Pdaitabird

Good idea - the fuel cell can generate "fuel" to feed the crew!

Thank you! I ran into a similar problem with the 9v motor. There is not enough room for a round technic pin between the hub and the rim of the wheel. Fortunately a cross axle just fits! BTW, that locomotive no. 396 in your picture looks like a good candidate for your next XXL project!

That's a very nice engine...it does look like something Lego would have produced in the 70s!

This microscale MOC was a fun way to imagine what a near-distant future spacecraft might look like. I wanted to make sure that each part had a purpose and wasn't just pointless greebling. Thanks for looking! Soli Deo Gloria

That's a nice compact ship! And I like the way you used the handlebars as a headrest.

Nice! These are very accurate - they look just like the ones that pass through my hometown!

This looks really good! I like the modular design of tge temple and the properly rickety-looking bridge.

Well done! The brick-built nose and transition between red and white look really good.

@zephyr1934 Thanks - modifying Lego is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be...unnatural...

Nice locomotive! The exterior detailing is excellent and the technic drivetrain is equally impressive.

Warning: Purists, look away! A slight bump, but I've finally added side rods to the engine. To keep everything simple and compact, it's now an inside-cylinder locomotive. Superglue and modified technic parts made for a simple solution. Each "crank pin" is 3/4 of a 2-long cross axle glued to the wheel. (Yes, I split a technic arm down the middle. I didn't have any of the half-width ones in gray. I also slightly reamed out the end holes to give the axles more tolerance.) Here's a clip of the locomotive in action: Thanks for looking! Soli Deo Gloria

Wow! Love the platform-level perspective!

Congratulations to one of the best builders in the Lego community!

Great model - nice balance of greebling and smooth sections!

@Oky Thanks for the additional feedback! You made some great suggestions that were really helpful...hopefully I'll continue the story with another build sometime.

Thank you!

Very nice! The color scheme reminds me of the Donnager from the Expanse.

Off topic, but for some reason this description makes me picture the EB staff dressed in cloaks, holding secret meetings in a torch-lit room... @Peppermint_M, please tell me this is the case!

A little model built in Studio based on one of my favorite poems: I met a traveller from an antique land, Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand, Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed; And on the pedestal, these words appear: My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair! Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare The lone and level sands stretch far away.” -Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1818

@Oky Thanks for the constructive criticism! It was definitely helpful in hopefully improving the story. I've edited the post to fill in some details and address some of the issues you mentioned. The story was originally about the idea that a misunderstanding can send a well-intentioned person down a tragic path. Now I've tried to add an opening for Johnny's potential return. As for the MOC, it's only filler for the back part of my railway layout using whatever parts I had left - even including the adventurers characters was something of an afterthought. Again, thank you for the constructive feedback - it is much appreciated!

Baron von Barron had a spring in his step as he exited the little Northumbrian chapel. Once a scheming pragmatist, he had become a man of faith during his eight-year stint in prison. Ample time for self-examination, coupled with news of a sickening political upheaval in his homeland, had left him contrite and repentant. Now he was on his way to spend a pleasant Sunday afternoon visiting his old enemies and new friends Dr. Kilroy and Pippin Thunder. The old Prussian felt truly blessed by their willingness to forgive him for past wrongs and help him start a new life in England. He only wished that Johnny Thunder were still alive; he would give anything to thank the man who had put him in prison and apologize for trying to have him killed all those years ago. Pippin Thunder, née Pippin Reed, led her horse from the stable up the path by Dr. Kilroy's cottage. After Johnny's death, she and their son Jack had moved in to help care for the aging professor. After all they had been through together, she felt it was the least she could do for her old friend. As she neared the house, she paused to mildly scold Jack and their neighbor Fred Rains; Jack for climbing on the woodpile with his toy sword, and Fred for tending Dr. Kilroy's garden on a Sunday. Pippin smiled. She couldn't really be upset with either of them. Jack took after his father. And Fred had been so good to them...he was becoming more of a father to Jack than Johnny ever was. Johnny had been a wonderful husband and father, but Jack was so young when Johnny's plane had gone down in the Channel that he barely remembered him. Fred wasn't so adventurous, but he was kind and dependable. Pippin knew that was what Jack needed now. As Dr. Kilroy rolled out to meet her, he pointed out their friend the baron approaching from the village. If only Johnny could see him now, she thought. A wooded plateau offered a perfect vantage point for a clear shot. Johnny Thunder kept his sights centered on his target's signature pith helmet. It was bad enough that an assassination attempt had forced him to fake his death. He knew the baron was behind it, and he couldn't endanger his wife and son by coming out of hiding. But he had watched over his family from afar for the past seven years. He had worried when Baron von Barron was released from prison; even more when he had seen the baron talking to Dr. Kilroy in public. But now the villain was approaching their house, doubtless with some nefarious purpose in mind. As von Barron approached the gate and reached for something in his coat, Johnny steadied his grip on the rifle in preparation. Before he could squeeze off a shot he saw with relief that it was only a pocketwatch. Now Pippin and Dr. Kilroy were greeting the baron in a friendly embrace. Johnny looked on from his secluded perch in bewilderment. He would do anything to protect Pippin and Jack, but only if he knew they were in danger. Pippin had always told him people could change, and now he was almost starting to believe it. He would keep the baron in his sights, just in case, but von Barron's seeming reform raised questions in Johnny's mind. If the baron's really changed, he mused, I could come back to my family. But what if his return sent the baron back to his old ways? It was too risky for now. Johnny resolved to just keep watching for a while. Still, he would have to pay the baron a visit some time... I hope you've enjoyed my take on a later chapter to the adventurers' saga. The scenes were a lot of fun to build! Here's an overview of this section of the layout: C&C welcome - thanks for reading! Soli Deo Gloria

That's massive! Looks really nice. Any thoughts about a custom track to run it on?

I'm actually kind of surprised how many people just build sets, considering the number of amazing MOCs people post here on Eurobricks and other places. Neat to know! In most cases, I'm inclined to agree. But for my building style, I like the challenge of building with what I have on hand. I rarely order parts for specific MOCs, but try to find parts that I can use in a variety of ways. For that kind of building style, Dorado Showdown made the perfect parts kit...lots of dark red, tan, and SNOT bricks, great minifigs, and a deep discount! I've found a use for nearly every piece in various parts of my town/railway layout. So for those of you who build MOCs, do you usually design a model first and then order parts to build it, or do you find some interesting parts in a set or on the PAB wall and find inspiration for a model from that?

Do you mostly build official sets or design your own models? Do you think most AFOLs tend to fall into one camp or another? Feel free to discuss here, and please keep it courteous! I'm firmly in the MOC camp...I've only bought one set recently and only to use as a parts pack. (Mods, my apologies if there is already a similar topic for this. I searched and didn't find one.)

Nice improvement! It looks a lot better than the official set.