DrJB

Sorry to revive an old thread but ... Has anyone put together 'stepped' building instructions for this fantastic MOC?

Over the past few years I've built several models from just an LDD/LXF file. You'd think such task is easy and then you feel you've mastered the intricacies. This is actually possible only if the build process is done as a succession of layers. But, for complicated designs that involve fully 3-dimensional steps (such as an astromech), the build process is NOT that trivial. http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=88811 The question is, How do you go from an LXF file to actual building instructions? Yes, there is a semi-working option in LDD but it is replete with inconsistent building steps and very unreliable.

What I've heard is that the variation in lego colors (yellows or reds) is not because the parts are made in different locations. I read somewhere that few years back, and rather than mixing large batches of plastic, lego is now using injection molding machines where the coloring is done on the actual machine itself. Think of it as a simplification/streamlining of the manufacturing process where now, the various colors are obtained kind of like mixing few basic dyes ... just the same way your color printer works, and thus, no need for preparing large amounts of raw plastic, with all sorts of shades/hues. If someone recalls the sources for the above story, can they post them? As for the variation from plant to plant, I think it's mostly visible in the actual parts themselves. Some of them show 'clear' differences in mold geometry e.g., if you look close enough, there are actually 2 different versions of 48989.

Incidentally, I just ordered 4 such parts from BL ... will figure out one way to use them.

The second one (above) was used by mahjqa in one of his vehicles, the metal grudge. A very clever use though. Above post beat me to it by mere seconds ...

True, but those are but exceptions that confirm the rule. My comment was 'statistically speaking', there are way too many tires in lego sets, and the majority of technic mocs are about 4-wheeled vehicles.

True, but ultimately all such decisions are made by human beings ... and we all make mistakes. Just recently, I've spent 2 man weeks doing a calculation to simulate some durability, I sent my report, shared with upper management, then, yesterday realized along the way, I had forgotten a zero somewhere, and my calculation was off (not by ten) ... so, what do you do in such situation? ... Be honest, I sent an email to all that have seen my report, informed them to delay physical implementation, and give me few days until I re-check everything. With TLG, it's not just the worm gear, I'm sure many remember the excavator with faulty LAs ... It was painful, but they did issue a recall because they have a quality/reputation/commitment they live by. But, remind me, what is so wrong with the new worm gear? I have about 10 on those. Very nice/broad coverage, Thank You. I wonder, what would lego employees be not too happy about?

Looks very nice. You're saying you added RC motors yet kept the original workings of the doors/bonnet(hood)/spoilers as well?

I agree fully, and I never intended to 'lecture' ... it's just that I work on those machines for a living, and it's good to see such MOCs portrayed now n then

In all fairness, I 'think' it may not be 'code' per say. I may be wrong, but that's just a perspective. Those of us old enough who have witnessed the 'birth' of the internet (~1994, when everyone at school was using either Mosaic or Netscape) may recall that in the old times, pictures were attached to web pages / emails / BBS as UUEncoded ASCII text. It's possible the OP tried to post a picture, it may have looked fine on his browser, but not necessarily to the rest of us. Just my 0.02 ... though let's get back to the main topic.

I knew there has to be some 'logical' answer ... beyond 'they are there for a reason' ... Thank you SR71.

ingenious = smart, not ordinary ... out of the box, novel, never seen before .... ?

What can I say guys? ... trying to 'enliven' the forum with something different than 'Have you seen the latest MOC ???' Just doing my share ... or at least trying ... Good point, I was looking more at it from an 'operations' perspective ... buying plastic pellets from a supplier, ensuring dye quality is the same whether it's obtained from a supplier in Mexico or India, HR and employee benefits, ... and all the 'supporting' functions that we (end users) never see when we buy a box of plastic parts. As BlakBird mentioned, there is much more than meets the eye.

When most of us think of Lego, we 'simplify' it to a company consisting primarily of plastic injection molding machines. Yet, when you think about it 'seriously' it takes quite a bit of 'engineering' to produce the toys we love. I was reviewing the various electronic boxes I have at home (e.g. spybots), and it does require way more than injection molding to 'perfect' such toys. What are the key 'competences' you think Lego relies upon? And no, I'm not asking for an org chart of TLG.

They say a man's first true love is .... his first car. While I fully understand that ... I feel there is a 'plethora' of Technic Vehicles out there, from MOCs to original sets. In fact I have so many rubber tires in my collection that I don't know what to do with (No, I'm not sending you any!). But, seriously, what else can WE come up that is ingenious and does NOT use tires? By the way, that will also solve the shortage (high prices) of the various suspension elements on BrickLink.

Of course they are functional ... no one ever implied they were there purely for show. My 'concern' is that if you rub the rubber part against a cheese slicer, not much will be left of the rubber after a while .... whereas 2958 provide for a smooth friction surface, exactly how real brakes work. Don't you think? Plus, because of the openings/holes in the current brake disk, the braking force will not be uniform, and the vehicle will 'shake' during braking.

Not sure if the traction is the key limiting factor. Available torque may be as well, unless one runs motors in parallel (as done on the power-puller) to increase torque, assuming the drive-train components (gears and axles) can sustain it.

Can you do an LXF to illustrate?

When I see prices like these ... makes me want to organize another business trip to Berlin ...

Well ... blue is the official/actual color of NewHolland tactors ... unlike green by a competitor of ours.

You can always paint black/white spirals on the gears and let them 'hypnotize' you .... :)

Neat, but the octahedron requires 4 connection (edges) at each vertex. That might require a different buliding technique than what you've used and thus, parts such as won't be of any use then ...

Neat .... Now, in 8421, Lego solved the issue by putting two pneumatic actuators back to back. Granted this might be difficult with LA's, .... but if someone can come up with a clever contraption, that'll do it.

Very nice, I saw a similar one with the yellow samsonite gears. I started buying them off eBay to build it and I have only 28 so far. How many more do I need? Well, I'd use a math formula attributed to Euler, and it relates the numbers of Vertices/Edges/Faces in any given polyhedron. The formula says: Vertices - Edges + Faces = 2 In the video, it's a bit tricky to count how many gears, but you'd notice it's one per Vertex and one per Edge. The sculpture has 12 Faces and 20 Vertices. This means (by above formula) there are 30 edges. The number of gears is thus V+E=20+30=50 ... With my 28, I'm barely over half there. Time to go back to eBay and get a decent sized lot. Edit: After all that math, I just noticed you posted the number of gears UNDER the video ... :(

I guess I was lucky and got 2 of such set ... they were on sale at Radio Shack back in 2004 ... for $45 each ... I was still in my dark ages back then and this did not feel much like technic ... but 4 buggy motors? ... any takers?