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For a while, I've been interested in trying to squeeze PF into a small british style steam locomotive. I'd played around with several ideas in my head but couldn't for some time land on a design that looked good. Eventually, I found an image of an Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST shunter that had slightly more squared-off tanks than the usual short saddle tank locos. I decided that was the route to go down and set about putting a plan together, and here is the result: There's not really very much to say about it. It's somewhat shorter in appearance than the prototype, party because that seems to have become my style, but practically because, on such a short wheelbase, there is a limit to the overhang you can have at the front and back for cornering purposes. I plan on refining it, of course, so any comments are more than welcome. EDIT: Short video of it working and a self-indulgent snap of my steam locos built so far: Power Functions Steam Shunter by Srbandrews, on Flickr
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Let me begin this topic with some of my latest MOCS: You'll find all my steampunk MOCs on my flickr gallery I hope you'll like them I'll post here my future new work and WIPs, so, soon!
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I have just completed the modifications to incorporate the suggestions for my 6 wide power functions shunter. Please let me know what you think and I welcome suggestions for how it can be improved. Thank you all for your support on https://ideas.lego.com/projects/82031 I regret we have only 100 supporters now so I don't forsee this getting up as the 50th anniversary of Lego Trains train. Fortunately James Mathis has what I think is an even better idea https://ideas.lego.com/projects/86744 so if you haven't supported this one I can highly recommend his. The biggest change is the ability to now turn the battery box off and on by pressing the front of the forward dome. I have some pictures on Flickr that show how it works. https://www.flickr.c...57649279163680/
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So a couple of people have asked for a more detailed look at some of my MOCs, and who am I to say no? Each gallery will come with the LDD file. Although the LDD designs are always my own work (unless otherwise stated), a lot of inspiration will have been taken from other people's work. I will endeavour to credit anyone who's work has inspired me. To make things easier, I'll provide a link to all my MOCs from this first post: Locomotives - Coaches - 6 Wide Pullman Wagons - More MOCs to come! 6 Wide Pullman The basic style for this build was very much inspired by youtube user technoandrew's Pullmans. LDD File: Click me! LDD notes: Roof is held on by friction alone. Turn tables fit into the smaller arched formed windows to make the toilet windows. The 2x4 black tiles (of which there should be 4, not 2) fit into the larger arch formed windows to represent the door windows (and hid the ugly stuff behind them). The frames under the coach are formed using some chopped 3mm hose.
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[MOC] - Douro Historical Train (Steam 2-8-4 + Shunter + 5 old carriage
Sérgio posted a topic in LEGO Train Tech
Hello everyone, This is one of my greatest creations , the replica of the historic train River Douro , Portugal . Has two locomotives, one steam with the 2-8-4 configuration, the CP0186 built in Germany in 1924 by Henschel & Sohn and the CP1185 Diesel , a small tractor Sentinel which was painted black (originally is yellow ) nicknamed " Darth Vader " to ensure the reliability of the locomotive Steam in case of failure . Both have the engine 9V engines, need to pull the 5 wood carruages 3 are color lacquered wood , the other 2 are painted dark green on the outside and white inside . This train makes tourist trips in the summer , as a rule, travel always with the windows open , as such , I did not use any window or transclear panel , simulating that the windows are wide open and so I could get enough space to have comfortably seated 12 minifigures in each cars ( total of 60 minifigures ) . The train have more than 5000 pieces is 7 wide and 2.20 meters long, flowing smoothly over all the possible configuration rails. You can seem many photos of the original here http://trains.smugmu...Douro/i-mQQxwdG LEGO - Comboio Histórico do Douro by SergioBatista, on Flickr original size: https://farm8.static...46008e9b4_o.jpg Video -
It has been a bit quiet from my side the last weeks, so here is the latest version of this engine: It now features 2 medium power function motors. A version 3 has been build, with improved drive train [/url] USRA 0-8-0 version 3 [Main] by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr USRA 0-8-0 version 3 by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr And this is what happens when you aren't careful when handling an engine like this. oh crap by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr The complete timeline of this engine; [link to album]
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Greetings Train Tech, I finished this a couple of months ago, but I've only just got around to posting it. This unusual locomotive was designed in 1900. The Gr670 is a compound locomotive, featuring two high-pressure cylinders on one side and two low-pressure cylinders on the other. While a cab-forward design seems like a logical way to build a locomotive, it doesn't seem to have been that popular, presumably due to logistical challenges, such as where to store the fuel (note the giant coal bunker behind the cab, overlapping the boiler). The Gr670 was apparently nicknamed "Mucca", meaning "cow". The locomotive is essentially two trucks (one containing the pistons and the drivers) pivoting under a rigid body. It took some messing around to find pivot locations that allowed the locomotive to clear curves without the flanges of the drivers scraping against the boiler. The tender is probably my favorite part of the model. The cab-and-tank appearance of the tender echoes that of the locomotive, lending weight to the theory that the locomotive was nicknamed "mucca" because the locomotive and tender together reminded some observers of a cow and calf. And some video: Full Brickshelf gallery More info on the Gr670 Wikipedia article (Italian) Let me know what you think!
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I've been looking around for my next loco to tackle, and I've run into a bit of a problem. What ever I model, I want it to be from the Southern Railway, but the vast majority of the nice looking and/or recognisable ones suffer from the same problem, large wheel arches. There *are* a few Bulleids I could do, but seeing as I'd inevitably just copy the rather nice ones someone else has done, I'd like to do my own thing first (I know I'll break down and build at least one eventually). So, do any of you guys have any techniques for dealing with arches too big to get away with slightly undersized wheels/slightly too high footplates?
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So, I finally finished the Q Class, and I'm really happy with it! Have a gander... The cab area. Tender detail I decided to design the tender so it looked good even without a load of coal. It doesn't go all the way through, but it looks like it does! I'm going to replace the random assortment of small black bits with 1x1 black cheese wedges (mainly so I can use all the other bits more usefully), but they haven't arrived yet. General shots on the railway. Next up the freight wagons for her to pull. I've just ordered the bits for the brakevan, so look out for that in the next couple of weeks hopefully.
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Hey SteamWars-friends This is my interpretation of how the iconic Starfighter of Obi Wan might have looked in the Victorian Ages. Entry for the SteamWars-Madness on FBTB in the semifinals against Markus. And in addition i build a fitting HyperSteam-Ring for faster travelling through the SteamWars-Univsers: More photos can be be found here. All my SteamWars build will also be displayed in Skaerbaek. Probably the only chance to see them in "real". Good luck to Markus and thanks for stopping by. Best regards Jonas
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I'm not sure if there as a thread for this yet but I didn't find one. Is anyone on Steam? I think it would be fun to share usernames and create a Eurobricks community. I'm sure there are some common multiplayer games between us (I don't own many myself though ). My username is montgocloud, what about you guys? EDIT: Perhaps this would be better suited for the Community forum.
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... or at least that was what it was supposed to look like [EDIT] V2 with LDD file [/EDIT] Hello all, This is my latest steam engine, based on a USRA 0-8-0. USRA 0-8-0 by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr It features BBB Medium drivers. The thing is powered by a M-motor, and receives current through a emptied 9V train motor (don't worry, it broke before I took it apart) It features some pressure gauges. USRA 0-8-0 by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr I originally intended to add a decoupler based on this design, but the tender would become too long to look good with the engine itself. The light gray area is for a logo which I still have to create and print. USRA 0-8-0 by UrbanErwin(EPJL), on Flickr More pictures Thanks for looking, improvement points are appreciated
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EDIT: Instructions are now available on Rebrickable: https://rebrickable.com/mocs/MOC-102718/NonsenseWars/148-pennsylvania-railroad-t1-duplex-v3-power-functions You can see some new footage and an updated explanation in the following videos. Also cleaned up dead links from the original post.
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Hello. I'm new to Eurobricks. Might as well show off my creations This is a pibed walker made for one minifig. It took me ~a day to complete, and it was a very fun build! It's harder than it looks to get the legs in it's right position at this scale to make it look good, but also to make it stand upright well enough. Please comment about what you think. Please do check my other sites as well!! (and follow me!) Instagram Flickr Reddit
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Hello my friends!! this is my frist try to do a steam! its again a portguese replica, 7wide, lots of details, I hope to build it soon. hope you like it :)
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Above the barren and obscure wastelands near the Imperial London rises an odd and huge figure. But it is not one of the giants of the old age. It is a machine and it is a house, in fact it is the homely home of Mr. Edward Higgs, eccentric inventor and gentleman who definitely respects peace and desolation. Higgs's home is a typical home of an bachelor (at least on some aspects). There isn't that clean as there's no one to nag about things. As Higgs's inventing projects take some room (one of the three floors) and the machinery of the house isn't that small neither (it is an old steam sawmill tower) he has his bedroom, toilet and the old boiler room all in the same space. Isn't that handy? He doesn't have room for chairs around his table, but fortunately he can sit on the stairs while eating. The sewer system is also very compact and helps Higgs to avoid the sewage costs. As it would be troublesome and time-consuming to climb all the 32 ladders when coming home, Higgs has built a fold-out ramp for his helipack on the first floor. There is also a big steamp-powered hoister above the ramp to make it easy to lift heavy objects into the house. Another of Higgs's homely inventions is the big propeller on the wall of the first floor. It is not an air conditioning system, but a wind tunnel propeller that helps Higgs to make his airs vessels as aerodynamic as possible. This is my entry on the Home Sweet Home contest, category A. The house fits easily on 48x48 baseplate. I'm happy to be able to take part on this contest as steampunk is definitely my favourite theme and contest allowing that madness are not that common. This MOC was built and photographed in two days; late bird catches a worm anyway. More stuff can be found on Cyclopic Bricks, Flickr and Brickshelf.
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This is my first train MOC, and it felt like a big, complicated project. It’s based on inspired very loosely by the Jupiter train from the Lone Ranger film. I gave myself a simple brief when designing it- it must be fully compatible with the Constitution train, and have some interesting function. I took most of the time connecting together a complex trigger system for a light brick in the firebox, which is activated by a small lever in the cab. I didn’t actually look at any photos when building the thing, and I’ve now realised the actual thing was mostly silver, like most things in the Lone Ranger (Horse, gun, bullets, mine etc), but here we go with a red, dark red and gold-themed train. I built a coal carriage based closely on the Constitution’s and a few other carriages, but I’ll share those later. Anyway, I’ll let these amateurishly taken photos tell the tale best. Most of these pictures link to huge version, but this one goes to my Flickr. Front view, showing those headlights I'm quite proud of. A neat side view The train's back half, with the coals. Our cheerful driver works the controls here Here is the driver messing about with some vent on the side, which is only here because I found it fitted there. Finally, the "play function" I built into the model. Here is the cab's interior... ... And when that lever is pulled upwards by an enormous finger-thing of The Man Upstairs... It lights up! You have no idea how long that took. I had to rip out and reconstruct the interior many times before that would work. Anyway, that's it until I finish off and upload all the carriages I made to go with this thing. Building it was a new experience and it was fun working with all these new-to-me parts. Comments welcomed!
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Here we have 3 railway treasures of years past: -Southern Pacific #4460: the only War Baby Daylight left and herald of the end of steam on the Southern Pacific. -The Aerotrain: a failed prototype from General Motors meant to save passenger rail, one of only two ever built (though both survive) -EMD FT #103: the diesel demonstrator that proved steam power could (and would) be forever replaced by diesel locomotives. All three can be built in real life, and the LDD File is included at the bottom of this post. Electro-Motive Division (EMD) FT type #103 diesel demonstrator Built by General Motors (GM) / Electro Motive Division (EMD) in 1939, this is the diesel that showed the way to the future, signaling the start of the diesel era. However, as one day must start, another must end. This two A & two B locomotive set got the ball rolling towards the end of steam as mainline workhorses by pulling a modern two steam engines backwards - while said engines were at full forward throttle. Anyway, this particular engine was originally owned by Electro-Motive as a demonstrator. It was sold to Southern Railway and eventually placed in the Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. It was repainted in it's original Electro Motive colors for it's journey to Railfair '91 held in Sacramento, California. It is currently on display once more in the St. Louis Museum of Transportation. The FT class eventually led to the entire F series, one of which is presumably the basis for the Santa Fe Super Chief engine in set 10020. This LEGO model features the the round porthole windows and no interior. The windshield is supposed to be the printed version from the Horizon Express. The three exposed studs on each of the nose sides are for tiles spelling out "103". Here is it's real world counterpart in 1989. (photo by Wrong Main on Flickr, seen here: http://www.flickr.co...r-dDFRKh-dxsdeg ) Sadly, the B-Unit is now a rusted hulk, but the A unit is thankfully still in this pristine condition. Southern Pacific GS-6 Daylight #4460 steam locomotive Southern Pacific 4460 is the only surviving GS-6 Class steam locomotive. The GS-6 is a semi-streamlined 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotive. GS stands for "General Services". The locomotive was built by the Lima Locomotive Works for the Southern Pacific in 1943. The GS-6 lacked side skirting and red and orange "Daylight" paint found on previous locomotives of the GS class, and were painted black and silver instead. This was because the US government controlled locomotive manufacturers during World War II and had turned down Southern Pacific's order of fourteen new Daylight locomotives. Southern Pacific re-designed the engine for general service and it was finally approved, but the government took four of them and gave them to the smaller and power-starved Western Pacific Railroad Their smaller size when compared to previous GS class locomotives and the fact that they were built during WWII earned them the nicknames of "War Babies" and "Baby Daylights". 4460 is famous for pulling what was to be the final movement of steam on the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1958. Following the final excursion, 4460 was donated to the Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 16, 1959, where the engine has since sat along with many other historic steam and diesel locomotives from around the country. The 4460 is sometimes called the "Forgotten Daylight", referring to its only surviving sibling, the very famous Southern Pacific GS-4 #4449. The LEGO version is supposed to have Big Ben Brick XL 4 flanged & 4 unflanged wheels. The one seen here are placeholders. The studs on the cab and tender rear are supposed to have tiles saying "4460" on them, while the tender sides are to say "Southern Pacific". Here we see Southern Pacific #4460 in 2009. (photo by Wampa-One from Flickr. Link: http://www.flickr.co...e-fWQ6dQ-fWQ6gW ) The Lego version is based on Anthony Sava's version of the GS-4 Daylight #4449, a related cousin of the #4460 and the only other Daylight left in existence. I was contacted by Jan Snyder on MOCpages who had this story to tell of his interaction with #4460: General Motors (GM) Aerotrain demonstrator consist The Aerotrain was a streamlined trainset introduced by General Motors Electro Motive Division in the mid-1950s. Like all of GM's body designs of this mid-century era, this train was first brought to life in GM's Styling Section. Chuck Jordan was in charge of designing the Aerotrain as Chief Designer of Special Projects. It utilized the experimental EMD LWT12 locomotive, coupled to a set of modified GM Truck & Coach division 40-seat intercity highway bus bodies. The cars each rode on two axles with an air suspension system, which was intended to give a smooth ride, but had the opposite effect. The two Aerotrain demonstrator sets logged over 600,000 miles (970,000 km) and saw service on the following railroads: the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway; the New York Central Railroad; the Pennsylvania Railroad; and the Union Pacific Railroad. Starting in February 1956 the Pennsylvania Railroad ran the Pennsy Aerotrain between New York City and Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, leaving New York at 0755; the round trip was scheduled 7 hr 30 min each way. From June 1956 to June 1957 it ran between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. In 1956 Aerotrain No. 2 was leased as a demonstrator to the New York Central, and ran between Cleveland and Chicago. In March 1956 the Aerotrain made experimental runs for the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe Railway in California as the San Diegan between Los Angeles and San Diego. Its use ended because the trainset had to be turned after each trip and it needed helper locomotives on the Sorrento Grade north of San Diego. Starting December 1956 Union Pacific ran the ex-New York Central Aerotrain as the City of Las Vegas between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The train was eventually relegated to Chicago commuter service on the Chicago & Rock Island Railroad. GM's "lightweight with a heavyweight future" was introduced at a time when US passenger train revenues were declining due to competition from airlines and private automobile travel. Although it featured a streamlined design, the Aerotrain failed to capture the imagination of the American public. The cars, based on GM's bus designs and using an air cushioning system, were rough riding and uncomfortable. The design of the locomotive section rendered routine maintenance difficult, and it was underpowered. Both trainsets were retired in 1966 after a decade's use. The Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri and the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin each have one of the locomotives, and two of the cars. This LEGO version is to have a red number tile saying "3" (even though there were only two trains ever built! ) on the cab sides, and i'm not quite sure this will go around curves or switches. This version if based on a couple pictures I saw on Brickshlef. Oh, and the pieces on the front bogie between the wheels are CMF paint cans... has anyone else done that? Aerotrain #3 and it's two remaining cars from the original 10 car set in 2009 (photo by emzepe from Flickr. Link: http://www.flickr.co...s-dHVGkr-edHdNC ) Sadly, the other 8 cars were scrapped. The other Aerotrain set is in an enclosed space in Green Bay Wisconsin. Three Railway Treasures Here we have them all together. LDD file for all three: http://www.mocpages....1395015218m.lxf Comments, Questions, & complaints are always welcome!
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Hello everyone, Years ago, I saw a 3D rendered image of a streamlined locomotive online. I built a model of it then, but I didn't do a very good job of modeling it. Complicating the matter is the fact that the locomotive seems to be fictional, so I only had one render of it to go on. After coming back from college I decided to see if I could do a better job of it. Here is the result: and here's the image I based it off of: Some details wound up being cartooned away. The fictional locomotive appears to be based in part on H45 024, a high-pressure variant of the DRG Class 45. Since there was only this one rendered image for reference, I had to extract out the proportions of the model by "reversing" the perspective of the image to figure out what the locomotive looks like from the side. The side view suggested an oddly short condensing tender; I may change that on a later revision. There are two things I enjoy a lot about this model. The first is the three linked flanged drivers, which prompts a lot of head-scratching when I point it out. The model does in fact drive through all switches and curves -- I'm using a variant of Ben's sprung wheel trick shown here. Essentially, the middle drivers are on sprung half-axles and retract inwards a little on curves. The second feature is the use of technic piston heads for buffers -- they're just the right size! It turns out that if you jam them over a 1x1 plate with horizontal clip they stick. Full gallery here. Thanks for looking -- let me know what you think.
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Hi! This is my new Cuusoo project, a river paddle steamer! It has an interior and several play functions, like an automated paddle wheel without any motor ("push driven"). Please check it out at the link, and perhaps vote for it, or leave a comment! Thank you!
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[full gallery] I have modified the locomotive from the Lone Ranger, Constitution Train Chase (Lego set 79111) to add working driver rods. I had to completely rework the pilot to make everything work, but I think the final design is pretty good. The new model is the same width as the original, one stud longer, and it has working rods. The mechanicals are packed in very efficiently. The front wheel just barely clears the cow catcher, the side rods just barely clear the crossheads, I came up with a clever bearing to fit over the moving pilot axle, etc.. With the moving rods I think this engine is shaping up to be pretty sharp. A larger tender would be nice, and one of these days I'll take a stab at that. The one tradeoff (and I'm not sure it is much of a tradeoff) is the fact that I had to convert it from a Ten Wheeler to a Mogul. Here's a shot of the modified engine on a curve I've prepared instructions for the modification and have already uploaded jpegs to brickshelf (I'm working on finding a good home for the .pdf version). There are two versions of the instructions: V1 is for building the modified model from scratch, V2 is for retrofitting the completed model after it has been built. To build this modified model you will need the parts that come with Lego set 79111 and the additional parts listed on the last two pages of the instructions. Note that this build requires 4 non-Lego pieces for the driver rods, available here. [full gallery]
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SKYHOLM 1858. The United States achieved world supremacy and respect of all countries. At the first International Technical Exhibition in 1858 the flying city of Skyholm designed by the US chief engineer was presented. The city was sent to travel from continent to continent and show the rest of the world the success of the American experiment. The flying city became a great symbol of the American ideals. However the city suddenly disappeared for the unknown reason. The greatest achievement of America disappeared completely … No one knows how to get to Skyholm. __________________________ This is my entry for the russian contest STEAMPUNK MACHINE which won first place. Blogged by The Brothers Brick Deeplinks : Main-First level-Second level-Steam reactor-Roof Main Picture | More Pictures Inspired by BioShock Infinite by Irrational Games SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr SKYHOLM- the flying city by Fianat, on Flickr Thanks for viewing!
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Hi, I am currently working on a 4-4-2 steam engine and need some help. The base looks like this: I know that I can fit a 88002 PF Motor here, but the engine would run muuch too fast and wouldn't have much hauling power, so I wondered what I would have to do to get it to the same speed as the other PF trains, if possible. Is there a possibility, and how would I have to do that???
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Hello again peoples :) I present here another Tank Engine MOC, this one based off a train that once ran through my back garden from 1830's to the 1950's! :O Sadly, it was retired and scrapped and retired after the roads became more popular, but it was one of the oldest railways in the world. Out of all my Engine MOCs, i'd say this is my most 'advanced', and by far my favourite! I'm very pleased with the result. Here's a picture of the real thing ( A painting, I know, but it's the best one I could find :P ) Let's see how my one looks in comparison! Please forgive the camera quality, I have to use my phone sadly. :/ Here's the 3/4 front view! The coupling system will work different to the Lego magnetic one, due to my own scarcity of those parts. I'll use two of those pieces that are 2x3 with the holes in the front. I like the look of the buffers, and i cheated a bit with the engine "face", because I don't have that part in black :( I used black insulation tape to colour it black, without permanently affecting the part. I also left two dark grey lines for those things Steam engines have, I think it's a hinge for the door or something?? :S Here's the illustriative back view: If I had two dark grey 2x1x2 window pieces, they'd be there, instead of the angry eyed look it currently has :( A side view, showing the studless nature of the engine: I had to leave the front wheel a stud up from the tracks to allow it to turn on curves, because the back two wheels are a motor. I've made it so the rear buffers come off easily, in case I want to motorize it some day. Here's the inside of the cab: It's a 4x4 space, with a firebox underneath the controls. Here's the final view of it, on my work in progress town layout! I made a makeshift carriage for it too, but it's not worth seeing, I might post pictures later on when I make some proper carriages for it. Please let me know what you think of the engine! Leave me some constructive criticism too please. :) Axle
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Lego 79111 Constitution Train Chase The largest of the new Lone Ranger licensed series, this train comes complete with track and a bunch of figures. You'll have to wait till the end to see the figs though. I haven't seen the movie (it's not out yet!) and honestly am not that familiar with the Lone Ranger, so I'm reviewing this primarily as a train set that happens to be tied to a movie, not as a licensed set that happens to be a train. Name: Constitution Train Chase Set Number: 79111 Pieces: 699 Price: $99 Minifigs: 7 Theme: Lone Ranger Year of Release: 2013 Links: Bricklink Peeron Brickset The Box The Box front shows what I assume to be the Lone Ranger theme, with a bright yellow band across the top for high visibility on the store shelves. The train is shown on track with the usual liberties in how things are happening - for example, the horse cannot stand in that pose without falling over. They had to stick the water tower in the back so it didn't obscure the train, which is a bummer since it's a cooler accessory than the exploding rocks. The Figs At the bottom of the front there's a lineup of the figures included, with their names so you know who's who. Lego was really trying to save space to give the train as much room as possible on the front though, so they cut the legs off all the figs! The 1:1 On top of the box, they used the same figure lineup (but with legs this time!) as the 1:1 size indicator. That's sorta surprising to me, since most buyers would know what size a minifig is, but it's hard to judge the size of the train from the photo. Something like the wheels from the locomotive would be a better scale I'd think. The Back On the back of the box we have the usual second photo of the whole set, plus insets of all the play features. You can see that the water tower falls over, the gun spins, the tender has a hiding place, etc. The Contents Inside the box you get: bundles of track, 6 numbered bags, one un-numbered bag, a tiny sticker sheet, and two manuals. Sorry, no cardboard for the manuals so things are a bit curled. The Stickers The small sticker sheet isn't too bad, considering the size of the set. There's a couple stickers for the locomotive and one "scratched panel" that'll go on the jail car. The Manuals Two books - the first builds the locomotive and tender, the second builds the other two cars and the accessories. All the instructions are clear and simple to follow, as long as you actually pay attention to the part box to make sure you do everything you're supposed to on each step. The Wheels The locomotive gets 6 large wheels. They're the same as the Emerald Night (and the Toy Story train). They're packed as two bags, each with two flanged drivers and one blind. Good to see these available again! (well, I guess they are in the Monster Fighter Ghost Train, but who bought that?) The Special Parts There's some nice pieces here. I'm not 100% sure on the colors, but I think the silver bars and rocks are "metallic silver" in Bricklink naming. That's definitely a new color on the ingots, and the silver rocks haven't been seen in years (assuming they are metallic silver). The printed tiles (you get an extra of the stopwatch) are nice and useful, though a real slingshot would be cooler! And the guns... this is a new mold from the old revolver. It's nicer, more detailed, and you get it in both light and dark pearl grey in this set! 3 light and 2 dark, to be precise. The crate is not a new mold, but it is a new color. I think it's medium dark flesh, but I could be wrong. Building the Locomotive, 1 The locomotive starts with a nice sturdy frame. That's good to see, since the Toy Story train was so wobbly. Building the Locomotive, 2 Pretty obvious where this is going... but also obvious that there's not going to be an easy way to motorize it. Building the Locomotive, 3 Details are starting to appear. It also surprises me every time how many colors Lego sneaks into things where they won't be seen. This set included a number of the dark orange 2x2 round plates, and none are visible in the end. Did they have extra dark orange ABS left over or something? Building the Locomotive, 4 More stacking. And some SNOT starting to show... Building the Locomotive, 5 The first stickers go on 2x4 tiles to indicate the RR. I like the detailing in the rods on the sides too - a black wand, a black lightsaber handle, a cone, and another wand. Simple but nice detailing. Building the Locomotive, 6 Finally, the wheels. Sadly, there's no driving rods in the set to make it look more realistic, but it'd be easy enough to add. And I'm not OCD, so my wheels aren't all lined up like in Lego's photos :) Building the Locomotive, 7 The front bogey is nicely designed. And you can't have a western train without a cowcatcher! Building the Locomotive, 8 The base of the locomotive is done. Since the center driving wheels are flangeless and there's nice articulation between the front and main parts, it'll work just fine on Lego track. Building the Locomotive, 9 Now the cab is taking shape and we're finally getting some color! Sorry, no glass in those windows. Have to add that yourself if you want it. Building the Locomotive, 10 The green slopes here are the same as used in the Emerald Night, but without the gold stripes. There's a bunch of snot brackets used to give the boiler its shape. Building the Locomotive, 11 Here's how the front of the loco comes together. There's an extension with snot brackets that lengthens the boiler, and a tile on the top of the bogey so it can slide. Once the rest of the green slopes are added it'll be plenty strong. Building the Locomotive, 12 Nearly finished. The dark green looks great and I like the black stripes in it. Building the Locomotive, 13 The bell and light are both nicely built. The pearl gold clip and fez make for a great small bell to fit the scale of the train. Building the Locomotive, 14 Complete. The hat on the front gives some nice details there, and the overall train is just nicely made. I'm not 100% in love with the smokestack design, but it's ok. The Tender, 1 The tender is pretty simple, but it looks good. The trapdoor is a quick way to get some basic play features for the kids, and some round black plates on top help the appearance. The Tender, 2 And it's done. (actually, it's not. there's a shovel that goes on the front and some wands that go in the back clips that I forgot to put on before the photo - but basically, it's done) The Gun Car, 1 Here's the base - a nice way to get snot right away. And the second car will use the same base, so pay attention :) The Gun Car, 2 I really like the touch of red here. Otherwise, it'd be pretty dull. The Gun Car, 3 Some storage bins are added, as well as the base of the gun. The Gun Car, 4 There is a pretty simple mechanism coming to make the gun spin. First, a crank is built (that tan crankshaft part is pretty rare in this color) with a gear and a towball as a handle. The Gun Car, 5 The gun car is done. You can see the gear mechanism here. The binoculars and barrel make a pretty decent-looking gatling gun. The black pins mean it has enough friction to stay at whatever angle you put it. Likewise, the click turntable underneath means you can position the gun and have it stay. The Jail Car, 1 The base is the same, but the top changes from the gun car. Bunches of 2- and 4-long log bricks combine with some 1x1 cylinders to make most of the walls. The Jail Car, 2 The sides are now done and sliding doors are added on both sides. There's also a nice jail door dividing the car in half. The Jail Car, 3 Nearly done. The Technic beam in the rear pivots to knock out the end wall (not in place yet). I love the simple little lamps at each end of the car though. A great little detail touch. The Jail Car, 4 The end wall. The sticker side goes inwards to form the jail cell in the car. The outside has some dynamite attached - combined with the lever sticking out of the roof at you have the nearly-mandatory-for-Lego-sets knock-out wall. The Train Is Done The full train. It's a nice length for pushing around by hand, although it definitely helps to have it on the track since the front bogey on the logo flops around if you don't. It's sorta goofy - I mean, how many trains have massive gun cars like this? - but it's a great toy. And if you mod the cars into something nicer, it makes a great old steam train. I just think it's fantastic! The jail car would be simple - take out the lever and bar windows, fill in those gaps, and it's a great little boxcar. Take the gun off, and you have a nice little flatbed car. The Water Tower, 1 Time to finish the scene. First comes a water tower. The base has a lever and some of the new 1x2 plate with pinholes, and they're all nicely reinforced with the tan curved bricks. The Water Tower, 2 Almost done. There are a few trans-blue parts inside the tank to be the water, and the whole thing is ready to topple. The Water Tower, 3 And it's done. The dynamite (with a little help from the red lever on the other leg) is ready to crash the water tower across the train tracks! I found in my play that usually the whole tank pops off, but it doesn't come open and spill the 4 trans-blue parts out. That's fine as far as I'm concerned - they'd be a pain to pick up if they flew out. But really Lego, just 4 little 1x1 round bricks to fill the tank with? And I assume that this water tower is for the townsfolk, not for filling the train as it comes through, since the spout is away from the tracks if you have it ready to fall and block them. Makes you wonder though why they'd build a tower so close to the rails... The Exploding Rock, 1 No build photos needed here. It's simple but blows up pretty good. The Exploding Rock, 2 It's a nice play feature except for one thing. You have to hold the front of the rock down when you press the lever or the whole thing flips up. The tan base needs to extend out a little on the lever side for stability! On the other hand, the pair of grey slopes sticking out on the front make great spots to hold it down with a finger or two. The Figs Finally, what you've all been waiting for. Here's the 7 figures. The Lone Ranger gets a pair of guns, but Butch only gets one. And poor Latham - he can hardly stand up with that rifle in hand! Seriously though, these figs are just fantastic. I'm not familiar with who they all are, but who cares? They're just great old-time characters! Four very different hats, wide variety of torso prints, great faces. The Backs All the figs have back printing as well. The Alternate Faces With the hair off, you can see the alternate faces that some have. FYI, Tonto's hair is rubbery, but the rest are hard plastic. Tonto's hair also has a small hole on top for the bird to attach to. The Horse Even I know you can't have the Lone Ranger without Silver. This horse is like the new ones in LotR with moveable rear legs, but it's the first time for that version in white. And yes, the standard brick and plate are included if you want to remove the saddle. The Comparison, 1 Here's the Constitution next to the Emerald Night. You wouldn't expect them to be on the same scale since EN was the same price but without track, such awesome figures (though it does have 3 basic figs), or a Disney license. I have to say, I'm impressed with how well the Con stands up to the bigger brother. I wouldn't think twice about running them on the same layout, especially if you added some driving rods to the wheels. The Comparison, 2 From the front you can see how much larger the EN is in pretty much every way. The boiler is MUCH bigger, but again, I'm impressed that the Constitution doesn't look bad in comparison! The Comparison, 3 For a perhaps more fair comparison, here's the locomotive from the Toy Story train (7957). Granted, the TS train is supposed to look like a toy, but I just was never really impressed by it. It always seemed flimsy to me, and it was annoying to push around by hand since both sets of wheels are articulated on that locomotive. The set didn't include track, so most had to play on the floor with it. The Con is much more sturdy and looks FAR better. The extra $20 in retail price is well worth it, especially since you get more figs AND a loop of track. The Conclusion Wow. I LOVE this set. I'm not really a western guy and don't know the Lone Ranger, but I think Lego hit a solid home run on this set. I think it's a far cooler train than any of the recent sets. Obviously apples to oranges since there hasn't been a steam train since the EN, but still... the one drawback as a train is that there's no simple motorization option. You could put a train motor under the tender, but it'd take modification of the floor to work, and there's not room for a battery box in the tender. A better option might be to make a larger boxcar and use that for power, since you could put the motor underneath and the battery and IR receiver inside. For the kids, it's a great train with lots of play possibility, sturdy enough to play with, and it comes with track to play on. The Ratings Value: 10/10 - Considering the EN was $100 when it was out, and other train sets are more (but also include power functions), this is a solid value. You get 7 great figs, a horse, some scenery, and a great train with track. Design: 10/10 - It still looks good even standing next to the Emerald Night. Enough said. Minifigs: 10/10 - These 7 figs (and the horse if you want to count him) are all great. Not a dud in the group, and a wide variety too. Playability: 9.5/10 - I only took off anything because if I was a kid I'd want it motorized and have a remote. That would have kicked the price way up though, so I totally understand Lego doing it this way. Parts: 9/10 - Train parts, nice dark green curves, a simple but sweet water tower. My only complaint would be a lack of much color, but it's not supposed to be a brightly colored Toy Story train. Overall: 10/10 - A Great Set.
