Ugly Zukker

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After a few deeply cool and exotic vehicles TLCB has returned to its place in the automotive gutter, a spot we seem to inhabit rather frequently. This is an FSC Zuk van, and it’s hideous in every way. It comes – as most vehicles of this type seem to – from behind the Iron Curtain, and was produced using leftover bits of FSO and GAZ vehicles from 1958, when it was probably a passable purchase, until a scarcely believable 1998. Yay communism. Thankfully after the fall of the Soviet Union the Zuk died a relatively quick death, but with over half a million units produced many can still be seen in its native Poland.

This Technic recreation of the communistical horror-show isn’t hideous at all though, and features some most excellent engineering, including remote control drive and steering, opening doors, and working suspension. Previous bloggee damianple is the builder and there are more images available on Brickshelf – click the link above to see the full gallery.

Ice Cool

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Lancia may be a shadow of its former self reduced to making ugly Chrysler knock-offs, but there was a time when owning a Lancia was seriously cool. The legendary Stratos was one of the brand’s highlights, winning the World Rally Championship three times and remaining a rally winner until the mid 1980s, a full decade after its launch. This neat remote control Lego ice-racing version comes from Flickr’s Peter Blackert and was suggested to us by a reader – see more at the link above.

Engine No.13

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Hot rod building extraordinaire and TLCB favourite Norton74 is back, with another wonderful recreation of a real-world show rod from decades past. His latest is this stunning Model Team replica of Chuck Miller’s ’67 Ford C-cab ‘Fire Truck’, and it’s gorgeous. Useless at fighting fires, but gorgeous nonetheless. There are more superb images available to view at Norton’s Flickr photostream – click the link above to dial 911.

Brick Bucket

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At over 1.2 meters longs, weighing 8kgs, and with 14 motors, 4 batteries, and 6 IR receivers, Desert752 Kirill’s replica of the 700 ton soviet ER-1250 bucket wheel excavator is one of the most spectacular creations that this blog has ever featured. It’s also, if you’re a TLCB Elf, one of the most dangerous.

Four XL Power Functions motors power the excavator’s two tracks independently whilst two M motors can swing the platform through 360 degrees. Another two M motors rotate the conveyor unloading arm so that it can remain at a fixed point whilst the superstructure turns around it, a third M motor powers the conveyor belt, and a fourth controls the arm’s height. An L motor performs this role for the main boom, with a further M motor powering the bucket wheel on the end. Finally two micro-motors control the unloading mechanism.

If all that sounds a lot you’d be right, and the only way to really appreciate Desert’s incredible engineering feat is to watch his bucket wheel excavator in action;

YouTube Video:

Now imagine that you are a TLCB Elf. An Elf who has been squashed several times during employment at TLCB Towers, and who has gleefully discovered this particular creation.

You can probably guess the outcome when an 8kg remote control tank complete with a viciously rotating bucket is under the control of a bitter and vengeful mythical creature. It’s safe to say that we have a lot of tidying up to do this afternoon.

While we try to piece together what remains of our Elven workforce, and get the body parts out of various Technic mechanisms, we suggest you take a closer look at this amazing creation – you can see more of Desert’s ER-1250 on both MOCpages and Eurobricks, plus you can read a hint about something LEGO themselves have got coming here...

Zero

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The Lego Car Blog has featured numerous Mitsubishi A6M Zeros over the years, and Flick’s Daniel Siskind has been refining his mini-figure scale version of the famous fighter aircraft for almost as long. This is his latest version, and it’s pretty much perfect. See more at his photostream via the link above.

Fresh Prince

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Now, this is a story all about how
My life got flipped-turned upside down
And I’d like to take a minute
Just sit right there
I’ll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air

Oh yeah, this lovely mini-figure scale ’53 Chevrolet Bel Air was found on Flickr. It’s been built by LegoEng and there’s more to see here.

Rovers Return

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There’s only a week left of this year’s Febrovery (although you can of course build a rover any time you like), and here are two more of our favourites so far. Above, and resuscitating the classic M-Tron theme, is Andrew Lee‘s entry, whilst below Jon Blackford has chosen to go a simian-shaped route. See more of each on Flickr at the links.

Crossover Clown

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Despite being more expensive yet not as good as the hatchback or saloon on which they’re based, demand for crossover vehicles is booming. Several cars claim to be the originator of this pointless trend, including Toyota’s RAV4 and Nissan’s Qashqai, and a few more were derided at the time of their launch and failed miserably – yet if they were sold in today’s market they would probably do rather well, such as Rover’s Streetwise and Pontiac’s Aztek – however it was actually a forgotten little French company that came up with the idea of a normal car with off-road looks first.

Matra’s Rancho was based on the little Simca 1100, but with the addition of fibreglass rear bodywork and faux-4×4 styling, and was built from the mid ’70s to the mid ’80s. In a curious twist of fate Matra then invented another new class of car as the Rancho’s replacement, the world’s first MPV; the Renault Espace.

It was the Espace that gained immediate popularity and spawned a whole new market, with every major motor manufacturer copying the formula by the mid ’90s. However, by the 2010s demand for MPVs was plummeting, to be replaced by – you’ve guessed it – the crossover, the car which the MPV had replaced three decades earlier. Weird.

This colourful Lego version of the late ’70s Matra Rancho comes from TLCB favourite Ralph Savelsberg aka Mad Physicist, and it’s apparently the star of a Dutch TV show called ‘Bassie & Adriaan’. You can see more of Ralph’s Rancho, as well as the neat caravan in tow, at his photostream – click the link above to see more.

Black Friday

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No, not that Black Friday. Our Elves are feeling quite sinister today (which means they might be plotting something), and thus we have a few dark and moody creations to share.

First up is TLCB regular piratecox‘s superb hot rod hearse, giving mini-figures the chance to go out in style. It looks the perfect funeral vehicle for a chap like the one below, who mixes driving his brutal-looking rat rod pick-up with piloting a jet-black Corsair fighter plane. Sydag is the builder and you can see more of his stunning build on Flickr at the link above, whilst we try to work out what the Elves are up to…

Here Comes the Science Part

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Febrovery creations are racking up on Flickr, and this one – suggested to us by a reader – is probably the most sciencey one to date. You can tell how far we are outside of our comfort zone by our use of the word ‘sciencey’, so it’s probably best you click on the link to see what this creation by TLCB debutant Felipe Avelar is up to – get your rove on via Flickr here.

Scania G480 Crane Truck – Picture Special

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TLCB favourite shineyu is back with another glorious Technic creation; a truly enormous Scania G480 10×4 crane truck. Inside the superbly accurate bodywork are ten LEGO Power Functions motors and four infrared receivers, giving shineyu’s Scania a huge breadth of motorised functions, all of which can be controlled remotely.

The drive, steering, boom elevation, rotation and extension, stabilisers, and rear tail-lift are all remotely operational, being powered directly by a motor, linear actuator, or through some expert mechanical engineering.

There’s lots more to see courtesy of shineyu’s MOCpage or via the Eurobricks discussion forum – click the links to view all of the images available.

Life’s a Beach

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And then you marry one. Or something like that. Anyway, this lovely first generation Ford F-Series pick-up truck is the work of Flickr’s Aliencat, and it comes complete with surfboard and deckchair! Hit the beach via the link above.

Moon Dune

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Febrovery continues apace, and this smiling classic spaceman looks like he’s got his blue-gloved grabs on a seriously fun rover. Billyburg is the builder, and with only one sixth of the Earth’s gravity acting upon it his lunar dune buggy is going to get some serious air. If there was any on the moon of course. See more at Billyburg’s photostream here.

Fifty-Five

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Flickr’s _Tyler appears on these pages so regularly he’s going to need his own section soon. His latest creation is this absolutely gorgeous ‘55 Chevrolet, and we’ve never wanted a Town-scale car more. Ingenious parts usage and spectacular photography can be found at _Tyler’s photostream – click here to see just how good small Lego cars can get.

Grab ‘n Go

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Tim Schwalfenberg returns to The Lego Car Blog with another beautifully clean creation. Following his Town rollercoaster published here last week is this exceptionally neat excavator with grab attachment, complete with some nice shiny pipes. You can see more of Tim’s latest build here, and you can spot what links this creation with his last via the link above.

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Ugly Zukker

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Ice Cool

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Engine No.13

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Brick Bucket

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Zero

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Fresh Prince

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Rovers Return

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Crossover Clown

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Black Friday

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Here Comes the Science Part

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Scania G480 Crane Truck – Picture Special

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Life’s a Beach

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Moon Dune

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Fifty-Five

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Grab ‘n Go

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