JLiu15

I actually included a 4 output distribution gearbox in my MCI D4500CT Commuter Coach model during the WIP stage, but in the end I omitted it as it had a lot of friction. There's not much room in a low-floor bus model to include a gearbox, but if I do another coach bus or high-floor bus model in the future, I'm definitely planning on adding either a speed or distribution gearbox!

Thank you guys! 🥰

Model of Fairfax Connector's 2008 Orion VII NG (07.503) transit bus. The model features motorized drive, steering, and pneumatically operated passenger doors. It also has an opening engine door to access a removable Cummins ISL engine model. Functions/features: Drive Steering Working steering wheel Pneumatic passenger doors Opening engine door Cummins ISL engine model (removable) Fairfax Connector, the transit agency serving Fairfax County, VA with service to Washington, D.C., operated an extensive fleet of Orion transit buses throughout its history. The fleet began in 1985 with a fleet of Orion I buses, with more units joining the fleet through the early 1990s. By the late 1990s, the agency began acquiring Orion V buses of various lengths. In 2008, Fairfax Connector acquired 26 32ft-long Orion VII buses (model 07.503) numbered 9770-9795, of which inspired my model. Throughout much of their service life, the low 9770s were assigned to West Ox Division while the remainder were assigned to Reston, notably serving the Reston Internal Bus Service (RIBS) routes. Unfortunately, the final active units of this series were retired recently at the time of writing, as this series of buses have been fully replaced by 2024 and 2025 Gillig Low Floor 29’ buses. On a trip to the DMV (DC/Maryland/Virginia) area in March 2025, I had the opportunity to ride bus #9789 on the RIBS 1 route, and I included video clips from that ride in the beginning of my video. I decided to build a model of Fairfax Connector’s Orion VII NG primarily for the aesthetics: Fairfax Connector uses a multi-color livery with yellow in the front, red in the rear and a white curved stripe down the middle. All my previous bus models had a primarily white livery, with either a simple stripe livery or a stickered livery. I decided that my challenge for this model is to design the entire livery using only LEGO elements, with stickers only used for the logos, fleet numbers, and destination signs. The building process began in Stud.io, designing the bodywork in System pieces with a mix of regular and SNOT building. Thanks to the variety of colors introduced for many System elements in recent years, some of them as recent as this year (e.g. part 73230 in yellow), I was able to put together a livery that uses wedge pieces extensively to model the white curved stripe. On some of their buses, particularly the older ones (e.g. these and the 2007-09 New Flyer D40LFRs), the livery even extends onto the roof. Thanks to a Google Earth capture of the Reston Town Center, where the RIBS routes originate and terminate, I was able to get a view of the roof of the bus to model the livery on the roof. There are unfortunately very few clear photos of the roof of these buses, so my design is probably still approximate, but still I really liked the result especially when viewed from afar. The chassis came next after designing the bodywork. I initially wanted to do the entire chassis in dark bluish gray as the real-life bus has a gray floor, but I figured since I have much more black Technic pieces than DBG (and because all my previous bus models had a black Technic chassis and frame), I decided to do it in black. A challenge here was packing all the electronic components in. Due to limited space, I had a single Power Functions L Motor connected directly to a 28T heavy duty differential via a 12:28 reduction. I was worried whether this would be enough torque for the model, so I tried to avoid using more pieces than necessary throughout the build. Fitting the PF rechargeable battery box and the SBrick into the chassis was particularly challenging, as the front half of the chassis is low floor. I ended up squeezing them in on either side of the Cummins ISL engine model, and there was just enough space for it to fit between that and the body panels. The Cummins ISL engine model was taken directly from my New Flyer D60HF model, but connected to the drivetrain with an 8T gear instead of 16T. I initially thought of keeping it permanently affixed to the chassis due to the electronic components packed tightly around it, but fortunately I found just enough room to insert a few removable 3L pins to easily secure and dismount the engine model. The front portion of the chassis, which is low floor, turned out surprisingly sturdy even at only 2 studs thick. I think what helped was using plenty of reinforcing elements like part 3167, which kept the layers tightly bound here. This is much better than my first bus model, my New Flyer XD60, where the low floor section was 3 studs thick on average. The chassis still protrudes where the front axle and PF Servo Motor for steering are located; I initially thought of placing the servo in the roof frame and transferring its drive down via a vertical axle, but I didn’t want there to be too much play in the steering mechanism. While designing the chassis, a challenge was making sure to always include attachment points for the bodywork, including the SNOT sections, to create a seamless fit with no interference once the bodywork is installed. My original plan for the pneumatic functions was to make the passenger doors and engine door openable pneumatically via remote control. Even though the real bus has the engine door opened manually, I figured this would avoid having to find space for a separate manual opening mechanism. However, there ended up being just enough space behind the SBrick to include an axle that can be pushed to open the engine door ajar, just like on my previous Orion V model. This meant both pneumatic functions could be used for the passenger doors, but I wanted to have a single pneumatic circuit instead of two separate ones for the two doors like on my New Flyer D60HF model. My original plan was to have two PF L Motors each control a valve and control a single compressor through differentials. However, seeing that the front and rear doors often do not open at the same time on North American buses (especially if the rear door is push-to-open or only opens when a motion sensor detects an exiting passenger) I decided to make them openable separately by switching valves for the front/rear doors. The compressor and the valve for open/close is driven by a PF L motor, while a PF M Motor switches two additional valves that control whether air flow goes to the front or rear door. A challenge was making sure all the pneumatic hoses were routed correctly; the front door’s pneumatic cylinder retracts to open the door, while the rear door’s cylinder extends to open it as the rear door on Fairfax Connector’s Orion VII NG buses open outwards (though most agencies I’ve seen has it open inwards like the front door). I also decided to use all pre-cut lengths of pneumatic hoses to make things easier when I make the instructions, as on my New Flyer D60HF model, the instructions has the user cut hoses to specific centimeter lengths. Overall, I am impressed by how this MOC turned out, especially with the fully brick-built livery. It looks seamless from afar, although I do wish LEGO made more wedge pieces without studs as the finish is a bit stud-heavy. This also meant I could not include stickers for the Fairfax Connector phone number and website URL printed above the windows of Fairfax Connector buses, as those would end up passing over a few studs. Nevertheless, I managed to capture all the major details, such as the slightly curved front end and the uniquely shaped rear grille. The model also performed pretty well; although the drivetrain could perhaps use more gear reduction, its setup was also very efficient so it was quite fast when driving without feeling underpowered. I’m a bit sad that I didn’t finish the model before the last units were retired, but at least I managed to capture one of Fairfax Connector’s most iconic vehicles of the 2000s in all its glory in a LEGO version. Video: Photos:

Thanks! Designing it in Stud.io beforehand definitely helped, as it allowed me to see where everything could go especially with a mix of normal building and SNOT.

UPDATE 8/5/26 After more than three months of work on this MOC, the building process is finally finished. This is probably my most artsy MOC to date, since the entire multicolor livery was made using LEGO elements. I just wished LEGO could make more wedge pieces with no studs, sine areas using lots of wedge pieces are quite studs-heavy. I still need to make custom stickers for it, which shouldn't be a large amount since it's really just the Fairfax Connector logo, the fleet numbers, and the destination signs. I really like how the brick-built livery itself makes it recognizable enough even without any stickers. Unfortunately, I received word recently that all remaining 2008 Orion VII NG buses in Fairfax Connector's fleet have been retired. They've had a good run...but it's about time since they have been in service for 18 years. Now, a new fleet of 2024 and 2025 Gillig Low Floor 29' buses fills the niche these Orions held. Photos:

UPDATE 8/2/26 I've made a lot of progress on the bodywork the past few days! I already had many of the body panels built before getting to this stage, so much of it was simply installing those panels I had already built. The model is definitely starting to look like the real bus now, though the body panels on the left side still need some work. My favorite part is how I captured the entire livery using only LEGO elements; the front end also looks realistic, and I like how the rear grille turned out especially with the angled grille design Orion VII NG buses use. I am still waiting on a few more Bricklink/PAB orders, but I anticipate finishing the built by the middle of this month. Photos:

UPDATE 7/30/26 The roof support frame is complete, with the pneumatics and rear door installed. The L motor drives the compressor and controls the valve for opening and closing the doors, while the M motor switches the two valves that activate either the front or the rear door. It was more complex than running a separate pneumatic circuit for the front and rear doors, but it also allowed for a more compact build. Let me know if you have any suggestions! Photos:

UPDATE 7/14/26 I've completed the front section, with the drivers seat and working steering wheel. All 25 passenger seats are also in place. I took the rims off because I was experimenting with other rim colors (e.g. flat silver), but found metallic silver to still be the best fit. The front passenger door is installed along with its pneumatic mechanism, as well as the front destination sign. The front destination sign is integral to the upper support frame, and the axle the top of the front doors slide along when opening/closing is attached to the destination sign module on one end since space is limited. I've also added the rear engine door. Let me know if you have any suggestions! Photos:

UPDATE 7/3/26 I've started building the chassis of the model. The rear raised section is largely complete with the seats in place. The removable engine model, a Cummins ISL, is largely identical to the one in my New Flyer D60HF model. The PF rechargeable battery box and SBrick are placed into the chassis in a very compact way, with them sitting on either side of the engine model. The drivetrain consists of a single L motor with an almost direct connection to the rear differential with a 12:28 reduction. I am concerned whether or not it will be enough torque, but I shall see as the build progresses. The low floor section, despite only being two studs thick, is very robust thanks to using multiple of this piece as reinforcement. I have everything built up to the steering servo motor so far, which will be connected to the SBrick with a PF extension wire. I had thought of placing the servo motor in the roof frame and transferring its motion via a vertical axle to keep the low floor section completely flat, but I was concerned whether that would introduce too much play to the mechanism. Overall I like how the build is progressing so far; the chassis looks good and is very robust. Note the red axles sticking out from the side - they will be used to attach the body panels, which are red in the rear section. Photos:

I had the opportunity to showcase this MOC at Brickworld Chicago 2026, where it was nominated for Best Land Vehicle. I've added my Brickworld photos to this topic!

I had the opportunity to showcase this MOC at Brickworld Chicago 2026. I've added my Brickworld photos to this topic!

The instructions are now published on Rebrickable: https://rebrickable.com/mocs/MOC-265143/JLiu15/2005-orion-v-05505-bee-line-bus/#details

Thanks again for the feature!

Thank you 😊 this was definitely one of my favorite bus MOCs so far in terms of looks.

Model of a Westchester County Bee-Line 2005 Orion V (05.505) transit bus. The model uses Power Functions IR remote control for motorized drive, steering, and opening doors. It also includes a Detroit Diesel Series 50 engine behind an openable engine door. Functions/features: Drive Steering Working steering wheel Motorized passenger doors Opening engine door Detroit Diesel Series 50 engine model (removable) Instructions available on Rebrickable: https://rebrickable.com/mocs/MOC-265143/JLiu15/2005-orion-v-05505-bee-line-bus/#details The Bee-Line System, the public transit agency in Westchester County, NY, ordered 21 Orion V (05.505) buses in 2005 numbered 116-136. This order of the 05.505 model, which is 32ft long and 96in wide, succeeded buses 101-115 from 2002 and are the last of this model ever built. At the beginning of their service life, buses 116-129 were operated by Liberty Lines Transit, Inc. while 130-136 were operated by P.T.L.A. Enterprise for routes 16, 18, and 31. The first retirements occurred in 2016, with the first four units (116-119) retiring and two of PTLA’s buses (135 and 136) transferring to Liberty Lines. In 2021, PTLA’s 131-134 were scrapped, and Liberty Lines’ 120-123 were transferred to PTLA to fill the gap. In early 2024, all remaining buses (124-127 and 129) were transferred to PTLA while all other units in the series were retired. These five buses are still active at the time of writing. My model depicts bus 124. When I decided to attend Brickworld Chicago 2026, I wanted to display a smaller bus model next to my New Flyer D60HF model from last year. I had already been wanting to build an Orion V bus model for a while, such as a 2000 05.501 model (40ft long and 102in wide) in Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission livery. However, seeing that Bee-Line is also quite famous for their Orion V buses, especially being one of the last operators of Orion V buses today (they also have a few 2008 05.501 suburban models numbered in the 800s still in operation), I decided to do it in the Bee-Line livery. From the start, I knew that a challenge would be the livery, since their livery includes diagonal stripes that would not translate as well to LEGO pieces. Unlike my previous bus models, I actually started with the bodywork this time in Stud.io, then built the Technic chassis around that. This meant fewer changes to the chassis to attach the bodywork, a revision that was often needed for my prior bus MOCs. I designed the livery to have the horizontal stripes done using LEGO bricks and plates, and I found LEGO blue and bright light orange to match their livery quite well. The diagonal stripes, which continues onto the roof, I decided to make using custom stickers. I first got the idea for this MOC in mid-February; by mid-March, I had a bodywork designed in Stud.io. This was followed by designing the chassis, and in early April I began the building process starting with the chassis. The shorter length of the bus meant that the build had to be compact, but there was enough room in the chassis to fit a PF L motor for propulsion, a PF Servo motor for steering, and a PF AA battery box. Because my PF Rechargeable battery box and SBrick are still in my New Flyer D60HF model, I used PF IR control for this model. In fact, it is my first time using IR control in a MOC since 2020! I was initially concerned whether a single PF L motor would be enough torque, but given that my Airport Crash Tender MOC from 2017 was even larger in terms of dimensions and did fine with a single PF L motor geared 1:3 and then 14:20 at the differential, I decided that the same gearing in the drivetrain was sufficient. It also helped keep the rear stepwell area compact, as the drive motor sits directly adjacent of the stepwell and two L motors may have taken up too much room there. One of my favorite parts about this model is the inclusion of a Detroit Diesel Series 50 engine model connected to the drivetrain, as that is the engine the real-life bus uses (their 2008 units use the Cummins ISL instead). For this, I ordered some sand green Technic pieces to capture the iconic Alpine Green that Detroit Diesel engines are painted in. A notable difference between Detroit Diesel Series 50 and Cummins powered Orion V buses is that those powered by the Series 50 omit the middle seat in the rearmost row due to the larger size of the engine. This meant that I was able to keep the cylinders exposed on my model, so you could see the pistons moving even without removing the engine model from the chassis. The doors use a different mechanism from my previous bus models. On the real-life Orion V, the door leaves protrude significantly from the body when open. A mini linear actuator here would have 3 studs of travel, leaving the door leaves flush with the body when open. I went for one fewer stud of travel range, and used a linkage mechanism driven by a worm gear. The mechanism performed flawlessly despite my initial concerns; I was worried this setup would be more likely to jam when opening and closing. Both the front and rear doors use a PF M motor and a 24T clutch gear is used on each to prevent the motor from stalling when the doors are fully opened/closed. The steering mechanism is set up similar to that of my New Flyer D60HF model, and likewise, a working steering wheel is connected to it. The doors’ motors and the PF IR receivers were placed in the roof, attached to a Technic frame; I was able to blend the IR receivers in almost seamlessly with the rest of the roof, which is largely made using 8x16 tiles. I am overall satisfied with how this MOC turned out, and in some ways, it looks even more realistic than my New Flyer D60HF model. I like how I captured the shaping of the driver’s side windshield, which is sloped to reduce glare for the driver. While there is a slight shade difference between LEGO pieces and the colors printed onto the stickers, from a distance the livery still looks pretty seamless, especially the side stripes. I had fun making the video as well - I also included a few video clips of the real bus taken by Kyle Garcia, a friend of mine on the East Coast. I’m also glad I finished the model while the real bus is still in active service, as I wouldn’t be surprised if the last 5 remaining units are due for retirement very soon. Video: Photos: Brickworld Chicago Photos:

Thanks! The livery is definitely the highlight of this model IMO. I just wish LEGO made more wedge pieces without studs, for a clean finish. At least it's a reminder that it's built with LEGO pieces, lol.

UPDATE 5/2/26 I've made a preliminary design of the bodywork in Stud.io. Overall, I like how well it captures the livery of the real bus, but there were definitely some shortcomings. At the front destination sign, the curves around it on the real bus largely follows the A-pillars, but they look much tighter on my model. The destination sign itself also appears angled down slightly on the real bus; because of this, the destination sign appears to protrude a lot more on the real bus. I tried a variety of slope pieces, arch pieces, wedge plates, etc. but in the end I feel my design at least captures the shaping to an extent even if the proportions look off. Sometimes I do wish LEGO had more angled pieces for more complex curves/angles... As for the roof, I actually used a Google Earth view of Reston Town Center (where many such buses originate/terminate for their RIBS routes) to determine the livery on the roof. This is because very few enthusiasts take photos of buses where the roof is visible. I designed the roof livery using tiles and wedge plates; I'm not sure if my design is 100% accurate, but it seems to capture the general shaping of the yellow/white/red sections. The roof vent is also visible in the Google Earth imagery, although I probably need a close-up view of it to determine the paint used on the grille itself. It appears to be black in the imagery, but I feel it could also be painted red matching the color of that section. I've also put in place the passenger seats; when I rode 9789 I did not closely check the exact seating layout and only got a few photos/videos, but thanks to an auction listing, I was able to model the seating layout. I made a few renderings of the model so far in Stud.io. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Yessssss!! I'm really looking forward to the end result, especially the livery designed entirely with LEGO pieces!! 😁

Thank you! BTW - my next bus MOC has already started!

I know I had just finished a bus model (the Orion V 05.505 model), but I figured why not get started on my next one 😂 so here it is: a 2008 Orion VII NG (07.503) bus operated by Fairfax Connector in Fairfax County, VA. This will be my first model of a DMV (DC/Maryland/Virginia) region bus. I took the above photo of bus 9777 in August 2022, right after BrickFair VA that year. At the time, a good portion of them were used on the RIBS (Reston Internal Bus Service) routes; their numbers continue to dwindle as newer 2024 Gillig Low Floor 29' buses enter service to replace them. A year ago, I had the opportunity to ride bus 9789: If I can fit it into my schedule, I plan to go to the NJ Historic Bus Festival again this September. Last year I brought my New Flyer D60HF model there, and since it's an articulated bus, I separated it at the articulation joint and packed the two halves side by side in a duffel bag, which narrowly fit the size constraints of an airline carry-on. For this year's event, I plan to bring this model and the Orion V I just completed; since both are ~1:18 models of 32' buses, I should be able to pack both into a carry-on duffel bag like I did last year. My plan is to first design the model in Stud.io, then wait until after Brickworld Chicago in June to start the building process. I will likely need parts from my New Flyer D60HF model, which I am planning on displaying at Brickworld, so I am waiting after Brickworld when I can disassemble that model to have the parts to build this one. After the bus festival, I plan to save it for display at Brickworld Chicago 2027. The tentative list of functions are: Drive Steering with working steering wheel Pneumatic doors (most likely synced) Wheelchair ramp (?) Cummins ISL engine model with moving pistons Opening engine door (perhaps pneumatic, fed from the same pneumatic circuit that feeds the doors opening) Since most of my bus models thus far have had pretty much the same core functions (drive, steering, opening doors), I want to add another function here that have not been incorporated into previous bus MOCs. A wheelchair ramp may still be quite challenging to add at this scale, but I could probably use the doors' pneumatic circuit to power another cylinder that can open/close the engine door. While they're typically opened manually on real buses, my recent Orion V model demonstrated that it's pretty difficult to include a functional handle at this scale that does not look out of proportion (I resorted to using an axle that you can push on from behind it to open it slightly). So I could probably add a valve that can direct the compressor to opening/closing the engine door. Another challenge I gave myself this time is to design the entire livery using LEGO pieces, i.e. no stickers. I'm pretty impressed with the results so far, but still it's not the smoothest curve (as the white stripe between the yellow front/red rear on Fairfax Connector buses is very well rounded). Still, I feel that using LEGO pieces to achieve is preferable to using stickers, like many official sets are doing these days. This will also be my first bus model to not be primarily white for the livery - it will really get me to be creative with piece usage, and the model already contains a combination of normal brick/plate stacking and SNOT building, especially where the livery is made using wedge plates/tiles. As of right now the wheels look a bit small to me, but the height seems pretty similar to my New Flyer D60HF model (which uses the same tires) so it may just be a matter of perspective as the model really only has one body panel and the doors designed as of right now. Below I've attached some Stud.io screenshots so far. Let me know what you think!

I had the Hot Wheels version back when I collected Hot Wheels, and love seeing it made in LEGO! I like the rims and seamless blending-in of Technic panels in the back.

UPDATE 4/25/26 I have finished building the model, and all that's left to do is to fully decorate it in the Bee-Line livery using custom stickers! The final piece count is 3617, according to the Stud.io model. Photos:

Thanks! I'm really looking forward to finishing this model and displaying it at Brickworld Chicago.

Sorry if this has been answered earlier, but for the past few days Eurobricks would be down on and off for me; sometimes I can access the site, other times it loads really slowly then fails to open (or fails to open immediately on my iPhone). Sometimes I'd have Eurobricks open and then when I try to navigate to a different page this happens even if I only had Eurobricks open for just a few minutes. Is this what you guys have been experiencing as well?

UPDATE 4/20/26 The model is about 90% complete, with most of the System-built body panels installed. All that's left to build now are the roof and rear; I already have the rear engine door built but removed it for now since I need to add some extra parts immediately behind its hinge. I was having issues with the chassis bending previously, even with the roof frame in place, but now the build is quite sturdy with the body panels connected to the chassis and roof frame at multiple points. I've also completed most of the front end, with the windshield and mirrors in place. The windshield design is one of my favorite parts of how this model turned out, as it captured the sloped driver's side window without using dedicated LEGO clear windscreen pieces. At this point, even though the model isn't complete yet, it definitely resembles an Orion V bus IMO. Photos: