nychase

I love the mod....and I may have to implement it. I thought I would be cute and set up the marble run with a passive diverter at the top and 3 different paths for the balls to go down. If you look at the original model you can see its a very open space leaving plenty of room to make your own extra tracks. I think it would be fun (and visually stimulating) to get things to overlap as much as possible. Knowing your motorcycle wheel trick will make it much easier to bridge unexpected height gaps in a GBC layout too so very useful Mod!

Ok I guess I'm the first in 5 days! THANK YOU BLAKBIRD for another set of of instructions! By my count we are just one away from finishing...until next month when Akiyuki does it to us again!

As it turns out, those aren't even thin lift arms. Not worth anywhere near that money.

Please post the link

Id be interested.... the red thin 1x7 alone would be VERY valuable, though not THAT valuable. Could you please post the link? I checked a few different ebay's in and couldn't find it.

Attached is a diagram for routing both cables to have extend and retract. I have used this to great success.

I really spoke too soon on that all too. The #3 connectors are looking more and more rare for orange too. So needing 72 will be on the tougher side. No easy breaks with these connectors!

For those considering building this (I'm not considering it....I AM building it) there really aren't many viable color options which is why orange was chosen I'm sure. It takes 36 #4's, 72 #3's and 18 smooth connectors Going quickly through the list based on the smooth connectors available colors, Black, Easy/Cheap DBG, No #3 ever made Green, Technically feasible and cheap though would take quite a few orders to acquire the parts LBG, #4 way too expensive Orange, Easy/Cheap Red, Good luck paying for #3's Reddish brown, No #4 ever made Yellow, Good luck paying for #4's So yeah, Black and orange is it! I suppose you could go all trippy and mix and match but I lack the creativity to determine what combination would look good and be feasible.

Have you happened to output a full BSX inventory yet? Great work on this!

https://www.amazon.it/Quercetti-2530-Marbles-Refill-Ricambio/dp/B00TWFXCEA/276-0142546-4456352?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0 Earlier in this thread (May 4th to be exact) someone posted the link I just reposted above. I took the plunge and ordered 10 (yes TEN) packages of 100 balls each. Total cost was 82 dollars shipped which I thought was beyond fair since that would net you less than 40 balls (vs the 1000) at todays bricklink prices for soccer or basketballs. I received them a week ago and everything was as promised. Even better than stock lego was that the balls don't have the molding holes that can cause them to get stuck on low incline locations. Now I haven't fully tested these for 100% compatibility but when the link was posted the poster mentioned that he has them working perfectly in Bucket Factory and that has seemed to be the most picky GBC out of the 23 so far. Since Blakbird has all the models built I can send him a bunch of the balls to test (if hes willing) since we seem to have now found a reliable (amazon) and cheap source with international shipping for near perfect replacement balls that will finally end the reign of terror that Bricklink/LEGO has had on us for GBC balls.

So uhh...yeah, that pretty much sums it up. I am a bit more of a purist though and I keep the original friction pins with the set but use the new ones. I mostly have to scrub the tops of studded technic bricks/plates and most all system parts (I've scrubbed more 5571's than I can count). Pretty much every ebay or craigslist set goes through the same process including a full BL inventory at the end so that everything in my collection is ready to go whenever I want to build something. That being said, 99% of my collection stays in part form even though I could have a room like Blakbirds....yes seriously.

I agree, I think this is certainly worthy of being added to the real factory. Besides, you kept with the one motor concept and you really maxed out the space and kept everything interesting. Consider this my vote to make it happen!

Does this mean to expect a review of its much rarer brother the 5563 racing truck?! Exclusive to Lego Shop at Home. 5571 was the set I never got to have as a kid, I started with 5590 and loved it to degrees I can't describe but I was never able to get 5571 until I was an adult. Over the last few years I have owned 13 or 14 of them but currently only have 5 (MISB, MIB, Used and two Grazi Tow Trucks (white/black)). The set was worth the 15 year wait for me!

At the moment the other sets have not been released. I was in contact with the brothers and they had intentions on releasing another model in January after the release of their "Alien" book (which has been quite successful). There were talks about adding 8070 to the Super Size Me stable so that would be cool I will certainly post when/if the next models are released!

On the left side after clicking this link you will see a drop down for how many feet you want and what colors. Its a very awkward website. http://www.mcmaster.com/#5548K61 They didn't have a "select-a-size" and I could only order in 25ft minimums but the price was the same at .26 a foot. Its very comparable to lego rigid hose and I purchased it for a GBC marble run. http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=117305&st=225#entry2460117

Given that M_Longer just recently showed off his 8443 and 8839 studless versions I remembered this model. Did anyone build this that can share the .bsx inventory? Or better yet, Eric, did you build this in CAD? I'd like to finally build this. And yes, 5 Years to pull this topic from the grave.

Because I just seemed to find out about Sbrick.... Does anyone know if the "foil" trick will work for it. Rather, can an Sbrick properly get power from Older 9V battery boxes as-is or do you need to trick (or wire it) it like you do with PF IR receivers? Yes, I'm considering upgrading to Sbrick on this model because its one of the few downsides in that it has 7 functions but 4 of them are buried in the base and don't have the best lines of sight (reliable operation). Also, it should cut down on some wire/extensions which should free up some valuable wire space that otherwise pushes on the drive axles (Both versions I've built broke a drive axle gear within 5 minutes and if you know this model then you know its never going to be replaced unless I rebuild it completely.

I can easily point the finger at Eric for pretty much all of my purchases. See if it weren't for tecnicopedia I wouldn't have known that 8858 was a sweet model with complex suspension (I never had it as a kid since my real technic years started with 8440). So I had to buy that, and then 8880, and then....well you know how it goes (230 technic/model team models later, including multiples). Now add MOC's which started with Grazi's tow truck (he sent me the CAD) and then his bigfoot, then Pauls stuff...all of which were enabled by "blakbird". Then you figure the roscoPC F1 collection, all of Jennifer Clarks stuff, including the demag which was more of "if you build it chase, ill make the instructions". Hell, I even have 3450 (statue of liberty) which Eric sold me and then I built a base for it. Oh, and Akiyuki....17 models so far. So yeah, I'm chalking 100% up to him....which I remind him once a year.

I'm sorry but your name just cracked me up! Every time I take apart a large model or many small models in one day (3-4 hours worth) my thumbs hurt like crazy. Not sure if thats what you meant but thats how I took it.

Nope, I failed you there. I was thinking that it needed one sbrick but sure enough it needs two! I think the cost is pretty much the same. Sorry!

Since it was bumped once and no response Ill bump it again. Jurgen, with the xerion tires coming and some other useful parts (motors, s bricks, 13x23 bucket, 6L yellow liftarms) that now exist would you consider making a V3 of this backhoe that everyone loves? I myself haven't collected for it yet which has been very difficult considering Eric got many of the parts for his directly from me. This is one of a few old MOC's that jump out at me as greatly benefiting from an Sbrick too. Also, everyone should keep in mind that without the PP wheels and removing the 4 PF IR controllers (train included) and 4 PF receivers the cost for this model do go down quite a bit. The xerion tires and the larger bucket are bound to be cheap for a while. So yeah, I'd love to build this and I would love even more if some of the problem areas were perfected.

Google translate isn't doing the best job with the site link provided. Can anyone tell me if the company that is linked above ships internationally? I figure I need 1000 of them.

Already answered above. My question is, are they uniformally round and all 14mm exactly? Part of the problem with buying glass marbles is that 14mm can be anywhere from 13-14.5 which is far outside of GBC tolerances.

Unless I am mistaken aren't the quercetti's plastic? I would think that if they were glass they would be heavier than the lego ABS. Also, they appear to be basically impossible to find in the US.

I was able to confirm through a source that there will be four orange balls (the current friends sets ones) in that maze set just like the ones that are currently available through lego for .91 US each. Not sure the price will come down just because they are making more (I think 2L red axles are .12 each which is crazy!)