Saberwing40k

Really? Name one advantage. If you're going to make a statement, be prepared to back it up.

Looks nice, but what do you mean by 8110 does not have this kind of suspension? 8110 has torque tubes as well.

42070... Okay, you can like it, but I don't, and I'm arguing objectively why it is a bad set. Good grief, this thing sucks. Like turbo disappointing. I actually have a few good reasons for having some major NERD RAGE over this set. The price.It is egregiously and insultingly overpriced. This thing is listed at $290 US, which is a lot. It is $10 more than 42055, which has more than twice the number of pieces, and almost as much as 42056 (Which is egregiously overpriced as well), which has almost 1000 more pieces, and is a licensed, premium set. It also costs $40 more than 42030, even though that was licensed, had a large new bucket piece, and twice the number of motors. According to my calculations, 42070 should cost about $~230 US (1800 pieces=$180+$50 for PF components, based on their individual prices.) Instead,it is $290. Where did the other $60 go? It certainly did not go to the design of the set, or any new part budget, so it's just ridiculous padding. The price gouging is inexcusable, especially considering point 2. The design. When I first saw pictures of the set, I though it looked really rough. But lo and behold, at the Toy Fair, it looked exactly like the box pic. Why? The one time Lego changed a model significantly between prelim pictures and final version was 42039, and that made it look worse, but they couldn't change this truck to look better? And, of course, even if we have some months to go, they will do nothing to improve the truck. The truck is ugly and slab sided, and gappy in some places, and the headlights make no sense. I defy anyone to find a truck that looks like that. The lenses make it look like the truck is wearing glasses, and looks rather ugly. Also, the grill as a sticker is just plain lazy. The crane arm also looks terrible, looking like it was thrown together in 5 minutes. But, what kind of features do we have? That would make up for weird exterior design, right? Wrong! The outriggers are clever, but the crane arm only has raising boom, and a winch, which is completely inaccurate. The arm should be telescopic as well, at least, and the base should look more closed in. Also, the truck is completely missing a tow fork in back, which means that this is not a tow truck. Why? Did marketing pull the name out of thin air without seeing the model? And why are we so light on functions? We have 6, counting drive and steering. But, previous flagships, even RC ones, have had more. 42030 only has four, but has so much other detail and is full RC. 8043 had 6. 42043 had 7, plus drive and steering, and 42055 had 3 motorized, and several manual functions. As a bonus, the suspension is completely inaccurate. The suspension isn't even accurate for pendular suspension, which I think is perfectly valid. But why even include suspension when it is barely functional in the first place? Also, why is Lego so resistant to doing something like doubling up springs? Also, It's not like they haven't been able to use sprung suspension before, on 9398. Why not do live axles with more springs? Or maybe more springs would not be needed, as this set would have six of them, and some precompress would not be unwelcome. But, I haven't even gotten to the bad part. This set is a remote control set with a manual gearbox? Why? It's not like a RC function switcher hasn't been done before, with 8043. Honestly, a derivative of that gearbox would work just fine, since this set only has six functions as well. So, what does the manual gearbox gain you? All of the compromises of an RC set, with none of the play value. If you need to engage controls on it manually, then why not have it be a full manual set, maybe with a drive function like 42042 or 42055? That way, everything could be better. Ditto the crane arm. If you can't pass more than 2 functions through the turntable, why not have an extensible manual section? You have a manual gearbox anyway. So, what does this set do well? Well, the outriggers are innovative, and the steering should work fine. But other than that, the functions seem half baked. No new parts. Zero. None. All we get are garish recolors of existing parts in a not particularly popular color, making modding more difficult. Rather than introduce new colors, how about filling out the parts roster of an existing color? Also annoyingly, the wheels are yellow, which sticks out like a sore thumb, even though the rims are available in red, or black, which would have both looked better. We also get a differential in red, for no reason, and dogbone pieces in red, also for no reason. The dogbone pieces are kind of nice, but given how the boom looks, maybe we could have worried about making that assembly look better, instead of do a pointless recolor? Also, the differential in red. Why? Why go to the trouble of introducing that in that color? That piece doesn't need to stand out. It also does not need to be color coded. What other part could you confuse it with? Also, again, no new parts, even if this set had the perfect opportunity to introduce concentric shaft pieces to allow three functions through the turntable. But no, we had to have those panels in that wacky shade of blue. It does not follow the precedent set by past flagships. Now, it would be one thing if it did not live up to fans overhyping it, but it does not live up to Lego's own standards. It lacks technical complexity and authenticity, and is not playable, even if there is literally no reason to not have a remote control function switch. And, unlike most flagships, it does not push the envelope in any way. Let's go through, shall we? 42055 is the largest Technic set ever, of a never before seen type of machine. 42043 introduced the newest pneumatic system, and was the first truck in its scale to have full suspension, and set a new size record at the time. 42030 was the first RC wheel loader, and first licensed RC set. 42009 was the largest crane truck, in terms of size and part count, and has the best outriggers of any crane set. 9398 was the first wheeled RC set, introduced the L and Servo motors, and was the basis of the "You design it, We make it" challenge, which was wholly unprecedented, and has not been repeated. 8110 was the first licensed Technic set, was the largest set at the time, introduced a large number of parts, like the portal axle and torque tube pieces, and was the first set in orange. 8043 was the first RC excavator, and the only RC set to have more that four functions, with that amazing gearbox. 8258 was another size record setter, the second PF flagship, the first knuckle boom style crane truck, and used concentric shafts in the crane for the first time. 8297 and 8295 were the only joint flagships, and both did amazing things. 8275 was the first full RC set ever, and the first Power Functions Technic set. But, do you see what I'm getting at? All of the flagships for the past 10 years have pushed the state of the art, and followed Lego's philosophy of only the best is good enough. And, 42070 totally lets it down. Well, that's a wall of text, but I wanted to support my conclusions with evidence. And, that's what I think I did. And I am hoping against hope that Lego decides to pull a switcharoo, with this set being a decoy to fool Lepin, and the actual flagship being much better. But, that probably ain't going to happen. Also, where is 42067? Why would Lego skip another number again? I dislike it when they do that, and seriously? What was wrong with the fire truck? Also, the delayed set should be in addition to next years lineup, and not replace anything. Final;ly, I have got to say, I'm slightly disappointed that Lego has not done anything really for the 40th anniversary of Technic besides some printed beams in sets. It would be the perfect time for a new design competition, but maybe that happens later.

This isn't a problem per say, but it is something that could be a problem. Are any of the site staff aware of the recent CloudFlare security breach, AKA Cloudbleed? If this site uses CloudFlare, there could be problems, but if it already being taken care of, then it's not actually a problem.

Thank you Milan, I have my idea now.

Okay, I have a couple of different ideas, but first, I'd like to clarify something: Does this contest exclude unmanned tanks? I'm thinking, I could build a small robot tank that fits the rules, but is not really like a BattleBots robot as such. Or, does this have to be something like what you would see on the BattleBots TV show?

Hmm, I find the rules to be a bit confusing. For me, BattleBot = Robot Tank, or is the contest specifically for a robot designed for essentially gladatorial combat?

42055.

So, you don't care you might be buying stolen stuff?

Yeah, this sounds like "It fell of the back of a truck". I would not touch this guy with a 10 foot pole.

Got to be honest, the zombie had me reaching for my shotgun, it's that creepy. But, it's cool, and the stiff motion works.

Are you absolutely sure it only happens in forward? I found your issue, and it is the fact that your gears are in the center of two beams that are secured only at the ends. When the gear system is loaded, the beams flex, causing the gears to skip. Somehow, the system is loaded so that in reverse, the weight of the vehicle forces the gears to stay meshed, but in forward, they come apart. Unluckily, this is not an easy fix. I'll detail more on this later, right now it is really late at night where I am.

I wouldn't call this update pointless, it shows that at least Lego still cares about LDD.

So, that's what I thought. It is a commissioned model. I once tried to do that, but I could not work out a deal with the people. Good luck. What am I saying? You don't need luck, this model looks excellent, and the owner should be happy to.

I'd say try to do a tow truck, like a long nose version of 42008, with a vehicle to tow. Mobile crane has been done, I don't know how you'd do it differently than M-Longer, and I like tow trucks. You could also do a pickup truck with a JLG style towable boom lift.

I'd call that more of a glitch. Impossible stuff like we're talking about is a configuration buildable in real life that can not be taken apart.

I disagree, since you need to hook the winch to someting manually, and it is not essential to the model operation. Also, I would not cite 41999 as precedent for anything, as its design process is far different from any other set. If it were designed to be RC from the get go, I'm sure it would have had a remote control winch. But, in this case, the winch is a bonus, and not an essential part of the model. As for shady practices, I've been behind the scenes at retail, and let me put it this way, you do not want to know how your sausage is made. But, the above sounds like a friend of a friend said, so I'd take it with a grain of salt.

I know, right? Either make it full RC, or full manual. I think the truck would have been much better as a fully manual push along model, and have the RC flagship be 42069. Then, the truck could have actual suspension. By the way, what do you mean by new drivetrain parts in the truck? What kind of parts would you want?

As a matter of fact, I'd almost go so far as to say that the excavator is a little bit too big for scale. Not a lot of people know this, but excavators this size and smaller do exist. But, to be in scale, the excavator would either have to be smaller, or have a cab. All in all, it's not that good a set, but a good orange parts pack.

U wot m8? Driving Ring Extension. by Saberwing007, on Flickr It totally does.

Well, I decided to do it, I have made a mockup of how I think the gearbox for 42070 could work. 42070 gearbox by Saberwing007, on Flickr In this image, we have the basic gearbox, with control levers.The brown lever switches between drive and crane modes, and the purple levers switches between crane functions. 42070 gearbox2 by Saberwing007, on Flickr In this image, I have hidden the some structural parts, so you can better see what is going on. For each motor, there is a two position splitter, linked to a common shift lever. When the lever is in the down position, the motors are linked to the drive mechanism, and allow the model to drive. However, the two driving rings can also go the other way, which connects each motor to another splitter. Then, each of those splitters have two positions, and are slaved together so that they shift together. the parts are color coded, as follows: The blue driving ring and red driving rings are run by each motor, and controlled by the brown lever. The dark blue and dark red gears would connect to the drive and steering. The orange and lime green gears take the power from the other output of the red and blue driving rings, and take that to two more driving rings. The black and dark green gears are the two outputs of the XL motor in crane mode. The white and tan gears are the two outputs for the M motor in crane mode.

So, what about B models? 42070: Lego could totally cop out and make the B model only a change in bodywork, like 9398. I'd prefer it have a grader B model, we have plenty of panels, and 6 wheels for that. 42069: I don't know what this thing could be, unless Lego decides to make another tracked racer. Or, because this model is so similar to 42038's B model, the B model follows suit, being like the A model. Or, it's just another change in toppings, as I really don't see enough parts to make something really different. 42068: We don't have a winch, but it could be a tow truck, with just a lift bar. Or, in keeping with the aircraft theme, the B model is an airport tug. I dunno, I don't have any information to go on. What do you guys think the B models of these sets could be?

The subtractor works quite well, and very different from the way your version works. With your version, you're using the tracks as part of the subtractor, and the differentials are mounted in an odd way to. In this version, the subtractor is hard mounted, and braced on all sides. But, I have had some problems with driving over obstacles to, which I blame on using the wrong kind of receiver. The suspension almost does nothing, given that it is relatively stiff, and the model is light. Also, I did some reflection, and decided that this model is not an Ultimate version, but rather how I think that the set should have been out of the box, and I changed the thread title to reflect that. Bodywork is not really my forte, and this was meant to be a quick project, so I'm probably not going to make any changes to the bodywork. I've already moved on to something more interesting. As for the subtractor, here's something to explain it: 42065subtractor by Saberwing007, on Flickr A differential, at its core, is a mechanism to divide torque. And, like it can divide a single input into 2 outputs in the axle of a car, it can average 2 inputs into a single output. So, each track has a differential, and each differential has two inputs. In the diagram above, the blue gears are drive, and the yellow gears are for steering. When the steering motor is engaged, the drive sprockets turn in opposite directions. Therefore, the vehicle turns on the spot. When the drive motor is engaged, the drive sprockets turn in the same direction, moving the vehicle forwards or backwards. When both motors are engaged at the same time, then what? Then, each differential splits the difference. The differential for one track, depending on its direction of rotation, will either add the two inputs together, if they are bot rotating in the same direction, or subtract one from the other, if the two inputs are rotating in opposite directions. It's really difficult to explain in words, and I did not fully understand how they worked until I built one, and I urge you to do the same. That's what I love about mechanisms like this. You don't understand them until you see it operating in front of you.

I didn't want to quote the whole thing. No, I'm not offended. I asked for an honest opinion, and I got one. Well, at least I know that presentation is something I can fix, so that is something I will work on. Thank you Jim.

Well, a pub is the place where you occasionally are sobbing bitterly into your beer, or asking for advice. I create topics for my creations, like my Ultimate 42065, and get no interest. What am I doing wrong here? No matter what I try, my topics just get no replies. Do any of you guys have any advice? Sincerely, a confused Saberwing.