nerdsforprez

Just a thought as well..... and I am sure that perhaps the OP and others are aware of this.... but just in case, here is an alternative, third-party solution. There are companies out there that focus on building with Lego or Lego compatible pieces that are designed specifically for high-strength applications. Although the pieces are expensive I don't think that it would be that much more expensive then all the all the liftarms and frame boxes that you will be using. Those can add up in cost as well. Of course these are not Lego...... but depending on your preferences these can also be a solution. I have used them in the past with great results. Also, the owner of the said store has built some pretty amazing contraptions, almost entirely out of Lego.... only with the added strength of his/her parts from their store. For example a life-sized, powered wheelchair (only with PF motors and battery boxes!!) that carries a full-sized adult. More at : http://www.bricklink...tore.asp?p=Eezo p.s. - I have no affiliation with the above business. I gain nothing from suggesting the store. I am only a previous customer.... and I have found the elements found at this shop helpful when I have built models that need high strength requirements. Also..... obviously this is not a solution if you want everything to be entirely Lego. But it is, IMO, still good information to put out here for others.

Personally, I am not a fan of stickers for my Lego sets. I work really hard to convince my kids, wife and others that my hobby is just as manly ("but Dad, it says ages 11-16 on the box"......."Those are just suggestions!!" - The Lego Movie) as the guy next door who fixes up motorcycles, cars, etc for his hobby. Stickers really, really, really make that job difficult :laugh:

There are many modded 42009s. Just google or youtube it. I have done my own...pics are below and in sig. block. I also tried to make it very functional, with lots of lifting power..... although that is a work in progress. I tried once already to lift the 8070 and failed. Not enough power. Here in a bit I hope to get around to including an XL motor in the super structure so it can lift the 8070 (right now it only has a L motor). It has the robustness.... although my version could not lift it it holds it well. Here are some other information on other mods on not just the 42009 but 8421 as well. People are typically crazy about modifying the cranes. They are lots of fun. http://www.eurobrick...showtopic=84820 And...... IMO one of the best crane builders out there is M-Longer. Perhaps not modifications of the 42009but pretty cool cranes with the x-style outriggers that you speak of. http://www.brickshel...ry.cgi?f=356082

Too much fun. You can tell a lot of thought has gone into this. Great job...

I think it is very original. I love it. Great job.

Even PF lights or third party lights can be used. Here is a nasty looking thing I rigged up to help with lighting specific parts of my projects while photographing them that I think works well. Focusing light on specific parts of a model is often desirable. I have wrote all about this here: http://mocpages.com/moc.php/419472 but briefly.......focusing lights on certain parts of a model but not others can make the builds look bigger than they really are: Or say you want to introduce something but only as a teaser...... dim, or focused light is the way to go. All the photos you see here were taken with the nasty do-hickey you saw above.....

Did you change the shocks? Or perhaps the new tires absorb some of the impact.... b/c I have also modified Sheepo's Mustang with an RC motor and although the RC motor was capable of going faster I could go nowhere near 20 km/h b/c the thing bounced around too much. The back end is too heavy. Also.... check out this thread: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=114558 for some information. My site: http://mocpages.com/moc.php/412797 has the information on how I incorporated the RC motor in the mustang. The argument, as mentioned by Milan, has multiple sides each carrying great points. However, like you mentioned, discussing the pros and cons of RC incorporation into Lego models was not the purpose of your post. For what it is worth, I also have lots of interest in incorporating RC components into Lego models. I have something in the works that I think will really be influential in making Lego models faster and more durable, but I will wait b/c I want things to be a surprise. Lastly, check out TechnicRobot on youtube. There is a lot of info. regarding your question on his/her channel.

?? I know that English is not everyone's first language but your comments might be useful if you at least state why you don't like the model. To just say that you don't like it with no rationale doesn't help out anyone. Also, I don't think that I understand what you are saying about number of pieces.

This is outstanding ya'all. thanks for sharing.

I have used RC motors alot. I think they can add power and fun even if they eat up Lego elements. Always use lubricant. http://mocpages.com/moc.php/412797

I think 15L. Don't quote me on that but I am pretty sure.

Legal shmegal........nice job.

I agree. Actually, I think there are times that it is worth it to have not things line up exactly. In a recent project I already posted: http://mocpages.com/moc.php/418746 I actually made the angles on the liftarms supporting the wings a little off.... because the tension in the angles helped the wings not droop. In this rendition of the 42025, weight started to become an issue, and I didn't want droopy wings, I wanted them taut and straight. Making the angle that braced the wings just a little off made this possible: (see black liftarm) (it is approximately only 91 degrees)

Hey Everyone, Here is a new rendition of the Republic Frigate. Not large, usually I build big but I also like to mix things up a bit as well. Not an exact replica, wanted to add my own little creative twist. More information and pics at (in signature block as well): http://mocpages.com/moc.php/419160

I will likely be posting something soon. It is for a completely functional build. If fact, although it will be included in photos, it will be edited out. So I have lots or room for the many connectors b/c I am not constrained by looks or space.

Perfect.... thanks

Please forgive me if this has already been asked before, but i am working on a project that compares PF lights with a third party that I already use (lifelights.com). Now, I know that the third party lights are already brighter, but I am looking @ other characteristics. Real quick, does anyone know (more or less objectively, but per speculation) how many PF lights I can connect to one PF battery box without dimming? I want to connect 4 pairs (8 lights) to one battery box, but want to know if it will dim. I have tried it will nominal dimming....but want to see if I can get others' input, and also see if adding that many lights will too quickly drain the batteries. Thanks!!

More is always better. GL on your project that you are working on.... wanna disclose any details??

Hey Eric, By no means am I advocating an elimination of all factors that are involved in an "unfair advantage." Such would be impossible. But let me clarify a little about your examples. Unfair advantage and the factors that make a good builder and MOCer are not the same thing. To say that factors that comprise a good builder gives one an unfair advantage, IMO, is a moot point. That is the whole point, er, the essence of the competition in the first place. Photography skills, larger collection, CAD skills and prior experience are NOT unfair advantages. They are all skills and attributes, that one HAS WORKED TO OBTAIN, that makes one a better builder. However, my argument of entering WIPs is a random factor. Not involved in those characteristics that comprise a good builder. You can have the best builder in the world, who goes up against, say a better than average builder but not great but has lets say three times as long to work on and plan a MOC who could actually beat the best builder, simply because of the random fact that they had been working on a project longer (in other words, had a WIP). The random chance that the slightly better than average builder happened to be already working on a project for say many months is random and not tied in any way shape or form the efforts of the builder. It is due to chance. Like a mentioned, larger collection, photography skills, CAD skills, etc.... is entirely different IMHO, because these are factors intimately tied to building skills and correlated heavily in the amount of time and EFFORT one puts into building. In any vein, it was just a thought. Like I mentioned in the original post on the topic, I get there is no way to enforce it. Some WIPs may be 5% done whereas 95%...... no way to measure it reliably or enforce it. I get it. But....... just food for thought here....if we were to say NO WIPs and leave it to the discretion of the applicants and just abide by the gentleman's agreement it MAY control some of the randomness that I discussed above.. But not to take things too serious..... we agree on the ultimate goal of the contest. To just have fun! Good luck on your entry...... I bet it will be outstanding!!

Hmmmm...i actually think that including wips is problematic. I mean, I know it is difficult to enforce, but rather just followed by the personal honesty policy, but including wips allows some a significant advantage. As we all know, talent is one major factor in producing a wonderful moc. But we often neglect the variable of time. Those that have additional time (already been working on a crane) have a huge advantage. One that is more or less random; based on the some fact that they a priori decided to build a crane. Unlike other contests, like the recent enforcers versus bandits competition, which no one could have really anticipated and therefore not had a head start (wip), therefore the potential for this advantage was more or less controlled. Just something to consider. Also, can I get a response on my question regarding counter weights? Thxs

My apologies if this has already been asked. But I did not see it. I see that third party string, hoses, etc. is allowed, but what about weights? Can we use other things housed in Lego perhaps (like fishing weights, pennies, etc.) for weights? I think people will really be able to build cranes with much greater lifting capacities (thus enhancing the overall focus on the competition, which is to lift things) if people can make counter balances with different items other than Lego for the weight. I know that in the large mobile crane I built a couple years ago battery boxes and boat weights were not enough. I needed more......using other stuff allowed my crane to lift up the 8070 supercar. No way that would have happened with Lego-only in my counterweights.....

Years ago this was posted: A robotic hand using pneumatics. Since we all know the limitations of pneumatics, and that they are not necessarily all that strong, I have often thought about building a robotic hand using the flex system, that equally, might not be that strong, but would provide an alternative to building the robotic hand. I have lots of flex cables, and have not used them much. So far they have aged very well..... still very strong/intact......

*sigh* Mocpages.com has been down for nearly 24 hours now. Earlier this week it was also having huge problems with showing pictures. There have been lots of problems in the past as well...... I know there are many users, particularly in the Technic arena, that use the site. There are many benefits, IMO, over other sites such as Flickr or brickshelf. One of which the opportunity to actually provide more information, narrative, etc. to your builds, comment receive likes, etc...... post youtube videos, and more. But, I wonder of the long-term viability of the site. Why so many problems? Is it a sign of the overall crashing and dying of the site? Does anyone have any inside information about the long-term viability of the site? I know there are alternative sites, so providing those on this thread really won't be of any use. Or preferences of others. That is not the reason of this post. I have looked into others and I simply like mocpages the best..... but if it is dying and will be one day die completely..... then even though I like it I will be forced to use other sites to share my stuff. Any thoughts, inside information, or comments about my specific question?

"I thought you guys had only two kids"....... :laugh:

Great input from both of you. @BusterHaus - Initially I did lengthen the nose with everything else, but that kept the dimensions all the same. like I mentioned in the write-up of the thing on mocpages (which is down right now) - I didn't like the nose of the original 42025. Too pointy. Looked more like an Airbus C295 than what I was going for.....or wanted to go for.... the Spartan. I wanted it to look a little blunter, stocky..... that is at least how I perceive the Spartan's. I agree about the stickers.....unfortunately I am not a sticker-kind-of-guy. I agree that often that stickers make things look better.... I just can't do 'em. I try really hard to convince others that this is an "adult" hobby I have......divulging that stickers can be involved smashes all that. Just saying the word sticker makes me feel all sort of shame @PhyBuilder - I see what you said about removing the white axle. From pic number one (after the video) it would certainly make it look rounder. And like you, I agree.... better. Problem is, like you said, that would only work for some images. Think about the other images..... there would be a too great of gaping hole if not for the white axle.