BrickMonkeyMOCs

Yeah, I wanted this one at minifig scale because my spec ops minifigs are in need of some aerial capability. A Little Bird seemed like a good compact solution. A larger version would sure be a fun build though! Something around model team scale perhaps? Thanks. I would have liked to get a better transition between the roof and the top of those triple wedges, but the half stud offset of the mid-fuselage pillars and the lateral positioning of the wedges makes it too difficult. You mean Sea King, right? (You really do have some amazing MOCs there!) It's a good solution, but as you say I think that rotor hub would look a bit bulky on this little H-6. There's also an MD500 Defender I've seen on Brickshelf (rather similar to mine though all I've actually borrowed was his TOW missile design) which achieves a five-rotor hub using hinge plates (he also managed a 2-pilot cockpit though it looks a little cramped). But as I said in the OP, I'm quite comfortable settling for a less complicated 4-rotor hub. Yes, I looked at using 1x1 rounds as well as 2x2 rounds, but found the latter to be too big and the former to be a bit small (especially in comparison with the TOW missiles). They sure look good on your AH-1 though. The custom sticker sure makes it look the part. I might try it again with the 1x1 rounds and re-evaluate. Thanks for your comments and criticism! Much appreciated.

Thanks for the suggestion! As it happens I was playing around with exactly that technique today, but found that it still looks too big on this model to serve as a 2.75in rocket pod. So if it has to be big I think I'd prefer to stick with the binoc-style weapon. That's quite a helicopter in your linked image though! Lego Monster has some great stuff for sure.

Thanks for the video link - that was amazing! As a model though I don't see how it would be any different from this model with the pilot removed (unless you're trying to get me to make an Apache too!). And thank you for confirming the attachment of the dish piece. Very helpful. I'd prefer to use an inverted 2x2 dish there, but I can't think of any way to attach one. Me too! Glad you like it. You might be confusing my rocket pods for miniguns though(?). There are miniguns on both gunship versions - they are the bits on the inner pylons with 4-long lightsaber blades and technic friction pins. The bits made with the minifig binocs are supposed to be rocket pods, though they are rather oversized and don't really match any real world weapon. I'm certainly open to any suggestions on how to do better rocket pods. That's a good suggestion. I'm not quite sure about how to do a brick built one without it ending up too big or too thick, but I'll see what I can do.

Thanks. Do you mean like a rotary wing UAV? That could be fun. I'd be concerned that might look a bit too much like a chain gun (though so do the binocs I guess), but it's a good suggestion. I'll look into it. I like how you've done the two-part windscreen there, and it looks good in black. You have the same main rotor piece there. How does your dish attach? And is it possible to attach the base of a 1x1 round plate into the opening in the center at the top?

Hello again. I've more or less finished designing in LDraw the AH/MH-6 Little Bird that made a brief appearance in my DPV thread. I'd like to get some feedback from other builders here so that I can incorporate any suggested improvements before hitting BrickLink for parts. Here are some pics (click for bigger images)... Flickr Gallery The idea was to accurately model the real world Little Bird at a compact scale, and make it easy to quickly change between AH-6 (attack) and MH-6 (transport) versions. The pilot, his seat, and the mid-fuselage vertical supports are all built at a half-stud (longitudinal) offset, which was a bit tricky. The weapons and troop-carrying platforms attach by a single stud for easy removal. There is no hinge connection at the top of the cockpit, partly because the part isn't available in the new dark gray, but also because it makes it easier to get the pilot in and out. I have two options for the weapons layout. Either miniguns plus rocket launchers, or miniguns plus TOW anti-tank missiles. The rocket launchers use minifig binocs (like the UCS AT-ST) but they are a little oversized. Is there a better way of doing 2.75 inch rocket tubes? I'm also a little worried about balance (as it might fall backwards), but I can move the landing skids back half a stud with jumper plates if I need too. Another concern is the dish above the main rotor. I don't have that prop part (2479) to experiment with, so I'm not sure what will attach firmly to the hole above its center. Can anyone tell me what will fit there? I've used 1x1 round plates. Will the base of those fit inside and hold by friction? I've opted against trying to fit 2 pilots in the front, and I've chosen not to attempt a (more accurate) 5-bladed main rotor. <- Latest upgrade includes both of these features. But I'd love to hear any other suggestions for improving this model before I go shopping for the parts to build one.

The second one is better. Still a little blocky though. You could add a headlight brick with a cheese slope in those gaps at the front of the turret to tidy it up a bit.

Thanks. I agree on the tail boom, and have made it two plates thick. I finally got hold of my last Bricklink orders, so here are some pics of the DPVs: [Deleted - See OP]

I'm still waiting on those last few parts, but in the meantime here's a WIP shot of an MH/AH-6 Little Bird helicopter I'm working on. [pic removed] See this thread for the completed design.

Thanks. You're right that it's a very simple and conventional build. That's one drawback of starting in LDraw, as any ingenious parts usage might not work as well in the brick as it appears to in pixels. Great, that was definitely the goal. You're Mad Physicist on Flickr? Awesome. I love your military models (especially your aircraft!) so your feedback means a great deal to me. Yes, I think it looks good in both dark green and tan as well (that's the beauty of an LDraw MOC - it's very easy to switch the colors around!). But I'm not sure that you'd be able to get all the parts in those colors. On the wheels/tires, I agree that the thinner type tires would look good, especially at the front. But as I mentioned above, they would need to be attached half a stud further out from the chassis to look right, and that would require a major rebuild. Also, I'm not keen on different wheels for the front and back for operational reasons. A vehicle like this needs to be able to change tires in case of puncture or battle damage, and for that it helps if the same spare tire can be used for both front and rear. I mentioned in the first post that I failed to find a way of attaching a spare tire, but after building it in bricks I've found that a spare tire can hang nicely over the gunner's backpack stored on the left side above the rear wheel. Another pleasant surprise was that I found that the gunner can be inserted and removed from his rear seat without having to disconnect any of the rear rollcage assembly. I was expecting to have to pull one of those 1x4x2 bars off to get him in and out of there. I'm still waiting on wheels, heads, backpacks, and some 1x2x1 panels, but I'll post more pics once they arrive.

Thanks. I have two of these 95% built in bricks now. I'm still waiting on a couple more BrickLink orders to provide the few remaining parts. I should have everything by sometime early next week. I haven't tried. I don't have any of the tan bricks or track pieces I would need. Most of my military MOCs were never intended to be more than LDraw models, and this DPV model is the first time I've ordered parts to build an LDraw design for real. That Abrams tank lacks an interior, and other builders have come up with much better ways of doing the angled armor on the front of the turret. But I'm glad you like it! Thanks for your feedback.

I think it has plenty of ground clearance. Perhaps more than it appears from my pics (about 3 plates worth). You have a point with the wide tyres though. I tried out various different wheel and tyre combinations, but found that the model as a whole looked too narrow with thinner tyres. So to use them I would really need to find a way of attaching them further out from the chassis. I agree! I've tried to match the colors in the pics I posted as much as possible. The only problem parts have been the 1x4 curved slopes at the front of the 'sidepods'. Lego have not produced that piece in dark gray yet, so I've had to settle for that piece in black metallic silver. Thanks for your comments.

Here's a military MOC I put together in LDraw/MLCAD a few days ago. It's only a virtual model so far, but I've BrickLinked for the pieces and will post photos once my parts arrive. As the parts are already ordered it's a bit too late for me to incorporate any suggested improvements, but I'd still be interested in hearing them. The vehicle is based on the real world DPV used by US Navy SEAL teams and other US special forces. I opted to make it a two-man vehicle instead of 3-man, I didn't find a good way to mount a spare wheel, and I took certain liberties in representing the rear rollcage (note the added armor at the rear). But other than that, I think it represents the real world vehicle pretty well. Let me know what you think. The LDraw instruction file will be was available in my Brickshelf folder for anyone interested in taking a closer look. Flickr Gallery

Alrighty then. Here's the Lambo coupe next to a MOC built from the 8156 FXX set:

Yes, the car is exactly the same as in the 8168 set. And you're right about the price! I had assumed that the earlier and much larger 8654 set was more expensive, and while I do not recall exactly what I paid for it now, I don't believe it was any more than I paid for this one. So I have edited the review to reflect this. According to Lugnet, the original price for 8654 was even US$20 cheaper than for 8185. The same price (and with some of the same flaws) but with 279 less pieces? That is quite ridiculous, and at the same price the older set is still the better one. Not that I regret my purchase for a second. It is still a great set for those less concerned about price and also willing to do a little modding.

Set Name: Ferrari Truck Theme: Racers (Ferrari) Price: 12,990 Yen (or US$79.99 at Lego S@H) Piece Count: 534 Year of Release: 2009 REVIEW This is an excellent set, marred only by a few easily fixable design flaws. I'm not going to bother posting pictures of the box (it's cardboard and rectangular), instructions, or build (you can just D/L the PDF instructions from Lego's website for these). Instead I'll get straight to discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the set. The set looks great, and has plenty of play features and functionality, including a detachable roof for the cab, big opening panels on click hinges on each side, a click hinge door/ramp at the back, sliding equipment trays on one side under the main deck, and storage racks for the F1 car's detachable wheels. Also included are plenty of fun extra equipment: A flag, fire extinguisher, two maintenance stands, two equipment trolleys with tools, a portable computer rack, and two yellow and red track edge markers. The set has five minifigures - a truck driver, an F1 driver, a refueler, and two regular crew men - all of which can fit inside the truck along with the F1 car and all equipment. The natural comparison to make is with the earlier 8654 Ferrari F1 truck. The older set was bigger (though no more expensive!), featuring a separate truck and trailer. The new set is of course much shorter, though it is also more economical in it's storage of the car and equipment - it stores a slightly larger car and more or less the same amount of equipment in a much smaller space. It is the same height as the older set, though manages to look taller due to the redesigned cab and square rather than curved top edges. The new F1 car itself has a longer wheel base, and looks quite different to the older one. The older one looked kind of &lt;insert that tiresome argument&gt; in a way, and while cute, didn't exactly match the real car shape all that well. The new car to my eye looks a bit more purposeful and accurate. Here are some comparison shots of the trucks and cars of the two sets: So what are the design flaws of this set? Well, there are quite a few, though most are easily fixable. There were two major flaws with the older 8654 set: The ridiculous use of stickerage providing all of the detail on the front grille of the truck, and the raised seat height inside the cab preventing the driver from being able to wear his cap. Does the new set fix these problems? No. We again get massive and unnecessary stickerage providing all of the front grille detail. Here is what Lego should have done with both sets: And while this time there is much more headroom inside the cab, the seats are still mounted on 2x2 plates, with the result that you can actually see the toes of the seated driver and passenger above the top of the dashboard! So I have again lowered the seats by removing those plates, and I've raised the dashboard a bit with some extra black tiles. I managed to reuse those removed plates to modify the shelf behind the driver for storing the refueler's breathing apparatus (which won't fit in the sliding equipment trays). Another minor niggle is that with the higher roof, the struts providing the outer edges of the windscreen no longer actually reach the top of the dashboard, leaving a noticeable gap. Also, the sliding equipment trays would have benefited from some kind of securing mechanism for holding them in place when closed. As it is, they tend to fly open rather easily. One further point which led me to make another minor change is that the set is designed to store the F1 car only when the wheels are removed. It's a great feature to have the wheel racks for storing the removable wheels (and there are wedge bricks on the side doors preventing the wheels from sliding off when the truck is moving). But it is better to at least have the option of storing the car with its wheels still attached. Without modification, the car's front wheels just prevent the side doors from fully closing. This can be fixed by removing the 2x6 plates on the side doors which don't really need to be there anyway. The tool boxes also don't fit quite as well when the car's rear wheels are attached, but they can still fit either turned around or stored with their wheels facing rearwards. I also added a couple of white 1x2 tiles onto the deck floor so that the striped track edges can be stowed securely without sliding around everywhere. Like most Ferrari sets, this one is plagued with an abundance of stickerage, including torso stickers for all minifigures. Some are necessary, such as the big Ferrari badges, and the white stripes for the side doors (the white parts of the cab look silly without the stripe stickers applied). And it's easy enough to simply not apply other stickers (I used only three of the available nineteen(!) stickers for the F1 car). But relying on stickers for the front of the truck is unacceptable. Stickers do not last. They will eventually become brittle and peel off, and the front of the truck - without modification - looks really silly without them. Other than that though, it is a fantastic set which has plenty of play value and looks great as a display model. FINAL RATING Parts: 4/5 Nothing new. Lot's of red. Quite a few click hinges. And the wheel rim inserts are nice. Build: 4/5 Fun, but nothing particularly challenging or clever. Cost/value: 3/5 Significantly overpriced, especially in comparison to the 8654 set. Design: 3.5/5 Great overall design, but too much reliance on stickers, and too many minor tweaks needed. Functionality/playability: 5/5 Excellent. Tons of features and accessories. Minifigures: 4/5 Five of them, though they all have stickered torsos. OVERALL: 4/5 If only they had used bricks instead of stickers for the front grille! This is still a great set though, which any Ferrari fan should pick up (if they can afford it).

Got my Lambo's. Sweet. Comparison shots of the two models: This is a great set, and a strong contender for my all-time favorite set. The only negative points I can come up with are the stickered head and tail lights, and that the doors open past 90 degrees.

Nice review. I don't have this set, but I just got the new F1 truck featuring the same car. I like the new car design, but I think they look much better without the 1x2 tile immediately in front of the cockpit. Of course that means passing on the sticker that goes there, but then I think they look better with less stickers anyway. Comparison shot of the old (8654) car and the new one (minus that cockpit tile):

I'll be getting the set this week. Has anyone tried applying only the upper parts of the headlight stickers (on the wheel arches), without the smaller bits (applied to the 1x2 cheese slopes) in front of them? I'm not a fan of how the headlight stickers are split there, and I'm wondering how it would look.

Can anyone tell me what this is supposed to be? It stores a spare F1 engine cover, but it hardly seems designed for that function. Is it supposed to be a ramp of some sort? Does it represent any real world piece of F1 equipment? Is there any explanation at all for this bizarre looking component? If anyone can post a definitive answer I'll post a review of the new 8185 truck when I get it next week.

Or just buy two.

I thought it was common knowledge that the bridge on this set is back to front. Should look like this:

Did anyone else get two copies of the sticker sheet in their set? Those cockpit stickers sure are tricky to put on right so it may have been a smart move by Lego to include a spare sticker sheet. Or maybe I was just lucky. Despite the difficulties I kinda appreciate having stickers though, as if that cockpit cone piece had been printed then it would have been quite vulnerable to having the printing scratched or worn off. And the stickers are at least of the higher quality type (unlike those used in the Ferrari line for instance).

I'm in.

I have this set now and thought I'd post some comparison shots of this model alongside my other Lego Ferrari F1 cars. From biggest to smallest: 8674 Technic 1:8 set; the new 8157 1:9 set; the older 8386 1:10 Technic set; an old custom F1 MOC (built before the Ferrari range began); an alternate custom design using the 8362 set; the regular minifig-scale car used in various Ferrari sets; and the micro-scale car from 8153. (Click for deeplinks)

I was thinking more along the lines of an engine for show (like the 8156 FXX) rather than for functionality like a technic set, but thanks. I've now had a look at the online instruction manual, and it looks like even an internal display engine would require some pretty major rebuilding. How many studs connect that engine cover section to the rest of the model?