No, of course I also suffered the usual finger injuries back in the days. The Saturn V was my first set including the tool.
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My fingernails “built a lot of character” back in the day…
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I don’t understand the illustration in the OP. Those particular parts fit together perfectly - how is this illegal? Some kind of LEGO feng shui?
Now, jamming a one-bobber down between the studs on a four-bobber, that needs to be punished.
Click hinges must be in ‘click.’ Approved angles are in multiples of 22.5degrees. Some LEGO projects require an engineer to determine whether an angle is legal.
Oh for crying out loud.
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I’m keeping that in my back pocket for future use.
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This credit should actually go to Jamie Berard, a Lego set designer, not me. Jamie gave this presentation at BrickFest 2006 and then I posted a copy on my website with his permission. Jamie is one of the newer crop of designers at Lego who was an adult fan before joining the company, and pushed for increased complexity in the set designs, particularly in the modular buildings aimed at adults. The first one, 10182 Cafe Corner, was launched not long after this presentation.
Note that some of these “illegalities” have been solved with new mold designs, for example, the cone into the bottom of the brick in the title image.
My contributions to the Lego community:
http://lego.bldesign.org/sphere/
https://code.google.com/archive/p/lsculpt/
http://lego.bldesign.org
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Best quote: There is the potential
for elements (and children) being
stressed.
Attach them to 1x4 or 2x4 full height blocks so it looks like a very deformed Z. Hold the bottom one in place with one hand while the other hand uses the top one as a lever to pull the two apart like a bottle opener. Pulling the flat pieces off the *x4s will be easier.
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The first 15 rakes are relaxing, the sound of creativity. The next 10 are a countdown to frustration.
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The illustration on the right: if the cone gets whacked a bit, it could get forced further into the brick, possibly deforming it.
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I was surprised that the strut wedged 90 degrees between two studs is illegal. Last year I unearthed my 367 Moon Landing set, and it used two connected struts in this way, which had to be slightly bent. That felt completely illegal to me.
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This is explained in the linked document, the cone doesn’t have a stop at the top to prevent it from being pushed to far into the brick.This can cause the brick to become deformed or for the two pieces to become stuck.
This isn’t about what you can do with Lego, but the rules used when accepting designs to be made into kits so that they don’t damage components or fall apart easily.
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Stacked 1x1 flats are easy, just rotate the top one 45 degrees. Stacked 1x2s are more difficult.
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illegal you say?
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As they say in jazz, you can play any note over any chord as long as how you got there is justified somehow musically. (Of course you can also be like Albert Ayler, and your only justification is that you played it, let the critics deal with it.) I’m sure kids don’t give a rat’s ass what is “legal” or not when playing with Legos, we sure as hell didn’t.
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Just use two of the brick separators pictured earlier in the thread. Plenty of YouTube videos and blog articles explain the usage.
Thank God, I was afraid the rules would be ruthlessly enforced on all LEGO-bearing children!
I think how you feel about this is some sort of generational watershed. I am firmly on the curmudgeon side of the divide.
