2GodBDGlory

Dodge RAM Power Wagon Zoom in This is my first large-scale truck, using the wheels from my new 4x4 crawler, and has many functions. About this creation This huge truck was a big first for me: It was my first vehicle with these wheels, and my first vehicle with six RC functions. Two hard-coupled XL motors drove all four wheels. (I made the mistake of gearing it down too much too early, so when the gearbox jammed, the motors broke two 12T bevel gears, and later a knob wheel!) Also, a PF E-motor ran the piston engine. This engine was a Cummins inline 6 turbodiesel, which I learned is not actually in Power Wagons (A 4x4 magazine misled me. Their truck must have had an engine swap). A Servo motor steered the front wheels, but it didn't actually work, as my V2 receiver from the 4x4 Crawler was faulty, and only the blue channel works. Thus, the steering only works in theory. A M-motor also turned the steering wheel. A L-motor controlled Sariel's heavy duty four speed gearbox by pushing the rubber band loaded axles back and forth with 2L beams. This did not always shift well, sadly. A PF M-motor also shifted a two speed transfer case. Another M-motor ran a pneumatic autovalve and compressor, which controlled a small pneumatic cylinder on each axle which worked the differential lock. Finally, a L-motor ran the winch at a 24:1 reduction, and the transfer case provided a neutral for it to work in. Both axles had floating axle suspension and portal axles, and there were LED headlights. All the doors had working locks. The tailgate and hood opened. This was a fairly satisfying model, both huge and complex. Some of the bodywork (ie, the roof) were less than I would want to do, simply because I was running out of pieces. Still, I am happy with this model. IMAGES AT: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/dodge-ram-power-wagon Subaru WRX STi A small, RC perfomance based Subaru WRX STi About this creation This model is smaller than most of mine, and has a focus on performance. In order to achieve that, it was driven by two L-motors at 1:3 gearing, and steered using a Servo motor. There was no rear suspension, but there was front independent suspension. There were LED headlights and two IR receivers-- simply because only one channel of my V2 receiver works :(. I was pretty happy with my model's looks, and it was nice to build a vehicle that was not grey, for once! The rear wing was probably exaggerated, but I still thought it looked cool. I used the old Model Team wheels both for their small width and in hopes that the old, less rubbery tires would be better for drifting. It drifted well without the body, and I even got it to do donuts once in a while! Performance was naturally worse with the body, but I was still happy with it. I should also mention that I finished this car some time ago and didn't get around to posting it. This means that I am actually nearly done my next big car, which is easily my best ever! IMAGES AT: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/subaru-wrx-sti Porsche 911 Carrera S This Technic Supercar, a Porsche 911 Carerra S, has five motorized functions, including a sequential gearbox and brakes. About this creation This supercar is easily my best one yet! It has five motorized functions at a small scale, and a few non-motorized features as well! These nonmotorized functions include full independent suspension using torsion bars and elastics, an opening hood with a knob in the cabin to start it, and opening doors (The driver's door has a lock, but the other side doesn't, as space was tight) There is motorized drive using two PF L-motors, coupled with a Boxer six piston engine, through a central differential for All Wheel Drive. There is steering using a PF M-motor and a worm gear, but I couldn't really attach a working steering wheel in the space I had. A M-motor retracts the rear spoiler using a worm gear and a clutch gear. There are brakes in all four wheels using a PF M-motor, but sadly the brakes were very crude, with just some pieces (Rubber in the rear) pressing on the tire. In the end, I would have to simplify the suspension and drivetrain (Switch to Tatra suspension and RWD) , and simplifying the brakes seemed the better option. Finally, there is a four-speed sequential gearbox controlled using a PF Servo motor. This means that the gearbox is super easy to switch, as you just push the remote lever and it will switch up one speed no matter how long you hold the lever. When you let go of the lever, the Servo returns to the center but does not shift down or up. At this point, you can shift up again, or decide to shift down a speed. The gearbox worked well, though the size kept me from putting in a passenger seat. I will hopefully post the gearbox separately in a few days. I was very happy with this model in most respects, but there were a few problems. First, the looks seemed a bit off. Second, there was only one seat. Third, the suspension was too soft, leading me to not want to use torsion bars in the future. This model was, in my opinion, my best ever, and I am very pleased with the result! IMAGES AT: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/porsche-911-carrera-s Four Speed Sequential Servo Gearbox This is the gearbox used in my Porsche 911, and is meant to be very easy to control. About this creation This is a four speed sequential gearbox controlled by a Servo motor. This is probably the very best way to control a multi-speed gearbox in Lego, as you just push the stick on the remote forward and you shift up exactly one speed, then release it and nothing happens as the Servo returns to center. Then you can either shift up or down from there. Another advantage is that it is easy to add an auto-clutch (Attach the clutch directly to the servo motor so that whenever it is not in the center the clutch is disconnected, so when you release the remote, it will reconnect)These are some pictures to help you build one if you want to. IMAGES AT: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/four-speed-sequential-servo-gearbox Toyota Hilux Trial Truck This truck is easily my best off-road model yet in terms of performance. It has full floating axle suspension using ball joints and large shocks, front wheel steering using a PF L-motor under the hood, and 4WD using an XL motor in each axle. These motors were geared down 3:1 before the portal axles, which had another 3:1 reduction, for 9:1 total reduction. There were LED headlights, and the entire body could easily be taken off to drive with the chassis only. I was pleased with this model's performance, which was naturally much better without the bodywork on. Now, I know that a video is very important for a Trial Truck, and I have one, but I have had no success in posting one. If someone could comment and tell me how to post videos with the simple uploader, I could add video of most of my vehicles I think! IMAGES AT: https://bricksafe.com/pages/2GodBDGlory/toyota-hilux-trial-truck

And the Buwizz has integrated pinholes, so it doesn't really need a bracing like that. The subtractor setup looks impressively compact, though high torque would probably skip the bevel gears.

Good work! You seemed to successfully combine parts from your previous designs to create a smooth, compact gearbox that, with the right reinforcement, could be very usable in a MOC. I find that with Technic progress is often evolutionary, where one makes something, learns from it, makes something better, and continues learning and improving designs. That's why so many of my old models were so pathetic!

I don't think so. (Assuming you were replying to me?) My collection is primarily made of the Mercedes Arocs (~2800 pieces), the Extreme Adventure (~2400 pieces), 9398 (~1300 pieces), 8070 (~1100 pieces), plus three sets around 400 pieces each, and maybe an extra thousand parts from garage sales, Bricklink, and Bricks and Pieces, for a total of approximately 10000 pieces. And yet even with that (relatively) little collection, I have never even gotten close to running out of those pins!

Are you serious about the 50 000 pieces!? I think my collection would be closer to 10 000! Maybe I pay for that by having only one color (LBG) to build big models with...

To access Bricks and Pieces, you need to click on Replacement Parts in the Support section, then click on Buy Bricks. I would agree with others, though, that if you are looking to build a Technic collection, the cheapest way is probably to buy a number of sets, paying attention to which parts are included, to build up a good stock of the more generic pieces and a good number of specialized ones, and then buying whatever pieces you happened to miss out on from Bricklink or Bricks and Pieces. This is the route I took, starting back in late 2015, and it has served me well for MOCing. I think my Technic collection is worth about $2000, and it has everything I need. I do have to take apart all my MOCs after I make them, but that is fine with me.

Okay, that does sound like a fairly reasonable price for a serious fan.

Nice work! Those Vitaras are great cars. I bought a couple a while back to fix up (Mine were badged as a Suzuki Sidekick and a Pontiac Sunrunner), but these rigs just rust out too fast in Canada, so I abandoned them.

I couldn't say. I probably would be with you on sticking to genuine parts--that way, no one can criticize your work by saying "Well, anybody can build stuff like that if they use custom parts!" And then, even if enough people decide that they are willing to use them, 3D printed ones would inevitably be significantly more expensive.

Agreed. Perhaps they will be 4x4s each year, or perhaps not. I suppose we will find out in 2021! That last suggestion sounds wonderful. It could be a successor to the classic Auto Chassis sets, with plenty of technical complexity, with no bodywork driving up costs and hiding the mechanisms. Not that I don't appreciate the 1:8 supercars, though.

The old 14T does have a few more applications than that. I have used doubled ones against a 20T double-bevel gear (It can be (rarely) useful in gearboxes where you need to have a sequence of gears that goes 12-20-14-20, where the 12 and 14 axles need different ratios), and because they are doubled, I would imagine that they are tolerably strong. I imagine they could also work with 36T double-bevel gears easily, and probably other gears with unusual spacing. Ah, the 32 tooth gear. Many are the times when I recline in a leather-backed chair (read: free desk chair that was going to the dump), holding a half-finished gearbox in my hand. Success is near, but yet impossibly far. A single 32-tooth gear, I know, could solve all my problems--worse, it should solve all my problems, but even after a period of forty-four years, this seemingly elementary gear is yet consigned to the the imaginations of Technic builders (and 3D printers). Shaking my head in disgust, I settle down to restart the gearbox, which will now inevitably be far larger and less efficient than it could have been, if only, if only...

You're welcome!

I think that there could be such a part, but it would have the downfall of having to be molded into an axle, since an axle couldn't fit inside of it. Thus, flexibility in attachment would be limited to whatever size axle Lego decided to put it on/in.

As for concerns about strength, I built a copy to test. It could stall a PF L-motor, but not a PF Xl-motor. I modified the original design, as shown here, and now it can stall an XL. The little spacers you can see are cut from the bottom of a 4L ice cream tub, and help keep up tension.

Huh. I have worked on a few servos, with mixed results, but I never tried that. Also, as a side note, it appears that newer servos have some grease on the contacts from the factory, but they are still breaking.

Yeah, it is pretty much useless in practice. I only posted it as a "fun fact" of sorts.

I have observed in the past when fiddling with gears that an axle "meshed" with a 12T gear, in the spot next to it, it is actually possible for the axle to function as a 4-tooth gear with the 12T gear, creating a 1:3 ratio in about the same space as a traditional 8:8 gear setup. Later, when I got my first 28T gears, I found that it can mesh with the axle as well. There may be some spacings in two "dimensions" that work with different gears, but I haven't really looked for them. Of course, most of the time this is impractical, because there is unusually high friction between the axle and the gear, and under torque it will generally skip, but I suppose it might come in handy some day. P.S. I would have put images on here of the concept, but it is a bit of a bother for me, and I suppose you can imagine it yourself.

Okay, that makes sense. I sort of suspected that, but I didn't (and don't) have enough math education yet to understand why.

Wow! That is very clever! I would still expect that traditional 2x4 8-speeds are going to be more practical in MOCs, but I understand that that is not really what you were aiming for, anyway. It is interesting how it adds speeds, rather than multiplying them. I always like seeing interesting gearboxes, so keep up the good work!

A few months ago, I was considering what would happen if you continued a sequence like that to infinity! I figured that, normally, friction would stop the motor immediately, but since torque increases constantly as well, it might be possible for it to run. Is that the basic idea behind this machine?

That was the first thing I tried, but I had trouble. I could get the gear side of the differential nicely reinforced, but the lock side had a relatively long axle before I could brace it, so it could wiggle a bit. I was testing with an XL motor directly attached to the 12T drive gear, and both outputs blocked. Perhaps that is too much torque to expect, but this truck will be very heavy, and I doubt I can do any gearing down after the differential (Planetary hubs won't work, since I am installing disc brakes)

I just got my first couple new 28T differentials. I was quite excited about them, and planned to use one in the rear axle of a truck I am working on. It has a solid rear axle, so width isn't a problem. I had been planning on using the integrated part of the differential with a driving ring for locking, and driving the differential perpendicularly with a 12T gear, but I can't come up with anything that can take high torque without skipping between the 12 and 28T gears. Does anyone have any suggestions? If not, I may just relocate the differential into the frame and run the half-shafts down to the axle, which would allow for easier differential locking. Thanks!

As you said, the biggest issue with the gearbox is the gears being out of order, but if it were to be shifted by a PU L-motor, like in the Volvo articulated hauler, some programming could be used to allow it to shift through the gears in order. It might look like this: Motor starts in first at 0 degrees, rotates 180 degrees clockwise to second, rotates 90 degrees counterclockwise to third, then rotates 180 degrees clockwise to fourth. (This is just a guess--I haven't built the gearbox, so I am not sure what order the gears are in). The same procedure could be used in reverse for downshifts. Apart from this suggestion, the gearbox looks promising, with impressive simplicity. The use of an extra driving ring to transfer the shifting is clever. The concerns about durability may or may not be legitimate in this configuration, but I expect that there is a way to brace the ends strongly. Good work!

I prefer the 70' rear end and 68' front end!

I quite like this model! It is very unconventional, unlike the usual 1:8-independent suspension-piston engine-steering-RC-opening parts-pretty interior-pretty exterior cars we see these days. It has plenty of technical appeal, and uses interesting techniques to model the real car's body. I do prefer the '70 Charger to the '68 though, mostly because of the taillights.