DLuders

I asked "Sariel" (Paul Kmiec) what he thought of AFOLs' proposals for one of his MOCs to be made into an official Lego set. Here's what he said in reply: "I like the idea, but I wonder which MOC would be suitable in terms of price/fun factor. I'm afraid that most of my MOCs would be extremely costly to produce. There is a number of relatively simple MOCs I've made, but I have no idea whether people would consider these worth paying for or not. When building a MOC, I usually focus on functionality & aesthetics and ignore everything else. Whether such MOC can be sold at a reasonable price and easily built from instruction has rarely been my concern. Also, it would be difficult to estimate the parts costs as only a few of my MOCs actually have any parts list. Thank you for the suggestion, I feel honored :) BR, Paul" It's encouraging that Sariel would support Lego Cuusoo wishes/ pledges of support for his MOCs. So, which set(s) would Technic AFOLs like to support? Sariel made Building Instructions already for his Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, and is wanting to make instructions for his Land Rover. He's made 12 Lego TANKS, but if TLG won't ever make a tank set (because "War is not fun"), which other Sariel MOC would meet the criteria outlined in Sariel's reply above? All of his MOCs appear on his Lego Technic website http://sariel.pl/ .

Thanks to JunkstyleGio for tracking down the origin of this big display truck. Conchas had previously shown it on TechnicBRICKS. From HobbyMedia.it, here's another angle of the display: From ltd1870's Brickshelf gallery, here's a closeup of the driver's cab:

Yes, for the OLD (non-36XO) version of the Lego Linear Actuators, soak them in Olive Oil and remove the excess. It won't affect the plastic at all. Folks can brush this off as a flippant idea, but if you want to save your investment, you can salvage the LAs with more LUBRICATION. TLG found what the problem was with the 8043 set -- it was basically TOO MUCH FRICTION in the LAs.

From the Lego.com Technic webpage http://technic.lego.com/en-us/Competition/PreviousWinnerDetails.aspx?contentid=226555 , the winner of the September 2010 Lego Technic Challenge is victor288596's "Moon Tank": "This tank can explore the moon for hours, powered by its rechargeable battery. Its two tracks are controlled via a PF Remote. The tank is extremely powerful yet easy to control."

Here's a by lorirocks777 of a HUGE model of the Lego Technic 8258 Crane Truck set. It's at least 10 times bigger than the stock Lego set! Park one of these outside of your garage!

"MrFlickinger" (Brad FLickinger) just posted this that gives great tips on "Getting Started with the FIRST Lego League (FLL)" -- "How to start a First Lego League team at your school and why it is so important": FIRST Lego League website: http://firstlegoleague.org/ .

I have placed HUNDREDS of orders for new & used Lego parts from Bricklink over the years, and I highly recommend it! Yes, you have to create a User Name and Password to place an order. I would recommend using the Bricklink Catalog function ( http://www.bricklink.com/catalogTree.asp?itemType=P ) to find the parts you need. You can use the "Price Guide Info" to find the lowest-priced parts and see how many they are selling. Try it -- you'll like it!

There are distinctions between a "pledge of support" WISH for SUPPORTING a model, CREATING a new wish (like I did for Zblj's LYNX), and a "reservation" (putting a model in your Shopping Cart). Everyone is limited to CREATING a maximum of 10 original wishes (I've used up one of mine on Zblj's MOC), but is NOT LIMITED in their "Pledges of Support" (I've supported Zblj's MOC and the 5571 reissue so far). From the Lego Cuusoo FAQ webpage: Q. How many wishes can I create? A. Right now the limit is set at 10 wishes, because we want each user to really think about what they wish for. We are still experimenting with this number, so it may change in the future. Support Pledges Q. What is a pledge of support? A. When you add a wish to your Wish List, you are pledging your support to that wish, meaning you would like LEGO® to produce it into official LEGO® products. When a Wish gathers 1000 pledges of support, it can become an official LEGO® product! Q. How many times can I add wishes to my Wish List to pledge my support? A. Obviously, you can only add one individual wish to your Wish List once. However, you can add as many different wishes as you like to your Wish List. Q. How many supporters does my Wish need to get produced? A. You need 1000 supporters for a wish to get produced. Reservation Q. What is a "Reservation"? A. When a Wish has gathered 1000 supporters and LEGO® agrees to produce it, the process of "Reservation" begins. This is similar to putting that Wish into your "Shopping Cart", only difference is, you cannot check out yet. Once LEGO® has successfully manufactured it, then you can turn your reservation into a purchase. Q. What is the difference between "Reservation" and "Pledge of Support"? A. At the "support gathering" stage, a Wish usually goes through some changes based on its supporters suggestions. Also, LEGO® has to examine its legal and technical feasibility for production. When a Wish enters the "Reservation" stage, it has already passed through all the changes and examinations, so it is purely gathering enough orders for LEGO® to start manufacturing and selling. Q. Is a reservation a legal obligation for purchase? A. Although a reservation means an order or an intention of purchase, you are not legally obligated to buy the product once it is produced. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * SO, there should be absolutely no reason why MANY AFOLs on this forum (and others) should not make a "Pledge of Support" for Zblj's LYNX. Here is the link for transferring this Lego Cuusoo candidate to LUGpol, SeTechnic, TechnicBRICKS, etc., etc.: http://www.cuusoo.com/LEGO/user/149541/0001/ (right click and copy the "Properties" to see the entire URL address since it is getting cropped). According to this CBS News story, there are 40,000 AFOLs in the world and they account for 5% of all Lego sales. What about the other 95% ? If Zblj's LYNX is brought out as an official set, TLG could EASILY sell THOUSANDS of them via Shop.Lego.com, Toys-R-Us, etc.

On his Brickshelf gallery, GYUTA K. posted 23 pictures and a video of a "One touch transformable LEGO RC TANK. If you want to know the transform process, watch the attached video, transform.wmv." Link to video (showing process of sketches to final design): http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/GYUTA/Tranformable-TANK/transform.wmv . His MOCpages article has the best pictures and this short description: "This is "One touch transformable LEGO RC Tank". it can be tranform just one touch, from tank to robot, and vice versa. Also this vehilce can move by LEGO RC controller, whatever its status, robot or tank."

I did not attend BrickCon 2010 this past weekend (but Blakbird did!), so I searched for Bill Ward's Brickpile Flickr photostream of the event. There are hundreds of pictures (but with no captions). I found the ones below relevant to this Eurobricks forum. Alas, Bill Ward didn't take any pictures of the Technic displays. Jmenomeno posted of the "BrickCon Technic, Bionicle, and Castle" displays (but it has no narrative). The TECHNIC part is the first 31 seconds: On his Brickshelf gallery, Blakbird posted 80 pictures (only some of which appear below). Eric, can you tell us more about the event? How many of these were your sets or MOCs? Who made that big blue-and-white Technic airplane?

@ erstiece: Your Brickshelf folder for the "RC auto-transporter for the large cars" allows AFOLs to study your MOC more closely, and appreciate its construction. I'm wondering, is this Auto Transporter still assembled or was it taken apart?

@ Dryw Filtiarn: Please don't sacrifice your precious time making a video now, at the expense of finishing the programming of your factory. We can wait for its completion and after it has been publicly shown. One has to budget their time and set priorities (like eating, sleeping, going to work, etc.)....

From the Lego Cuusoo "Terms of Use" webpage, Article 18 discusses "Property and Ownership Righs": "All property rights to information and Content included in the Services, including anything sent (transmitted) by any User, belong to the Company." There is other (legal) language in that Article, but basically anything submitted to Lego Cuusoo "belongs to the Company." Since Zblj had already posted the Lego Digital Designer (LDD) .lxf file on Eurobricks months ago, I believe he wanted to share it with the entire world. Out of courtesy, AFOLs should know that he is the original designer. If some AFOLs are hesitant about submitting their MOCs, how about some designs for CUSTOM TECHNIC PARTS? As the saying goes, "Ask and thou shall receive." Yes, 1000 wishes is a lot but IF YOU DON'T TRY, you'll never get it. Zblj and I worked on submitting his MOC after (perhaps) an hour of work. I challenge others to submit their original Technic wishes too.

Zblj has been gracious enough to allow his "LYNX" 4-wheel-drive Trial Truck 10 MOC to be listed in Lego Cuusoo. See its description at https://www.cuusoo.com/LEGO/user/149541/0001/ . Although there may not be 1,000 Technic AFOLs on THIS Eurobricks forum, (collectively) there may be 1,000 Technic AFOLs worldwide that would like this MOC to be made into an official Technic set. The LYNX was introduced by Zblj on this Eurobricks post. He and I worked together to price-out the MOC. Using the Shop.Lego.com prices for the needed Power Functions elements, there are US $90 worth of PF items. So, for ~US $130 (equivalent to 10,900 Yen), TLG could market this MOC. Coincidentally, this is the same price that TLG wanted for the 8297 Lego Technic Off Roader 2 set. If you are a member of other Technic LUGs, forums, etc., publicize Zblj's MOC by posting a link to the Lego Cuusoo webpage https://www.cuusoo.com/LEGO/user/149541/0001/ . This is the first Technic MOC there (as far as I can tell). Add it to your Lego Cuusoo "Wish List"! Thanks, Zblj!

Whoa, that 'bot is humongous! The Zamor sphere shooters on each "hand" will be impressive to see on your upcoming videos! Does your robot have a name? If not, how about "Reach for the Sky"?

I've been to Legoland California twice with my family, and have enjoyed both times. The admission price goes towards the upkeep of the park, and to create the BIG Legoland displays. If you're going to be in San Diego anyway, I would recommend going there. The in-park store is quite good (better selection that at the various Lego stores in malls across America), but you could get the same merchandise by shopping on Shop.Lego.com. The rides are not all for kids; there are some adult-sized rides that are quite good. P.S. Here's a place that will chop $3 off of the admission price (which is better than nothing): http://www.goingtocalifornia.com/pages/amusement-parks/legoland-california-tickets.html . P.P.S. On the Legoland California webpage http://california.legoland.com/Explore/shopping/ , there are some pictures and merchandise info about the various items for sale there. Bring extra, empty duffle bags with you on your trip so you can haul your loot home!

"The Lego Group estimates there are at least 40,000 of these later-in-life Lego lovers. In fact, they account for five percent of all Lego sales. And they live among us." "Mike guesses he has 400,000 Legos in his basement collection - that's about $40,000 worth....'You know, every man needs a mancave'....but in my world my husband needs a Lego room.'" Don't we all!

When adding the Lego 5571 Giant Truck "Black Cat" to my Lego Cuusoo "Wish List", I had to indicate how much money (in Japanese Yen) I was willing to spend. I used this online Yen Currency Converter to figure out how many Yen equalled my own country's currency. They have almost all of the countries represented by Eurobricks Technic AFOLs.

I registered on the Lego Cuusoo website; it's easy to do. A reissue of the Year 1996 5571 Giant Truck "Black Cat" has (so far) 9 Lego Cuusoo votes (using Blakbird's rendering):

For Lego Technic "wishes", the "Vehicles" category of Lego Cuusoo is wide-open for new submittals. Also, the "DesignByMe" category has few items (so far), so any of Zblj's Lego Digital Designer (LDD) MOCs could be submitted (with his permission, of course).... There also is a "Bricks and Accessories" category for making some CUSTOM Technic parts. Too bad everyone only gets 10 wishes.... If TLG is hesitant to produce an "Ultimate Collector Series" Technic Supercar, then MAYBE Lego Cuusoo is the way to get one produced! If AFOLs could rally behind several of the most-wanted Technic designs, then they could become reality! The "Green Grocer", "Corner Cafe", and other AFOL-designed modular building sets may have started this way....

Also, it may be possible to get the BEST Lego Technic sets "reprinted" (reissued). From the Lego Cuusoo FAQ webpage's "Reprint" section: "Q.What should I do if I want a discontinued product reprinted? "A. Discontinued LEGO® products are listed on LEGO® CUUSOO. If you would like something reprinted, then simply create a wish based on that product. If it gathers 1000 supporters, then LEGO® will consider remaking it." "Q.What is the process to get a discountinued product reprinted? "A. Same as a regular new Wish. Create a Wish based on the discontinued product, gather 1000 supporters, once LEGO® verfied its legal and technical feasibility, it goes into the "Reservation" stage. Once it gathers enough reservactions, LEGO® can start production and sales." From Blakbird's Technicopedia, think about which have been deemed to be the "best Lego Technic sets of all time," but which are difficult to find nowadays:

The Lego Cuusoo "Frequently Asked Questions" (FAQ) page https://www.cuusoo.com/LEGO/faq.html and this Lego Cuusoo webpage explains the process: Of course, if AFOLs wanted to mass-produce any designs by Nathanael Kuipers, Crowkillers (Paul Boratko), Sariel (Paul Kmiec), or others, it would be per their express permission.

This is great! If 1,000 of Eurobricks AFOLs can band together to get one of the BEST MOCs, new (limited edition) Lego sets could be produced! I'm bookmarking the Lego Cuusoo website on my browser. Think about Nathanael Kuipers' (modular) Concept Car, Sariel's advanced designs, Crowkillers' MOCs, etc....

AviatorBJP's YouTube Channel shows a total of 5 video clips of the automatic transmission. I like the idea of having a fixed video camera above the test vehicle on a treadmill -- one can see the various linkages moving and see/hear the relative speed of the driven wheels.

Nice MOC! I like the "joystick" control on the back. The model looks like the real thing (from Clup4x4.com):