howitzer

Wow, this is genius! I love the novel part use.

Just a bit of technicality, but Lego instructions aren't public domain, in the sense that as a legal term "public domain" means IP that's freely usable by anyone for any purpose. They are still subject to full copyright owned by TLG and even if TLG shares them freely, you aren't allowed create derivative works of the instructions for example, like certain Chinese companies have illegitimately done.

Just a bit of technicality, but Lego instructions aren't public domain, in the sense that as a legal term "public domain" means IP that's freely usable by anyone for any purpose. They are still subject to full copyright owned by TLG and even if TLG shares them freely, you aren't allowed create derivative works of the instructions for example, like certain Chinese companies have illegitimately done.

Yes, this is true. I'm not personally very interested in minifigures so for me minifig-heavy set are overpriced, and similar arguments can be made for electronics etc. It's just that weight correlates better with price than piece count, but both are usable metrics if you know your sets and take into account the actual contents, as the outlier sets usually have something to explain their divergence from average.

Do you have some sort of analysis about the supposed price hike? I haven't been following things for a very long time, but I'd be very interested in seeing how the set prices have been developing over the years, especially compared to more general trends like consumer price index or other metrics.

Actually, weight of the set is a better way to judge the price, somewhere in this forum someone did a deeper statistical analysis on the subject, and found that weight (including instructions, packaging etc.) correlates better with price than part count. Price per gram takes into account better stuff like electronics which are very heavy but still count as single part, or sets with lots of larger parts like UCS Imperial Star Destroyer. Still, though, PPP is not that bad measurement, it just tends to give more outliers like the Star Destroyer, or sets like 42070 which have a lot of electronics and high price but not that many parts in total. I haven't done any actual research on the subject but my gut feeling is that 18+ sets aren't generally much different from other sets as far as bang for the buck is concerned. There are still some outliers though, like Lamborghini, which are priced higher due to licensing, premium packaging etc. and on the other end the mosaics have very low price per piece for obvious reasons. The Grand Piano set doesn't actually seem that expensive even if PPP is considered with 0,093€/piece, which while more than average, is still much less than many other sets, like the aforementioned Star Destroyer or for example 42114 Volvo Hauler (which comes with lots of electronics but no 18+ tag).

I always wondered why the holes were fake in the first place. Looks indeed much better this way, though the little purist in me cries a tear every time a part is modified. Not a very big tear though, as this is completely cosmetic change, and doesn't affect functionality.

Omitting steering from a car would be really strange decision, unless it's a pullback. I mean, this is Technic so _some_ functionality is a must and for a car steering is a no-brainer, the very first function to be chosen when deciding what functions to include.

I believe there are two lines of thinking here that leads to 18+ rating: first, the obvious display sets like mosaics/helmets/Lamborghini, and the other is licensed sets catering mostly to nostalgia, like Sesame Street. Now, a huge amount of nostalgia sets have been released in the last decade or so, since long before 18+ branding became a thing. I think the 18+ is a new marketing invention and the future nostalgia sets will be released with that label considering they are aimed at adults, and the Sesame Street is the first in this category even if it's technically a kids' show. Elf Clubhouse doesn't fit neatly in these categories, but I believe it's a bit of both. While not drawing on license, it still might be considered more a nostalgia set for adults reminiscing their childhood holiday season and it works very well as a display set too. The Haunted House works in similar fashion. I also think there might be a little confusion in TLG marketing department on how to properly use this new branding, which will clear in a year or two. I'm guessing that in 2021 or 2022 we'll see the 18+ category being more defined.

I think the Russians had a similar gun with an airplane strapped to it, which actually had stronger recoil than the engines of the plane... So the gun couldn't be fired longer than in short bursts, because sustained firing would've stopped the plane.

I thought so too, some Technic sets of the old days included really ingenious mechanical solutions with limited parts and this MOC reminds me of those days. Well done @Pattspatt! Now I want to buy 42110, not because of the original build but to build this one...

In that it's better just to forget about it. If media juggernaut like Disney (or previously Lucasfilm) can't keep the pirates at bay, there's little hope for anyone else doing anything about it.

My take on this kind of thing is that one has to first decide if building Lego is a hobby or if it's a means of earning income. If the latter, then you could pursue whatever legal courses there are to remedy the situation. If the former, you should refer to the above comment. Of course as it is an Ideas submission, there's an obvious financial interest at play. I have to wonder, though, as it is based on third party IP anyway, how could it be mass-produced and sold without infringing that? Is whoever stole the design going to buy the IP rights (from under TLG's nose) or going for a full-scale piracy?

I have to wonder if the retailer in question deliberately gave the catalog to wrong person for viewing or if it was an honest mistake, like maybe there was a dishonest employee who saw a chance and grabbed it? I'm sure the retailer knows the repercussions of this kind of leak so it's hard to believe they would willingly give the catalog to anyone unless it's absolutely necessary. No way to know for sure though, and while it's a shitty thing to happen for the retailer, I guess we're the benefactors here, getting early info for the discussion.

Have these already been released to stores? I saw the reviews on them but that's not the same as actually getting to see them first hand. Somehow this kind of collaboration between Lego and Ikea seems to be long overdue, I wonder why they didn't do something like this decades ago already...

You can't apply a flat sticker on a mudguard, as they have non-cylindrical shape, so it's going to be a print. Beyond that, I don't like the stickered look of the McLaren, the pattern doesn't seem to flow well. Those new CLAAS-like tyres look awesome, finally it's possible to make a tractor with proper smaller tyres on the front. Looking forward to see the functionality on the hovercraft and the excavator, tough my expectations aren't that high.

I don't know about others but this one doesn't seem to be very complex build. I think I could replicate it in a day if I had the parts, as almost everything is easily visible in the pictures of the set. It would be much harder to do a decent job at replicating something like Technic sets, considering the internals can get pretty complex and are not usually very visible.

42055, 42038 and 8263 at least had black chains.

This has been extensively discussed in the Control+ topic. There are upsides and downsides to C+ and it's not a black-and-white issue. Those who want to stick with PF style electronics can of course continue with CaDa parts, but I suspect in a few years majority of motorized MOCs will be using the new system, especially when we get a proper release of the dumb hub.

Great work, but I can't help to think how expensive this thing must be, with all those long-acting pneumatic cylinders...

Considering the speculation going on in the 2021 sets topic, I wonder if there's something in the works of the second half that utilizes Control+ motor as a function selector? From programming perspective, that would basically be the same as 42114 but instead of a vehicle going different speeds there could be a remote-controlled pneumatic crane or something. Now, everyone and their mother is of course hoping for a proper backhoe or a road grader, but as both are long overdue I wouldn't get my hopes up. Still, function selector would be the logical next step in realizing the full potential of Control+. Even better would be some sort of universal set, like those back in 80's and 90's, something along the lines of 8082 or 8485. TLG hasn't abandoned the concept (just look at Mindstorms and Boost) but for some reason this concept was last seen in Technic in 1997...

Now this is the kind of innovation that I'd love to see in official sets. A truly novel way to use the existing parts, allowing for functionality which has been impractical or even impossible previously. Kudos to you @Zerobricks!

There was also 8455 in 2003, which was that year's flagship and probably the most thoroughly pneumatic set ever with 10 pneumatic cylinders, though no motorized compressor.

I sort of have similar feelings about 8480 Space Shuttle. I remember admiring it in a catalog as a kid, and wishing for the possibility of getting it, but somehow it seemed to be too expensive to buy with my own pocket money and at the time I was getting old enough that I felt that my parents wouldn't approve of me spending my money on Lego anyway. Also other things (computer games etc.) started to really catch my interest, but somehow over the years this set got stuck in my mind and today it would look super-cool in the shelf along with the likes of 21309 Saturn V and 21321 ISS. It's also one of the all-time best Technic sets, which would sit well with 8868 Airtech Claw Rig, another great set from my childhood sitting in my shelf. I value the first-time building experience above everything else when it comes to official sets, so it's far too expensive and difficult to get, considering the MISB sets are highly valued collector's items today. An used set just wouldn't have the same feeling, even if they are more affordable (though by no means cheap if in good condition).