Lasse D

That is an excellent idea! I already have the Bricklink part names and colors, so I just have to learn their XML-format. Unfortunately I don't whether I will actually be there. Usually I just send GBC modules and I don't know if I will get the time this year. I will, however, be at Skærbæk (LEGO Fan Weekend) and I can see there are a lot of 1:13'ers being exhibited there.

Nice. I didn't see that (only checking it once a month). This explains the surge of visitors! I'm glad you like it. The whole purpose is to get people with me into Model Team again, being it 1:22 (Ralph et. al. scale) or 1:25 (Classic LEGO scale). I do as much technic as possible because it's light, sturdy and uses very few parts (not counting pins and pegs). Then I try to cover it as much as possible. I have also begun to cover most studs as this gives a cleaner and more modern look. I agree, and I would love to see you come up with some trucks with different steering geometries If you make a nice truck with an .mpd file I would also love to add it to the web-site (full credits to you, links and all) This applies for everyone. If you have a nice Model Team mod or MOC, then let's get it up there! I experiment with steering geometries in order to save space. Back in the days (nearly a decade ago) I unknowingly used (reverse) Ackermann steering for my wrecker (and I'm planning on reintroducing Ackermann steering for my next truck, but that's still a secret): Now that's more like it when I think of trucks from your hand! This layout should be very good for traction and you have some really nice planes for decorations. I will look forward to see what can c®ome out of this

Thanks man, please do. And please improve it like I know you guys are famous for

Oh, I will. Some very kind gentleman gave me a set of the new motors with me promising to make good use of them and bring the results to Skærbæk. I have him to thank for being able to introduce such a substantial upgrade to the Scania. There will be more trucks like it as soon as I get my hands on more motors.

Great. Then you should incorporate that easy mod if you want to build your own (and in a different color because the 2x4 slope does not exist in orange, yet) Build your own? Yep. I just finished the building instructions! Now it's time for that trailer and container.

I have constructed some new parts which has allowed me to build the model with the correct colors of all the parts: To compare with the real machine: I will try to construct some alternatives as discussed earlier in this thread for comparison. Update. Here are some alternatives. Unfortunately they all add a bit too much of width, but I really like the effect of the last two alternatives First is my own first guess of how to make the aero parts: Next are two attempts at making sloped parts as Alasdair suggests:

Distilled water is very risky to use as even a very small contaminant makes the water conductive. You would have to make sure no dust came inside, including anything from inside the NXT brick. I prefer simply coating the electronics in silicone or similar and use water proof connections (electronic stores carry these in various forms).

I have made a CAD model of the frame from the new Scania truck to show how the steering works. Unfortunately there are no CAD models of the new motors so I had to improvise. This is how I made the steering work while making the wheel arches minimal. I would prefer to use a smaller cog than the 24 tooth gear in the front as it makes the ground clearance really small compared to the rest of the vehicle.

For some reason I missed the bypass in the video. Good work on thinking of all these details. I look forward to see it in action somewhere.

It is awesome to see a new take on a complex GBC module / and a great finale. You could also code it to show the number of balls that have passed through ;) Then it would count as a counting GBC module, which are always nice to have around. The troughput is perfectly fine for a European display. In the US they are a bit more strict about 1 ball/sec, hence why I prefer displaying in Europe. It can be a problem that it holds up the balls for up to 30 minutes if you want to make a loop. How about making balls bypass if they are not in the correct color to be added to the display? This way on average every second ball will get through and feed the rest of the loop.

Cheers. Here the moving parts are shown isolated and I have tilted the clicker arm so you can see where it touches the input gear. This will all be part of the instructions for this model.

The new technical element is the new drive line which incorporates the automatic coupling as shown earlier. I have refined it for this model to work more smoothly, but I still have to make a trailer work nicely with this system. The octan trailer would work if it wasn't so incredibly heavy. I have highlighted the various parts in this next picture to show how it works: Red: Driven directly from the motor. Green: The "clicker" ensures this part is only engaged when reversing (so trailers would not be dropped when driving) Blue: The rubber part engages the latch when interacting with the tip which uncouples any attached trailer if the legs of the trailer are down. The red rubber band is supposed to grip onto the tan pin in order to hold the latch up when not engaged by the rubber part. Unfortunately the rubber band generator in MLCad does not currently allow such advanced use. I will see if there is a solution for this problem. Up next: A light trailer whose legs are activated by reversing.

I don't think competition means what you think it does. Any toy brand is a competitor to LEGO (including video games before LEGO made video games). Any construction toy maker is a direct competitor. The clone brands might as well to have lead to the poor quality since they flooded the market with cheap "legos" so LEGO had to lower prices and quality to compete since "they are all legos, so why not buy the cheap ones?". Thanksfully LEGO seems to be back on track regarding quality and it is also far more price competitive than in the old days where LEGO was pretty much a luxury toy.

It would push the air kit forward and touch the window which would be out of scale. The current version (where the 2x4 tiles are supposed to be orange) is actually in scale if you think of the kit starting at the md orange 1x6 tiles. I have just slimmed it a bit to make the cab less dominating compared to the short rear (which has to fit the standard I am using):

I fully respect the decision by Ingmar van Spijkhoven to not create building instructions. In the time you spend to get into the software an making those instructions you could have built a whole other model instead. It really takes that long! He is building in a large and popular scale where people who have the drive to build models are also able to make their own chassis and work in a community to exchange ideas of how to construct them so they are stable. This contrasts the smaller scales such as 1:22 or 1:25 where I operate. I make building instructions to encourage people to build in this scale so that we can come together at events and make the models interact. With common standards we can also construct trailers, trucks and equipment which fit all together and participate in challenges such as Hard Truck Challenge.

You mean in order to visually separate the cab from the cowling by means of stickers? Those stickers would have to be custom made and become stamps (across multiple pieces). People can do that with their own models if they want to use my instructions, but I don't like cutting corners like that and prefer using bricks in various colors or shapes in order to replicate details. Using stickers is not my style at all.

You mean decals in the colors I need the bricks? I would rather just get the bricks in the right colors.

I would have done so if I built the truck last year, but now the 2x4 is in production in orange. 2x4 offers more strength since I can't support the bricks much from behind (because of the battery box which should be easily changable). 1x8 tiles would be ideal since I wouldn't intrude into the space of the battery box at all, and there would be a nice line where the cowling is supposed to start.

Thanks DLuders. The cowling was a necessary upgrade since Ralph S upped me on the topline with his wrecker. I had forgotten about how obvious the receiver on the old truck is. It did have great reception, though As for the windscreen I want to tilt it so it only gains half a stud rather than a whole stud. The current slope is more appropriate for a Volvo, which I have yet to build.

Good, good. And now onto the first iteration of the truck: There are some orange parts which will have to be ordered from bricklink (headlight bricks, 2x4 and 1x6 tiles), but this is "iteration 1" meaning that all functions and details will be under heavy scrutiny these next days. I'm planning on building a new trailer and contrainer for it which will show whether or not the new coupling mechanism works as intended. If not, I might revert to a more aesthetically pleasing design. (And I also need a white 1x3 tile because I agree with Richie on the 1x4 being a bit on the wide side) I'm a bit annoyed that 1x8 tiles do not exist in orange. It would look better and work better than 2x4 tiles, but that will have to do... unless I find a better solution. And now for the big question. Is it better than the old 2009 design? I will make a comparison video once I have the trialer and container done. The old design looks less dynamic and the proportions are not as much in scale. The top is much less interesting to look at and the nose seems much more flat. I do like the more realistic wind screen of the old design because it doesn't slope (more realistic), but that's just my opinion. How about you guys?

Thanks for the constuctive feedback. I agree that the aesthetics of the rear are not as neat the the old one. This is because the x-axle with the lights now serves a purpose. The red liftarms show the state of the coupling. I need the large battery boxes as they hold power enough for a full day of exhibiting. This is also a huge challenge because of their width (11 studs vs. truck width of 12) Awesome! I didn't get to take a video myself - I was busy rebuilding trucks and containers most of the time (it is me in the background). All the stuff I exhibit is free to show in pictures and videos - people can even sell trucks built using my instructions. I will make a better functional crane, but it was nice to see it in motion. I have built a new top for the truck which takes it to the first iteration. I also want to create building instructions, but I want to avoid using rare parts, so I have to ask if the bricks in the following picture are cheaply available in larger quantities:

Yes. Using an L motor for the drive actually allows this, and it is my plan for future lighter trucks (the PF-rechargable is lighter but has less capacity than the 6xAA box). This is not possible when having the fat XL motor in the middle as my earlier trucks did. Here is how it looks with a receiver on the side in this scale:

Because I pushed the side moldings up when lifting it - I will reinforce this as it is a problem everytime the truck is moved. I also had to make a different steering mechanism because of the large weight on the front axle. It's still very much a work in progress

Since we seem to agree, I have updated the front with most of the changes mentioned in my last post. Imagine the red bricks are orange - I'm running out of orange bricks at the moment. The back side and top still need a lot of work, but right now my greatest concern is getting the top right. I want to make a "R-series highline" model (link shows the model in question). Once I have the top done, I will get much better insight into how the proportions of the various parts work together. This model uses the new L and Servo motors, while the new L motor is fast, it has far less torque than the XL motor, so I will have to do some down-sizing of my trailers. Hopefully this will make it more fun to play with. A sturdy version for childrens play will follow later, once I get more servo motors.

And I'm back to the Model Team yard. The most popular building instructions for anything on my home page has always been the Scania R340. This truck is a bit fragile, slow, nose heavy and technically complicated, so I want to update it by constructing a whole new truck. This is what I have so far: My models go trough many iterations before they get finished, and this is no exception. Right now there are a lot of things on the front which might change: - I'm not sure about the lower lights; they might be too dominant. - The main grilles are using cheese wedges sideways. I might put them studs-up as the current configuration doesn't quite flow with the rest. - The 2x2 tile should perhaps be light gray. - The main body should perhaps be lowered 1 plate with the front lowered 1.5 plates. This would remove the space above the mud guards, but make the front gap less prominent and more in scale. - I'm not sure about the "nose holes". I might make them square by adding a orange 1x1 plates. Any other suggestions? Just throw them out there - even if you are not sure they will improve the design. This model is "high detailed", so single stud connections are not just allowed, but encouraged