Manias in building?

[2LegoOrNot2Lego...]

my mania is chaos on the table

:laugh: :laugh: I am sure your are not the only one...

[PeterF]

I do some of this stuff too. E.g. the following the manual for bush-orientation, even when I know it doesn't matter. Also when placing multiple 3L pins, I make sure the 2L parts are symmetric, or aligned depending on the build.

I also align mine 90 degrees to the direction I intend to mount them from. Makes connections much easier as when there are umpteen pins on a beam.

That actually makes sense. I'll try that next time. Sometimes it is a pain.

[me00rjb]

Pins, bushes and connectors all have to be aligned of course! Also where injection points are visible on liftarms or connectors, these must go underneath / inside, or where they won't be visible if possible. Glad I'm not the only crazy person!

[N-4K0]

Also where injection points are visible on liftarms or connectors, these must go underneath / inside, or where they won't be visible if possible. Glad I'm not the only crazy person!

I assume that's the small mark on one side/spot of the parts? That's perhaps my most serious mania, always checking where those are to have them hidden.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Error404

[zux]

I do a lot of stuff you guys mentioned.

Also I align the text written on Lego pieces like round 1x1 for making them readable

Somewhat similar, I tend to align visible text on any trans pieces so that you could read text.

Oh and last trend is when liftarm has a sprue point visible I'm looking to reverse the part to hide it.

Edited December 7, 2015 by zux

[syclone]

I do a lot of stuff you guys mentioned.

Somewhat similar, I tend to align visible text on any trans pieces so that you could read text.

That's what I mean Edited December 7, 2015 by LXF

[Blakbird]

I'm not sure whether mania is the right word, but when I build from instructions I insist on getting the bushes in the same orientation as in the instructions. 99% of the time it of course makes no difference to function, and very little to appearance.

That would be OCD. And I do the same thing. Actually, I tend to align the "castellated" direction with something that doesn't rotate, and the smooth end with the rotation direction. This is to avoid any possible friction or jamming.

I do something similar to what you do, only I align the splits to be parallel with one another.

I always do that too. It also bugs me when you can see red 2L axles inside a split.

I also care about the molding direction on the 5x7 or 5x11 liftarm frame. I like the open side of the slots to be facing inward or down.

How about in LDraw? I rotate all my gears so that the teeth mesh properly, otherwise it drives me crazy. And of course, all attached axles must be rotated to match.

[kolbjha]

I also have to follow the BI for bushes, but sometimes it seems to me they are inconsistent (for example not symmetric where it would be natural). In those cases I follow what I feel is natural.

Also axles must be rotated to be orthogonal. Same with pins with bushes, they should be rotated to match each other.

Edited December 7, 2015 by kolbjha

[aeh5040]

This thread is pretty funny! Our community would provide substantial fodder for a psychology thesis, it seems.

That would be OCD. And I do the same thing. Actually, I tend to align the "castellated" direction with something that doesn't rotate, and the smooth end with the rotation direction. This is to avoid any possible friction or jamming.

Actually, I have changed my "policy" on this. With instructions I typically follow them. In my own building, I used to put the smooth side against the rotating surface, but now I usually put the castellated side against the rotating surface. Almost certainly it makes no difference at all in practice, but my "rationale" is: if the bush is being pushed against the surface then it should not make any difference to friction - a smaller area means higher pressure, and higher friction per unit area, but the total friction should be the same. (Come to think of it, perhaps the torque induced by friction is a bit smaller, because of the average radius is smaller.) When there is no pushing force and the bush just happens to touch, I would expect a smaller area to mean smaller friction.

Obviously, an exception to all this is when the "surface" is e.g. a studded technic plate!

Orientation of 3L pins can really matter on rare occasions. If you have 3 stacked liftarms connected by a 3L pin, it protrudes significantly more on the "long" side. So much so that certain parts will jam if they are rotating against the surface of the liftarm.

How about in LDraw? I rotate all my gears so that the teeth mesh properly, otherwise it drives me crazy. And of course, all attached axles must be rotated to match.

I have not felt the need to do this yet - please don't encourage me!

[torso]

How about in LDraw? I rotate all my gears so that the teeth mesh properly, otherwise it drives me crazy. And of course, all attached axles must be rotated to match.

I do the opposite - avoid introducing rotation where it isn't needed. Rotation will often introduce misalignment due to rounding errors.

[Meisseli]

With small 1x1 parts, I always try to get them perfectly straight. My eyes bleed when looking at something like these seats for example (sorry Jim...): https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3863/14574549815_5714064e10_k.jpg

Not much of a concern with pure technic, but many model team style creations can be put together looking quite ugly, if no attention is paid for these things.

[afol1969]

In addition, colours must match and I try to avoid mixing old grey and the newer LBG, but that is often impossible with a collection stemming from the 80s. I'm a bit colourblind, so I never really notice when I mix e.g. bushes old and new until I make a photo: the flash makes the difference stand out enormously. I've taken stuff apart to fix it...

Same here.

At the moment I'm sorting all the grey parts by separating in DG/DBG and LG/LBG. I have some rare older sets, and want to have assembled them in original parts, I hate mixing the old/new grey colors. To see the color difference, an can do the sorting only in clear day light, from late morning to late afternoon. It's nearly impossible to see the color difference in artificial light.

Greetings

Alex

[MikeTwo9398]

Reading al topics I see a lot of us have the same Manias.

Before I start building I sort all the parts.

I also place the pins and bushes in the same direction as in the instructions.

A year ago a had to rebuild my 8479 Barcode Multi Set because of loose isolation of the threads.

I noticed that I was placing the bricks with the text "lego" on top of the studs in the same direction.....

When I build from scratch I don't this!

I start with my sorted parts but after half an hour its one big mess.

[Erik Leppen]

I also care about the molding direction on the 5x7 or 5x11 liftarm frame. I like the open side of the slots to be facing inward or down.

Yes! I found one I do as well! :D

Because it looks like compared to all of you, I just build :P

OK, I do care about symmetry where possible, and about slots on bushes being aligned to those on cross blocks where possible. But for the rest, I am far from as OCD-like as many people here.

I do have a tendency, though, to use black inline axle joiners for structural ones, and gray inline axle joiners for functional ones (those which rotate). Often, moving linkages tend to be gray as well, and the frame is usually black.

Another thing I can't stand is old gray and old dark gray. They just don't match, even if not visible in the end... Also, 1/2 pins are blue or gray, but in my models they're either all blue, or all gray.

OK, maybe I am a bit perfectionistic, just like you all :P

[jorgeopesi]

Another thing I can't stand is old gray and old dark gray. They just don't match, even if not visible in the end... Also, 1/2 pins are blue or gray, but in my models they're either all blue, or all gray.

I agree again 100% .

[Gnac]

I have to put any parts that look weird under UV light into their own NAUGHTY BOX. It's currently full of piston heads.

[grum64]

There's enough here to keep a whole team of psychologists going for months

[JJ2]

Another Mania I have is that I can NOT stand the tarta offset drive chain because it is not the same on both sides It Drives be crazy!

[aeh5040]

Another Mania I have is that I can NOT stand the tarta offset drive chain because it is not the same on both sides It Drives be crazy!

This must win the prize for the most specialized cause of craziness! i can just imagine you trying to explain what it means to a psychologist...

[Gnac]

Parts in obscure and obsolete colours (bright blueish green / bright violet) live in their own tub with a load of outdated moulds and all such as black 3M pegs. I can't stop thinking about buying more things to fill up this tub. Also thinking about what I'm going to do when the tub gets full. And having the limits of my headmeat tested when I finally realise that I'm never going to use these parts and want to sell them. I could say I'm hoarding these things to reconstitute some old sets for obnoxious eBay auctions, but I hate that scene.

[JJ2]

This must win the prize for the most specialized cause of craziness! i can just imagine you trying to explain what it means to a psychologist...

I get a prize! What is it Haha just kidding

[nerdsforprez]

Is now a bad time to tell everyone I am a psychologist? :laugh: :laugh:

[Blakbird]

Another Mania I have is that I can NOT stand the tarta offset drive chain because it is not the same on both sides It Drives be crazy!

I know what you mean. The distance from the engine to the wheels ends up being different and therefore there is a stiffness differential. No wonder they occasionally get stuck in the Czech Republic.

[Nalyd997]

One thing I do is make sure none of the little dots show on liftarms where they have broken off of the mold from.

[Lipko]

Seriously, most of the things in this tread are just basic aesthetic sense. Not caring of most of these things would result in an untidy looking model.

Only aligning pins (2L/3L) is too much because it can hardly be seen on the final model. But for example the orientation of bushes and the other things is quite visible.

This is our hobby, and one part of it is looking at the final model. It's obvious that we pay a little extra attention and try to make our models look the best they can.

I'm still waiting to see some real "manias". Like always building in tin-foil hat or Hello Kitty underpants or washing parts before building or whatever

Edited December 9, 2015 by Lipko