DLuders

Welcome to Eurobricks! I like your blend of a "System" body and "Technic" internals. Your building style reminds me of Lego911's Lego cars. You could consider adding this MOC to Rebrickable.com's MOCs that also have LDD Building Instructions like yours.

US $29.99 for 304 color pages = about 10 cents per page! This book is a TREMENDOUS VALUE with Sariel's knowledge base! This kind of book has been needed in the hobby for a long time!

From the No Starch Press book publisher's website: LEGO Technic Builder's Guide by Paweł “Sariel” Kmieć September 2012, 304 pp. ISBN: 978-1-59327-434-4 USD $29.95 Coming in September 2012. Sign up for our newsletter to be notified when it's available and to get sweet deals! "The LEGO© Technic system opens a realm of new building possibilities—you can design LEGO models that really move with motors, gears, pneumatics, pulleys, linkages, and more. In the spirit of the bestselling Unofficial LEGO Builder's Guide, the all new, full color LEGO Technic Builders Guide is filled with building techniques and tips for creating strong yet elegant machines and mechanisms. With author Paweł "Sariel" Kmieć‘s expert guidance, you’ll master the foundations of LEGO Technic building, then learn how to create impressive to-scale models. Sariel, a world-renowned LEGO Technic mastermind, offers you unique insight into the mechanical principles that drive modern engineering like torque, power translation, gear ratios, and more, all with the miniature Technic brick. You’ll also learn how to build working clutch and transmission systems, differentials, and suspensions. This full color, illustrated book is a visual feast of building inspiration and includes ideas for building amazing machines like tanks with working treads, miniature supercars, cranes and bulldozers, Da Vinci’s leaf spring catapult, and much more. Now, what do you want to build today? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About the Author Paweł "Sariel" Kmieć is a LEGO Technic enthusiast based in Warsaw, Poland. A prolific blogger and model builder, Sariel’s LEGO creations have been featured in many magazines, the world’s most popular LEGO blogs, and even prompted the LEGO company to use his help in developing some of its products. Sariel is a guest blogger for the official LEGO Technic website and is a 2012 LEGO Ambassador for Poland. He is YouTube’s most viewed LEGO Technic builder. Check out his models and more at http://sariel.pl/ ."

Well, since the 8110 Unimog U400 set went on sale at Shop.Lego.com in August 2011, it SHOULD be available until ~August 2013. It MAY go on sale in late Spring 2013. But, why wait? It's a great set: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMEQZ6R22nc

Yes, high-resolution PDF files would be nice. I got that high-res PDF for the 9397-2 (B-Model) Building Instructions when I kept bugging Lego Customer Service to fulfill the advertised "2-for-1" model for which I paid. I'm sure that TLG has high-res instructions for the 8297 Off Roader; recommend contacting Lego Customer Service to see what they can do for you. I'm a bit burned-out over the recent 9397 B-Model fiasco, so I'll pass it off to you this time.

@ S.I: The LEGO.com TECHNIC website and the LEGO.com Customer Service Building Instructions website all have the same PDF files as Brickset does for the main A-Model: 4536946 (Book 1 of 3): 8,582 KB 4536950 (Book 2 of 3): 9,877 KB 4538812 (Book 3 of 3): 2,307 KB You could look at the page-by-page JPG images on Brickfactory.info, but the image quality is not that good:

@ Hedgie: Since the 9395 Tow Truck has an American appearance to it, it is best that it have four wheels on the rear axle (to be more realistic):

@ Tacker: According to Bricklink, the 8110 Unimog U400 set shares the same 44772 "Wheel 56mm D. x 34mm Technic Racing Medium" parts as the upcoming (2H2012) 9398 4x4 Crawler. However, the tires are different between the two models. The 9398 4x4 Crawler will use the same 54120 "Tire 94.8 x 44 R Balloon" parts as the 8297 Off Roader set.

@ Hedgie: JunkstyleGio's two 9395 Modifications can be seen on his Brickshelf gallery. His PDF instructions for the "Hinged Loading Platform" was posted on the (now defunct) MegaUpload website, per this Eurobricks post. I have that file, and uploaded it to SkyDrive here (565 KB). P.S. There is a nice review of the 9395 Technic Pick-Up Tow Truck set on TechnicBRICKS.

I have compiled all 217 of Lipko's Lego Technic Red Cabriolet Building Instruction pictures, and placed a 12.7-MB PDF file on SkyDrive for downloading here. All the pages are numbered, and it is easy to flip through to see how the Cabriolet is constructed.

@ Pat-Ard: Are you sure there is even a U20 badge on the exterior of the Unimog? Look at the 7 photos of the Unimog U20 here; I don't see anything written on the exterior except on the front bonnet. Maybe the reason that people cannot find a U20 logo is that it does not exist.

@ iceleftd: Very clever! It should be noted, however, that the normal part for the Technic Driving Ring is the 6641 "Technic Changeover Catch" (which has a Technic Axle hole on the flat, square portion facing away from the camera). That part exists in LDDextended mode:

@ skylinedan: Fernando Correia wrote the TechnicBRICKS article over two years ago (on January 12, 2010). The 57518 Technic Treads have appeared since 2007, and one can select parts from older (~2007-2009) Technic sets to get the older type treads (per this Bricklink webpage). One can alternate old/new/old/new Technic Tread pieces to get around the problem of tight bends:

This would be tricky to model in Lego Technic:

Nice snow groomer! I think you should drive it from Avoriaz to nearby Mont Blanc!

@ Pat-Ard: Right click on the photo that appears on this Flickr webpage, and you can select various sizes of this logo. The "Original" size is a mammoth 3456 x 2298 pixels (3.56 MB)! I used the smaller 800x600 image below for this Eurobricks post:

@ Crtlego and Phantom59: You should both read this TechnicBRICKS article about the "New(er) Sytle for Wide Link Treads":

Michael Janice / legomaniacman posted this of his operating Lego Portable (electrical) Generator. He wrote that "I tried to put the most detail I can into this. I forgot to make a carburetor though :P* Working 4 stroke engine (electric) * Cooling fins * Generator coil (bunch of 2x2 bricks) * Fuel tank that is hollow with removable fill cap * Rolling wheels * Easy service and maintenance. "Those are some of the biggest tires LEGO makes, and looks small on the generator. Using my old tried and true method of a 9v motor and my train speed regulator for the throttle." There are 28 pictures of it on MOCpages, plus this Lego Digital Designer (LDD) .lxf Building Instruction file.

jamesek posted another of the "Core" prototype -- this time it's controlling a Lego Technic 8263 Snow Groomer. It is "Simply riding with remote controlled model by Core (Android aplication and Bluetooth connection)." The video's lighting is a bit dark so that one can better see the display screen:

LUGPol member Freeman made this "Rally version of the 8109" Lego Technic set. His Brickshelf folder has 11 pictures, and his shows it's nimble driving capabilities. He wrote on the LUGPol Forum (in the original Polish and in this English translation): "The idea was born to him while watching the relationship of the Dakar Rally. My intention was to build a remote-controlled truck unit Iveco resembling Team de Rooy: "Specifications: Dimensions: Length 46 studs / Width 15 stucs (19s with wheels) / Height 21 studs Weight: small enough that my bathroom scale could not measure it ;) Suspension: unfortunately no :/ Drive: rear axle with a single PF medium [motor], gear ratio 1:1.2 (if I counted) Steering: 1 PF Medium [motor], return-to-center steering by x928cx1 Power supply: one standard battery box "Description: Truck was created almost entirely from the part of a set of 8109. Upgrade are only wheels, 4 frames, differential, engine and IR tower, and yellow plates to cover the "hump". "Also used the original cabin from 8109, in part because I really like, and immediately struck me as a rally, partly because at the moment, I could not create a better looking car. "About a month after its completion, I started to think about using a PF XL drive, but since the model-driven Medium [motor] is moving quite briskly I concluded that at low mass and satisfactory speed wheels are redundant and remained in the initial solution. "You may also wonder why on earth so many wheels are mounted vertically. 4 spare wheels are usually hidden under a tarpaulin on the pace, etc. Well the reason is simple: I ran out of Liftarms to cover the rear...."

The second-half 2012 (2H2012) sets, including the 9398 4x4 Crawler, will be released in August 2012 -- 5 months to save!

You will need some water ballast that you can pump in and out.

"Simply testing - the same moves and batteries. Control with core and PF systems. One turning, one meter straight ride. I got the same times with core and with PF systems."