European Style Truck

Hello fellow builders!  After a small period away of about a month I'm back with my latest MOC, a European Style Truck.


European Style Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr

It uses an XL motor geared down 1:2 for propulsion via an old differential and has ackermann steering geometry with return to center steering, as done by LasseD on his trucks (http://c-mt.dk/instructions/). Other functions include opening doors and I guess the coupling is one as it would work  just I don't have enough pieces to build a trailer...

More Pictures including every Technic builders favourite, the underside 



European Style Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr


European Style Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr


European Style Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr


European Style Truck by legomuppet9, on Flickr

And a video...

http://youtu.be/qHxtwRHiYrg

I have also made instructions for this, in the form of an LXF file which can be found at this brickshelf link (when moderated) http://www.brickshel...ry.cgi?f=532452
And this is on rebrickable: http://rebrickable.com/mocs/legomuppet9/european-style-truck 
The lxf file Looks like this:


European Style Truck Instructions available! by legomuppet9, on Flickr

Thank you for reading  

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:

 

Supercar WIP - Update

Update on this project, I am scrapping it. The reasons are because I simply do not have the parts or the skill make the complexity and scale of this model work. Instead I am going to build a smaller car without a gearbox but instead with the following functions:

• Rear wheel drive via a XL Motor and differential
• Front wheel steering via a M Motor
• Full suspension, front independent, rear I have not yet decided, possibly independent I'll have to see
• Fake V6 engine
• Decent bodywork, as this wouldn't have been achievable on the bigger model with the parts I have

I leave you with some photos of the almost complete chassis which is as far as I got on the big model. I will now disassemble this and start building the smaller one.


Supercar WIP - Chassis by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Supercar WIP - Chassis by legomuppet9, on Flickr


Supercar WIP - Chassis by legomuppet9, on Flickr 

Motorised 9392 Quadbike

I had a sudden urge last night to make a fast RC vehicle with suspension. So I decided to motorise the 9392 Quadbike set.


It is driven by an XL motor geared up 1.66667:1. This results in a reasonable amount of torque for it's size, and it is very quick.





The steering is done via a worm gear and 24 tooth gear assembly, placed above the suspension struts. It is a reliable solution and fits rather well, except for the M Motor poking out of the front.







I have retained all the original features (working handlebars, suspension and 1 cylinder fake engine).
I changed all the soft springs for hard springs to handle the extra weight of the Power Functions components.
I am happy with the result, even though it is very ugly, it is incredibly fun to play with.

Tank Destroyer

I am pleased to present my latest MOC; Tank Destroyer.



I was originally planning to build the British A39 Tortoise Tank, however, due to limited pieces I decided to go for a generic Tank Destroyer design.

Tank Destroyers are tanks without turrets and with bigger guns, designed for one sole purpose, to destroy tanks. Some examples are tanks such as the German Jagdpanther or the Soviet ISU-152.



My tank destroyer's closest resemblance that I know of is the American T18.



Anyway enough history, onto the model.
It uses two M Motors geared down 3:1, the result is fairly reliable and it has only just enough torque, but does the job for the space available.



I have used bogie suspension, which works faultlessly, except for the fact the suspension movement is very small.





And finally the exterior of the model, which, I admit, was a bit rushed, however, I am still pleased with the outcome.





The performance of the model is pretty good, it isn't fast but then it's not supposed to be, it's a tank. It can do some "off roading" on terrain like snow, grass, soil and Lego. The gears within the drivetrain do slip quite often awful creating the dreaded "grinding noise" which can be annoying at times. Finally a video, (yes it did snow in the UK in March...)

Motorised 8435 Video

Here is my video:



I hope you like it!

Motorised 8435

I recently purchased the 8435 set and my first thought after I had built it was that it had to be motorised. So, after much trial and error, I have succeeded in motorising the model.



It uses an XL Motor for drive (geared down 1:2) and a M Motor for steering. It is fully remote control thanks to the IR Receiver and the IR Controller. The body is still easily removable (however you need to disconnect and remove the battery box first...) and the overall appearance is pretty much the same. I got rid of the differential (as they worsen the off-road performance), the V6 engine (which I wanted to keep, however it was the only sensible place for the drive motor) and a couple of other axles and gears here and there to make everything fit. I also reinforced the rear suspension with hard springs.








EDIT: I decided to add my big bad black wheels to it...



Suspension travel is worse, however it looks a lot lot better and it still steers fine.