Junpei

You lucky son of a megablock. I would buy 10 cups of them if I could ever find them at PaB...

Wow, the performance is really good, and, unlike on some other tracked MOCs I've seen, the suspension actually does something. Loving the Archie McPhee horse head too! TLH

Neat project! Technic UFO's aren't so common Hmm, that's a hard choice... I think it would look much better if it was all one realistic color, and you could always use plates and tiles if you really needed to. TLH

OK, I see now. It just looked like an entirely solid construction at first glance, and somehow I didn't even see the springs. So what is the function of the double bent liftarms? Is there little enough suspension travel that they slide along the frame and prevent sideways movement? I'm not entirely sure I understand how the u-joints don't just pop out- I don't see any links at all. Are you saying the frictionless pins are here? If the pivot was there, then it would be a dependent trailing arm suspension; it would also require a spline shaft. Could someone please enlighten me a bit more thoroughly on this matter? TLH

Are you sure? I can't be sure of my statement either, but see here: Both front and middle axles have fixed attachments to the frame via double bent liftarms. U-joints are only used to transfer power to the axle; the axle itself cannot move independently in relation to the frame. TLH

Looks great! Although I wonder why there is only suspension on the rearmost axle, and why the shocks are only mounted with one degree of freedom. The barrel is great! TLH

Crap? Those things are pretty damn cool. The car is awesome for your first fully studless build, and it looks like it performs very well. Can't wait to see what your MOCs evolve into in the future. TLH

Wow, this is looking awesome! I can't wait for the finished result. TLH

That's exactly what I was thinking for the orientation of the BB's- mounted like on zblj's Monster. It would lower the centre of gravity, and the XL's would really make it a BOSS crawler... TLH

OK, I thought it looked a little too weird. Thanks for the info. TLH

I found something of interest today: Is this an actual set? I looked up set #7500 and got a Star Wars battle pack. And that roof... is that wood? And what the heck is motorised? Weird. TLH

Those Bayer test bricks are very interesting, I wish LEGO would make the same range of colors that were in those batches... Concerning the alignment of the logo- that's very odd, I'm not sure how that's even possible. I have seen a few baseplates with tens of misaligned logos all over them. Maybe the Historian will help us out... TLH

Ohhh... so if I'm interpreting what you're saying right, this worm gear can fit between two liftarms one stud apart? That would be most awesome. TLH

Awesome crawler! I almost missed this thread somehow. Very innovative design, and the first crawler I've seen climb up stairs Regarding the lack of interest- I'm really not sure. If there's one thing you're missing, it's this. TLH

Looks good so far! Good job cramming 4 (!) m-motors into such a small space. I think that bucket needs some work tho. TLH

Buggy is very cool! I like how you placed the shock absorbers and included a proper caster angle. :) The crawler is also a nice addition, are the models in any way designed to interact with each other? TLH

Like lazylegoist said, I couldn't imagine that Lego would put their stuff through Google translate. I'm sure that in Danish (or whatever language it's originally written in) has different words for hydraulic and pneumatic. And thanks to Jim for changing the topic title. TLH

Wow, that is huge! Looks like you could put one of VFracingteam's ships on it The 42009 looks like a fly compared to it... Keep up the great work! TLH

I know it's marketing, but I don't really think the lies are necessary. It's LEGO, for megablocks' sake. Kids love LEGO, I'm sure they wouldn't lose any customers if they didn't say the sets have all-wheel drive.

I know this is maybe a bit late, but when looking at the Technic sets, I noticed something weird in the description of 42008: When a vehicle is stranded, make the rescue with the heavy-duty LEGO® Technic Service Truck with tons of realistic powered functions. Activate the included LEGO Power Functions features to extend the rear outriggers or extend and raise the fully adjustable crane arm into position. Then lower the hook with the working winch, unfold the rear wheel lift and load a vehicle to tow. This awesome 2-in-1 Service Truck also features 8 wheels, all-wheel drive and hydraulic lifting element. It’s just like the real thing! Rebuilds into a truck with a crane that can raise and lower, grabber, outriggers and detachable trailer. As we all know, this is very true to what you actually get in real life, just like the 42005: Features extreme 4-wheel suspension, all-wheel drive, flame detailing and monster-size wheels! This 2-in-1 model features 4-wheel suspension, all-wheel drive steering, flame detailing and monster-size rubber tires! What the megablucking hell is all-wheel drive steering? Whatever it is, I think 42009 has it too: Also includes a rotating superstructure, 8-wheel drive, 5 axles, 10 wheels and a detailed V8 motor with moving pistons. Really, LEGO, what the heck? Hydraulics? All-wheel drive? I'm a bit disappointed. TLH

Plans for 2014: Take a break from Technic and go into space and sci-fi building. Finish my first Technic vehicle so I can finally be done and move onto something else (it uses about 80% of my gears, motors, etc.). Join the Guilds of Historica. Get my ridiculous amount of Lego sorted (yeah right...) Build my first GBC. Spend less than $300 on Lego for the whole year.

For me: 70080 Getaway Glider. And that's pretty much it. Maybe an 8880 too. TLH

8878 outputs 7.2 volts, while the AAA batteryboxes output 9 volts. So if anything the XL's would be underpowered.

Unfortunately, I think what Jantjeuh said is the absolute truth- LEGO is marketed towards kids, and they have to be buildable and enjoyable for even the most simple-minded of children. But one thing pointed out by many- where are the universal sets? They allow so much creativity and there are even three models that come with instructions. How is that not fun for a child? They can build one model, take it apart and build the second model, and play with that one. When they're done with the second one, they can build and play with the third model, and it doesn't end there. The possibilities with just one universal set are endless! It encourages children to make something on their own and innovate in new ways. Sure, recent Technic sets have one aspect in common- they are easy to build, and they have basic functions that will work just well enough for a small child to enjoy them. Driving ring gearboxes are easy to operate- just switch the lever, turn on the motor, and it operates one of two functions. It's pretty unrealistic, but so are the mechanisms in the universal sets from the 80s-90s; so what, right? The problem here is that there is no excuse for LEGO to be using such lame, unrealistic mechanisms with the capabilities of modern parts. Take the arm and bucket tilting mechanism of 8069, for example. First, the lifting of the arm. This is done by the cheapest, easiest, and simplest method- manual LA's. Yuck. It's a pain in the @ss to move, and tell me that real backhoe loaders have bucket arms operated by linear actuators. OK, so like Eigenbroetler said, pneumatics aren't hydraulics. Technically speaking, they're a bit unrealistic; also technically speaking, LA's are a pile of megabl*cks. How difficult can it possibly be to just use pneumatics? There is so much empty space in the vehicle, there is more than enough room for a pump and valves for both lifting the bucket arm and tilting the bucket. Plus, how cool is it to have tubing routed through the model- it gives a very realistic look. Now I'll look at the bucket tilting mechanism- the worst part of the model. Since this separate rant (which is kind of aside from my point about the universal sets) is getting a bit too long, I won't go into detail about this hunk of junk to get back on topic. Simply said, it barely works. (and yes, it includes worm gears and flimsy linkages. >:/) Of course, like I said before, the mechanisms in the universal sets are just as unrealistic. For example, the boom of the tow truck in 8034 is lifted by a crank and a tie rod: But realism aside, there is a difference- they are so innovative. Think of the parts available at the time- LEGO had only the mere basics. Technic beams, axles, gears, and pin connectors. And look what they accomplished with just that. There was so much work put into designing mechanisms like the four- wheel steering, with just the simplest, non-specialized parts. Just take a good, hard look at this mechanism: And tell me that isn't more innovative than using LA's, driving rings, and making the same old construction equipment. So if LEGO wants to produce sets for kids, they should do it in the right way. Get rid of the megabl*cking sets for simpletons. Innovate, and get kids to build the right things with Technic; there is nothing good in the sets LEGO releases these days. Just my two cents. TLH

Wow, after lots of hard work, it really turned out nicely! Looks very realistic. Did you end up having unlimited turning of the superstructure? The black LA's are a really nice touch! TLH