Custom 1xN ladders

[zephyr1934]

As I mentioned in my post about the GN S2 MOC, I have slipped one step further down the Lego purity slope and made my own ladders.

(click on the image or here to see the full gallery)

You can see examples of the short ladders clipped on at the front of the tender and the long ladders clipped on at the back of the tender. If you look closely at the ladders on the front of the tender, you will see that the surface is matte (they will not be mistaken for shiny bricks), but some of the lego bars have a similar matte surface.

The spacing between rungs is similar to the lego bars,

but I've made the holes square instead of rectangular. Probably not something a minifig would want to put their foot in. I think the dimensions look a lot better for my rolling stock and it is definitely a heck of a lot easier than trying to do a brick built version.

This past week I've retrofitted one of my earliest MOCs with the new ladder- original in back and new in front. Click on the image to see more, including the smaller ladder on the other end of the car. I like the proportions a lot better. After doing this change, I see a lot of other tweaks that I will do to the boxcar, e.g., using grilled cheese bricks for the running boards leading to the ladder, removing the buffers

You can see photos of all four sizes that I've fabricated so far here.

And for those of you who want to be tempted down the purity slope, you can do so here.

Enjoy!

[bricks n bolts]

Oh wow, they're really cute :thumbup: I expect there are many, yet to be dreamed up, multiple uses for these.

[Locomotive Annie]

Cool, - I can see those as being very useful Zephyr.

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

Another great stuff Zephyr!

[LegoSjaak]

Looks great indeed, but where do we end up with custom parts......? I'd rather choose original parts only...

[Spitfire2865]

Exactly what are they made of? 3D printing? Or a lego mod? They look very nice and I can see them being useful in almost any build.

[Werlu Ulcur]

More stuff to add to my order!

[Konrad]

i hear the waves of purist complaints coming

[zephyr1934]

Thanks BnB, LA, LT12V, LS, S2, and WU for the kind words.

Certainly K, these are not for everyone and I have total respect for the purists. In fact I enjoy trying to find pure lego solutions too. You can find my best pure lego ladder solution in the REC reveal in RB6. I made these ladders for myself to fit a tight squeeze and I was not able to find a pure lego solution that I liked. In any event, yes, these are a bit of an indulgence.

S2, These are fabricated using rapid prototyping. The nice thing about it is that you can fabricate a single part without much setup cost, the not so nice thing is that there are almost no economies of scale. Having done the design for myself, I can make more without too much effort.

[bricks n bolts]

Certainly K, these are not for everyone and I have total respect for the purists. In fact I enjoy trying to find pure lego solutions too.

Remember some of the more recent technically purist parts are far more scandalous. For example, need I remind everyone :

[Spitfire2865]

I dont understand your explanation of the fabrication. But other than that, how strong are they?

[zephyr1934]

Remember some of the more recent technically purist parts are far more scandalous. For example, need I remind everyone :

Heh heh heh, always a fun challenge, trying to come up with a good use for an otherwise useless part... but then again, what can you do with a nose like that?

Probably my favorite "useless" part usage that I've come up with are the old Samsonite "junior" bricks and the salt and pepper shakers,

but then again, a flatcar is kind of like Ketchup, you can cover anything with it. (mind you I am fond of both loads, but they are otherwise difficult to integrate into a layout)

I dont understand your explanation of the fabrication. But other than that, how strong are they?

I haven't tested one to failure yet. They seem reasonably strong, I would assume they are not as strong as lego but then again... they might be. Do you have a strenuous application in mind?

[Spitfire2865]

No, I was just curious. I would love to buy some but I need money. Haha. Model railroading is an expensive hobby, Lego is as well.

[Spitfire2865]

Hey, sorry for bumping, but I was just remembering these ladders and I could maybe use them. Are you still producing these? And could you do a custom length?

[zephyr1934]

Yes, they are still available in my bricklink store (either follow the link in my signature or go to TrainedBricks.com ). Yes, I could certainly do a custom length. Just drop me a note either PM here or on bricklink.