Crawler Loader

It's been 1 year since I created my first MOC, a Compact Tracked Loader


Lego Technic Compact Tracked Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr

To be honest it wasn't great but hey  Anyway, because of this I decided to make a Crawler Loader, and here is the result 



Crawler Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr

Functions:

• Bucket lift and tilt powered by one M Motor, going through a selector, the control for which is in the cab
• That's basically it, unless moving tracks count 

I would have ideally liked to make this model RC, however I do not have the motors or IR parts to accomplish this , so I settled for a TLG-like level of functionality (in my opinion), and focused a bit more on the looks than I normally would have, and I must say I am very pleased with the result .
Getting the geometry of the arm correct was a problem, and to be honest it still isn't that great, but will do  I adapted the arm from Nico71's Crawler Loader (http://www.nico71.fr/crawler-loader-2/) into my design.
The part I'm most impressed with, in my opinion, is the bucket, which I designed myself, enabling a more realistic shape than the one's supplied from Lego themselves.
The rest of the pictures:

Crawler Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Crawler Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Crawler Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Crawler Loader by legomuppet9, on Flickr

And a video

Because I am so pleased with this model, I decided to make an LDD file, and have uploaded it to Brickshelf (which I will use for this purpose, Flickr will still be for photos )


Crawler Loader Instructions by legomuppet9, on Flickr
LINK TO THE INSTRUCTIONS: http://www.brickshel...ry.cgi?f=530440
Rebrickable link: http://rebrickable.com/mocs/legomuppet9/crawler-loader

Thanks for reading  

1 year of Lego Technic Building!

Yes, I have been building MOC's for a year today, and to celebrate I have compiled an image of all 16 of my successful MOC's (as there have been a few failures along the way :))

Dakar Rally Truck

I present to you my latest MOC, a dakar rally truck.

Dakar Rally Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr
Basically I made a quick chassis with full suspension, and then added a very simple and light-weight body to it.
There's an XL motor geared up 3:1 and then an M Motor powering return-to-center steering.
It has front independent suspension and rear I have-no-clue-what-it's-called suspension (please tell me, it'd be greatly appreciated)
Speed and performance is good, it has just enough torque to get up to speed, so as it doesn't have a differential, it does lose speed in the corners, but this isn't really much of an issue.

Dakar Rally Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Dakar Rally Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr

I know this is a very simple MOC, I think I'm going to try a slightly more complex one for my next MOC, probably a construction vehicle. suggestions are welcome!

Rock Crawler

Had a sudden urge this afternoon to make a Rock Crawler. So I did 


Rock Crawler by legomuppet9, on Flickr

Driven by an XL motor geared down 3:1, I used the axles from Sariel's Jeep Rubicon TT (http://sariel.pl/201...angler-rubicon/) and my own middle chassis structure bit. I will confess, I have absolutely no idea how to do the suspension, so I guessed , even so it performs really well as it is so I can't have done too much of a bad job 


Rock Crawler by legomuppet9, on Flickr



Rock Crawler by legomuppet9, on Flickr



Rock Crawler by legomuppet9, on Flickr



Rock Crawler by legomuppet9, on Flickr

Any comments on how I could improve the suspension would be greatly appreciated, as I haven't got a clue  

Rally Car

I have finally finished my latest MOC; a Rally Car.

Developed after my Supercar project failed, this MOC has the following features:

• Fully Independent Suspension
• Return-to-center Steering via an M Motor
• Rear Wheel Drive via an XL Motor (geared 1:1 through a differential)
• Locking Doors
• Fake V6 Engine
• Fully Remote Controlled

The Rear suspension is one I found on Youtube by Critycal Jess

It works pretty well, except the 12t Bevel gears transmitting the power into the axles do skip a bit when reversing/setting off making a pretty bad noise. But it is very compact for what it delivers and overall I am pleased with it. I attached an XL Motor onto the 24T of the Differential with a 24T gear, so the overall gear ratio is 1:1

The front suspension is the standard steered front independent suspension using the A

knuckle arms and Steering arm small (6571 & 6572 on Bricklink). The return to center steering unit is an adapted version of Sheepo's Type 1 (http://www.sheepo.es/2011/04/retun-to-centrer-systems.html) which then is fed to a gear rack 1x2 with ball joints (6574 on Bricklink) with an 8T gear. The result is a compact and reliable setup, also the same width as the rear suspension, which was lucky.

After developing the axles I then attached them together in a rigid chassis, incorporating the battery box, V6 engine and IR receiver into the design.

Then came, for me at least, the hardest part of the build; the bodywork. It took the longest to build but I am incredibly pleased with the result. This is the first time I have built bodywork like this in one single colour (apart from the door mirrors unfortunately) as it is the first time I've had access to enough parts. I am pleased with the shape and overall look of the bodywork. The weight is also pretty low too to help with the performance of the model and I like the "skeleton" effect by not filling in the gaps like the bonnet and roof etc, so you can see how everything is working, which I feel you should in a Lego model.

This is my favourite MOC so far which I have built, I am very pleased the looks and the performance, and it is fun to drive around and distress pets.

Pictures and Video: