dhc6twinotter

I've cut back in my Technic purchases the last few years. I think I purchased one set in 2024 and one in 2023. Nothing last year. Nothing really interests me anymore. I don't have much interest in the cars unless a set has a bunch of panels in a color I want. I'd pay out the nose for a proper flagship backhoe or tow truck though. Maybe a proper fire truck.

I don’t think it’s hand of god steering. It’s most likely used to rotate the drum.

LEGO has been heavily promoting their partnership with F1 Academy the last few days. Apparently there’s a new F1 Academy Speed Champion set, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a F1 Academy Technic set as well. I’m not excited about another F1 car, but maybe we’ll see some pink or purple panels out of it.

I wonder if there is a theme that could maybe bridge the gap between all the cars and construction equipment? Maybe tow trucks and fire trucks? Seems to me a proper fire truck would be a nice model that those of us who like construction equipment could also appreciate. I think it would also appeal to much of the demographic that tends to gravitate towards cars as well. A ladder truck with stabilizers would be a nice set, even better if it were a tiller truck with steering trailer axle. Tow trucks would also appeal to a lot of people, and even a new car transporter would be nice. The last few construction flagships have been totally botched by TLG, generally by being excessively large to the point of not operating well and/or being far too overpriced. Then the poor reviews come in and TLG interprets that as people not liking construction equipment, so they revert to cars even more. The Arocs was, imo, the last great flagship with the 42128 Heavy Duty Tow Truck and 42145 Helicopter being the next best non-flagship sets.

You can use an old style differential instead of driving rings. You won't get the backlash. Run an axle straight through the differential instead of using the bevel gears. That's how I've done it in the past.

This is looking good! With the motors in the base and gearbox in the superstructure, how does the gearbox compensate for the rotation of the superstructure? Seems to me the gearbox will be changing position whenever the superstructure is rotated. Maybe I’m overthinking this. 😂

Price seems quite high given the piece count. I was thinking about purchasing it, but given the price, I think I’ll pass.

A few thoughts: -From a parts perspective, I really like the LBG sets being released. LBG panels have been pretty scarce compared to other colors. -The Valkyrie is beautiful. I love the simplistic design of the exterior, and the dark turquoise color is fantastic. I have not purchased any of the flagship car models, but if TLG releases a flagship Valkyrie in Turquoise or dark green, I’d be very tempted to buy one. -The Bronco is quite nice. I think I would’ve preferred a different color, like medium blue, but I like the set. New tires and fender trim are nice. -Front Loader is great. I love the compact size and gearing crammed in the space. I wish it had different wheels though. Bronco wheels would look better. -I’m on the fence when it comes to the excavator. It’s unnecessarily large and expensive, especially given it’s not RC. The gearbox design is disappointing too, especially given only one function can be operated at a time. I’m not even sure it’s bi-directional? I do like the multiple attachments and the auxiliary drive for the attachment, but that aside, past excavators have been done better and cheaper. I’m happy TLG provided a construction set rather than another vehicle, but I wish it were a bit more appealing. I think the Valkyrie and Front Loader will be Technic purchases this year. The City construction lineup is looking pretty appealing to me otherwise.

The City constructions sets over the last couple years has been really impressive. I’ve had more interest in those than I have most Technic sets lately.

The excavator sounds promising. $400 seems a bit steep though, especially considering 8043 was $200. Hopefully we get more than six functions and not a large model for the sake of being large (like 42100).

I like that idea. Mindstorms, before the EV3, also had separate rotation sensors.

8043 was an amazing set. A successor to that would be very welcome. I’d love to see it.

I hope this isn’t the replacement for PU. This is even worse. Let’s go back to PF with Bluetooth receivers.

The next cheap car could be the Mustang Dark Horse. The blue color on the submarine would work well in this. For 1:10 cars, I’d love to see an Aston Martin Valkyrie in Dark Green Metallic or Dark Turquoise Metallic. As far as the flagship goes, they could offer a RC tellehandler. Four motors and a single hub would be enough for basic functions, especially if run through a gearbox. Boom extend, boom lift, fork tilt, drive, steer, and stabilizers could all be done with four motors. A tellehandler wouldn’t have that much bodywork, so I think this could be done with 2300 pieces. I think a backhoe could be done for 2300 pieces as well. 8455 only had 704 pieces.

I’d pay out the nose for a proper RC backhoe. It doesn’t even have to be pneumatic. That, or a function loaded tow truck, are about the only technic models I’d be willing to pay more than $250-$300 USD for. I don’t care about the cars and motorcycles, except they do have some nice assortment of panels. From a technical perspective though, I find construction equipment more interesting.

Looks like new panels under the seat and under the fuel tank.

This is really excellent! I love how you’ve packed so many functions in a small space.

Another helicopter with working cyclic and collective will be really nice. I would like to see a smaller helicopter in the $50 range. Something like an old Bell bubble canopy helicopter with a three blade rotor and working piston engine. Just a very basic set with minimal panel work. It’s time for a proper construction related flagship again.

That is true. My vehicle is a Toyota 4Runner with a live axle. All five rear links use rubber bushings to allow flex. Factory live axles with rubber bushings don’t flex as well as live axles with custom links and ball joints though, so many people who are into the whole rock crawling scene swap out the factory links. Links with ball joints are also common in the custom car or racing scene where people are building custom suspensions. The Technic pins are only designed for a hinge type movement. Using them as a sort of ball joint is just more stress (although negligible), and just relies on loose tolerances to work. If TLG used some sort of rubber joint or even used the 1x2 rubber lift arm, like the rear suspension on the Arocs, I wouldn’t have an issue.

7 wide and 7 long, including the ball socket. I really like the new suspension piece. That and the new 12T gear are very welcome pieces.

This set looks like an excellent parts pack. A lot to like here. My biggest complaint is the design of the rear suspension. I’m ok with using the new control arm on the top of the axle, and using a sort of triangulated upper link like this is common on large trucks and rock buggies. My complaint lies in the lower links. The links are connected to the chassis using pins. Pins don’t allow full movement of the links when the rear axle is articulated. When the axle articulates, the links will want to go / \, or given it pivots around the upper link mount, probably more like / / and \ \. The pins don’t allow free movement. The springs don’t allow full movement either. Live axles should always have ball and sockets at both ends of the links, with the exception of a single triangulated link similar to what is used on the top of the axle here. TLG has never built a proper live axle. The front axles on the Arocs were the closest they’ve come to a well designed live axle.

I thought the same, although it probably wouldn’t be much different than using 6L links with the 5 stud long control arms that were so prevalent in previous models.

Do you all see the new suspension control arms? Have I been living under a rock, or are those new? They appear to be at least 7 studs long, maybe even 8. They look great to me! Those new 12t clutch gears are fantastic! Some of us have wishing for such a part for years now. Kudos to TLG for listening.

The inner fender pieces seem like a new panel. It’s similar to the large triangular panels, except it has a downward angle to it. I like the bright light orange color. I wouldn’t complain if it replaced yellow. It looks like the 45 degree knob gear is used in the gearbox. It’s grey in the picture. The orange drum selector in the gearbox is interesting. I wonder if it’s different than the blue one in the Yamaha?

It’s a 1/2 stud pulley wheel. The rear diff is offset by 1/2 stud. The other side uses a 1x5 thin lift arm.