DLuders

Maybe you can buy this kid's Eiffel Tower set, since he (obviously) doesn't want it anymore:

Contech7 (also known as Coney on Brickshelf ) just posted his Lego Technic "John Deere 764 High Speed Dozer. Forward/Reverse, Pivot steering via linear actuators, Blade raise/tilt via pneumatics, Suspended tracks & Lights." It measures 63 studs long, 18 studs wide, and 26 studs high. The shows it going through the paces. He used: 1 ea. 8878 Power Functions Battery Box 2 ea. Power Functions (PF) XL Motors 3 ea. PF Medium Motors 2 ea. PF Receivers 2 ea. Linear Actuators 2 ea. LED Light Sets 7 ea. PF Extensions Wires 2 ea. Lego Pneumatic Mini-Pumps 4 ea. Lego Pneumatic Cylnders 2 ea. Lego Pneumatic Valves More pics will appear on his Brickshelf gallery http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=444302 when moderated. In the meantime, the three pics below appear in http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=389033&n=47 -- they are BIG and take some time to load:

Very well, for those like me who weren't online years ago, here is Erik Leppen's magnificent Demag AC1000 mobile crane (from http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=321797 ).

"seniorpumpkin" made a BIG helicopter with many functions. He wrote, "This is my first attempt at a lego helicopter. It has two turbine engines and allows for pitch and yaw control from the cockpit. Unfortunately the pitch control is mechanically very difficult to move from the cockpit, so I added a lever at the back to move the blades forward and back": He also built "...a lego plane built and designed by myself. It is modeled after the Boeing 737, but form often follows function in my planes, this is no exception. The plane has many features as you will see!" He also built this Lego Technic aircraft (modeled after the Navaho Chieftain): . It weighs a whopping 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms)! Several pictures of it are on his Brickshelf gallery http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=344369 .

I think most AFOLs with small parts collections just pick out the parts they need as they go, and just "free build" to try stuff out. Some folks are concerned about the colors right away , while others just want to "build something" to try out their concept, and then refine it later.

The "Splash" page and the "Store Terms" pages are the 2nd and 3rd tab choices along the top of the Bricklink sellers' page: http://www.bricklink.com/store.asp?sID=158819&itemID=18317215 . In many cases, they are SIMILAR but not identical. It is best to check the international seller's "Splash" and "Store Terms" pages BEFORE placing an order. There may be a minimum order size, fees for large packages going overseas, etc. I found out that, if I paid a LITTLE BIT MORE for expedited shipping, my European Bricklink orders would go all the way to the Pacific Northwest part of the USA in as little as 7 days. If I was "cheap" and wanted to save a little money, the "slow boat" surface ships would get the same thing to me in a month. Recommend paying for AIR shipment, and not surface SHIPPING, especially if you need your Lego parts in a hurry. I would imagine that the Singapore Bricklink stores only offer a limited selection of Lego sets and parts, at high prices. If you shop around on Bricklink, you can probably get access to a LOT MORE variety and possibly cheaper prices overall (shipping included). Try Bricklink -- you'll like it!

Some AFOLs are still wondering how the 8043 Motorized Excavator set was released with its many problems. Going back to the 8275 Motorized Bulldozer set, here are two videos that show TLG's TECHNIC set design and testing processes. The 8275's designer, Markus Kossman , narrates the two videos. Too bad TLG seemingly didn't follow the same processes for the 8043 set. It is noteworthy that TLG says kids prefer MOTORIZED Lego TECHNIC models, vs. non-motorized models....

Here are some additional thoughts about Bricklink: (1) I noticed that there are only 29 Bricklink stores there in Singapore ( http://www.bricklink.com/browseStores.asp?countryID=SG ), while there are HUNDREDS available elsewhere ( http://www.bricklink.com/browse.asp ). International sellers will say that they will "Ship Worldwide", and you can check the store's policies on their "Splash" and "Store Terms" pages (like this page from a Taiwan Bricklink store). (2) I would use the Bricklink Catalog function to search for the Lego parts you need. You can also use this link to search for sets, gear, and other Lego stuff: http://www.bricklink.com/catalog.asp . You'll have a good time finding stuff that you never knew existed! (3) Say you wanted this complete boat hull . Click on the "Price Guide Info" link on that page to find this list of used hulls. You can go down the list (sorted by price) to find a seller that ships internationally to Singapore. The "Store Terms" page for the very first (lowest priced) store states that they ship to Singapore.

Over the years, I have made HUNDREDS of purchases on Bricklink. I used to send CASH through the mail (with no problems), but now I use PayPal (since it's much faster). I would estimate that I have made at least 40 purchases from non-US Bricklink stores, and have had no problems other than SLOW postal service from those countries. Since I'm mainly into Lego TECHNIC, all of the good/rare stuff is available in Europe. The prices in Europe are lower than comparable parts in the US, but with the cost of shipping, it ends up being about the same. Some parts are not available in the US at all. I highly recommend Bricklink!

No, you can't do it with the current LDD 3.1.3, Brick Version 114.5. In the description of the YouTube video which you mentioned, rolandMelkert wrote that it is a "POV-Ray rendering of the "technicForkLift" sample of LD4DStudio. I rendered this with POV-Ray 3.7 beta in about 2 hours, using the default settings at 1280x720 resolution." I can tell you that it would take far longer to model this in LDD, because of the problems mentioned in this Eurobricks post. Blakbird is really the best around for Lego TECHNIC renders, but he's not interested in pursuing LDD. LDD closely enforces "Legal Build" techniques. If things are not aligned EXACTLY, LDD won't let them connect, mesh together, etc. There is no "slop" allowed in LDD to slightly tilt the forklift's Technic Beams to make them fit. Whereas one could FORCE real bricks to align, LDD won't let you. This is one reason that you see SO FEW official Lego Technic sets modeled in LDD. Zblj is probably the best Technic modeler in LDD. Once you get at least 10 Eurobricks posts under your belt, you can send him a Private Message (PM) to get some advice.

On his Brickshelf gallery, Erik Leppen has posted many pictures and photo-sequence Building Instructions of his Demag AC700 "Nine Axle Mobile Crane. Construction has just finished. Please tell me what you think - erikleppen@hotmail.com." From this Brickshelf gallery, one can see that he REALLY LIKES mobile cranes. There are these pictures and a Parts List for the "Star Type Outriggers for enhanced stability. It is what very big mobile cranes use instead of the usual outriggers. The are carried along with the carrier in-line and are unfolded by rotating them horizontally by 45 degrees":

@ Sato: You have to have made at least 10 Eurobricks posts to be able to send out Private Messages (PMs). Here's a link to many pages of Subaru Impreza Plus 1.6L cars: http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=A0S020xhUIJMzQwAh.qLuLkF?p=subaru+impreza+plus+1.6&ei=utf-8&iscqry=&fr=sfp . You can refine the image search to get what you want. LUGnuts has lots of cars that you could possibly build.

Here's a combination you don't see everyday -- Lego TECHNIC and Lego Belville-theme elements being used together! On MOCpages, Hupie Vuurzoon posted pictures and a video of this, her first Technic creation. She wrote, "Two remote controllers are used: • The new RC 8879 to control truck steering and driving with 7 different speeds in 2 directions • The RC 8885 to control emptying the garbage cans." "An M-motor drives the steering gear rack via different gears. You can see the crown gear on this photo" : "An XL-motor drives the rear wheels via a differential gear set. A very stiff construction is used to prevent slip between the gears" : "An M-motor drives the mechanism for emptying the garbage cans. A gear with slip clutch (white gear on the photo) prevents damage to the construction": "This garbage truck is build with technic lego. It uses the newest speed remote controller (8879). Power functions are used to steer and drive the truck and to empty the garbage cans". Here's the YouTube video of it in action:

One of the advantages of using Bluetooth to control a Lego truck OUTSIDE is that it is not affected by infrared light coming from the sun. The Lego Power Functions controller only has a limited range of 10 meters (33 feet). The key piece to controlling NXT using Bluetooth is the Lego Bluetooth Dongle: http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=9847 . HiTechnic has some programs too.

Atrx has posted of his Lego Zil 43272T Trial Truck controlled by Bluetooth on his cell phone. The truck survives MULTIPLE rolls down a hill, so it is TOUGH. The video editing is excellent, and it shows how the various gears can shift. He wrote,"Model of Zil 43272T 4x4x4. Features 4 wheel drive, 4 wheel steering, pendular suspension, remote controlled 3-speed linear gearbox. "Vehicle is remotely controlled by mobile phone using Bluetooth connection. Both applications (mobile phone app and NXT app) are written by me in Java language (I used LeJOS to program NXT). "Zil has 3 motors total: - 1 NXT motor to steer wheels - 1 NXT motor to shift gears - 1 PF XL motor for propulsion (connected via NXT Converter Cable and PF extension cable) "This truck is designed to participate in Lego Truck Trial races GPM (Grand Prix Mazovia) 2010 that take place in Warsaw, Poland. More pictures on http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=444111 ."

Over on Flckr, Mahjqa posted a video showing how 2 Power Functions Receivers can help the acceleration of a single PF Motor. He wrote, "This is in response to Sunskytechnic's idea to put two receivers to a single motor: www.flickr.com/photos/sunskytechnic/4885520621/ . "I made two identical cars, where an XL motor is geared up 1:9 to the wheels. The right car has a single receiver, the left one has two. Weight has been added to both cars. Both cars use fully-charged PF batteries. I did additional runs with the batteries switched, with the same results. "It seems like the car with two receivers has a tiny advantage when accelerating, but the top speed remains the same." On YouTube, Sunmint1 shows how to wire it up: "Multiple receiver output are connected to one point and fed to a motor. The benefits are 1) more power 2) enhanced signal acceptance. Two sample vehicles are presented (4WD MOC and 8043 mod)." Of particular note is the last 45 seconds of that video. It shows how a Lego 8043 Motorized Excavator can respond with GREATER POWER by adding a second Power Functions Receiver. Is there anybody out there who would like to try it out on their underpowered 8043? Some comments about the idea are on the bottom of .

Maybe somebody could submit a railroad-track maintenance truck, like this: ...or modify a Trial Truck to look like this: ...or like this:

Here's something that may assist you: http://www.whitesmoke.com/free-online-checker .

Shop.Lego.com is selling the 2009 Lego Technic flagship, the 8258 Crane Truck: http://shop.lego.com/ByTheme/Product.aspx?p=8258&cn=57&d=70 . Select your country on the top drop-down menu to get the price in your currency. They are available in all of the countries listed EXCEPT Canada and South Korea. So, if you missed out on getting one and want to build an impressive model, now's your chance. Consider making one of two modifications to the 8258 by "Han" on this website: http://www.designer-han.nl/lego/original%20modifications.htm .

Bidding has ended on this item: http://cgi.ebay.com/Lego-Model-Team-Technic-Racer-Creator-Custom-Ford-GT40-/190434734641?pt=UK_Construction_Toys_Kits&hash=item2c56cb7231 . It was the decent thing to do to cancel the auction.

The original designer of this model (Firas Abu-Jaber) has asked skyliner to cancel his sale of this yellow version. This thread is closed; discussion continues on the other Eurobricks thread http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=45607 .

On the Lego Technic Competition webpage http://technic.lego.com/en-us/Competition/Default.aspx , there is this announcement: "Take the Technic Challenge – Tracks! This is the LEGO® Technic Challenge competition! - here you have a chance at showing the LEGO Technic designers your designs and your abilities with the Technic elements. "The competition is very simple 1. Build a model out of primarily LEGO Technic elements. 2. Take a picture of the model 3. Press the button below to Enter the competition 4. Enter your contact information 5. Upload your image "What to build? This month (September) the competition is all about tracks – We want to see the coolest, toughest and strongest models with tracks. Driving functionality is not a must, but is obviously a cool bonus – all that matters is that these are super-cool machines, using tracks! "How does it work? Right now you can submit models - On the 13th of September - a panel of judges consisting of designers, marketing managers, building instruction artists and more will pick out (of all submissions) 10 finalists that will then be put up for voting here on the site. Considerations for the Nominees will be based on Model, Design, build to theme and age. "The winner will receive a prize and also continue to the Big Finale in October."

From the website http://technic.lego.com/en-us/Competition/PreviousWinnerDetails.aspx?contentid=213835 , we learn that the winner of the August 2010 Lego Technic Challenge is mindstormmaniac1000: "This is a versatile heavy-duty crane. It moves using tracks powered with two XL motors at a 1.6:1 gear ratio. The boom can rotate 360 degrees with two regular motors at a 40:1 gear ratio. The crane can carry 4 tires at slopes of up to 15 degrees."

Here's a sharp-looking car made by Firas Abu-Jaber (a frequent contributor to MOCPages): http://cgi.ebay.com/Lego-Model-Team-Technic-Racer-Creator-Custom-Ford-GT40-/190434734641?pt=UK_Construction_Toys_Kits&hash=item2c56cb7231 . You can buy one of these and build it yourself. He wrote, "This is a one-off highly detailed custom lego model of a Ford GT40. The design has been inspired by Firas Abu- Jaber original GT40. This model uses all new lego parts and is a complicated build. Built in the modelteam / creator lego style. I only have one of these to sell. It is as pictured. The lego will be posted fully constructed as pictured. I will include fully illustrated, detailed step by step build instructions with the model in PDF format. * Unique Custom MOC Model * Custom Chromed Wheels * Built from new lego parts * Posted fully insured worldwide * Instructions included" "822 parts - 290mm long, 130mm wide (16 bricks). The doors, bonnet and rear engine open. The engine is a V8. No moving parts. No steering or suspension. Similar to 1:17 scale Lambos."