Bricksonwheels

Hi Tommy, It can run very slow with the tender, so there is a lot of power. I have a water tender under construction which will also be coupled. I think it could pull up to 7 or 8 cars in this scale.

Thnx all. I will shoot some more in the near future.

Nope, It runs on MEmodels R104 ones. On my Flickr, you can see the first tests in a video. I managed to limit the swing a bit later on.

When it comes down to scale modeling with Legos a lot has happened over the last years. Its more and more recognized as a true scale modelers medium, and I think that is great. About three years ago I decided to build more different things then only the trucks that I had built so far. I built Harley Davidsons, Hot rods, and started with trains. After the two big 1:16 scaled American diesels, I thought it would be nice to have something dynamic for events: A true scale locomotive on actual Lego rail gauge. I opted for the Union Pacific Big Boy: (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_Big_Boy" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_Big_Boy</a>). There are already many models of this type of locomotive but I wanted one for myself as it has always appealed to me since I was a kid. I did some math calculating back from the Lego track gauge, coming to a 1:38 scale. Building such a big locomotive to run on Lego rail is a bit of a challenge. I had to deal with the following facts: -The standard Lego curve is too tight for such a long locomotive. Therefor I chose the Radius 104 aftermarket rail. -The wheels are not existing as such. In diameter 45 mm there is nothing available from the shelf. I worked together with Jaap Kroon to design and 3D print a set of custom wheels. To make it look more realistic I chose to add the valve gear as well. We designed the valve gear with Lego compatibility in the back of our heads. It should not become too fine compared to the bricks. -Power. This thing is heavy. And it has a lot of batteries to add to the weight. The solution was three genuine Lego Power Functions XL engines directly geared to the axles of the tender. I chose the tender to push the locomotive as it was much more convenient to house the engines and batteries there. In order to get all the ‘juice’ to the engine I chose a regular RC Battery pack and the Tamiya connector was hooked up to a PF cable. To control it I mounted a SBrick, so there is no restriction of battery power in the whole system. -Lights. I wanted to add some realistic lights as well. Initially I wanted a smoke generator but the proper 5V kit was not available anymore, so I dropped it (for now). Rob from Brickstuff.com supplied a very cool lightkit for the locomotive. It includes a dimmer for the contour lights. All in all there is about 2 meters of wire in the locomotive. It took me about 2.5 months to finish. Specifications (locomotive and tender) Length: +/- 106 cm Width: +/- 9 cm Height: +/- 13 cm Bricks: +/- 3400 A big thanks to Rob @ <a href="http://www.brickstuff.com" rel="nofollow">www.brickstuff.com</a> and Jaap Kroon for the 3D printing support.

We have now come to the point were mindfullness made its crossover with Lego

Clearly Lego is looking for the high margin niches and this set is a prime example. It radiates the quality one would expect from an item with the name Porsche on it. If they would ever produce a Bentley set it will be in a luxury case for sure. Its the experience that sells. I am convinced Porsche had a big hand in this. They have a different more exclusive approach then Ferrari who sells their Logo to almost anyone who pais. The color is from a marketing point of view also a good choice. Orange and Lava Orange are very popular Porsche colors and this is possibly the closest thing. They will definitly have not made it red and look like a Ferrari, or camo that looks like something not fully developped yet. This set will sell for sure.

I agree with al the above. Lego might be looking for a new "premium" niche segment. I wouldnt be suprised to see a Mercedes and a Ferrari within the same concept. And to the above.. Leego might just refer to the building experience as in "working on something unique"

The first TLG official Technic - Scale Modeling crossover. Looks great. Although I am convinced that based on these parts we will see much greater ones.

Very good!

Fabulous

Thnx for visiting our scale modeling booth. Glad you liked it!

Its called The Art of Lego Scale Modeling, published by Nostarch Press.

Thnx Klodsbrik! Always nice to meet the people in real life. The locomotive got a lot of attention, even from Kjeld Kristiansen and Joren Knudstorp. Here is Knudstorp (Lego CEO) looking at our creations at the Scale modeling Booth.

Here is a small video as well: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bricksonwheels/24754849550/in/dateposted-public/ This week (18-21 february) I will be at Legoworld Denmark in Copenhagen. Dennis Bosman (Legotrucks), Ingmar Spijkhoven (2LegoOrNot2Lego), Nanko Klein Paste (Nkle) and myself will have a 50 sqm display with all kinds of models, including the Rio Grande locomotive. Come by and shake hands!!

Thnx for all the kind words. In another topic it was called an example of the 'Dutch School'. I see that as a big compliment. I guess a group of Dutch builders has been taking the scale modeling thing quite seriously and is pushing forward showing what can be done in this area. I think true scale modeling is becoming a subdivision that has a clear crossover with conventional scale modelers outside the Lego community. Our book 'The Art of Lego Scale Modeling' is also very well received amongst them. This is also why our modeler group is not only attending Lego events, but also traditional modelshows as well.

Here a final shot, of the two locomotives in one picture:

Thnx, once more.. you must all really like this locomotive!

Yes, many did , and it is no secret. The wheels are not Lego, I could not find a solution I liked from the existing part. They had to look like a real trainwheel. So I took an original drawing from the net and made a CAD file from it. It was CNC turned from black POM-C polymer afterwards. This way the wheels are exactly to scale and due to the high stiffness can carry the load and can still roll.

People you are too kind. I am really overwhelmed by all the positive reactions

The thought of making instructions for this gives me a nightmare. It is not realisitc. It would probably be around 1000 pages. A TLG set would be around 3000 Euros or more, in a very very big box :-)

True, the thing with me is that I never built something pure for the color of it. I must really like it as well to put so much time in it. And I only like a few of those very big American locomtives as the Big Boy.

Many thanks to all! To answer some questions: Rigid hoses can be heated, or filled with steel wire to bend easier. A steam engine actually crossed my mind. I even thought of a Big Boy or Challenger, my favorite steamlocomotives. I prefer diesel though. The biggest drawback to me however, is that there is a lot of black in those steam engines. Over the years I started to dislike too much black in my models. Especially tiles look worn or scratched very very easily. On events the ambient light always make them look "old" even if all is brand new. Another drawback is that it hides a lot of detail. My first locomotive had also a lot of detail in the trucks (bogies), but it was difficult to see due to the color.

Thnx for all your very nice replies!

Hmm.. there seem to around 27.000 of those in it...

Thnx for the compliments. The wheels are by CNC. I used POM-C plastic and made a CAD file exactly to geometry and scale from an original wheel drawing. I chose to use a non-lego solution, as there are simply no lego wheels that look good enough for this application related to scale. Another aspect was the weight. It clocks around 24 kg, and yes it can roll. But each time I do I get nervous