Constraction custom parts

[Leewan]

I'm currently putting all of my parts on Shapeways, just wait a few days.

[Hanzako]

Oh! thats awesome! thank you!!!!

[Leewan]

Those of you who follow me on flickr already know I received another package from Shapeways yesterday. This package contained... hands !

They're roughly the same size as the good ol' 2.0 hands :

You can do plenty of cool things with them, like this :

Or this :

Or... okay, I'm sure I don't need to post the last one.

There were still some issues, though. The cross holes were too tight. I had to use a small screwdriver to enlarge them, and the clips are a bit too loose (so you can hold a (light) weapon, as you can see here, but it's not super strong). There are more pics in the flickr album.

[TheOneVeyronian]

I think you've nailed the basic articulated hand design right there. I think the thumb connection part is absolutely ingenious. I'm thinking is it possible to model that hand design with an extra part added onto the palm that contains a cross axle so it can hold all manner of weapons?

Out of curiosity, if you ever put these up for sale on Shapeways, how much would a pair of hands with the fingers and necessary attachments cost? (well, how much did they cost you to print is basically what I'm asking ). I'd be very tempted to use a few of these on my own signature figures with custom moulded heads... these hands seem perfect for them. Not to mention all the other parts you've come up with... keep up the good work Leewan

[ZORK64]

The only thing that I'm missing here is the attachment for a 5th finger, but other than that, this design is pretty great.

[Nekchir]

How durable are they, though? They see really fragile.

[Leewan]

The only thing that I'm missing here is the attachment for a 5th finger, but other than that, this design is pretty great.

Voilà.

How durable are they, though? They see really fragile.

Yes, and I was actually afraid the clips would break when I first saw them. But they didn't, the material is rather flexible.

[Kamen Rider Kiva]

Ooh, those hands are pretty cool. :D I know that this isn't really a CCBS thing, but have you ever considered making articulated versions of the gen1 Toa Mata/Nuva limbs and torsos?

[Leewan]

No, and to be honest, I don't really see the point. They are old parts, and people almost don't use them anymore. I could try, at least for fun, but let's say it's not among my priorities.

Also, last week, you asked when you could purchase my parts. The answer is today.

[Kamen Rider Kiva]

No, and to be honest, I don't really see the point. They are old parts, and people almost don't use them anymore. I could try, at least for fun, but let's say it's not among my priorities.

Also, last week, you asked when you could purchase my parts. The answer is today.

Amazing! ^-^ I'll definitely buy them when I can. :D Bit of a shame about the gen1 parts, but oh well. Maybe when I learn to do modeling I can give it a shot. XD

[Leewan]

I was asked to make bigger hands. Here's the result :

The fingers are longer (three sections instead of two), and are made of different parts. The new part works with the previous finger design, though. Here are some details :

(You'll notice that these parts can't be moulded because of the undercuts)

(The previous finger design is here shown in purple)

Also, perhaps you remember this. I've started a new version from scratch yesterday, and although it still needs a few modifications, I'm quite happy with the overall design. Now I need to make the lower armour.

Note : the renders of the hands and the armours were made with Blender thanks to Scrubs' amazing tutorial.

[Scarilian]

I was asked to make bigger hands. Here's the result :

Will definitely be getting these when the kinks are ironed out :3

[Takanuinuva]

Do the new hands work with Exo Force arms and this piece (http://alpha.bricklink.com/pages/clone/catalogitem.page?P=11090&idColor=88#T=C&C=88) for fingers?

[Leewan]

Will definitely be getting these when the kinks are ironed out :3

I'm sorry I'm not sure I understand what that means.

Do the new hands work with Exo Force arms and this piece (http://alpha.brickli...lor=88#T=C&C=88) for fingers?

The previous one does, so I don't see why the new one wouldn't. (:

(And as the dimensions are the same, both of the parts you mention should be able to be attached to the new finger part. The thicker clip of the EF robot arm may prevent it from rotating and limit the range of articulation, though.)

[One Very Agile Cat]

If only Shapeways wasn't so primitive. :< The grainy texture kills the usefulness for these to fit in with Lego.

[Mutant Orc]

couldn't some sort of ink or paint cover that anyways..?

also I haven't yet said these are great, so- these are great!

[One Very Agile Cat]

couldn't some sort of ink or paint cover that anyways..?

also I haven't yet said these are great, so- these are great!

I've seen painted Shapeways stuff, and the material is so pourous you have to really glob it on to even halfway obscure the texture. Which means you'd have to sand contact areas. You can get it in a special, smoother finish but it's also very fragile and wouldn't work for parts that clip on like this. (and it's still not the perfect finish)

[Mutant Orc]

I've seen painted Shapeways stuff, and the material is so pourous you have to really glob it on to even halfway obscure the texture. Which means you'd have to sand contact areas. You can get it in a special, smoother finish but it's also very fragile and wouldn't work for parts that clip on like this. (and it's still not the perfect finish)

Ah right ok

[Leewan]

also I haven't yet said these are great, so- these are great!

Thank you.

You can get it in a special, smoother finish but it's also very fragile and wouldn't work for parts that clip on like this. (and it's still not the perfect finish)

Indeed, you can't get the smooth finish on such small parts, but it does look good on bigger parts. Also, the parts tend to "wear off" when you use them, which means they get smoother and shinier with time.

From my experience, I'd say that acrylic plastic is the closest you can have from ABS, but it's more expensive and brittle than polyamide (strong and flexible), so again, it's more appropriate for bigger parts. But for the hands, the "graininess" is not an issue unless you get really close.

[PrimoUltimo]

Did you thought maybe to make CCBS bones with holes for pins? Because when there are only ball joints it's hard to build something good, or connect things.

That could help building more complex things from it and it could connect many parts from old Bionicle to CCBS.

From begging this was the biggest problem of CCBS for me, and I still have hope that Lego will do CCBS 2.0, with parts with more holes.

[Leewan]

I once did this :

There's this bone too. Beside that no, because I don't think that's what the CCBS needs. From LEGO's point of view, the old system is dead, and making new parts compatible with the old parts is a nonsense (however, making articulated hands doesn't make much more sense, because it would cost a lot of money and wouldn't significantly improve the sets). Worse, a pin hole prevents from attaching shells from two sides of the bone, which actually limits the "connectability" of the parts.

[PrimoUltimo]

Compatible with the old parts is one thing, but better and easier building is other. In old system holes were everywhere, so you could connect all parts like you wanted, there always was the way.

I was building few things in CCBS and that was really frustrating that I can't do something because I just can't connect parts, become there were only balls.

I don't say to completely remove old bones, they could be still useful sometimes, but some new bones with holes and some new armor parts for that bones, would be something new.

[Leewan]

some new armor parts for that bones

Like armours which attach with technic pins, like with the older system ? That would be a step back, IMO.

And anyways, I wouldn't say that CCBS bones lack holes, especially when there are more CCBS bones with holes than without :

[Leewan]

And here's the lower armor :

I wasn't happy with the first version (which was more like a 3D sketch than an actual armor anyway), but after some time reworking it, here's the final result. And here it is with the upper armor :

If anyone's interested, they're on shapeways. Think I'll order them very soon myself (with the other parts required to make an articulated torso).

Also, I made a 3M beam with two balls, because why not :

[Takanuinuva]

That lower waist piece looks wonderfull. Though I think it would be better if it had pin connections on both sides rather than just the front