2GodBDGlory

We're sure seeing a lot of updated Technic parts these days!

Well, I tried to put them in order of release, and then in order of size, ie, each set from 1994 is in order of size, but sets from, say, 2015 are first sorted by release date (Jan or Aug), and then by size. I suppose putting the sequentially numbered ones in number order would make it easier to find sets based on number, but the current setup was more meaningful for me, at least. That could be interesting, though I doubt Lego would authorize my use of their images. Thanks for letting me know! They are pictured in the 2019 introduction, at least in my print copy, which is not the most current. It is the less recognisable back view, though. I think a website would be out of my depth, but I am fully intending to update the book each year with new sets for the foreseeable future. In fact, I have done so for my own use in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020, adding new pages to my spiral-bound copy. The going-out-of date would mainly just be an issue for a traditionally published book. I'm glad you like it!

I have updated the main post with a link to this PDF version of the book, which should help with some of the formatting problems bring reported. Here is the new link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IcB0BqitmuZVPzCT4iPsUulp9uXZukoH/view?usp=drivesdk

I play with it (as long as it is tolerably reliable), and then take it apart within a day or two, but I'm sure I would lose interest in playing with my models if I kept them all built for long periods of time.

I could probably try that this evening. It would be a good way to minimize formatting issues, so long as the exporting process itself doesn't create any! Sorry about that. As @Maaboo35 just suggested, I'll try uploading it as a PDF this evening, which might help.

Probably because my past self decided arbitrarily that a complex 8-speed gearbox was worth more points than even multiple motors directly driving things. I do have to agree that the whole rating system is a little out of place, and probably not my best idea. I would be open to eliminating it if you guys think it would be a good idea. As for the formatting issues, I would agree that downloading it should help; I wrote it in microsoft office weird 2007, so reading it in word would likely be the most likely to work. Finally, when it comes to outright mistakes (and I am naturally noticing more of them now that the book has been "published"), I will start compiling a list of mistakes that I and others find, and release an updated version at some point.

I'm glad you like it! I did look into publishing it, contacting No Starch Press, who have published all the fan Lego books I am aware of, but they said no because books of this sort go out of date so quickly, and because the images belonged to Lego. Of course, they may have politely neglected to comment on other factors, such as my writing style... I could send it to Lego, but I doubt it would be worth it, since I don't think they have ever published any fan work.

I like seeing the half hub parts being used alone!

Here are some example pages: I've been fiddling around with a number of devices to see what works and what doesn't. The PC and laptop I tried worked well, automatically opening the page in a new tab as a new tab that looks like this: On the two cell phones I tried, it would give a screen saying "Can't open this file right now Please try again later." when it tried to open in Google Drive. On both phones, opening it in Google Chrome worked, but on one of them, I had to manually copy the link into a new tab, rather than just click on it, because it automatically tried to open it in Drive. I'll edit the original post with the advice to open it in Chrome rather than Drive.

I'll try to get an example page or two up tomorrow. The trivia is generally there; I tried to write about anything interesting about a set that I could think of. Unfortunately, I don't have any experience with those programs. Do you have a Google account? It's also not working for me on a mobile device, but it is working on a PC. Are you using a phone?

I am pleased to present to you a project that I have been working at on and off since 2017. Inspired by the Lego Star Wars Visual Dictionary books I endlessly pored over in my childhood, I decided to attempt to write a similar book for Lego Technic. After a ton of work, I now have an essentially finished book. It covers all of Technic history from 1977 to 2020, with a visual timeline at the start, followed by profiles of every set I deemed true Technic (No RoboRiders here!), along with yearly introductions. Each set has a general description, at least one image, a data box containing its name, set number, part count, prices in USD, Euros, and CAD whenever the information was available, time of release, and alternate model(s), and my rather silly-sounding Final Five criteria, in which I rated sets for Pieces Per Price (PPP), Coolness Of Parts (COP), Functions (F), Coolness (C), and ALTernate model (ALT). In order to give credit to my sources, I will include this excerpt from my "Book Mechanics" page, which reads: "Finally, I will give credit to my sources. My primary sources for this book were the unofficial online Lego catalogue, Brickset.com, and the invaluable fan-made Blakbird’s Technicopedia, which exhaustively covers all Technic sets 1977 to 2001, which can be found at technicopedia.com. I also found information on the well-known Bricklink.com, which not only maintains an exhaustive catalogue of Lego products, but also allows for the convenient buying and selling of Lego. In addition to these sources, I have found some images, particularly of old set’s alternate models, on Google Images, and also consulted the official Lego Catalogues I received in the mail. I feel that the information found on Blakbird’s Technicopedia often fell outside the realm of “common knowledge,” so throughout the book I have cited certain pieces of information from this website with a (BT)." I certainly could not have created this book without these sources, which I drew heavily from for both information and images. Blakbird's Technicopedia was especially valuable, and I used not only information from this website, but also images of sets, and the renderings of the new parts from each year. Naturally, I would have liked to monetize on this time-consuming project, but its dependence on Lego's official images prevented me from doing so, so I am offering it online here for free. Feel free to download it and read it online, or print it out to read it as a paper copy, but just don't try to make money off of it. (You'll probably hear from Lego's lawyer about infringement on their images before you hear from me about infringement on my words!) Not being a real author myself, this book is necessarily imperfect in style, especially because I'm not interested in doing the seemingly infinite rewritings I hear real authors do. More worrying, though, is the possibility that I may have gotten certain details wrong about sets, especially because I own very few of these sets. I would greatly appreciate it if any readers would notify me of any errors they find. Also, I have been continually updating this book each year to include new sets, and I intend to continue doing so for the foreseeable future. Despite its flaws, I hope that this project will prove valuable to more people in this world than just myself! You can find an online copy of it at this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IcB0BqitmuZVPzCT4iPsUulp9uXZukoH/view?usp=drivesdk Please let me know if this link isn't working for you EDIT: It appears that this link sometimes tries to open in Google Drive, which results in an error message. If this is happening to you, try manually copying the link into a new browser window, from which the book can be downloaded.

The gear ratios would be (provided that the inputs and outputs are set up to provide no overdrive) 1:1, 1:1.67, 1:2, and 1:3.33

Thanks! It saved adding three gears, which is definitely a win.

This model was built for essentially one purpose: To build a model with a functioning four-speed automatic gearbox, using PU programming. Functions: 4-Speed gearbox with PU L-motor Steering with PU L-motor 4WD with 2x PU XL-motor Dual live-axle suspension Opening hood More details: Aesthetics: The real vehicle is quite boxy, making it easy prey for reluctant bodywork-builders such as myself. I think my version was easily recognizable, which was good enough for me, but not exactly excellent. Steering: Steering is a basic rack-and pinion setup with a PU L-motor. The app provides return-to-center steering. Drive: Two PU XL-motors drive all four wheels. The front axle uses a new style differential, while the rear one uses a perpendicular 12T to 28T gear meshing, which is a good compromise between off-road capabilities and handling. Suspension: There is full live-axle suspension, using ball joints and shock absorbers. The system worked fairly well. Opening hood: Gearbox: The gearbox was a fairly basic four-speed design using a rotary catch. The only interesting thing about the gearbox itself is that I designed it such that the four speeds were not actually in sequential order, which made for a significantly smaller, more efficient gearbox. This lack of sequentiality was not an issue for me, because I knew it would be electronically controlled, which could mask this mechanical shortcoming. The programming was definitely the most complicated part of the gearbox, and allowed for both manual and automatic modes. In manual mode, one could toggle up and down gears with a pair of virtual buttons, which worked quite seamlessly! The automatic mode would essentially keep tabs on the speed of the drive motors (actually an average over time), and if their speed went above or below specific limits (relative to the commanded speed of the motor), the gearbox would then shift to offset this. In practice, the shifting was rather sluggish, and is certainly not a good choice from a performance point of view, but it would eventually get around to the right gear for crawling or cruising, if one were patient. Shifting was mechanically controlled with a PU L-motor, which drove the wave selector through a 20:12 gear ratio (chosen because of space considerations, rather than torque/speed ones). The wave selector also had a stepper (?) mechanism attached to help it snap into position. Programming: The program was quite complicated, so I won't go into it here, but there is some explanation in my video, and I would be glad to answer questions or provide screenshots of the code if requested. Overall, I consider this model a success. It combined decent looks with considerable speed, tolerable off-road abilities (Ground clearance seriously hurt this), and a reasonably well-sorted automatic gearbox! Images at: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/jeep-cherokee-xj

It's been a lot of fun for me! I got my whole setup for only about $50 CAD, and since I figured out how to prevent it from melting Lego parts (Immediate planetary reduction, "boxed" gearing at the axle, and some lubricant), I'm coming up with more and more fun ways to use it!