MellonHead

Totally read past this!! This is so cool, never expected R168 to be made and never even thought about it. R152 has probably the same size as an s32 straight element, so they will be big! Anything beyond r104 for is on my wanted list ;) . I do have a follow up question about the curves though: are you going to make a special element besides R64P curve track for the switches as these are way to tight for big loco's, i do appriciate them to get you back in the system, but with the P40 switches comebined they're just not doing the switch justice. And really poking the beast here, but is there any concideration for bigger switches in the future as you are going to release such wide curves....? I love the p40s (in a meterial way lol) and to have them in hand is truly an homage from you and your company.

I will post them tomorrow or sunday!

Hi @michaelgale, Thanks for the heads up! I just send you an email trough Fx Bricks about the tiebars! I was super happy when the switches and other products finally came along today and thought the strength and resistance of the tiebar was something from a new product that had to loosen a bit over time. But all of my switches are affected unfortunately, so i hope to get replacement parts soon and fix it with ease myself, that is way easier then sending the whole lot back and another thing is why i wouldn't want that is because after many months of waiting i can't let them go XD once they came through the front door there is no turning back, you would have to fight me for it lol Anyway love the product and the stuff you have put out so far also the whole switch as a single element feels really good! Good luck with the rest of the company and i wish you and your team the best for the future! One final thing i want to point out about the switches which releases stress from them with r104s (and probably other wider curves) is by placing 2 ( either left or right ) switches in crossover formation but not directly to each other but with the r104s attached to the turnouts and straights to the ongoing length of the switch. Is that you can eliminate the 2 mm gap as those curves in opposite sides both make a nice path and equal the same distance the the oposed switch elimanating the 2mm gap on both sides and could make great use of wider curves, the only thing is that either left or right before the switch, depending on how you would attach them to your baseplate is that one end won't fit into the LEGO grid because of the shortened 2mm span of those curves ofcourse. but a nice follow up bend of curves can release the uneven ends, because 2mm can be shifted by the rail joints of the attached curves. for clarification i probably should make some pictures and post them as well which makes much more sence then writing it out.

They look so good!! Can't wait to have mine and drive some big locomotives on them! There is a video about the switches already on YouTube! FX Bricks Box opening of P40 (9Volt) switches - YouTube Greetings,

Yes, they're coming!! @michaelgale and his team have already put out (more then) double the quantity of track products which you can buy then originaly done by LEGO, which only had 5 elements: switch left/right, 16 stud long straight, r40 curves and a 90 degree crossing. And they will go one to make 15 different products for now and likely go on to make a 90degree crossing, 22,62 degree diamond crossing and a Y switch. But not before those 15 track elements are finished + their upcoming powerpickup wheelsets, trackfeeders, motorbogies and powerstation hit te market.

Yeah, got the same old story as well.... I wonder if they will eventually deliver on their promises. We've been waiting for 3 months+ now and pre-order dates already shifted one year prior and now shifts again for the second time. August> September> October. It makes me feel not very happy at the very least... I think we will get them this year, i hope so... Anyway let's hope for the best! Greetings,

@XG BC Good to know that it works! My thoughts on the weak points were more of the contact brushes as those might catch on the rail joints or between switch gaps and bend in different directions away from the track. But those are on slotcar race tracks as well ofcourse! Didn't think about that, i think it is a neat solution for converting! Greetings,

@Jeffinslaw Awesome! I would like to see them in action! @XG BC Cool! I did see that video once before and pretty clever made, although some things will be weak, like the contact brushes on the rails and the wire attached to them makes building around the bogie a bit tricky i guess, But a nice way to make your own bogie back to be track driven again, have you tried modifying one yourself? Agreed on the 9volt returning! So much emotional value from this system that brings back so many great memories from my childhood, and now as an adult with more knowledge of the LEGO system and how to build better looking models, this really gets me excited! Greetings.

.l@michaelgale Since the teaser of the metal wheelset pickup i recently implemented it in one of my models for the future as a permanent light fixture for the locomotive firebox. It is going to be so usefull as it has the same formfactor as the Lego wheelset. I also long for more motor bogie's but metal wheelset pickups would be amazing to! I think it is a smart move to start of with that! Also to see what other fans may do with it. No doubt new bogies will be made eventually! The design process takes time and i understand many risks might impact you and your company which is not beneficial for growth and development. I first wanted to place a light brick inside the boiler, but you would have to build and press some lever system to make it work which takes up space and messes with the techniques (especially the shape of this boiler in particular) which i used to attach the pannels at the sides of the boiler all the way to the top above the firebox and directly next to the cab. Secondly it could be done ofcourse, but would use even more hardcore techniques then already used and the light brick would run out of batteries eventually which means unnecessary demolishment of the boiler is needed, which would annoy me in the long run. If this light brick would "die" after so many years i wouldn't mind replacing it. I have placed a LEGO 9volt light brick inside the firebox with a LEGO 9 volt connection wire to the metal wheelset pickup and used it as the trailing bogie under the cab. Because the old LEGO 9 volt stud connections and your new connectors as well, it is directly buildable with normal LEGO bricks ofcource. Which gives it more strength and stability at the end, instead of the LEGO Power Functions connector with only 2 stud connections instead of 4. Not to mention powered up which does not really connect to the system anymore unfortunately. I am glad you guys kept the design of the LEGO 9 volt studded iron connection and even made an upgrade within it! This means the top of this boiler is clear for designing it's 'particular shape' and wouldn't interfere with the 'lightbrick press technique' as the wiring is build in quite low into the locomotive frame. Esspesially with DCC in the future the firebox would always be nicely lit and makes it more realistically looking. In the future i would like to ad lights to the front of the loco with your light attachment products. As of now i am planning to build it this weekend/next week as i am scraping for parts in my collection with the final elements being on their way to be build. I will put in the 9 volt light brick and connection wire from LEGO with a standard LEGO wheelset and replace it as soon as it will be available with your metal wheelset pickup! As i can't wait for you to release more products later/at the end of this year i hope?! Also how would one metal wheelset pickup react to the crossing vee of the P40 switch, as power is temporarily cut of for a split second depending on how fast you would go over it. Because there is only one wheel for power pickup on either side, or will it keep giving power so to speak without glitches? So my firebox wouldn't glitch, but be well lit at all times. I also think of it in this very usefull way that with your metal wheelset pickup you can swap coaches and locomotives without having to uncouple electrical wires coming from the power source (Locomotive) running between coaches of your train but coming straight from the rails through the metal wheelset pickup themselves. This i think would also take no small percentage of power form the motor bogie as lights from the same source would slightly pick up from that and affect the pulling power from the moter. It ultimately makes the plug and play experience far more easier and way more accessible on so many levels! This is why i integrated it in my locomotive itself and not via the tender through the locomotive. Once i am done driving around and in my case have to (shed's tear) rip apart my layout which runs through our living room i can pick up the locomotive and tender separately which is convenient for showing purposes and accessibility which makes more sence, want to see the firebox just lift the locomotive from the tender coupling and voila. The same goes for the coaches which is quite easy for storaging them until some other time. without having to disconnect electrical wires as well. Thanks for reading in advance! Greetings,

Hi, Just ordered 3 boxes in 3 different variants because i would like to see how all different packs are packed and to start a nice yard or some other configuration. Also orded the special adapter pieces 10x s1.6 / 10x s3.2 and the special R64P 8x to go with them. That was quite expensive and i can't wait for them to be delivered, coming this august 15th! Greetings.

@Ashi ValkoinenWow 150 Euro for a pair is way to much! You're sure it was in Euro? Just a theory as i am thinking about it right now @michaelgale is from Canada (ofcourse) which could mean he ment Canadian dollars so when i translate 150 Canadian Dollar to Euro it's about 104,32 Euro. Funny, 104 lol ( i know the divirging route is 22:62 degrees as to why it's called p40 ), uhm let's hope for about 100 Euro each pair, fingers crossed...

@Duq I Had e-mailed with JB-Spielwaren this week about the upcoming P40 switches and they told me they are still coming, but in July. I am still super excited about them ofcourse but just like everyone else here on this forum it is still frustrating! First it was last summer, then last fall, then january and now July. I understand that making changes to those products (P40 switches) will take some time to be ready, but i had hoped for pre-orders by now. It is still unclear to me when the pre-orders will launch, are those pre-orders going live in July somewhere and do we have to wait 3months after that (October) before we get our switches, or 3months before that somewhere around May? Or is that the month ( July ) when the P40 switches will be shipped worldwide? Not necessarily a bad word towards @michaelgale because i am really glad that the Fx Bricks company excists, their effords they have already made and will continue doing for us. Not to forget mentioning what is coming in the future! Seems like a mayor project. but i wonder why @michaelgale has not been on this forum for a long time to awnser questions about products for well over a year now, feels like were totally ghosted haha. Ofcourse we have seen those interviews on youtube. But i would also like it to have some personal questions awnsered. I still have fate in Fx Bricks anyway and my gut tells me that everything from the powerstation, track feeders and motor bougie will also be released this summer, i hope everyone will have enough money for that haha. For everyone who lives in Europe JB-Spielwaren has some discount on al Fx Track pruducts 6-7% and i don't know how long it will last. I have bought 7 boxes of Fx track and you get some free items as well depending on your total amount, which made my shipping cost "for free" as i got twice the amount worth of free stuff against the shipping cost, so yeah. Greetings,

Hey Guys, New post on the website from FX Bricks. Happy New Year! Updates from the Frontline – Fx Bricks I feel like the p40 left and right switches and more products are getting very close to the final stages and will be put into production not to long from now. I Hope the new power station, motor bogie and power connectors will be available for sale this summer. What do you guys think about it? Greetings,

Hello @michaelgale I am wondering what is the sound of your motor bogie like, because the original LEGO one sounds very harsh/loud compared to the lego pf and pu motors from recent years. I think this is because they used different/better electric motors compared to 15 years ago. When put under a diesel or electric train, i really don't mind but with a Steam Locomotive it is rather odd (soundwise). In the future you will provide us with dcc compatible products,. I am wondering how and if the sound of your bogie might affect the speaker sound when they run together, my guess is not that much of a problem as you will use new highly standard electric motors from today's market, but i am still curious. Thanks in advance, Mellonhead.

Hi everyone, @michaelgale the stuff you and the fx team have been making is truly amazing so far and i also can't wait to order a ton of stuff when more products are released I do have a few questions and opinions about some of your products: 1: Are you going to maken different colors for the 12v motor bogie casing? Because i need a few dark red ones and maybe other folk would like to see different colors, which blends in with the frame of the locomotive for a nicer/prestine look. 2: From what i could see on the steel wheels for the Fx 12v motor bogie, they pickup power not only through the flange on the inside against the track but mostly through the top of the track. This also means if this is true that these wheels won't press themselves through the switch gap any more because these wheels/flanges are not sprung but a full steel wheel and are locked instead, which could make for interchanable wheel sizes, because if they would be sprung and interchangeable they would press themselves of the axle, how would you change and lock them? With the wheels from the Lego 9volt motor bogie which are spring pressed against the inside off the track, which cause(s)(d) derailement on my layout on the r40 switch at a certain speed, because of the pass trough gap, which was and still is very annoying, Is now eliminated with your non-sprung wheels, correct me if i am wrong? 3: this is important: which types of wheels can you put on the fx 12v motor bogie instead of the ones shown in your previous design concept picture. Because with interchangeable wheels and the same motor/gear ratio i don't know what and how it might/will affect the motor long term, i would really like to see L wheels on this bogie for power pickup and as locomotive drivers. 4: What are the following products going to cost: Power Station, P40 switch pack left and right with 2x half straights and 2x R64P curve, Track power feeder, P40L and P40R as seperate switches? 5: Lastly, can you show us some better/close up pictures of the now already beloved P40 switches? Thanks for your time already! I hope with my questions a lot of solid information might come out of it for the rest of the users in this group who also take great interest in the New Fx Track System. Kind regards, MellonHead.