DrJB

Excellent proof of concept, as you captured precisely how pulley-based CVT's work. The weakness (as you've noted) is the pulley, as it bends easily ... I wonder what other options are out there. For example, two tapered discs, and a rubber wheel in between them.

The tire might be put on the wrong wheel. While 'most' tires are 'symmetric (left to right), some wheels are not. If you disassemble the tire, flip it, and reassemble, do you get the same deformation or does the deformation reverses as well? By performing the above test, you'd know whether the problem is the wheel or the tire. For example, the wheel below is NOT symmetric. The outer diameter of the rim (wheel's edge) is NOT the same on both sides. As such, only few tires are compatible with such wheel. If you put a symmetric tire on a non-symmetric wheel, you get the effect in your picture.

I was wrong, the alternate model for 8070 is a roadster. Check the page below. https://www.lego.com/en-us/service/buildinginstructions/search#?search&text=8070%20Supercar%20Technic Back to your original question, there were a total of 4 RED 'official' cars put out by lego 8448 - Super Street Sensation 8070 - Red Car (???) 8145 - Ferrari FTB Fiorano 8653 - Ferrari Enzo It's very likely the car you're pointing to is a MOC i.e., NOT an official set. Nonetheless, based on the parts and colors of the seats, it looks like it uses the same parts as 8070.

Looks like 8070, 2nd/alternate model

This topic/question has been on my mind for a while. I must warn, this might not be for the fain of heart. In reality, there are three main/distinct parts. These are: Inventory/Identify all the possible connections in Lego 1. Axle vs . Axle hole 2. Pin vs. Pin hole 3. Stud as in system bricks 4. Spherical ball joints as in technic tow ball 5. Ball/Socket as in Hero Factory 6. Dual small pins of Lego Factory 7. 2mm bar vs. hole in technic bricks' studs 8. ... I'm sure there are few more Now, once all connections have been identified, organize 'all' parts based on the type of connections they have. 1. Parts could belong to a single sub-group as in axles/bushings 2. Parts that have 2 types of connections (common amongst technic parts) 3. Parts that do not mate with anything else but parts within their own family (e.g. 90617/90622) 4. Else? Last, build a connectivity matrix of that list, for a given part, all other parts that could mate with it. Some skills in Math/Programming might be needed Any brave souls out there?

This question might have been addressed in the past, but for those of us 'collecting' sets, it's always about which one is my favorite. So, I'm 'close' to having all sets I ever wanted (still missing a numbered few) and find myself pondering which of all those I'd keep as my favorite. I first started with only one, then realized I could not make it, then how about 3, same answer, but let's be realistic and aim for 5 sets. Which are the 5 'best' sets in your collection. Were you to downsize tomorrow, which are 'hands-off'? To me, it goes like this (not in any order): 1. 8258 crane truck 2. 8043 excavator 3. 8455 BackHoe 4. 8110 Unimog 5. 8275 Bulldozer

I saw the Pagami Huayra by Jeroen Ottens and can't identify the blue part below. Anyone can shed some light? Thanks https://thelegocarblog.com/2019/04/18/buy-this-pagani-huayra/

This might have been reported before (apologies if it did) ... but I see an error in the Smartphone App. In there, the icon for the vehicle shows the tires mounted backwards i.e., the chevron pattern on the tires is pointing up, not down (looking from the front of the vehicle). Second from Top/Right corner, in image below

Thank you ... it came in blue in only one set, and I do have that set (assembled/on_shelf) ... but I never looked at such part from that angle :(

I've always been tempted to 'modernize' the 8880, by removing all the unnecessary (bulky) beams, and replcing them with liftarms and other styling components (panels, flex beams, ...). The goal here is to keep the same key components of the 8880, such as transmission and wheels/suspension/steering. I bet the result would be 'interesting' .... Questions is: has anyone tried this already?

Just a 'minor' addition: For those who are not familiar with what a road train is. It is essentially a truck with multiple trailers one behind the other. The suspension/articulation geometries must be 'right' to ensure the convoy is stable. Can you rescale your image?!

I'm in the same boat. I used to follow very closely the new Technic sets and get them as soon as they come out. Now, it seems all new sets are 'variations on a theme' ... but in fact I think it is me, It's like any other hobby, I've had few of them over the years (astronomy, reef tanks, FTA, electronics, 3D printing, ...), and interest 'disappears' after a couple of years. That and lately that the cost of Technic sets has gone way up. The one hobby I have not given up yet on is gardening ... what's the point in having a house/yard if you can't grow some greens? I'm now contemplating bee-keeping, but not sure the neighbors would approve. Back to Lego, I've reached the point where, just like SR71, I want to sort/clean/pack my many sets and find a good buyer.

Great rendition of an icon. I had worked on the actual full machine few years back, together with the green (Deere) and AGCO versions. Been wanting to do/see a MOC and yours captures it superbly.

I hope it is ok to post here, otherwise, please move accordingly. I've had a buyer's account on Bricklink for several years and like many on here, I spent a fortune on that site. Few months back, I opened a store and listed some extra/old sets I have. I did receive 3 orders from people with zero history (Turkey, Malaysia, Russia) and when I asked for payment, I never received an answer. Now because I did not 'cancel' such orders, Bricklink is asking me to pay seller's fees because according to them, the transactions did take place when in fact they never did. To make things worse, they purged the orders from their system and there is no way to trace this back and investigate. I tried to reason with them (Shelly) but to no avail and they insist on me having to pay the fees before my selling privileges are restored. Shelly (Customer Support) insists this was in the agreement rules and that this is my responsibility. My position: I made a mistake, I did not read the fine print ... come on, give me a break, I am NOT paying for a transaction that never took place. Anyone here had a similar experience and knows of a way to resolve this situation? Thanks, JB

I guess it was novel to me ... I'm aware of the one using the large hailfire wheels with soccer balls (Sariel uses it in many of his videos) or wheels (below), but it's the first time I see the BWE's curved racks used that way.

Impressive!!! This IS worthy to be front-paged. I like your 'novel' large turntable idea (with the small roller-bearings) and I'm sure once we see the assembly 'moving' we'll get even more appreciation to the inner workings and intricate mechanisms, and even more questions about how you accomplished specific functions. Excellent Job! Question 1: In real life, the up/down motion of the arms is accomplished by hydraulic cylinders. Did you use LA, pneumatics, or something else? IMHO, some pneumatics with 'sequencing' would be a neat add-on, though maybe a bit difficult to house. Question 2: From the kinematics (your 1st video), it seems each rider-seat has 4 degrees of freedom: rotation of the arm about vertical axis, lifting of the arm up/down, rotation of the 4x2 seats, and then rotation of the seats about their center. I'm sure somehow all seat are connected in 'parallel' and there are a total of 4 motors (or DOFs) for the whole assembly. Now, how many motors are you using and how many independent controls over the 4 DOFs ?

While I agree with many of the OP's points, this is bound to be a bit of a 'sensitive' discussion as we might get some forum members a bit offended. Yes, I've gotten to a point where I simply 'ignore' many posts (I get an email with every new thread) as after a while, one gets numb to all the 'basic' questions and sub-par MOCs. My approach here is: well, I started there myself sometime back as well and there should be a way to encourage new-comers. If you list all the threads that have 'Ferrari' or 'Lamborghini' in their title, some are worthy of a frontpage, others are, well, ... no need to offend anyone :). Maybe the way to address this is to split the forum further into sub-levels but then it becomes tricky to navigate, and we might miss important/interesting threads/discussions. My 0.02 worth

While it appears (on the outside) that there is no room for gearing ... it does in fact have have a planetary single-stage gear reduction.

I remember this discussion ... it was about the time where most of us were getting 'tired' of vehicles with wheels, and wanted to see something different. Yes, would definitely appreciate seeing the progress you've made and how you solved the mechanical 'challenges'. For rotating the seats, maybe flex axles like those used in the ZNAP line could be helpful, as they bend 'easily' and can go through the arms.

I'm old enough (like many on here) to have seen Technic 'evolve' through many stages. It all started with a rather bare/studded chassis 8860 and 'minimum' functionality. Then came the Super Street Sensation 8448, the Mission 8450, and the Off-Roader 8466. They all used various connectors and flex axles to define the main 'lines' of the vehicle. Lately however, more emphasis is placed on more 'realistic/boxy/closed' looks and extensive use of panels is seen. I think panels have their place, but doesn't that take away from the Technic theme itself? What's the point in building often intricate mechanisms to, in the end, cover it all with 'non-functional' panels? The other 'side-effect' is that now, we see fewer flex axles and connectors, and when we do, they're often available in primarily monochromatic colors (black/white/grey). What are your thoughts on this?

A while back I was into salt-water fish-tanks and yes, finding someone who can feed your fish 'reliably' was always a pain. I like what you've done, but am no longer into that hobby as it does require a lot of time. Feeding is only part of the story, then you need to do regular water changes and add chemicals to 'regulate' the tank's chemistry. In that regards, any bit of 'automation' (as you've done) is a very welcome initiative.

Nicely done. The main issue with these (I think) is the excessive slack from all the links. Conceptually though, this is nice and as you've shown requires a wheel with enough clearance to house all the parts. Have you calculated what the 'scrub radius' is? It is the distance between the center of the tire's footprint and where the pivot axis intersects the ground. In real life, such scrub radius affects many performances of the vehicle, primarily handling and tire wear.

Up until few years back, every technic set had a large collection of 'colored' parts (connectors, flex axles, liftarms, ...). Recently however, most of the vehicles' interior/chassis is typically made up of only monochromatic (black/grey/white) parts and then, a minimum of parts (primarily for styling) are truly 'colored'. There was a time where I 'lamented' as to the lack of colors in Technic as all the SuperCars were issued either in red or black. Back then, the overwhelming answer was the lack of available 'other' colors. Now it seems we're migrating back to 'rare' colors and small number of colored parts for styling ... and yet purely monochromatic parts for the Chassis. This is somewhat the case for many StarWars set as the grey is meant to 'mimic' steel and metallic structures. What are your thoughts on this and how has this affected your 'MOCing' options ? Oh Yes, miss seeing an official Technic Car in RED ... the last we've seen is 8070, and then 'smaller' attempts since then, as in the customizable truck and the fire truck. The latter though has more grey than red.

What would happen to all the FLL programs (worldwide) that use MindStorms as an introductory 'Robotics' course? As many might recall, Mindstorms started out from a robotics course at MIT 6.270 (late 80's) and then the first brick (RCX) was developed jointly by MIT and TLG. Many schools (Highschools and Universities) have then adopted the format and started offering introductory courses. If MindStorms is to go away ... many schools would need to 'scramble' for new content.

There are multiple good sources on 17 groups on the web. The one I thought was most 'enjoyable' to read/study is an app (iOS/Android) called iOrnament. I got the screenshot below from it. It explains in a very compact form what the 17 groups are ... For example, the first square is a pure translation along 2 axes. The second is a translation plus a rotation. The third is a mirror reflection ...