Mrcool1804 Posted May 13, 2011 I have been working on a workable, to scale, model of an actual Fire Engine. I would appreciate any feedback before I place my Design By Me purchase. Here is a photo of the Engine that I modeled it after: Here are the photos of the model: The ladder does rotate down 90deg. to allow for unloading. Any feedback at all is much appreciated! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Yellow Brick Posted May 13, 2011 Awesome Fire Engine 'Mrcool1804'. Very realistic and nice design. Looks like the real thing The snot on the side is great and the orange strip looks great. Nice work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
meyerc13 Posted May 13, 2011 That looks like a Pierce... made right down the highway from where I live. Very nicely done. I've been trying to design an Engine like this for my son to play with, and it isn't easy. You've got a great combination of features, like the ladder, the clips behind the compartment doors. I'm curious, how do those doors open? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mrcool1804 Posted May 13, 2011 That looks like a Pierce... made right down the highway from where I live. Very nicely done. I've been trying to design an Engine like this for my son to play with, and it isn't easy. You've got a great combination of features, like the ladder, the clips behind the compartment doors. I'm curious, how do those doors open? Thanks! You nailed it! The Engine is a 2006 Pierce Dash. The doors are simple connections as shown below Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lightningtiger Posted May 13, 2011 AWESOME LDD fire truck, going to brick-built are we ? Excellent design work there and keep on LDDing 'Mrcool1804' ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XimenaPaulina Posted May 14, 2011 Excellent fire truck design Mrcool1804! It looks like you've really 'researched' this truck very well as it captures the overall look, detailing, and basic functionality of the reference material. You even got the pinstripes brickbuilt instead of using stickers. Really impressive LDD work, looking forward seeing this realized on real bricks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
meyerc13 Posted May 14, 2011 Thanks for the detailed pictures of the hinges. That helps a lot. I forgot to mention that I love the brick built stripes! I can't imagine what this costs from Design By Me... the first night I played with LDD I built a fire truck, it was fairly expensive as I recall. I haven't bothered to check the price of any of my builds since. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fuzzylegobricks Posted May 14, 2011 (edited) Very cool work here Mrcool1804! The details such as the door hinges are very neat, is it Ralphs door design? If you want it to be cheaper you could use Bricklink to buy the parts, and LDD Manager to make a parts list. Good Luck! Edited May 14, 2011 by Fuzzylegobricks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ralph_S Posted May 14, 2011 I have been working on a workable, to scale, model of an actual Fire Engine. I would appreciate any feedback before I place my Design By Me purchase. The ladder does rotate down 90deg. to allow for unloading. Any feedback at all is much appreciated! A very nice fire truck, Mrcool1804. I love the level of detail, the brick-built stripes and the functionality, with the mechanism to lower the ladder and the opening doors, for instance. Looking at the reference picture, though, I can't help but think that the model is a bit long. I also don't really like how the wheels and tyres stick out about a stud from the sides. However, since these wheels are themselves two studs wide, building it such that they are flush would mean that there's only two studs between the inner faces of the wheels, which probably is a bit awkward too. Most of LEGO's tyres are far too fat compared to real ones. I understand the need to compromise. Very cool work here Mrcool1804! The details such as the door hinges are very neat, is it Ralphs door design? If you want it to be cheaper you could use Bricklink to buy the parts, and LDD Manager to make a parts list. Good Luck! The doors on my fire engines are hinged differently, using a technic arm attached to the side rather than hinges in the roof. Rescue Pumper (6) by Mad physicist, on Flickr There are advantages and disadvantages compared to Mrcool1804's solution. When open my doors don't stick out as much and they don't protrude into the roof. However, I have far less space inside because the hinge mechanism is quite bulky and bacause I need room at the top for the doors to slide into. Cheers, Ralph Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Green Hair Posted May 14, 2011 Looks like you've replicated the original very nicely! I love the way you made the striping on the sides. I do think it is a bit too long, and the wheels look a bit too small though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ralph_S Posted May 14, 2011 Looks like you've replicated the original very nicely! I love the way you made the striping on the sides. I do think it is a bit too long, and the wheels look a bit too small though. Too small !? The length of the vehicle might hide it a bit, but if anything they're a bit big. In any case, imagine it with wheels that are one size bigger. This is the size you'll end up with: Cheers, Ralph Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gcanik Posted May 14, 2011 Love the LDD model in your ability to fit so much detail in and the striping pattern. I do agree with some of the others posters about the length of the entire engine. I feel and it looks about two to three studs to long. But don't know how yet to really shorten it without loosing detail and playability. Maybe shorten the driver area by one stud. Also how is the front bumper attatched? It looks like you are using a bracket from the image so it appears to stick out a hair. Why not use bricks, modified with studs on one side (1x4 or even 1x1s) to get the bumper closer to the engine front. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ecclesiastes Posted May 14, 2011 Nice engine! I Really like the doors you made! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mrcool1804 Posted May 14, 2011 A very nice fire truck, Mrcool1804. I love the level of detail, the brick-built stripes and the functionality, with the mechanism to lower the ladder and the opening doors, for instance. Looking at the reference picture, though, I can't help but think that the model is a bit long. I also don't really like how the wheels and tyres stick out about a stud from the sides. However, since these wheels are themselves two studs wide, building it such that they are flush would mean that there's only two studs between the inner faces of the wheels, which probably is a bit awkward too. Most of LEGO's tyres are far too fat compared to real ones. I understand the need to compromise. The doors on my fire engines are hinged differently, using a technic arm attached to the side rather than hinges in the roof. Rescue Pumper (6) by Mad physicist, on Flickr There are advantages and disadvantages compared to Mrcool1804's solution. When open my doors don't stick out as much and they don't protrude into the roof. However, I have far less space inside because the hinge mechanism is quite bulky and bacause I need room at the top for the doors to slide into. Cheers, Ralph Thanks Ralph, I studied your Engine in great length and could not figure out your hinge system, and you are right about is being bulky. I too agree with everyone that it does look a little too long, I had the smaller tires on there to begin with, but opted for the larger ones despite them sticking out a bit. I also started this model being an 8 wide, The cost right now on LDD is $150 US Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Milan Posted May 14, 2011 Great truck! I like how you studied all the details and incorporate them into the model! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
legoboy3998 Posted May 15, 2011 Thanks Ralph, I studied your Engine in great length and could not figure out your hinge system, and you are right about is being bulky. I too agree with everyone that it does look a little too long, I had the smaller tires on there to begin with, but opted for the larger ones despite them sticking out a bit. I also started this model being an 8 wide, The cost right now on LDD is $150 US What I do is use LDD Manager to great the parts list, then order the parts through Pick A Brick. I recently ordered 487 pieces through PAB It was $66, through DBM $105. You can save quite a bit that way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ralph_S Posted May 15, 2011 Thanks Ralph, I studied your Engine in great length and could not figure out your hinge system, and you are right about is being bulky. I too agree with everyone that it does look a little too long, I had the smaller tires on there to begin with, but opted for the larger ones despite them sticking out a bit. I also started this model being an 8 wide, The cost right now on LDD is $150 US I have been getting questions about the door mechanism. It's one of those things that are perfectly straightforward, but hard to explain in words. A three long technic arm sits vertically inside the compartment. It's attached to a technic pin in the sidewall at the bottom. The door is attached with a second technic pin at the top. The arm allows the whole door to swing out and then up, much like a many garage doors. I'll see that I make a better picture one of these days. I personally think that 8-wide is too big for most minifig scale vehicles, but if you don't want to change the width of the doors and use these wheels, I reckon 8-wide is probably best. It'll sort out just about all the issues with the proportions. I'd hate to know how much that will cost, if the 6-wide version is already $150 Cheers, Ralph Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mrcool1804 Posted September 20, 2011 (edited) Well after some time and a recent move I finally got a chance to re-do my 6 wide Engine to a 8 wide Engine. This truck does not have functioning doors but is more built based on being a model. You can however put 5 firefighters in the cab just like the real life truck. I really like this new design a lot and it seems to look much better than my 1st pass. I have Ordered through Lego so I should have it built in a few weeks. Please feel free to provide feedback! Edited September 20, 2011 by Mrcool1804 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lightningtiger Posted September 20, 2011 Great looking eight wide LDD fire truck, now brick-build it ? LDD On 'Mrcool1804' ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mrcool1804 Posted September 20, 2011 Great looking eight wide LDD fire truck, now brick-build it ? LDD On 'Mrcool1804' ! Yup the bricks are on their way! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bootz Posted September 20, 2011 Great firetruck. I just finished a 6 wide of my own but its nowhere near as detailed. On a side note, can someone explain to me what "snot" is? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AussieJimbo Posted September 20, 2011 Great fire engine design. Looking forward to seeing it in the brick. On a side note, can someone explain to me what "snot" is? Studs Not On Top. :classic: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bootz Posted September 21, 2011 Great fire engine design. Looking forward to seeing it in the brick. Studs Not On Top. :classic: Ahh I figured it was something along those lines. Thanks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ralph_S Posted September 21, 2011 Well after some time and a recent move I finally got a chance to re-do my 6 wide Engine to a 8 wide Engine. This truck does not have functioning doors but is more built based on being a model. You can however put 5 firefighters in the cab just like the real life truck. I really like this new design a lot and it seems to look much better than my 1st pass. I have Ordered through Lego so I should have it built in a few weeks. Please feel free to provide feedback! That does look a lot more serious than the first one. I wouldn't really consider it minifig scale anymore, because it dwarfs the figs, but I like it a lot. You've got a lot of detail in there and the overall look is nice too. I'm curious. The 6-wide version cost $150. How much is this if you buy it directly from LEGO. $250? Ahh I figured it was something along those lines. Thanks. That may be what the acronym stands for, but is not really an explanation. I model may have studs on top and still incorporate a lot of SNOT techniques. SNOT is a term used for building techniques in which parts of a model are built with the elements oriented such that what would normally be their upper surface points in another direction, irrespective of whether or not there actually studs on it! Slapping a layer of tiles over a plate is a not a SNOT technique, even though the end result means that there won't be studs on top. An example of SNOT building in MRcool's truck is the diagonal stripe in the side. Cheers, Ralph Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mrcool1804 Posted September 21, 2011 That does look a lot more serious than the first one. I wouldn't really consider it minifig scale anymore, because it dwarfs the figs, but I like it a lot. You've got a lot of detail in there and the overall look is nice too. I'm curious. The 6-wide version cost $150. How much is this if you buy it directly from LEGO. $250? It was only $163, but with Tax and Shipping it landed me to $191. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
