UCS 75313 AT-AT Modding

[SquirrelArmy]

I was going to make a dedicated thread just for my own ideas but it's probably better to have a general mod thread for this glorious piece of Empire equipment.

I'm still waiting for mine to be delivered but I already have ideas of how to add more to it. There was a very brief discussion about bringing the AT-AT up to Canon specification. I have decided that is what I'm going to do with mine.

With the addition of 3 more speeders and 35 more Snowtroopers, the vehicle will have it's full complement of troops but what about the rest of the listed specs?

I'm getting all my information from wookiepedia: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/All_Terrain_Armored_Transport_(Galactic_Civil_War) I don't think there is a more comprehensive source for Star Wars trivia.

There is seating for 40 troops in addition to the crew but it seems that Lego have forgotten about a couple of crucial crew members. Each AT-AT comes with it's own engineer and loadmaster. I've chosen an Imperial Ground Crew Technician minifig to represent the engineer and an Imperial Gunner to represent the loadmaster.

The next crew member not included with the set is the AT-AT Commander. I know General Veers is included but was he commanding the actual AT-AT? He was in charge of all the AT-ATs and troops on the battlefield, would the AT-AT have had it's own separate commander in addition to Veers? I think so and have added an Imperial Commander with battle armour to my list of figures to buy.

Next we come to the weaponry included with the set. 

• At least 20 E-11 blaster rifles^[8]
• At least 5 DLT-20A blaster rifles^[8]

I'm not sure exactly what comes with the set and battlepacks yet but I'll make sure I have enough firepower for all the troops on board.

The next item that stands out is this:

LX-4 proton mines (25)

This is an item I've not heard of and obviously hasn't been recreated in Lego so it's something I've had to imagine up. I've found this image which seems to match the description. The AT-AT has 25 of them according to the specs. I think they would all fit on a rack in the lower part of the main hold and would look something like this:

Once the set arrives I'll be checking to see if there is anything to represent a sensor array and terrain scanners and I'll be working out how to fit in another speederbike

The next question will be how to display it. I have a strong feeling that a Snowspeeder will be involved!

Edited November 27, 2021 by SquirrelArmy

[Kdapt-Preacher]

The engineer and loadmaster have never been directly pointed out in any media that I'm aware of, but the Incredible Cross-Sections illustration (which is what the set's interior is based on) shows some people that're presumably meant to be them dressed in Imperial Army driver uniforms, so LEGO's AT-ST Pilot figures are probably the most accurate choices for them.

[LDigital]

I am currently building mine and just finished box 1. I am glad you made this thread as I was going to make one like this myself. 
 

already I have a list of parts that I will be ordering to mod mine. There are some baffling design decisions when it comes to colour use.

i know they try to make orientation easier by color coding sections but the usual problem of rainbow insides is unforgivable if it’s actually possible to see it from certain angles.  If this is an 18+ set then dumbing it down while spoiling the final look is unforgivable, especially when suitable pieces in dbg or lbg are available.
 

im also going to do some work on smoothing the final look out a bit to be less studded in certain places.

I am really enjoying this set but I will post some updates once I finish and get to the modding stage. It might be a few weeks as I am not rushing this to get max enjoyment :)

 

[SquirrelArmy]

First deliveries have arrived for my modifications. You can tell by the look on the Commanders face that he's annoyed that his vehicle hasn't turned up yet. Can't trust Veers with anything.

 

From what I've seen in the instructions, other than the side hatch, there are no other ways to exit the vehicle. I shall be working out how to add the escape hatches and the Auxiliary hatch. I believe the latter one is the one used by Luke to throw a Thermal Detonator in.

 

Quote

The main, rectangular troop hatch was located in the middle of the walker's side, two smaller escape hatches were located both to the main hatch's immediate left and right,^[8] and the auxiliary hatch was located in the walker's underside.

 

[Kage Goomba]

Could always build the docking platform form Endor.

 

 

[LDigital]

2 hours ago, SquirrelArmy said:

 

From what I've seen in the instructions, other than the side hatch, there are no other ways to exit the vehicle. I shall be working out how to add the escape hatches and the Auxiliary hatch. I believe the latter one is the one used by Luke to throw a Thermal Detonator in.

 

 

The default build has a special hatch for Luke to throw the thermal detonator into already

[Kage Goomba]

17 minutes ago, LDigital said:

The default build has a special hatch for Luke to throw the thermal detonator into already

Erm....technically that wasn't a hatch.

But then a Lightsaber says "Oh really?" :)

(Teasing/being funny funny)

[SquirrelArmy]

5 hours ago, LDigital said:

The default build has a special hatch for Luke to throw the thermal detonator into already

I've seen that, it looks like it's just a surface hatch and doesn't actually have access to the main body of the AT-AT. I'll see if it can be improved. I'm hoping to have the set in my hands in about 12 hours time so I'll be taking an in-depth look then.

[Whovastron]

On 11/28/2021 at 3:17 PM, LDigital said:

I am currently building mine and just finished box 1. I am glad you made this thread as I was going to make one like this myself. 
 

already I have a list of parts that I will be ordering to mod mine. There are some baffling design decisions when it comes to colour use.

i know they try to make orientation easier by color coding sections but the usual problem of rainbow insides is unforgivable if it’s actually possible to see it from certain angles.  If this is an 18+ set then dumbing it down while spoiling the final look is unforgivable, especially when suitable pieces in dbg or lbg are available.
 

im also going to do some work on smoothing the final look out a bit to be less studded in certain places.

I am really enjoying this set but I will post some updates once I finish and get to the modding stage. It might be a few weeks as I am not rushing this to get max enjoyment :)

 

The only ones that really jump out to me are the brick yellow pieces at the top of the main body, such a weird inclusion and super noticeable

[1340cc]

I will be making some custom deck officers for mine, using sw0913 minifigs with 57900 helmets and 970c00pb0411 dual-molded legs.

[Kage Goomba]

I suggest making the toe tips on the feet "dangle" when foot is raised.

Just like the real thing in the movies. :)

[SquirrelArmy]

15 hours ago, Kage Goomba said:

I suggest making the toe tips on the feet "dangle" when foot is raised.

Just like the real thing in the movies. :)

I'd be very wary about adding flexible areas to the feet. Currently each foot covers a 16x16 area. All the weight of the set is going through those contact areas, those feet are very substantial as well.

As you angle the legs, pressure is applied to them and the feet in different ways. The instructions themselves actually warn you about angling the legs incorrectly so obviously there is a potential issue of the set losing it's balance if you're not careful with the positioning of the legs. 

A "real life" AT-AT would have hydraulics making sure the toes are in firm contact with the ground and would help the feet stay in place. Having flexible toes would reduce the firm contact area especially if the set is being placed on a flat shelf.

It would be very easy to make the toes dangle but I feel that it would significantly alter the balance of the set. The AT-AT is no ballet dancer!

[Kage Goomba]

36 minutes ago, SquirrelArmy said:

I'd be very wary about adding flexible areas to the feet. Currently each foot covers a 16x16 area. All the weight of the set is going through those contact areas, those feet are very substantial as well.

As you angle the legs, pressure is applied to them and the feet in different ways. The instructions themselves actually warn you about angling the legs incorrectly so obviously there is a potential issue of the set losing it's balance if you're not careful with the positioning of the legs. 

A "real life" AT-AT would have hydraulics making sure the toes are in firm contact with the ground and would help the feet stay in place. Having flexible toes would reduce the firm contact area especially if the set is being placed on a flat shelf.

It would be very easy to make the toes dangle but I feel that it would significantly alter the balance of the set. The AT-AT is no ballet dancer!

Fair point - but the bulk of the weight is on the foot itself - we're talking about a 2-3 stud long toe sticking out - short of it getting jammed when you put the foot down.

Using transparent bricks to elevate it on a terrain could be a neat little diorama shot so to speak.

It's not that bad of a prospect in terms of design and modding imho.

[SquirrelArmy]

There doesn't seem to be an easy way to create an access route via the underside flap. Too much of the structure would have to be changed to make that possible.

It may be possible to create access via that circular brick though. It does line up with the hollow area in the base of the troop compartment. I would mean a fair bit of modification though as that brick isn't hollow and the macaroni pieces with the same radius are too thick. I do have some ideas though.

 

I can see what people mean by there being a lot of visible colour on the underside of the set.

[Kage Goomba]

1 hour ago, SquirrelArmy said:

There doesn't seem to be an easy way to create an access route via the underside flap. Too much of the structure would have to be changed to make that possible.

It may be possible to create access via that circular brick though. It does line up with the hollow area in the base of the troop compartment. I would mean a fair bit of modification though as that brick isn't hollow and the macaroni pieces with the same radius are too thick. I do have some ideas though.

 

I can see what people mean by there being a lot of visible colour on the underside of the set.

The issue your going to face is there's an extraordinary amount of structure going on. Its a very rigid model - I'm having to desing/plan out LED's for this thing and taking it apart is going to be a nightmare in terms of maintaining stability

I don't envy you there.

I'm not a fan of the AT-AT's red window either - seems off to me in terms of how they went about it.

[Kage Goomba]

Soo if one was to get a "lot" of snowtroopers - where/what/how much?

I'd like to put a platoon in my AT-AT :)

 

Any suggestions?

[TeddytheSpoon]

1 hour ago, Kage Goomba said:

Soo if one was to get a "lot" of snowtroopers - where/what/how much?

I'd like to put a platoon in my AT-AT :)

 

Any suggestions?

Your best bet is probably to wait for the battle pack in all honesty, as I don't think the newer snowtroopers (assuming you want those ones) have been in too many sets over the years. Even if you don't want the pack itself, I'm sure the figure price will drop on bricklink or elsewhere once that set has been out for a few weeks.

[Mr Ogel]

2 hours ago, Kage Goomba said:

Soo if one was to get a "lot" of snowtroopers - where/what/how much?

I'd like to put a platoon in my AT-AT :)

 

Any suggestions?

I bought 40 stormtroopers on BL with  brickbuilt backpacks. The snowtroopers with integrated helmet and backpack are more expensive.
I don't assume that the new stormtroopers will fall in price so much - there are only 4 minfigs in a set for 20 bucks.

[Kage Goomba]

6 hours ago, Mr Ogel said:

I bought 40 stormtroopers on BL with  brickbuilt backpacks. The snowtroopers with integrated helmet and backpack are more expensive.
I don't assume that the new stormtroopers will fall in price so much - there are only 4 minfigs in a set for 20 bucks.

Link?

[Mr Ogel]

1 hour ago, Kage Goomba said:

Link?

right so?

all of them:https://www.bricklink.com/v2/search.page?q=snowtrooper#T=M

sw0115 https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?M=sw0115&name=Snowtrooper, Light Bluish Gray Hips, White Hands (Hoth Stormtrooper)&category=[Star Wars][Star Wars Episode 4/5/6]#T=S&O={"iconly":0}

sw0764 https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?M=sw0764b&name=Snowtrooper, Light Bluish Gray Hips, Light Bluish Gray Hands - Backpack Directly Attached to Neck Bracket&category=[Star Wars][Star Wars Episode 4/5/6]#T=S&O={"iconly":0}

[Kage Goomba]

28 minutes ago, Mr Ogel said:

right so?

all of them:https://www.bricklink.com/v2/search.page?q=snowtrooper#T=M

sw0115 https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?M=sw0115&name=Snowtrooper, Light Bluish Gray Hips, White Hands (Hoth Stormtrooper)&category=[Star Wars][Star Wars Episode 4/5/6]#T=S&O={"iconly":0}

sw0764 https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?M=sw0764b&name=Snowtrooper, Light Bluish Gray Hips, Light Bluish Gray Hands - Backpack Directly Attached to Neck Bracket&category=[Star Wars][Star Wars Episode 4/5/6]#T=S&O={"iconly":0}

Much thanks.

[SquirrelArmy]

Would the full troop complement be all Snowtroopers or should some Scout Troopers also be included for the Speederbikes?

I've almost have all of mine assembled and ready. Reasonably cheap on Bricklink too although the price for them may have increased recently due to demand. I'm still working on different gun rack configurations.

 

Back on my mods. I think I have worked out how to access the main body of the AT-AT from the underside now. There are a lot of details in later steps of the set that I've not added to the 3D model yet.

The purple bricks are the ones I need to purchase, makes it easier to identify what to add to my wanted list.

I'm happy I'm working out what I want to change before I start building, some of the changes begin at Step 5 of the instructions.

Next step is working out how to make the circular hatch open, it's currently using the stud.io magic and is floating mid-air.

[Mr Ogel]

16 minutes ago, SquirrelArmy said:

Would the full troop complement be all Snowtroopers or should some Scout Troopers also be included for the Speederbikes?

I've almost have all of mine assembled and ready. Reasonably cheap on Bricklink too although the price for them may have increased recently due to demand. I'm still working on different gun rack configurations.

 

 

Back on my mods. I think I have worked out how to access the main body of the AT-AT from the underside now. There are a lot of details in later steps of the set that I've not added to the 3D model yet.

 

The purple bricks are the ones I need to purchase, makes it easier to identify what to add to my wanted list.

I'm happy I'm working out what I want to change before I start building, some of the changes begin at Step 5 of the instructions.

 

Next step is working out how to make the circular hatch open, it's currently using the stud.io magic and is floating mid-air.

it contains up to 5 speeders so you also need 5 scout troopers, I would say. I am not sure if they have to be subtracted from the number of the "passengers" but would say so - the new ones are pretty good.

A good idea for the hatch, too

 

[guitarhero123]

I added a very simple foldable deployment crane to each side of my AT-AT. It’s pinned into the technic doorframe and secured by another pin that, when removed, functions as storage for the deployment hook. The whole assembly takes up little space in the body of the AT-AT and doesn’t interfere or catch on anything already there.

 

 

Edited December 23, 2021 by guitarhero123

[Kage Goomba]

2 hours ago, guitarhero123 said:

I added a very simple foldable deployment crane to each side of my AT-AT. It’s pinned into the technic doorframe and secured by another pin that, when removed, functions as storage for the deployment hook. The whole assembly takes up little space in the body of the AT-AT and doesn’t interfere or catch on anything already there.

 

 

Brilliant!