the early days, but that doesn't mean that Trixbrix ripped off their ideas. The idea to produce different kind of switches was not new, all track systems have similar elements and all manufacturers copied all important design details from LEGO, not from each other. I'd guess that we will soon see moulded switches from Trixbrix. This would be an expectable step and not a rip off of a BrickTracks idea.

I've made some additional improvements to the 60266 Ocean Exploration Ship, the biggest one is a deck at the front of the ship. Not only does the front look empty anymore but the deck also compensates the additional weight of the increased height of the rear cabin so that it looks better when floating in water. Instructions are now available on Rebrickable.

I don't consider the lower voltage of NiMh batteries a serious issue when using the train motor because the train motors are too fast. The higher capacity is more important. The only exception is the Crocodile with the slow Technic motor, I'm planning to replace the NiMh batteries there. It has certainly be mentions several times in this forum, but I would like to repeat it again since it saves lots of money: The IKEA Ladda NiMh recharchable batteries come from the same factory as Eneloops and have an identical performance.

Let's hope so.

The color scheme of the wildlife sets is disappointing. And the vehicle in 60302 is really ugly, not only the red/tan color scheme but also the shape.

At 1:51 you can see that the Bluebrix tracks are warped. Sprue marks are also clearly visible. In comparison, all Trixbrix tracks I ordered so far, both moulded and 3D-printed, are perfectly flat.

This is my Technic bridge. All segments that are built at full height are very stable. It would be no problem to increase the distance between the two pillars.

I meant both the 10001 and the 4558, they are identical besides the slightly different grey color. I don't want to see a release as it was done with the 10001, but a new design that is only inspired by the 10001.

Lego tends to stick to proven concepts, thus a modern interpretation of the Amtrak Metroliner is overdue. I'd love to see it because the original one is still missing in my collection. The Crocodile is European, so it's possible the next set is based on an American train.