Building round towers in LDD

[interestedpen]

Hi,

I've been trying to build a round tower in LDD using 1x3 bricks and 1x1 round bricks. I tried using different angles, but the ends don't match up when trying to make a circle. Does anyone have any advice?

[Alasdair Ryan]

I have made a quick ring for you,its not quite a circle.

In order to make a circle you have to just add the 1x3 brick first and then use the flex tool then you add the round bricks.

[interestedpen]

Thanks! That's great, only I don't know how to use the flex tool XD

I know that it's possible to build a proper circle with the hinge tool though, as I made one few months ago but I've completely forgotten how I done it. :(

[Alasdair Ryan]

In order to use the flex tool, you have to click on both studs on ether end of the circle or part once you have selected the flex tool.

If it does not conect that means that something is blocking it's movement.

Edited February 25, 2012 by Alasdair Ryan

[interestedpen]

hmm. I still can't get the ends to join. Nothing's happening, but I don't see what could be block it's movement. :/

[Alasdair Ryan]

Mayby post a picture then.

[DLuders]

On this Eurobricks topic, Zblj posted a LDD .lxf file for a round Castle cylinder:

Image

Edited February 26, 2012 by Calabar
Oversized image converted in text link

[DLuders]

@ interestedpen: There are other methods for building Lego cylinders of different radii. From Flickr, eilonwy77's pictures below show "The outside circle is the more traditional way of making circles. The inside is a slightly different methodslightly different method[/url] using more circular pieces. I didn't expect the radii to be different, but they are. You can wrench the ones with more circular pieces into tighter circles. I was trying to re-do a curved wall part, and did it with the more traditional method, and suddenly it wouldn't fit anymore."

Image

[interestedpen]

That last method looks quite interesting, though I've still been trying to get the 1x3 circle made. I have a attached my attempt at a circle, but I still can't make the ends join.

circle part.lxf

[Brickdoctor]

I've always done this with a manual rotation on each brick. I started with a two brick-high segment of the tower, which, for a circle that matches up perfectly, has ten 1x3 bricks in each layer and uses a rotation of 18 degrees per brick. I manually rotated each 1x3. (make sure that when you click on it with the rotation tool, the point around which the brick is going to rotate is its attachment to the previous brick - if it isn't, keep clicking on the brick until it is) The tricky part comes at the end when you have to close the ring:

1. 
   Above is as far as you can get just by rotating the bricks.
   
2. 
   Remove the 1x3 that is first in the string, so that you can manually rotate in the last bricks of the ring. Notice that I've entered '18' into the field to the left of the little arrows in the secondary tool bar, and that the green arrows on the model are centered around the attachment point of the brick I want to rotate to the brick before it in the string.
   
3. 
   Because of collision with the first 1x1 round, this last brick especially needs to be rotated by manually entering a value into the field.
   
4. 
   If all has been done correctly, you should be able to then replace the first brick.
   
5. 
   This segment can then be Cloned over and over again, and they should be stackable.

Hope that helps.

By the way, I downloaded your file, and your rotation was off by one degree. You had rotated each brick by fourteen degrees. With twelve bricks per row, it takes twenty-four rotations to complete a circle. 360/24=15. It took a bit of scaffolding to coax the final brick into position, but with a rotation of fifteen degrees per brick, the circle matches up. I attached the LXF: circle part.lxf

[Calabar]

In order to make a circle you have to just add the 1x3 brick first and then use the flex tool then you add the round bricks.

Do you mean this tool or perhaps you mean the Hinge Align tool ?

Could you explain how to use it to flex concatenated bricks?

[Alasdair Ryan]

Do you mean this tool or perhaps you mean the Hinge Align tool ?

Could you explain how to use it to flex concatenated bricks?

Not really very well, you are better making a circle using the hinge button.

Start with a basic line like this.

Next use the hinge tool to bend the ends close to each other.

Then use the hinge align tool (select the uper stud and the lower stud,were you want them to connect)

And with a bit of luck you should have something like this:

*As you can see it does not make a round circle,you are better with the other method to make a circle.

Edited February 27, 2012 by Alasdair Ryan

[interestedpen]

I've always done this with a manual rotation on each brick. I started with a two brick-high segment of the tower, which, for a circle that matches up perfectly, has ten 1x3 bricks in each layer and uses a rotation of 18 degrees per brick. I manually rotated each 1x3. (make sure that when you click on it with the rotation tool, the point around which the brick is going to rotate is its attachment to the previous brick - if it isn't, keep clicking on the brick until it is) The tricky part comes at the end when you have to close the ring:

1. Image
   Above is as far as you can get just by rotating the bricks.
   
2. Image
   Remove the 1x3 that is first in the string, so that you can manually rotate in the last bricks of the ring. Notice that I've entered '18' into the field to the left of the little arrows in the secondary tool bar, and that the green arrows on the model are centered around the attachment point of the brick I want to rotate to the brick before it in the string.
   
3. Image
   Because of collision with the first 1x1 round, this last brick especially needs to be rotated by manually entering a value into the field.
   
4. Image
   If all has been done correctly, you should be able to then replace the first brick.
   
5. Image
   This segment can then be Cloned over and over again, and they should be stackable.

Hope that helps.

By the way, I downloaded your file, and your rotation was off by one degree. You had rotated each brick by fourteen degrees. With twelve bricks per row, it takes twenty-four rotations to complete a circle. 360/24=15. It took a bit of scaffolding to coax the final brick into position, but with a rotation of fifteen degrees per brick, the circle matches up. I attached the LXF: circle part.lxf

Thank you soooo much!! That's exactly what I wanted. :D

Thanks!

Edited February 27, 2012 by Calabar
Images removed from quote.