CP5670

I'll probably get the set after they release the updated version. I'm interested in the main model here, as the set isn't worth it just for parts at the US prices.

This looks like it was lots of fun. Technic doesn't seem to be that big in this area unfortunately. At the Brickfair event on the US east coast, it's generally been the same 2 or 3 people (out of 600-700 attendees) building Technic MOCs for the last few years. GBC and Mindstorms are a lot more popular though.

Yes, virtualization is the best way to do this. Virtual PC and XP Mode run on the same core engine and either one should work. You can use drivers in there that don't work on the host OS. That camera is supposed to be pretty mediocre though, so it might not be worth the trouble. It would be easier to hook up a small, normal camera to your model.

Lego boxes in general were actually much better back then, the cover art notwithstanding. I think all of the MT sets except 2556 had the flip-up covers and featured parts trays. It made the set feel like a premium product. This is a result of how the rest of the Lego lineup has evolved though. I think the only reason kids wouldn't be as impressed by Creator sets today is that they can also see the UCS, Ferrari, etc. models in the catalogs, and have those as a basis for comparison. 5580 was groundbreaking in 1986, but if it came out today, it would not seem that impressive either.

It's much better than the yellowed look, in any case. I only have a few gray pieces that are discolored (as opposed to numerous white pieces), but I would like to restore their colors too. Did you put the entire brick in the liquid or only the yellowed portions of it? I'm wondering if the substance has any effect on the normal, non-yellowed surfaces.

I've used this method too and it works pretty well. These turntables are more compact than either of the Technic ones and don't have the friction that the newer, studless Technic versions do. There is also another turntable that would be even more compact and useful for this purpose, but it's very obscure and only ever appeared in one set. Looking forward to seeing the finished model.

I think the MT sets did in fact have more special pieces than Creator, or more specifically, relatively rare pieces. This includes things like the train doors, printed elements and chrome parts. This was partly just a result of the time period when MT was out though. In the 80s and 90s, TLG was much more willing to include unique printed and other special pieces in a set than they are today. As for special techniques, MT wasn't any more notable than Creator in that respect. The later MT sets like 5571 did do some clever things for their time, but that also applies to some Creator sets like 4403 and 4404. This is again a result of general changes in TLG's design philosophy over time. SNOT became much more common in every theme after about 2004, compared to MT's era.

That looks fantastic. I especially like how it seems to have picked out the yellowed surfaces only. Pieces that are yellowed due to UV exposure (as opposed to oxygen exposure) tend not to be so uniformly across the whole piece. Do the pieces still look exactly the right color though? I had previously heard that these techniques don't work well for old gray and the pieces end up in a color closer to bluish gray.

Yes, I think Creator on the whole has more functionality than Model Team. 4403 was one of the most impressive cases, and the more recent 4993 had a nice convertible roof. We have also seen some motors and light/sound bricks in the theme. Many MOCs combine Technic and MT, but official MT sets never had much in the way of functionality. Steering was common but was all we ever saw there. The MT sets did have more greebles than Creator models and also chrome parts later on. However, the Creator sets have been getting more detailed over time, and today I think they have become a good replacement for MT. The only thing we haven't seen in Creator yet is a larger scale for vehicles, like the MT sets 5571 and 5563. I recall another one that said "And don't be surprised if Dad joins in because these are the big guys!"

My favorite is Aquasharks. I love the sleek, shark-like appearance used across the theme as well as the color scheme. It's a pity the theme was so small though. They only had four sets and only two were larger than impulse size. Aquanauts was a more comprehensive theme and had some great sets too. All of those 90s Aquazone themes had at least one exceptionally good set, now that I think of it.

Has anyone else seen the SP logs here? I just noticed this page today and it looks like Squidtron turned on his creator.

I checked my 8265 and those gears had moved outward very slightly, but not to any significant extent. Someone actually described seeing a new batch of 16t gears here last year, which are said to have a weak grip on axles. I don't seem to have any of these in my sets, but they might be the cause of the problems people are experiencing.

I don't like building fully studless models myself but love the look of Paul's cars. That has become his signature style and I think it adds to the appeal of his models. However, I actually find the functions here somewhat bland and generic, as they are identical to those in 8448 as well as many of his other cars. This car, for example, doesn't look quite as good but is much more functional. I personally would like to see him push the envelope more in terms of functions. On the other hand, in that Brickjournal interview I think he said he likes to build models that are to some extent designed with TLG's style and limitations in mind, as if they were official sets, and I can certainly appreciate that too.

It's hard to say how these things will turn out after a period of several years. There have been a number of cases even in official models where a piece seems fine for a while but has problems down the line. If nothing else though, the clip will still result in extra friction when sliding on the axle joiners. I have personally become wary of any illegal connections after messing up several old gray stud pins in a commonly used detailing technique, on which the clips had lost their grip entirely after a few years.

It's worth mentioning that this is not actually a legal assembly, since the clip on the driving ring is always in compression and would get deformed over time. What we need is a new axle joiner piece that is the same width as the old one, but doesn't have the ribs. I brought this up in the 8043 thread too, as that model would have especially benefited from such a piece. For now, mahjqa's solution is a better alternative and will slide over the axle without any friction.

I had the same impression with the 8265 Front Loader when I first got it. At the time, I assumed it was because of the relatively complex geartrain, but upon further inspection (after people started to discuss these issues) the gears actually move very smoothly if the LAs are disconnected. A close comparison is 8862, which has the same functionality on the front bucket, and it works effortlessly compared to 8265. Blakbird has a good point about the orientation of the LA though. That issue affects this model too.

I think there is in fact a basic flaw in the LA design, even in other sets. They have too much friction compared to an equivalent mechanism using just worm gears, at least in their "degraded" state. You would expect the opposite; the LAs should outperform worm gears given that they are specifically designed for this purpose. TLG will probably just shift to the new revision in this particular set, and future copies of other sets with LAs. They have done part revisions many times before and the changes have almost never been obvious on the outside. This can create problems with sites like Bricklink, which don't always list the revisions as separate pieces.

Lower prices are quite common on ebay and are not necessarily something to worry about. TLG gives volume discounts to resellers who buy the sets in large quantities. I've bought a lot of items on ebay over the years (Lego as well as other things) that were cheaper than MSRP. TLG's own pricing on this particular set is also inconsistent. The S@H price is $200, while some (but not all) US Lego stores sell it for $180 and some European retailers carry it for as low as 130 euros (about $165). Combined with other, store-specific discounts, there might be some arbitrage opportunities there. However, the return request you described does remind me of one experience I had a few years ago. I got a buy-it-now 6986 MISB set at $150, a very good price. The guy was also selling many other old sets at such prices. I didn't receive anything for two weeks and when I asked the seller what was going on, he refunded my money, claiming that the set was damaged in transit and was returned to him. When I checked his feedback, there were several other comments saying the same thing. It was obvious that the excuse he gave was a cover-up, but I got my money back and didn't think much about it. (and got another such set at an even better price later on)

Excellent post. That explains a lot of things we've seen with this. I have especially noticed the increase in clutch power on sets from the late 80s. Most of the MISB sets I got off ebay from that era had very strongly clutching and "squeaky" bricks, to the extent that the colors from different pieces slightly rubbed off on studs, but the bricks returned to normal over time if the model was left built up. Some of these sets also had the smoky/yellowed bricks discussed here, although I don't know if there is any connection. On the other hand, I haven't seen this on any used sets I have from the same time period. In fact, they tend to have the opposite issue with weak clutch power, even if they are kept away from UV light and under a controlled temperature. This may be simply caused by leaving the bricks connected, which also reduces their clutch power over time. I think this happens at a faster rate than they gain clutch power by simply aging.

Nice. How did you go about opening the outer shell of the motor?

I'm curious what kind of extra information the LDD parts contain. Is it related to the connection types and angles? There are LDraw-based programs like SR3D Builder that detect connections nicely and let you place pieces based on that.

This would be a good feature. The minifig-scale 7990 actually does this, but uses specialized parts for the drum that have the spirals inside. I think turntables are definitely the best way to hold the drum in place. Studded turntables may be a better choice than the studless ones (they seem to have lower friction), or you could use the smaller 4x4 turntables. Standard axles will twist and bend if they are supporting the weight of the whole thing.

I don't know exactly what causes this or how to fix it. It might be temperature related. I have gotten a few sets like this from ebay too. The strangest case was a 6990 that looked practically new (it was advertised to have been opened recently and built once) but had very weak clutch power on most of the bricks. Some 1x2 plates were so weak that they came apart simply under gravity. I've also gotten other sets with the opposite issue, with exceptionally strongly gripping bricks (some of which were MISB).

I use Peeron just for basic inventory searches, without using the personal account features. I like its interface better than Bricklink's inventory. As long as people keep updating it with new set inventories, I think it works very well and provides a valuable service to the community. Yes, LDD is not much of a replacement for LDraw, since there are tons of old parts that will never appear in it. This is the main reason I always use LDraw-based programs over LDD for designing stuff. If TLG adds in the ability to import LDraw parts into LDD, that would improve things a lot.

I have 3 broken ones in total now. But yes, I want to open and fix them if possible. I don't think they are glued at all. There are some latches holding the two halves of the motor together. The site in the first post apparently decribes the problem, but not how the guy managed to open it. It would be good if one of the native Spanish speakers here could give a better translation of that site than Google. According to the second site, the motor has a massive 2304:1 gear reduction inside. Trying to turn it manually would be hopeless, especially as it lacks an axle connector.