TeddytheSpoon

EB is not a file hosting site - the image size limit is intended for avatars, I believe. You can host the pictures on sites like Flickr or Brickshelf and embed them here using BBcode. But if you want somewhere to upload instructions and/or Stud.io files, then Rebrickable might be your best bet.

Thanks all! 42, 43, 44... I think I'm running low on rivets! it's true that it's less noticeable from a distance. If I ever create the double-decked CFF coach, maybe that will be the time to look at the heights and any possible rebuilds in detail.

Yes, most of the time they end up somewhere around 5.5 studs wide. I've got a thread for it here, which I've just updated with pictures of this troublesome coach: In the end I think I'll stick with the extra plate and just judge it 'by eye'. It occurred to me that the rails will also be quite exaggerated at this scale, and since I can't control the size of those or the wheels, I might as well focus on making everything else look right!

It's taken me longer to update this than it should have done, but I can finally share some photos of the first bit of rolling stock! Naturally, I had to build some coaches for the Re460 to pull along. Or, er, a coach. I actually finished this at the start of the year, but have been on the fence about posting it as is. There are a few things I think could be improved, including the buffers, the flexing sidewalls... And the big one, the scale. I posted about this here last week, but in short, building this coach revealed a short-coming of this scale and its frequent use of the small LEGO train wheel. When I built the coach, the clearance to the track looked totally wrong. So I raised it up by a plate, even though it's now not to scale, strictly speaking. And it had the added benefit of allowing space for the couplings. But next to the Re460, it doesn't look right - the roofline of the coach should be noticeably lower than that of the loco, by about - well - a plate. In the end, I think I'll probably tweak the Re460 to be taller. The rails will also be wildly oversized for the scale, so I figure it's better to make everything above that match, and make the track clearance look 'about' right. I've designed a few more items with the same thing in mind (stay tuned for those in a few weeks!) and it's a reasonable compromise, I think. I was hoping I'd be able to copy-paste this design of coach to make a full consist - until I realised that the second-class coaches have 11 windows, not 10 like these first-class ones! So that will be the next thing to work out. I might even build them in the old dark green CFF livery... If I can afford it!

Fantastic re-interpretation! I like the way the sail has been integrated on its side. The mech crew is also very clever.

I love the design of this! Definitely reminiscent of some of those early space sets with all those play features.

You know, I initially mis-read this thread title as saying "cool train". But to be fair, that's very apt! And appropriate that it's plying its trade on your steep tracks, given it was initially designed as a banking engine Do I also spy an SBB shunting tractor in the fourth pic? A TmIII, perhaps? I was just thinking the other day about making one of those!

Hi all. I've got a more general (and potentially daft) question about dimensioning of train wheels. I'm thinking of what to build next, and in most cases the wheels on the trains I'm looking at have nominal diameters of 950mm (or thereabouts). At the 1:64 scale I want, that works out to about 14.8mm (or, again, thereabouts). Would this diameter be the outermost wheel diameter, in which case the small LEGO train wheel would be the closest match? Or is it the flange diameter, so that the Big Ben XS wheels might be better? I've been using the LEGO wheel so far, which works OK. But I built a coach a few months ago, and although the wheel size looks correct in isolation, when it's on rails, the body looks too close to the track. I think this is because the flange is so much smaller relative to the rest of the wheel. Once I raise it up by a plate, the offset to the rails looks correct, but the height is now technically wrong (and looks off when it's hooked up to a loco, which also uses the same wheels for now). I suspect it might come down to personal preference, but I'd be interested in how others approach this problem!

I like the webcomic style of these! Particularly the A New Hope one. Very creative.

Hah! This is great fun.

Particularly like the cockpit on this!

The High Republic has sort of had a set already though, in the form of that 4+ one from last year. (I know it's technically YJA but still, it's concurrent with the HR!)

With all the alt builds I've seen from the T6, this surely has to be one of the most versatile sets out there! Your falcon is very cute.

Very nice! I think the T-6 is the pick of the bunch for me. Your comments on the cruiser got me thinking though; how do you decide on the rough size of the models? Do you have a maximum envelope you try to fit them in, or is it just what 'feels' right?

That shot of the A-wing flying into the bridge is superb! One of my favourites you've done.

Wow! I almost can't believe how small it is, there's so much detail here!

Ooh I like your idea for the arms! Might make use of that for a minifig hardsuit.

I dunno, I like the fact that you can get a commander/leader figure in one of the cheapest sets. Perhaps the construction team captain could've been in the rover, though.

The Invisible Hand is my favourite of these sets. Will definitely try and pick that one up. Maybe the Tantive IV as well, if only because I like midi-scale capital ships (Radiant VII next please!); otherwise I can take it or leave it. Ditto for the Falcon. I'm pleasantly surprised how good R2 looks, but since I'm not bothered about him or Malak that's a pass for me. Fives might be a BL buy depending on the price.

I don't know if the geometry between clips and hands is too different for it to count, but arguably any minifig holding a tile. Off the top of my head I know the Saturn V rocket had the flag tile between two studs, which is similarly legal for tiles and not plates. I'm sure it has been seen before though - I have a feeling that some Architecture sets use the clip and tile connection but couldn't say for sure.

Yep. It doesn't help that TLG doesn't seem to be getting the same advanced access to these shows that it used to, which means it can't ride the initial hype wave when these shows do come out, and by the time they can figure out what would make for a good set with decent demand behind it (e.g. the Haulcraft), people's interest has moved onto the next show. Them seems to be the breaks, I guess.

From what I've seen (warning! Anecdotal evidence approaching), TBB seems to be most popular with precisely that group of people - those who grew up with the Clone Wars. I would surmise that for those who haven't seen at least some of that show, including the last season, the Bad Batch doesn't hold much appeal. We can kinda see that with all the returning characters. TLG will also have some sales data on how these sets sell as well; granted, the Justifier is not a great set per se, but by all accounts the shuttle wasn't exactly flying off shelves either. Still, I do agree there would've been room for more sets. I can't help thinking a V-wing with a handful of figs would've fit perfectly in the slot taken up by Yoda's Starfighter last year, for instance.

Off the back of this discussion I looked up what the exact definition of sci-fi is, and there's a whole Wikipedia page dedicated to its various definitions... As John Campbell put it, "science fiction is what I say it is" So it seems very subjective. The basic tenet seems to be fictional elements, based wholly or partially on existing science, that are essential or important to the plot of a given story. I guess that's why, to me, the original Arctic theme doesn't 'feel' like sci-fi. The fictional element - the neon spiders encased in ice or meteors - could be completely forgotten about (ahem), and the sets would still work, I think. I can now see how it fits under the sci-fi banner, though. Perhaps it comes down to personal preference too - I prefer a bit more 'fi' in my sci-fi!

Wow, I didn't know they made streamlined tank engines as well! Saves the need to build any pesky running gear very nice model.

I absolutely love the old Arctic sets, but they are certainly closer to the real world (and a better fit for the Town/City themes) than this current crop of Space sets. Personally I wouldn't describe them as sci-fi. Some of the stores in my area didn't get the new sets in until the second week of the year, but nonetheless they didn't seem to be any more or less prominent than other sets or themes. I will say that when I visited a LEGO store in the UK at the start of the year, the Space sets did seem to be popular with the kids (I had to wait my turn to be able to grab one!). This is the target demographic for LEGO, after all, so that gives me hope we'll get a second wave at least.