CrankyCraig

Eurobricks Vassals
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Everything posted by CrankyCraig

  1. CrankyCraig
    Lego chains don't work very well when they're tight (give it a try), so a bit of slack is preferable. I'm keen to know how flexible the new shocks are. From what I've seen they look much less so than the ones they replace (soft 9.5L) which barely needed a spring if one end was left detached.
  2. CrankyCraig
    Unusual approach, that. Not my video, but I'll just leave this here: Enjoy.
  3. CrankyCraig

    Technicopedia

    CrankyCraig replied to Blakbird's topic in LEGO Technic, Mindstorms, Model Team and Scale Modeling

    I second this. Technicopedia is the worlds greatest museum, full of fascinating and wonderful artefacts from a time before my own. I've spent days roaming it in awe Great to see that the exhibition is being updated.
  4. CrankyCraig
    I can see from other threads you're still agonising over which set to buy, so I thought I'd have a look at what was available to you in Poland. Unfortunately, I really can't find many good options for you. I know you're particularly taken with 42053, but while it's a great set, 120 Euro's for 42053 is far too much - that's around twice what Lego sold it for, and it's not much more than 1000 pieces. Have you considered 8110? Unless I'm mistaken, it works out roughly the same price as 42053 (140 Euros) once you add on some power functions, but it's nearly double the parts, comes with some power functions and pneumatics, and also has some really great parts besides (such as 9.5L hard shocks). It would be a great set to start you off. https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?S=8110-1#T=S&O={"iconly":0} Either that, or 42082. 4000 pieces, and a really well executed crane with basic power functions. https://www.amazon.de/LEGO-Geländegängiger-Kranwagen-42082-Bauspielzeug/dp/B0792RDN2Z/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?__mk_pl_PL=ÅMÅŽÕÑ&dchild=1&keywords=42082&qid=1591306040&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzMjdQRDYxRlZMRTEmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAzNDM3MTgzMVVZVks5RDlRVk5YJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA3NDc5MDcyUUo1OExZQ1c3TVlTJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ== Whatever you buy it'll never be enough, so don't worry about which power system to adopt until you buy set No. 2
  5. CrankyCraig
    I've been a huge fan of your helicopter MOC's for some time (I've had 2 partially built for a while awaiting pieces) and can say that if anyone is able to replicate that complexity it's you. If you say you'll be working on MOD's for this, that'll elevate to an instant buy for me.
  6. CrankyCraig
    Very clever and visually appealling, both in it's function and in it's colour. I also love how deliberately minimalist you've made it. Great job
  7. CrankyCraig
    They look wonderful together, great job. It is, quite simply, the best supercar MOC I've seen, and that was already a high bar. I've started to gather together the pieces
  8. CrankyCraig
    Whatever it takes to get it past the board of approval. There must surely be, in some far flung corner of the world, an excentric demolition company owner using tanks. Did you feign annoyance at people expressing opinions on the colour as a clever segue to introducing your own opinions on the subject? I would counter that the colour of the set is empirical, therefore making it more worthy of discussion than many elements that are, at this stage, speculative I won't though, because to construct such an argument would be disingenuous. I agree with your sentiment; discussions based on the colour really aren't greatly interesting. ...having said that, I'm still not convinced about the light grey at the base
  9. CrankyCraig
    Yes, minus the implied anti-corporate connotation. <insert Lego movie gif>
  10. CrankyCraig
    Yes exactly. It's like a military Osprey struck a beach full of sun worshippers. Looks more like 4 x grey half bush to me.
  11. CrankyCraig
    While that may have been the company's founding philosophy, is it still relevant in Technic today? It feels as if the priority was very much on optimising each models function/performance when decisions were being made about the future of Lego electronics, but while an AFOL might consider it an oversight that simplicity/flexibility wasn't afforded a higher priority, I wonder what proportion of large sets sold are built into anything other than the official model. We don't see B-models being produced for (Lego claims) this reason, and it seems reasonable to estimate that those making MOC's would be less than those prepared to make a B-model. It's just speculation, but perhaps those willing to create a MOC from a given set represents such a small pecentage of sales that it's just not worth considering in design decisions to any great degree. Perhaps it's now no longer about building what you want, but instead building the best possible official model that drives sales. I'm not disagreeing with what you said BTW, just serving some food for thought and trying to rationalise what seems like an otherwise large omission.
  12. CrankyCraig
    According to the JC-lrx site linked earlier in this thread, based on the Nuremberg Toy Fair, it stated: Functions: driven rotors tilting the rotors retractable undercarriage open and close chopping flap I can appreciate that an all grey model may have been a bit plain (no pun intended) but I can't help but feel the use of different colours in this one is a bit odd - perhaps it'll become clearer with different pictures. Still, I really like it.
  13. CrankyCraig
    There's only one of those sets worth the cost of 42100, and that's 42100. They're all great sets, but personally, I wouldn't spend the huge figures that some people ask for retired sets. In my experience, with patience, there's no need to. Having said that, my very unscientific analysis of used Technic prices in the UK (which in reality involves little more than trawling ebay) has led me to conclude prices have increased by more than 50% on average, so you may need quite a bit of patience before prices return to where they were a couple of months ago. You're timing isn't great, but if I were in your position, I'd forget all about Powered UP for the time being, and instead find a used & reasonably priced 8043/42030 to get the Power Functions (for 1/3 of the price of 42100) and spend the remainder on as many medium/large sets I could from the past 15 years just for parts, preferably in similar colours useful for future MOCs. Failing that, I'd buy a new copy of 42082, build it and the existing C-models, and then try to create my own. You don't need power functions to create a great model, and as you've identified, trying to find one set that has all of the parts you want for the purposes of MOC's is likely futile anyway. Best of luck however you decide to approach it.
  14. CrankyCraig
    Yeah, that's the expectation. The problem with Powered Up at the moment is that while they work brilliantly for the official releases and offer the potential of more function for MOCers, but it's difficult to extract that function for anything other than the official releases. They rely on a mobile app to make them work, and in the case of MOCs, each motor needs separate programming to make work as required, meaning you can't just plug it in end expect it to do exactly what you want. Some clever people have re-used one of the existing profiles for 42100, 42099 or 42109, for their MOCs, but this is another level of building complexity that may ultimately prove unsuitable to your design. The hope is that the process of getting them to work will become easier, either through development of the app or with the release of something (such as a controller) that simplifies the system, but if/when that will happen is uncertain. Any new retired set (meaning no longer in production) will almost certainly be much more expensive, but it's usually possible to find used/retired sets for reasonable money. Prices are high at the moment though, no doubt because many people at the moment are at home with less to do, so not a great time to be looking
  15. CrankyCraig
    Hello and welcome! Powered up motors are similar size and power to power functions, but allow multiple motors to be controlled simultaneously through the app, along with proportional controls and some extra features, such as tilt sensor. These are separate systems from Power Functions and, as it currently stands, can't be mixed. Power functions are still very relevant, and will be for years to come. They don't require programming to work (they're very simple to work with), offer similar power, and feature in a huge amount of great sets from past years. The consensus seems to be that power functions still have the most diverse application at the moment, until the Powered Up app improves and it becomes easier to customise/program - though how it'll develop exactly remains to be seen. This means that while 42100 is a truly impressive set and a good source of Powered Up Motors, it perhaps isn't as great for MOCS right now as some of the alternative options available to you. I don't know how you feel about buying used, or how the prices in Poland compare, but here in the UK you could pick up 3 former flagship sets for the price of 42100, which would give you more parts and more options for MOCS. For example, 42030 for motors/RC, 42043 for pneumatics and 42082 for pieces. Could be worth considering.
  16. CrankyCraig
    I fear one of us has misunderstood Mahj's point
  17. CrankyCraig
    This is next level stuff. Sariel is the master of this technique, combining a Technic foundation with intricate, brick built detailing. Blows my mind, but creations such as his could surely be considered to be the best of both worlds.
  18. CrankyCraig
  19. CrankyCraig
    In the UK, the Chiron hit a low of £175 on black Friday last year @ Amazon. Chiron's will occasionally appear on ebay (used) for the kind of money you can find down the back of the settee - £110 is the lowest I've seen - although lockdown seems to have bolstered Lego prices at the moment. You'll need plenty of patience/luck if you're holding out for those kind of discounts though. Is the hedgehog at 18:21 included with this set?
  20. CrankyCraig
    Wouldn't the best source of a 1:1 model be an actual Sian? I'm with you though, I think it looks great, and certainly as good as can be reasonably expected from Technic. I just hope there's more to it than just good looks. Well put. There are a lot of half empty glasses in this place in need of a top-up. Cheers! Couldn't agree more. RC seems to be regarded by many to be the pinnacle of all things Lego, but the inclusion of RC often sacrifices some really interesting functions for what often amounts to a somewhat underwhelming RC performance. It has it's place, but that place surely isn't here.
  21. CrankyCraig
    This is intended in no way as a criticism of Lego, but while Lego electrics are great for demonstrating function, they just aren't designed for high performance. There are a few RC areas that work reasonably well with Lego, such as crawlers, but the performance in most areas is underwhelming in comparison to hobby grade RC of similar cost. It's comparable to turning your grandmothers car into a track car. Sure, it can be done, but with it's 1.nothingwhatsoever engine and roly-poly suspension, it'll take a lot of time, money and effort to make it close to comparable with anything built with track intentions by design.
  22. CrankyCraig
    Thank's very much for sharing this. The same person also has a 'review' video, which better showcases the features. The front shock seems less flexy than the one it replaces from previous sets, which is a good thing, but I'm a bit disappointed to see the axle rotating as it's rolled along as I'd hoped to be able to fit working brakes to those lovely new discs.
  23. CrankyCraig
    It's amazing! The attention to detail is incredible. What an entrance.
  24. CrankyCraig
    Thanks for taking the time to explain the etiquette. It's just as well you did, because I had planned to do just that with one particular MOC. So by 'real importance', would having a meaningful contribution to an older set (I'm a bit behind the rest of the pack), such as a modification to a set, qualify? I think it makes sense, but even so, I'd just like to apologise in advance for when (not if) I get it wrong.
  25. CrankyCraig
    So, is reviving old topics the preference around these parts? Or does doing so also result in complaints? For less than the cost of 42100 (£350 new) I bought 42082, 42043, 8110 and 42030 - all used though. And I would again given the choice between additional copies of them or 42100. It's an impressive set though, and there's certainly nothing else quite like it.