MOC T-47 Snowspeeder, 2016 Edition

[Brickdoctor]

Do you happen to have an LDD? ;)

Just for you, mortesv! This is as close as it's going to get, I think:

Parts in red need to be substituted with parts that aren't in LDD. You'll need at least:

• Two of the 8L pneumatic tubing. I just bought one 17L piece and cut it down to size.
  
• Two of those tabless, removable hose bases.
  
• Two of the old Technic bushing-pulley combo pieces.
  
• Four of the metal train axles.
  
• Roughly 10L flex tubing.
  
• Two of the toothed half bushings; make sure to get the ones with four inner teeth instead of two.
  
• Two red rubber bands, either Technic or the ones off of the flanged drivers.
  
• One string that's wedged between the ¾ pin and the 3L flex tubing of the harpoon gun and run through the radiator to somewhere in the cockpit

There are also some part and color variations that are probably ignorable. For example, I've used two styles of the 1x1 tiles with clips, depending on how much friction I wanted for the particular connection. Also note that some of the dark bley inserts for the repulsorlift housing are just 'floating', held in by friction. If you buy new pneumatic tubing, you might need some lubrication to get the train axles in; I just used canola oil and washed the assembly off with a bit of soap afterwards.

T-47.lxf

[lvassa]

Beautifully done!

[Sucram]

I could tell I was in for a treat when I saw that shiny "MOC" tag!

[dmaclego]

(4265a).

Oh boy, I have a box of those right in front of me and it just didn't click in my mind :D . Thanks.

Anyway, the idea is brilliant and - with Brickdoctor's permission - I'd love to use it one day.

[ChiefPie]

Looks great!

[PaddyBricksplitter]

Now that's what a Lego snowspeeder should look like.

[Brickdoctor]

Anyway, the idea is brilliant and - with Brickdoctor's permission - I'd love to use it one day.

Of course! You don't need my permission; no one owns building techniques.

[BrickJagger]

Very accurate! I like how smooth it is.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

Is it bad that I think the use of gray instead of white is just as cool as the clever engineering?

It's a shame there isn't an operating winch hidden in the body, but that would be tricky to squeeze in at this size.

Edited August 26, 2016 by ZeldaTheSwordsman

[Brickdoctor]

It's a shame there isn't an operating winch hidden in the body, but that would be tricky to squeeze in at this size.

It wouldn't be that tricky to squeeze in, but there isn't much point. It'd be too hard to get in and work the winch, I think. So I just ran the string into a bundle tucked next to the gunner.

[LiLmeFromDaFuture]

Is it bad that I think the use of gray instead of white is just as cool as the clever engineering?

It's a shame there isn't an operating winch hidden in the body, but that would be tricky to squeeze in at this size.

Uhm, I think with the vibrant orange matched with the bluish light gray is a horrible combination (why I would never do it), but Doc's photography makes it less apparent to me

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

It wouldn't be that tricky to squeeze in, but there isn't much point. It'd be too hard to get in and work the winch, I think. So I just ran the string into a bundle tucked next to the gunner.

Well, as long as it has the string. That's the most important part.

As far as a winch goes, I think it would work if you mounted it upside-down, with the spool as close to the bottom as possible. Then you'd be able to fiddle it with your finger to wind the string back in.

[Brickdoctor]

As far as a winch goes, I think it would work if you mounted it upside-down, with the spool as close to the bottom as possible. Then you'd be able to fiddle it with your finger to wind the string back in.

That's what I did with my previous version. Also not really worth it. It still takes too mich force and too much time to wind up the prefab winch part. Much easier to just open the canopy and wind up the bundle to pick up the slack. Besides, it's not as if the other end is connected to something that can be fired.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

That's what I did with my previous version. Also not really worth it. It still takes too mich force and too much time to wind up the prefab winch part. Much easier to just open the canopy and wind up the bundle to pick up the slack. Besides, it's not as if the other end is connected to something that can be fired.

No hook or stud on the other end? Then why have the string at all? In the movies the tow cable is pretty much completely inside the harpoon gun until fired, so there's no real point in having the string if there's nothing on the other end to attach to an AT-AT.

[Brickdoctor]

No hook or stud on the other end? Then why have the string at all? In the movies the tow cable is pretty much completely inside the harpoon gun until fired, so there's no real point in having the string if there's nothing on the other end to attach to an AT-AT.

I mean, you can certainly take off the 3/4 pin and attach it to something else with the string wedged inside, but I'm not going to add an oversized, bulky, wildly inaccurate hook and launcher. I don't make design decisions for the sake of play features, and that goes for the winch as well.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

I mean, you can certainly take off the 3/4 pin and attach it to something else with the string wedged inside, but I'm not going to add an oversized, bulky, wildly inaccurate hook and launcher. I don't make design decisions for the sake of play features, and that goes for the winch as well.

Well, that's partly what I was getting at. If you're not employing it as a play feature, why include the whole bundle of string at all? It serves no visual purpose and just seems like unnecessary bother.

Edited August 29, 2016 by ZeldaTheSwordsman

[Brickdoctor]

Well, that's partly what I was getting at. If you're not employing it as a play feature, why include the whole bundle of string at all? It serves no visual purpose and just seems like unnecessary bother.

The 'real' harpoon gun is a lot more complex than two barrels. I can't do much more in LEGO, but the string adds a bit of texture that doesn't seem out of place.

[ZeldaTheSwordsman]

The 'real' harpoon gun is a lot more complex than two barrels. I can't do much more in LEGO, but the string adds a bit of texture that doesn't seem out of place.

Fair enough, though why not cut off the rest of the string once the length you need for the texture once is in place? I ask because I'm puzzled.

[Brickdoctor]

Fair enough, though why not cut off the rest of the string once the length you need for the texture once is in place? I ask because I'm puzzled.

Why cut something if you don't have to? Also, unlike cut flex tubing, I'm not sure how purist cut string would be.

[Brickdoctor]

...and base complete:

As this is a display base meant to showcase the Snowspeeder, I kept it clean and simple, rather than adding a bunch of trenches and gun emplacements, as was my original plan.

I suppose this means I need a similar display piece from Star Wars now that I've got the T-47 from Empire and the AT-ST from Jedi...

[Hold0511]

Sweet - that looks excellent and sets of the ship nicely. Yes you now need to complete set - do you have any thoughts on what the ship/build would be?

[Rare White Ape]

Awesome build!

[mortesv]

Just for you, mortesv! This is as close as it's going to get, I think:

Thank you!

The LL version uses 2x2 tiles for the grille. I'll post some pics of my version when I get around to it - working on a project ;)

[Brickdoctor]

Yes you now need to complete set - do you have any thoughts on what the ship/build would be?

I'm not sure. My initial thought was to rebuild the T-16, only because the older versions of those three MOCs sat on my shelf for years, but as display pieces go, it's a pretty bland design. There aren't very many complex shapes, and all the detailing is in white and on the back or bottom, which is quite interesting to build, not so interesting to look at. It's also a bit too large.

Unfortunately, since Star Wars has no major ground conflicts, my options are pretty much nonexistent when it comes to iconic, medium-sized, generic, gray land vehicles. Or I could just ignore the idea of making it as symmetrical a set as possible, in which case the obvious choice is the X-34.

It's not really a priority, in any case; school starts back up in a couple weeks, and I work a couple jobs for my professors during the year in addition to being a full time student, so I have no immediate plans for MOCs. (Unless, of course, some idea strikes that I just can't ignore, which is pretty much how this T-47 became a thing.)

Ideas?

The LL version uses 2x2 tiles for the grille. I'll post some pics of my version when I get around to it - working on a project ;)

Ah. Hmm, that could work for more precise shaping, but it wouldn't be any shallower (with respect to the lengthwise axis of the MOC), so it doesn't solve the big issue, which is that I need to be able to run some of the radiator fins 'through' the 1x2x2 slopes on the inner trailing edges of the wings. (And it doesn't help that the wings are brick-thick instead of plate-thick.) There also isn't much space to expand sideways, and I'd have to give up or approximate the slope of the fins, which admittedly isn't that obvious on the 'real' thing, but I do like the way it looks.

As depicted in this trackpad-drawing-annotated picture:

I think, ultimately, it comes down to either slightly more accurate SNOT wing angles or slightly more accurate radiator dimensions, and in both cases, it's a minor detail on the back of the MOC, so it's not a huge compromise one way or the other. It's really up to you which one you prefer if you build it. I'd rather have the slightly more accurate SNOT wing angles.

Maybe I'll have to experiment with making that one portion of the wing a traditional plate. The studs would be hidden. I'm not sure if that'd flow well with the SNOTed trailing slope on the outer part of the wing, though.

[mortesv]

My modded LL version:

In perfect scale with cavegod's AT-AT btw ;)