DLuders

@ daniele: Was your 9398 being driven in a Pizzeria? That is a unique location for a Lego Technic demonstration! Satiagabra posted this of a 9398/8466/8043 hybrid -- "My MOC 9398 Rock Crawler with 3 m-motors, 2 for drive and one for steering. 2x PF lights. Parts from 8466, 8043 and different parts from my collection.Check my MOC gallery: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=512229 " (not yet moderated and "made public").

Here's an option to show LDD software problems (and solutions) -- Ezvid Freeware Screen Recorder And Video Editor. It works on any Windows platform. Instead of just showing a static photograph of Lego Digital Designer (LDD) "clashes" and software problems, you can make a video of your LDD screen IN ACTION to better demonstrate the problem. This YouTube video shows how it works -- the software is free to download and "spyware free and adware free": For example, AFOLs like bbqqq could demonstrate LDD collisions like this in a YouTube video: Here is an example of what could be done -- a YouTube video about the "LEGO Digital Designer 4.2 Bug Report" by Mikal7 (recommend clicking on this link and viewing it Full Screen to see the problems described below): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skc0DsQwv2Y "BUG REPORT PRODUCT: LEGO Digital Designer 4.2 BUG NATURE: Program Crash [after action initiation] BUG REPLICATION: Connect Technic Brick (i.e. Part# 6541) to Knobbed Brick 1x1 (i.e. part# 4733) end-to-end (i.e. not one on top/bottom, but side-to-side), fitting 'knob' from part# 4733 into Technic Brick. Then Multi-Select both bricks and attempt to move the group. This will cause a program crash. OTHER NOTES: - For the Technic Bricks 1x2 and 1x4, even with the 1x2 plate bricks with the middle knob, the program will not let you place the knobbed brick. - I checked all over LEGO.com for a "Bug Report" link, or something similar, but could not find one. I hope this reaches the appropriate people, and that this issue will be resolved soon. Not having access to the combination of these two brick-types is a severe handicap to the LEGO enthusiast community that uses LEGO Digital Designer to create instructions to custom designs. - Thanks for producing such a great product that is so intuitive and useful. I really appreciate all the work the people at LEGO and its affiliates put into each one of their products, and I hope that this bug report is able to aid them in their continued delivery of excellent customer service and quality products."

For inspiration, there are many "4x4 Crawlers" shown in the "Trucks Database" on the BrickTruckTrial.com website. There are different combinations of PF motors and overall sizes/weights of the models.

The gang approves!

@ sama: See this article about "Lego Loses Trademark Battle": "The Lego brick, one of the most instantly recognised toys in the world, cannot be trademarked, European judges have ruled. "The Danish toymaker's basic red plastic brick was the building block for a global toy-industry success. The brick's shape was registered as an EU trademark in 1999. "But the rival Canadian maker Mega Brands successfully appealed to the EU's trademark office to cancel Lego's trademark. The experts decreed that a brick was a technical shape which could not be trademarked. "Lego, claimed the company's lawyers, contains characteristics that set it apart. But the judges ruled that keeping the Lego trademark on the brick design created a monopoly on what amounted to a functional shape."

@ Carsten Svendsen: The carbon rods help a lot in the wing stiffness. The 1.5-meter (4.9-foot) wingspan is HUGE! Have you attached the propeller assembly onto the engines yet, to see if the wings can handle the stress when they are spinning at full power?

It's got to be Blakbird (see his Brickshelf gallery). He owns ALL of the Lego Technic sets ever made!

Yes, what we really want is a well-stocked "Lego Supermarket". The 73 different Technic parts available at Lego Pick-A-Brick are totally inadequate -- the only Technic Liftarm offered there is a 3L Thin Technic Liftarm ("Lever").

I personally LOVE Lego Power Functions, but recognize that the use of motors may take away from some of the set's complexity and add A LOT to the price of the set. Let's assume that the Technic Challenge's winning entry must have a maximum Price Point of USD $199.99 (the same price as the current 9398 4x4 Crawler). The 9398's three motors are worth USD $27x2 + $36.39 = $90.39 (45% of the total cost of the set) -- recall that on this Eurobricks post, Crtlego wrote, "And now that we have some ID numbers; I was able to call Lego from the U.S.... L-Motor (6000564) - $27 - Not Available Servo-Motor (6000566) - $36.89 - Not Available" I did not include the cost of the 8881 PF Battery Box (USD $6.99) or the 8884 PF v2 Receiver (USD $14.99), which add an additional $21.98 to the $90.39 cost for the 3 motors. The total cost of "motorizing" the 9398 4x4 Crawler is USD $21.98+$90.39 = USD $112.37 (56% of the total cost of the 9398 set)!

As you know, I live ~270 miles from you and COULD join SeaLUG so that you and I could purchase some Lego Technic parts in bulk. However, we would have to nominally abide by these LEGO LUGBULK rules: "It is not allowed to resell the through LEGO LUGBULK bought elements – there will be a penalty for the LUG member if reselling the elements." "The minimum order qty. per element is 50 pcs. and increase in 50 pcs. steps (except base plates and elements that cost more than 10 DKK/piece – there are no other exceptions!)" So, if we wanted to get 50 ea. of the red or yellow 64782 "Technic, Panel Plate 1 x 5 x 11" parts (for example) @ ~USD $1.10 ea. (for example), that's a cash outlay of USD $55. I personally do not have a need for ~25 ea. of those panels right now, but maybe in 5 years I would use them up. Any LUGBULK purchase could easily involve hundreds of dollars, but I'd consider it. Please e-mail me at LudersDG@MSN.com to discuss further. We cannot be "in a hurry" to get LUGBULK parts, because it could take 6 MONTHS to receive them. In the past, whenever I wanted to order some of the newer Lego Technic parts in quantity, I telephoned Lego Customer Service ("Lego Direct") in Enfield, Connecticut USA at 1-800-838-9647, ext. 1. Before they were available on Bricklink, I most recently ordered 24 ea. of the 10197 part (Lego Element ID 6005331, pictured below), available now for USD $0.18 each: The Customer Service person said I could have ordered 10 different Lego parts (in whatever quantities I wanted for each part), as long as I had the Lego Element IDs and a credit card. Months ago, they used to say I could order 15 different line items. Any parts needed to be from sets sold in the last 5 years. I'm not sure that TLG is much interested in expanding this "Lego Direct" program. I read somewhere that the "parts pickers" (two old women at the Lego production facility in the Czech Republic) were overworked....

We can appreciate the PARANOIA that The Lego Group has about "leaked" images of their new sets -- if they are going to be CLONED and underpriced, then TLG's profits go down. I don't recall ever seeing a "cloned" Lego Technic set for sale on USA store shelves. Megabloks is sold side-by-side with Lego here, but their set designs are not identical CLONES of Lego sets.

@ captainmib: Did you try opening the new URL for TechnicBRICKS ( http://www.TechnicBRICKS.com ), or the old URL ( http://www.TechnicBRICKS.blogspot.com )? Both work for me in the USA. Here is the direct link to the article: http://www.technicbricks.com/2012/09/tbs-techtalk-9-with-paul-boratko.html .

Thanks for the 9-page, 17-MB PDF Building Instructions! Your rear chassis is very well designed:

Any new Lego Technic figures need some FACES to be attractive. One would have to settle on a specific SCALE -- the old Lego Technic Figures worked for the smaller 1990s Technic sets but are 'way too small for the modern flagships (like the 8110 Unimog). smartlego posted this image on his Flickr photostream. From left to right, the figures are "Duplo, minifig, Duplo bricks, Fabuland, Jack Stone, Technic, very old bricks, Knight and Bionicle": Even though the recent Lego Collectible Minifig series are HUGE successes for The Lego Group, one wonders if Technic buyers are really interested in "dolls" per se. Many of the most "rabid" Technic fans are teenagers.

It would be great to design a Lego Technic 4x4 Crawler set that has the OPTION of adding Power Functions elements (like the 9396 Helicopter does -- it is labeled "Ready for Power Functions"). If a parent/child does not have that much money to spend, one could buy just the manually-operated Crawler. One could later add PF elements via the USD $29.99 8293 Lego Power Functions Motor Set (sold separately). Or, perhaps it could be motorized using different PF elements available on this Shop.Lego.com webpage. The new PF L-Motor and PF Servo Motor will be available for purchase separately from Lego.com starting in March 2013 (probably AFTER the Lego Technic Challenge winner's set will be sold) -- they could be included in a Challenge entry. Many people wanted to buy the 9398 4x4 Crawler FOR THOSE NEW MOTORS anyway.

Nice collection! If you want to reduce your hoard of Lego Technic parts, I'm sure there are many AFOLs here who would offer to clean your room!

There is an official LUGBULK Program, as described in this BrickBlogger article. Lego User Groups (LUGs), such as the Seattle LUG (SeaLUG), buy large numbers of Lego parts in bulk for their LUG members. Here are the Rules LEGO LUGBULK Program 2012. The next opportunity will be around New Years Day 2013.

Yes, HiTechnic sells a 2-pack of the Rotacaster wheels for USD $39.95, but it is currently Out of Stock there.

Right -- I don't have any "inside information" and am left in the dark just like everybody else!

From the official Rotacaster website, it appears that it costs USD $21.99 PER WHEEL; you pick the color.

On TechnicBRICKS, Fernando Correia (Conchas) posted the first of several articles about Paul Boratko (a.k.a "Crowkillers"). It is recommended reading! Congratulations, Paul!

There are several things to consider when thinking about possible entries in this Lego Technic Challenge: A) From this Eurobricks topic ("For the Model or the Parts?"), almost all Technic AFOLs buy sets FOR THE PARTS. So, your MOC entry should contain INTERESTING, DESIRABLE PARTS that people will want to buy in an official Lego Technic set. Would you like more colors offered in a Technic set besides the usual Red and Yellow? B) Recall the third of three articles that appeared on the LEGO CUUSOO Blog: Article 3 (May 30, 2012): "Tips for increasing your project’s chances of passing the LEGO Review with flying colors!" There were 8 tips in that Lego CUUSOO article, but these 3 tips in particular could apply to models submitted for the Lego Technic Challenge also: "Your model can actually be too good for CUUSOO. What? Blasphemy! Actually, some advanced building techniques common in the AFOL community aren’t used on official products because it’s too complex for the builder following instructions—even on large models for ages 16+. If your model is a particularly tricky build, our end product could look significantly different—or not pass review at all. LEGO CUUSOO isn’t a place to canonize the best MOCs as official sets, instead, building your CUUSOO model closer to how we design LEGO sets will make it easier to turn your concept into reality. Need help knowing what techniques aren’t allowed? Re-create your model using LEGO Digital Designer." "Consider your model size and potential cost. While we're known for building large models, not every large model is practical for us to produce from a business perspective. We will not rule out a large model initially, but it might run into trouble when we build a business case." "Suggesting a new license introduces factors outside of our control. Understand if your idea is for us to produce a new licensed item, you’re introducing factors into the review process that can diminish your chances. Most licenses are owned by large corporations, so striking an agreement requires many stakeholders and legal complexity. Also, some licenses can be exclusive or can forbid us from working with competing brands. Note that if a license doesn’t work out, we will not produce a project as an unlicensed version, since the supporters would have been gained because of the license. While your chances are slim, if your licensed project succeeds you’ll be a hero to fans of your favorite brand!" SO, instead of making a 4x4 model of a Toyota Hilux (for example), recommend making a GENERIC-looking model. The Lego Group does not have a license agreement with Toyota. C) Lessons Learned from the 9398 4x4 Crawler's Design: The Lego Technic DIFFERENTIALS used in the model reduced its ability to crawl over obstacles. Recommend that your MOC entry use 32072 Knob Wheels (or something similar), instead of Differentials. The 54120 Balloon tires provided in the 9398 4x4 Crawler set are not as good in "crawling" as the 22969 "Power Puller" wheel + 32298 "Power Puller" tire. So, if you want to see Power Puller wheels/tires offered again in an official Technic set, consider including them in your MOC entry. They are "interesting and desirable" too. D) Can your model be made into an alternate "B-Model"? These recent Lego Technic sets all have B-Model building instructions, which make the sets more desirable than models which only have one "A-Model" construction. E) The winning entry may have to be mailed to The Lego Group to be studied and deconstructed for Building Instructions. Although Blakbird and a few other talented AFOLs have the ability to create Building Instructions from just a few photographs, remember that past Lego Technic Challenges have had a single, tiny photo (or photo composite) submitted for voting. Hopefully, TLG will post LARGER images than the tiny ones used in past Lego Technic Challenges:

@ agrof: Nice find! You forgot to mention that Australian AFOL Jono McKinlay made Building Instructions for his 8043 C-Model Bulldozer alternate. They are in a 34.3-MB PDF file, and are well done in the style used by The Lego Group. The 8043 Motorized Excavator is still offered on Shop.Lego.com (although out of stock until Oct 17, 2012). Jono wrote, "G'day again. I made the two 8043 lego models and decided to have a challenge and make a bulldozer from just this set. Using most of the parts I came up with this. After Being played by my son I decided to make instructions which can be found here- http://www.freespace.com.au/filehosting/605909 . The dozer uses the 4 motors and actuators. Cheers, Jono"

What Scott Anderson should have done was to write clearly (on his MOC card) who the designer of the Morgan was (Nico71 -- Nicolas Lespour). I too like to build other peoples' Lego Technic creations and display them (with proper credit) at Lego conventions. As an example, this Lego Technic Optimus Prime model (shown below) won the "Most Heroic" award category at Seattle's Brickcon 2011, but I made clear that it was a "collaborative" design effort between Nathan Gibson (Transbot9) and me. The MOC card made it clear that it was not solely my design -- Nathan designed the basic shape and "tranforming" mechanisms and I altered the parts used. I was the Brickcon 2011 Technic Coordinator, and recognized that some of the Technic models displayed there were not really "MOCs" so I did not consider them for the "Best Technic" prize. My Technic entries were not eligible for Technic prizes, due to a "conflict of interest". I don't have a problem seeing (or displaying) the works of other Technic masters from around the world, but recognize that the original designers should get full credit. The Brickcon category "prizes" were just some simple 8x8 Lego trophy, but the real prize was glory for the original designer. Nico71 should have gotten full credit for his Morgan displayed at Brickfair Virginia 2012.

Efferman has already made a fantastic 4x4 Crawler using parts from TWO 9398 sets, but it may be too expensive to be a Technic set that kids (and parents) could afford. The official challenge rules are not yet posted on the link shown on the image above (Lego.com/Technic). Hopefully, one could use DIFFERENT parts than the ones provided in the 9398 set.