Vectormatic

im rather surprised by the relatively negative view on 82, i was expecting more from the set, but given things like how the outriggers turned out and the huuuuge partcount for nothing groundbreaking, i totally understand it. I also think the chassis flexing when on the outriggers is worrysome, that shot was even without any load on the crane. The Zeux is an intruiging set, it is indeed very visually striking, but on the tech side of things it feels like a thorough let down, feature/complexity wise it just doesnt stack up to the pricetag IMO, but the futuristic look is very cool, so i can definitely see the appeal. the forest machine, im really surprised to see it rated so well, it has the best star-rating out of these three, but i just dont see the appeal. It is expensive as a parts pack, and then you get a whole bunch of weird colours, surely just buying the pneumatic parts on bricklink makes more sense?

I think B-models can be very helpfull in showing what can be done with technic, in my younger days i think certain sets i must have switched between A and B models dozens of times, depending on whether i wanted a hovercraft or a helicopter to play with that week. More recently though, i tend to be pretty critical of A-models to begin with, every single technic set i have on display has been modified to some extent because i find small flaws in them. B-models tend to be much worse in that regard, and the models in general dont really speak to me, they usually end up looking decidedly more awkward and limited from a technical standpoint then the A-models, so my interest for them has dropped off. That said, i actually bought 8041 for the B-model, as it appealed more to me then the A-model. It did dissapoint enough "in the plastic" that i just chopped it up for the parts bin though...

Amazing C-model, and indeed, it just shows how lazy the B-model for that set is. Looking forward to the reviews tomorrow, this set and 79 certainly caught my eye

congrats on the new job jim! im also in IT, still as a software engineer though, but im mulling over making a move towards (technical) architect. Most of the low level implementation stuff doesnt do it for me anymore, so might be time to step up a level, im just affraid that i wont get to do any coding anymore, and end up spending my time in MS office..

I can recommend that set, it looks nice and the play action is quite good (even if it is inaccurate for both an autogyro and a helicopter), i modded mine to have a boxer engine rather then a 2-inline, but im pretty sure i used extra parts. two other cool small sets in my opionion are 42048 (a go kart with 1 cilinder engine and 2 speed gearbox) and 42075 (first responder truck, rear suspension, 2 cyl boxer engine, diff in the driveline)

If you mainly want a parts pack to screw around with gears etc.. id recommend that whatever set you buy, you hit up bricklink for some extra gears, generally speaking the amount of gears per parts is relatively low, and unless you buy something monstrous (and even then), no set will have all available gear types, never mind in significantly amounts. If you want to build sophisticated gearboxes for instance, there are some new parts exclusive to the chiron which are pretty much essential.

it really tells you something about lego MSRP when you can buy sets for 20-30% off even before the original street date. price wise though, this set might drop low enough that ill get it, it looks pretty impressive, and a cheap offer on this might be more tempting then a use 42042

looking good! the overall profile and rear remind me of a mk3 renault megane coupe now, cool stuff!

Amazing improvements steph! Looks are always debatable, but the standard set really falls flat on mechanicals and authenticity, when news first broke about a rally car i was hoping for a transverse I4 engine and gearbox, pretty much like this. I might rebuild mine into the A model and give it some modifications, see if i find it acceptable like that

not the dye, but having to swap machines between colours, and keeping more colours of one part in stock adds cost to a model

They are in Forza motorsport 7, im not sure how much more recent and major you can get in terms of racing games. EDIT: and Gran Turismo Sport too

I cant think of any japanese companies under lego license either, so that would be a challenge. Come to think of it, i dont even know if lego is even popular in japan at all As for modded renditions of cars, i dont think that would be a huge issue, as japanese carmakers tend to embrace the modding scene. The toyota GT86 for instance is/was sold in a special pre-mod spec in japan. It came with black plastic (unpainted) bumpers, steel wheels etc.. knowing there would be people who want to buy one of these and instantly slap on a body kit and a set of 20 inch team 5igen wheels, so they decided not to put expensive parts on that would be thrown out immediately. Ford basically accepted the same with the model A hotrod in wave 2, and chevy as well with the dragified camaro. For all we know it will just be another wave of some new ferraris (although im not sure what is out there left to cover in terms of new stuff, besides the 812 SF), some porsches/fords and a spare BMW (the M8GTE falls straight into lego's GT car fetish) though, time will tell

The super sports concept is probably one of the cars headed to le-mans in 2020, so that seems like a fair shot, although waiting to see what the LM car turns out might be prudent On the other subjects, im not really bowled over by the fiesta, it seems like a poor fit in the SC-lineup, but indeed lego could choose to expand the WRC-section. As for the supra, if i look at SC lineup so far, it is either race-cars, hypercars or muscle cars/classics, the new supra doesnt fall into one of those slots, so much like the fiesta it would either be a somewhat odd duck, or the theme would require some more models to flesh it out, which i would absolutely applaud. This is pure wishlisting, but a japanese focused lineup could be like this - Toyota TS050 - Toyota supra - Ferrari 812 superfast (for that customary ferrari/hypercar in the lineup) - Nissan single set, im thinking either fairlady Z/Datsun 280z, or a GT-R-LM, although that might be a bit painful next to cars which actually worked at le-mans. (this slot could also be taken if one of the long term SC partners has something new and shiney, like the 720s last year) - Nissan double header: tuned R32 skyline GT-R + track based R35 GT-R - Multi-brand big set: Drift meeting, Nissan 350z, Mazda FD RX7, old school Toyota supra, all in massively tuned JDM drift spec, a small japanese gas station/diner and some traffic cones, maybe some japanese like trees/plants to set up a foresty/mountain drift scene. Personally i dont think this lineup (or something similar) will happen, licensing wise they would need to work out deals with at least 3 new companies, including a never done before multi-brand set, but personally i would love something like this.

Supporting a commercial enterprise beyond what your own criticism would normally allow perverts the entire market. If lego can get away with sub-par efforts, but AFOLs still throw money at them "because its better then no technic", what is to stop them from raising prices and lowering standards even further? Star wars has (at least partially) saved lego, but it has also taught them they can get away with frankly ridiculous prices, but hey, lets pay €0.20/piece, because it is better then no SW lego right? I cant quite put my finger on any specific text, but this entire discussion (not just this specific thread) feels like it is moving the goal posts on what is valid criticism further and further, to the point where i feel like ill be told-off for criticizing sets like 42077. This is creating a higher and higher barrier for me to contribute here, because i feel like my point of view is more and more considered invalid, simply because it makes commercial sense for lego to put out large style over substance sets (whilst they themselves boldly proclaim "technic is about functionality" during the chiron presentation) As for the point made by @allanp, i understand the guys at lego dont want to get criticized all the time, but what am i to do when i feel like the current lineup is a let-down? shut up and silently walk away? or should i just grit my teeth, click the like button and spend money of stuff i dont like? My point of view is that outside criticism is absolutely vital for a company to stay healthy, otherwise they will end up in an echochamber of yes-men, wondering why sales keep declining. And beyond company health, i feel like if a designer puts out a poorly designed set, he deserves to hear that, the same way i get a bad anual review when i megabluck up at work bigtime. Sometimes people need to be told to get their shit together to excel and move up to a new level, and for some people being in a position where your work is out there to be judged by milions just isnt the right place, i know it wouldnt be for me. I absolutely abhor the whole idea that people should be applauded publicly for trying, participation trophies are for 3rd grade socces tournaments, not grown up businesses. This will probably be my last post on the subject, it somehow feels like it is me against the big guys here (including mods/admins), and it just doesnt feel good being here, it adds a lot of negative feelings to the hobby for me, so maybe bowing out and digging back into a pile of bricks is what i should be doing right now.

The aston thing is most likely a creator expert set, given that the Ideas Jaguar e-type was shot down for clashing with a coming product, im expecting a DB5 the size of the F40/Mini myself. As for LMP1/SC, LMP1 will probably be axed after 2019, given that the FIA/ACO have a hypercar (think modern GT1) formula in the works for le-mans 2020. Those cars will cost a lot less then an LMP1H entry (target is 1/4th of the budget) and target the same lap times, which means LMP2 is probably safe for now, although i dont think LMP2 has the mass market appeal to sell sets (hell, i dont really know any lmp2 teams very well now that Reb have moved back into LMP1) I very much hope the TS050 will make it into speed champions next year, but im not holding my breath, generally the SC deals are for more then a single car, and toyota just doesnt have much besides the LMP1s, especially given SCs focus on actual motorsports. (they could do a riced up supra, but they'd need nissan to play ball with a GT-R set, maybe classic R32+R35? to make the theme of the year japanese tuner cars, much like wave 2 was american muscle/motorsports). The TS050 does have one thing going for it though, it has a le-mans victory under its belt now, and most real racecars in the theme are race/championship winners. But im not sure if toyota/lego has any interest in a one-car deal, or whether there is more to choose from that would fit the theme Either way, i seriously hope the SC theme will continue next year, i love my collection of little racecars

I think this topic should be left to the discretion of the mods, especially since threads like these can easily be interpreted as "people bitching about people bitching" If i still allow myself to drop my 2 cents in this discussion, i feel like criticism of TLG is generally talked down too much here, which in turn results in the critics getting more militant since they feel cornered. I myself find myself in the critics camp more often then not, and the appologists often drive me away for weeks, im affraid that trying to sanitize the discussion even more will just push criticism of TLG further into a corner, and just makes this a TLG echo chamber

There are small piledrivers on wheels according to google, think the stuff to drive highway guardrail posts into the ground and such... On bigger stuff wheels just dont make any sense, tracks offer more traction/weight dispersal in mud/sand. The only reason the crane has wheels is for dealing with rough terrain, and rocky/mountainous terrain is just about the last place you are going to need a serious piledriver...

Ive been back in technic since 42000, before that all my technic was studfull, with the latest sets including a panel here and there (the old school ones with holes for ribbed hoses) I absolutely think studless is superior for technic, models are sleeker, sturdier and more elegant. But lego has also dropped some serious balls here and there, leading to frustration. Going to studless, lego went to odd-wide designs, and in the same move also redesigned some parts like diffs, driving rings for gearboxes... But they missed out the engine parts, meaning you cant make a new style motorcyle with a transverse engine without running into asymmetric engine placement (or weird tricks like the split v4 in 42036), or just the length of that darn crank-piece pin, at 1.5 studs with only 1 stud wide engine braces, you ALWAYS end up with that half stud being in the way. As for sets, ive only been back in technic for 3-4 years, but i feel like set design is moving in a direction i dont really like. sets in general are getting higher and higher parts counts, with associated pricetags, for the same functions. 42077 is a prima example of this, being basically 42037 in a rally-jacket for twice the price, while previous race-cars in the same pricerange (42000 and 42039) featured extra features, pushrod suspension, linear actuactors, a small gearbox to drive those functions. Then there is the design part of it all, some sets just dont look like the real world machines they try to emulate, 42066 with no elevators and just plain (har har) stubby wings compared to the rudders comes to mind. technic aircraft generally look like the general shape would fly, but here we have a feature-light PF-vessel with a serious pricetag, that looks waaay off. And then there are the flagships, ever increasing in part count and size, to the point where we get a €300+ crane, which i wouldnt know where to put in my house if i ever got one. Now i know i can only blame myself for missing out on 42042, but only having a 3000+ piece monster as a replacement option just puts me off. Instead ive gotten more interested in the smaller sets. 42075 is probably my favorite set this year. The build was fun, it packs more features (although the suspension is less sophisticated) then 42077 and makes for a good base for mods (i modded mine into a pickup truck), for less then half the price. similarly, motorcycles have caught my interest, they generally make for cool builds with decent (and playable) features for the size, with a low barrier to entry. TL;DR: i love studless technic, but i am getting a tad frustrated by the ever increasing part counts/price of the bigger sets, while functions/features seem to be a secondary concern.

In the same vein, during the live reveal of the chiron, some lego bigwig said "Technic is about functionality", that had me nearly falling off my chair as well :P

afaik knock-off were already listed on various sites before the official lego unveiling. Do remember that lego has factories in china, once lego sends those any new designs/part moulds itll probably is a matter of hours before the folks at lepin HQ have their hands on them. I dont condone those practices, but in china it is a fact of life, and it makes lego's policing of the community all the more frustrating, given that they are apparently fine with leaving the back door unlocked with a bloody big sign "big new TV inside, door unlocked" next to it.

i strongly disagree, the 3 crank is lego saying "we had to, because we couldnt", the real life equivalent would be bugatti taking an audi v8, slapping some massive turbos on giving undriveable lag and a 500km service interval, and calling it a day the real chiron is about not making any compromises, the lego set isnt just compromised, it is actually flawed in some areas

Engine scale isnt a real factor, i did the math once, and the 6 cilinder on the porsche would have a displacement of 1.6 litres instead of the actual 4.0 if taken as a 100% to scale engine. They could, but they wouldnt. multi-crank engines are possible in real life, but carry some serious disadvantages over single crank designs. multi-crank will be less compact (a big advantage of VAG VR/W engines) and have some serious friction/lubrication issues on the sprockets joining the cams, and no petrolhead is gonna go "woah, this engine has more crankshafts then the other one!!! that is soooo cool"

The price comparison with 8880 is kind of moot, that set was studfull, the chiron is studless, and there is 24 years of inflation and changing markets and manufacturing tech between them, the price/part ratio should be viewed in comparison to contemporary sets. Comparing parts/function also doesnt work 100% straight, considering we are talking a studfull, gappy unlicensed car vs a studless fully panneled set, but still, 2.5x the parts for a roughly equivalent featureset? Go look at 42000 or 42039, and im convinced an equivalent to 8880 (full susp, AWD, AWS, 4 speed and opening hood) can be done with less then 1600 parts As for the "no set is perfect" argument, i agree, and modding potential is one thing i look for in big technic sets, but this being the technic equivalent of the UCS line up, the bar is raised, and where designflaws (like inadequate suspension) are a poor show on a $100-150 set, they are downright unacceptable on a set like this. There is a vast difference between leaving some thoughtfull gaps for AFOLs to fill in themselves, and churning out an unfinished design

So eh... is annyone considering fitting their porsche with a redesigned gearbox with the new parts from the chiron? Im thinking that a 4+R gearbox built around the new orange catch would be much more compact, and need less extra gears to transmit power all the way through the driveline (think the cross-point between the drive axle and side to side shifter axle, it has three extra gears just to cross two axles), reducing friction and making the whole thing much more robust

The gear on the other side keeps the container level, as the gears protrude slightly above chassis lift arms. The container thus rests on the gears, not the chassis. Personally i think its a cool little set, and while it does have some issues, i have no problems seeing past them because of the pricetag. I gave one to my 7 year old as an intro to technic, but i think technic might be a small step too far for her right now, she has been halfway through building the B-model for two months now, and just doesnt seem to care much, even though the big coast guard helicopter she got for her birthday was built in no time at all :)