Blakbird

Not sure what you are talking about. I have several of these and there is no "click" function. They simply have two spring preload values. You can toggle between the two by twisting the ring. Have I missed something all these years?

Already asked and answered: As for progress, I haven't done anything yet. The LDD file is very incomplete so I was waiting for you to finish it as described below. Those gaps are real. There is not perfect alignment between the SNOT parts. I think there is about a 2 LDU mismatch. However, in the physical build this mismatch doesn't really matter. Are we still talking about the spiral lift? I have never had any balls jam in the lift. Again, I have never had this happen. This may be the result of the non-LEGO beads you are using. Some pictures would be helpful because I'm not quite sure what you mean.

His Dad should buy him an Atari 2600 instead of a PS4. I will never understand people who can complain about a gift.

Instructions for Akiyuki's Ball Factory Module are now tested and complete and are available here along with a Brickstore parts list. 207 pages 4428 parts This model was reverse engineered by The ReBricker and I build it and modeled it from his videos. The whole story and an extensive review can be found in another thread, so I won't repeat it here. More recently, I've created a set of PDF instructions for building the model. Note that the build requires complex timing setup and is therefore the PDF is not independent and the videos are still needed. I've linked to a special timing video created by The ReBricker to aid the builder.

Is the reversal done with Mindstorms or does it happen mechanically?

Thanks for the note. I'm not sure how I missed that one. I will add it to the list. This module was improved over the years. The most recent version I can find can be seen at 1:04. This looks like a VERY simple module. I wonder why it is not included in later layouts? I suspect he intends to improve this one. There is generally an input, an interesting motion, and an output. This module has only the middle part. Perhaps it will be added to an interesting input and output in the future.

Yes, that is next on my list.

Looks great! Glad you got it to work. I'm always happy to hear that people are actually making use of the results of all this work.

Instructions for Akiyuki's Zig-Zag Lift Module are now tested and complete and are available here along with a Brickstore parts list. 39 pages 800 parts Some of the credit for reverse engineering this module goes to jesuskyr who did the work making the LDraw file based on Akiyuki's video and creating most of the instruction steps. Based on Akiyuki's own comments (and the comments of others) that this module has problems with jamming, I then made some updates to reflect a later version as shown in Akiyuki's setup from 2012: Added an indexer to allow only a single ball input at a time Added the zig-zag output ramp Made the bottom of the module black to coordinate better with other modules If you've been following this thread then you know that I had a lot of trouble with this module. The first problem was that "version 2" is only seen in a single video for a couple of seconds so figuring out the output ramp and indexer took a while. The next problem was that my module didn't work at all once built. The problem turned out to be the use of 1x2x2 panels with side supports when I needed the older version without side supports. It is very important when you build this module that you use the old version! Thanks to 9V_system for helping me with some troubleshooting. The timing of the indexer is important, but if you build it as shown in the instructions it will already be set. The only other setting is the lateral position of the output ramp. Slide it side to side until the balls exit smoothly. The module works very well if built straight. Before attaching the motor, try driving it by hand and lifting a load of balls. It should take almost no torque to function. If you feel any drag, something is wrong. If the module does jam while running it is probably because there are two balls in a single circuit. If this happens, you have to significantly disassemble the module to get the balls out and clear the jam. This module has a very small input hopper and so works best with something that feeds in balls at a continuous slow rate rather than in batches. I found that it works excellent downstream of the basket shooter.

Sounds like you should ask this question on the SBrick forum instead of Eurobricks.

No, mAh is milliamp-hours and tells you the total capacity of the battery. It doesn't really have anything to do with the output power. A higher mAh does not mean quicker motors, it just means they will run for longer.

Do you have a part number? I'm not sure what you mean by that description. You mean this thing?

No, there is no such part. But if you need a right angle that is connected to the axle, you could use the old toothed connectors like this, but they will not be in the same plane.

My old 1972 New Yorker had torsion bar front suspension with adjustable height. It was really convenient to work on the suspension because the preload could easily be relieved just by backing out a bolt. Compared to using a spring compressor for coil springs, it was much easier. This car also had a huge sway bar connecting the two sides of the front suspension. I miss that car.....

When you are looking for max power, the main difference between batteries would be their maximum current. I don't know what the max current draw of the Eneloop batteries is, but it can't be any better than Nickel Metal Hydride. Those batteries can pull 20+ Amps. If you can't get it to work with NiMH's then I would suggest either your batteries are defective or you are asking too much of them.

You may have noticed that I've never posted a video before. The reason for this is that I have no way of making one. Sorry! After updating the panels and making some adjustments to the ramp between the input hopper and the tower, the zig-zag lift now works very well. The only remaining issue I would like to solve before releasing the instructions is the indexer. While the indexer kind of works, the finger at the end of it (the 2x4 black liftarm in the image) is too blunt and is more likely to sit on top of the balls than actually separate them. I can't see what Akiyuki used from his video. Has anyone else tried and what did you use? Interesting. I have had no problems at all with the M-motor, even running for an hour at a time. I would suggest checking your build for friction. However, feel free to use the L-motor if that works better.

Sigh. I finally figured out the problem with the zigzag lift. Turns out I am an idiot. The 1x2x2 trans clear panels I used for the slider have side supports. The side supports block the balls and jam the mechanism. I should have used the older smooth type. I will make sure the parts list reflects the correct parts.

I love not only the irreversibility but the clean and beautiful design of the module. Fantastic work!

No, I haven't received any feedback about the tower yet. That is the part that doesn't work.

I find that this module works best with less than 20 balls. With more than that the fingers tend to jam because the extra balls cannot get out of the way.

Oops, it looks like the entire Step 13 was missing. Looks like I had an error in my LPub meta commands that was causing this. I will fix it. This is an actual design change that will decrease the slope of the ramp slightly. I agree with your change because it eliminates a small step between the ramp and the fingers. I'm not sure about this one. I don't have any problem with the balls rolling down. Also, there is no hinge in the ramp in this direction so switching to 11L liftarms will actually stress the parts in order to force them to connect at a lower point. I think I will leave this one up to the builder. Thanks for the detailed comments! I will upload an updated version of the file later today. Agreed. Yes, it is certainly possible to rotate the connector if you are using the train regulator with an adapter cable, but it was also possible to simply rotate the dial on the regulator the other way to fix the problem. The issue is still the same: this module is different than the others which can cause confusion. In an ideal setup, the all connect the same way.

Anybody can review any set any time they want. You don't have to graduate the Academy. I haven't!

Thanks for the video. This answer some questions about the connection between the input hopper and the indexer, but I'm still not sure why your vertical section works and mine doesn't I thought about both of things and tried them but they were only partially successful. The answer came to me as a surprise like the discovery of penicillin. I hooked up a battery box instead of a train regulator and accidentally ran it backwards for a moment. Once I noticed and reversed the polarity, now it works fine again! Apparently something had become slightly bent or twisted, and reversing the direction put in back in place.

Instructions for Akiyuki's Basket Shooter are now tested and complete and are available here along with a Brickstore parts list. 131 pages 2226 parts Most of the credit for reverse engineering this module goes to djm who did the work and made draft instructions. I simply took the final step of reformatting the instructions to be consistent with the others. Next to the ball factory, this factory is the most finicky and tricky to get right. The first problem I encountered was with the springs. I decided to use dark gray shocks from 8880 because I happened to have some. When I finished the first module, the balls shot a meter over the top of the backboard and across the room. According to Bricklink, there are only 3 types of 9.5L shocks: extra hard (like from 8110, easy to identify as black and yellow), hard (like from 8466, easy to identify dual rate spring), and soft (everything else). It turns out this is not true. There is more than one kind of soft spring, and they are nearly indistinguishable. Older versions have 1 more coil. Simply using black is not good enough because old versions of black have the stiffer spring. Sadly, this means that there is no way to you are ordering the right shock from Bricklink. Your safest bet is to get new parts since they are likely to be the latest (softest) design. Once the right shock is in place, it works well. Then you can use the adjustment system to fix the aim. However, there is a LOT of variation shot to shot. Just because you think you have it adjusted doesn't mean the next shot will go in. I find that about 50% accuracy is the best I can get. This is actually OK because it is fun to watch the balls roll back down and start again. Finally, I have noticed some changes over time. My copy has been assembled for about a week. At first all 3 triggers worked great. Now, for some reason, the yellow trigger does not retract far enough which results in the lifted ball not dropping into the cup and instead launching out the back of the module. So far I have not been able to discover why this is happening. With all that being said, this module is awesome. People love to watch it. On the surface it looks so simple like a big smooth gray box, but then you lift the top off and can see how much is going on inside. There is a considerable amount of timing to set. Within each trigger, the lift needs to be timed to lift a ball when the cup is retracted and can receive one. Between triggers, I tried to get the timing set so there was a uniform amount of time between each actuation for a continuous cadence of launches. Strictly speaking this is not required, but not doing this step could result in simultaneous launches and ball collisions. Spacing the timing out evenly also evens the demand on the motor. As previously discussed, I added my own motor mount to this module which accomplishes a couple of things: Adds a clutch which prevents destruction of the module when running backward Makes the polarity direction consistent with all the other modules Moves the motor inside the frame so that it cannot be bumped while hanging out As mentioned by djm, this module has changed quite a bit over the years. The instructions represent an interim state between Akiyuki's original and the most recent. The primary changes that could be made to bring this module up to date are elimination of the baseplate and conversion to a retractable control panel.

iBooks works the same way. It is what I always use. It remembers your location.