howitzer

I'd say either go for cranks (=pulley wheels) like the original, or if you insist on putting knobs there, use gears (12 or 20 tooth) like most modern sets.

Actually the liftarms also do have markings in them, here's a couple of examples: These are not too easy to see though, I had to use a microscope to see them properly and to photograph them. So I wouldn't fault anyone for not seeing them.

You could replace the brown axle with a frictionless axle-pin. That way there's no need to have a spacer between the wheel and its bearings and the pivot point would be only 1 stud apart from the wheel, making it possible to build smaller fenders.

Nice to hear! I'm really looking forward the reviews, the Tow Truck appears to be pure greatness and even the Zetros has piqued my interest, even if it's probably too expensive for me.

Like you would drive a bus.

You're missing the beams on the sides of the cabin, which would contribute to the looks pretty significantly. Also are missing the yellow accents of the skirtline on the sides. The hood looks like it's bulging out more than it should, the shape of those curved panels doesn't seem to be ideal or maybe they should be attached a bit lower or something. I'm also not sure about the rear spoiler. The interior and the engine cover look really nice and the rear (except the spoiler) is also well done.

Yeah, sometimes those might suffice. I was mostly thinking along the lines of making easily strong connections for a propeller, for example with these: 89509 a simple 5L liftarm with axlehole in the center would be great.

That's not very useful, it's 3L long and has that extension of the axlehole which is 0,5L long, so you can't for example use it to attach things into a beam, unless you happen to want a 0,5L offset. The inversion of the cross-hole connector would sometimes indeed be useful, though I suspect it's not something we're going to get as it's not that commonly needed. --- The latter part reminded me of another wish: I'd like to have a part which is symmetric (mirrored) with an axlehole in its center as there's none currently (I think), except 32124 and 2711, which could be used sometimes but the connection to other Technic parts with those is pretty awkward and not that strong.

I don't think colours are very big problem here, as I see the alternating hole liftarms mainly as structural part and not that useful for exteriors. Same as 5x7 frames etc. I'd also settle for a pin with axle hole. But whichever, we're sorely missing this kind of part... There has been numerous times when I could have solved a structural problem easily with an alternating holes liftarm, especially 5L would've been useful many times. But yeah, more thin liftarms and other parts for making 0,5 stud offsets would really enhance building options too.

Of course the alternating holes liftarms won't be used where the usual liftarms are sufficient, but they allow so much more versatile connections that I'm sure the designs will evolve to direction where alternating holes aren't just a nice bonus but more like a necessity. Much like the pin with pinhole part is not at all necessary to build proper studless Technic, but once it became available, it offered so many useful connections that it's really common now.

About these new beams with alternating holes: They've been on a wishlist for a long time, and now that they're here, I'm wondering if they will become really common in the future, replacing significant chunk of the normal beams as structural components? In 2015 the pin with pinhole part was released and its usefulness was recognized immediately so today those are everywhere. So I'm guessing something similar will happen with the new beams.

Yeah, screws are a huge annoyance if you're going to use alkaline batteries. That's why I'm hoping for a rechargeable battery so that it could be charged without opening the compartment. Also at least some models (like 42114) have the lid of the battery compartment positioned in such a way that it couldn't be screwed in anyway, so those models can't be fitted with the newer version either (for example to replace a faulty hub). I'm assuming the Zetros will have its lid easily accessible, but this change to screws will limit the positioning of the hub significantly.

The regulations vary by country, but I'm pretty sure there's no requirement for battery compartments to be unopenable without tools. Even the new Mindstorms hub has a rechargeable battery which is removable without tools and same goes for most other battery boxes throughout the history of Lego, so I don't think this is related to safety. More likely is that there has either been some sort of problem with the previous iteration of the C+ hub or they actually are planning to introduce a rechargeable battery for the hub (which would need to be removed only rarely if ever, thus justifying the screws.)

I agree that direct brick to beam -replacement doesn't really work here. You definitely should think of way to achieve the same feel as the original with more panels and maybe flex axles/ribbed hoses, even if you don't make a closed bodywork but leave many gaps there like the original. One problem is that the original bricks, stacked with hinge plates were much thicker and more massive than liftarms, which contributes to the look significantly, even when the parts are all in the original places. I'd maybe attempt to build a proper fenders and add some panels to the hood, though I'm not sure what to do with the windscreen/roof, some flex axles maybe? And don't forget the yellow skirt line between the wheels.

Yeah, there won't be a rechargeable battery in this set, but I was dreaming that one might be sold separately later and the switch for screws is an indication of this. But probably not.

I wouldn't blame you for switching the colour scheme entirely, to black or red or something... In LBG it's either an ugly liftarm stack or non-Technic body.

That appears to be 1/20th of stud too thin, but probably the closest thing there is.

I'd like to have something with no tension, but might give this one a try anyway, thanks for the tip! Oh, I didn't remember about this topic, gotta check it out and see if it's any use for my purposes, thanks!

I like to dream big, impossible things, so in my dreams that screw-in hatch is a prelude to a rechargeable battery unit, which can be placed in the place of AA batteries and screwed in place, with a charger inlet somewhere so that you only need to plug it into a charger without the need to take anything off the model once built. Not expecting anything like this to actually happen though. As for the set itself, it appears to be much better than I expected, but far too expensive for my taste and I'm not really that interested in RC vehicles. Still, unless something truly abysmal is revealed by the official reviews, it seems that we're finally getting a properly realistic larger-scale Technic RC car (well, as far as can be expected anyway, with current motors and gearbox parts etc.) Now if only there was a physical remote...

Sure, but it doesn't stay in place very well, as there's moving parts involved and friction alone isn't high enough to keep it firmly in place. Of course I could increase the friction by adding more bushes, but then it becomes pretty cumbersome.

I think that's a standard 3x5 beam.

It's LBG. The slope shown is "60-80%", so not 45° but not much less than that either if we can believe the 80% figure.

Oh, that's strange. Gotta go and see how it looks at B&P now, at least the Bricklink prices don't seem to reflect the availability in B&P... Edit: I checked it and it's out of stock :(

I want to place a half-beam in the middle of two beams which are 1-stud apart, so yeah, I'm indeed looking for quarter stud offset.

Not realistic certainly, not by a long shot. Maybe something like the gearbox of the Volvo hauler? The limited slip differential is a curious one though, I wonder what they mean by that... --- The skateboard photo is pretty funny though. Whoever set up the scene for photography didn't think of adding some sort of ramp or ladder so that the truck would be able to actually reach the skateboard, assuming it actually can climb like that? The truck is probably glued to the skateboard, it would be too much of a hassle to have it sit there just by friction, but I'm guessing this thing nevertheless will have pretty good climbing ability on skateboard-like surface.