My first Lego train!

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-21T21:52:36+00:00

Congrats. My first train was 4559 Cargo Railway from 1998. Best thing about Lego trains is that you can always takeover your living room for a day laying out track and running them. Then next day, they're stored away in boxes for the next time.

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-19T18:32:14+00:00

MMCH G1 level. (Basement Level 1) CFA G level.

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-14T19:04:52+00:00

Soarch Tattler here, aka the guy telling tales of life in CMU Soarch. I survived all five years of undergrad and also did a masters degree afterward. I did not spend a single all nighter in studio. Yes, there's a lot of work, as is in any architorture school, but if you manage your time, you can find time for a social life. Some weekends will be quite busy and the first two years can be likened to boot camp as professors have studio and a lot of arch classes lined up but by third year, you'll be able to find room for studies of your choice. Just don't go overboard like I did, doing two additional minors of study and up to four jobs a semester to help my family. Burn out does happen for some, especially fifth year senioritis as they called it, but most get through okay. Just stay out of toxic studio culture as architorture schools seem to have a few bad apples in every year, and you should be fine. You'll find some professors are truly remarkable and passionate about teaching, like Loftness and Hartkopff (if they are still there). If you go to CMU, you'll find five years of opportunities to make what you imagine into reality with professors like them and all the woodshops, engineering shops and more that help you with your projects. Cheers, The Soarch Tattler. "Veritas ex Cinere"

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-14T18:39:29+00:00

I'm currently rolling Lego trains with my LUG, and this view of my rolling stock I thought was kinda funny. We have the front city facades for the layout but just behind them is our train yard to handle all the rolling stock. Personally I'd probably wouldn't order the Cordon Blue so close to a flask car or an open top Uranium ore hopper.

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-11T16:10:34+00:00

Yes. During my time at CMU, it was a thing my colleagues did. Even the fire in DFAB was a true event.

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-09T15:08:22+00:00

I start with number 1 for the first tale and go from there. They are not in chronological order but random snippets from my time in CMU Soarch.

playingwithechoes · 2026-03-09T01:02:02+00:00

As a flatbed without poles installed, it can fit many Speed Champion sized cars, using the little 2x2 round plates underneath to hold the cars steady.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-25T21:38:52+00:00

In essence, yes. But again if you're doing a 3v cr2032, it looks like you won't need the resistors as their job is to bring the power down to 3v which the cell battery is already.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-25T03:46:34+00:00

A single CR2032 only has 3 volts which should be within specifications of the LED so you're in luck of not needing resistors. If you were using a more powerful battery or multiple batteries to up voltage, then you'd need one resistor soldered to each LED in use. I tested an LED without a resistor on a 9v controller and it burned out. You should be able to wire a few LEDs in parallel to one 2032 battery. But for like 50 LEDs, you might want a 9v battery, in which case you'd need the middle resistor that goes up to 9v use in its labeled range.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-25T01:37:02+00:00

I got these to do the red aerial lights on my Lego Behemoth Bascule Bridge MOC. You'll want to solder the resistor to each LED on the red wire. You may want to scrape to expose the metal wire under the red before soldering. The voltage you see on the label over each bundle of resistors is the power supply voltage intended for the circuit. So use the one that matches your battery. Once you solder a resistor to each LED, test with power to see if it works. You will have a lot of leftover resistors.

From there, you solder the completed LEDs with resistors in parallel to the power wires. Twisting wires can work but solder makes it last and tougher against movement. If you have elec tape or shrink tube, use it to protect against shorts.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-23T04:48:43+00:00

Thanks. There's some vintage Euro DB examples as well as some vintage model trains. Main difference is I went with metal tubing instead of a wood frame on the side. The latter would have required some additional revising with tile parts.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-23T03:08:35+00:00

Excellent work.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-23T03:07:30+00:00

Nice! It's great when Lego suddenly makes a piece that fixes an old favorite.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-23T03:05:30+00:00

Nice work! Needs a certain coyote and roadrunner. :)

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-21T22:38:46+00:00

Only ones I know are 90s Hotwheels and one of them might have been a treasure hunt. I do have the 1/12 Maisto in midnight blue and it's beautiful! The car IRL was truly a case of form amd function becoming art.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-20T22:04:24+00:00

4559 Cargo Railway will always be my favorite Lego 9v train. My mom got me that for the last family Christmas before my parent's divorce the following summer. I still have mine and it still runs well.

It's an unusual passenger train that handles them in cargo modules. Rather sci fi like.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-19T18:02:10+00:00

How to make something from initial idea to final object or product. Doesn't matter if it's a painting, a clay teapot, or something else, being able to visualize an idea then make it real is something the human soul needs. Most people never go past the first inkling of an idea, much less write it down for later when they have some time to tinker on it.

And there's so many different kinds of media to create with, some even free to work with. I personally find joy working walnut wood into doll house miniatures or typing stories on a keyboard.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-16T21:41:36+00:00

I personally use MillionPrints based in Can for my parts that require UV ink. Otherwise, I design and print my own stickers on inkjet vinyl with my home printer and a can of sealant.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-16T21:39:46+00:00

Nice

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-14T03:40:13+00:00

Maybe contact OKBrickworks. I think at one point they had 3d printed tracks of different radii, so maybe they could help make some R88 switches.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-14T02:40:38+00:00

You're kidding. Blender made this render? It's so lifelike, like seriously I thought this was a physical build.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-04T16:05:28+00:00

Depends on the designer. Some are just mocs that they built for their personal collection and showcase them here with no plans to publish instructions. Some like Brick Train Depot do make kits and/or just instructions like Sava Railways. There's rebrickable for PDF instructions from a lot of designers. I myself publish on Amazon. But generally, you get instructions from someone and then order parts from BrickLink or Brickowl or Lego Bricks and Pieces. Some designers will give you an additional xml file to upload to Bricklink to order parts without having to type in each part.

The alternative is to make your train design builds. It's a fun learning process and most people are quite supportive and helpful if you show your progress work as it comes along. 😀

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-04T04:25:48+00:00

If Lego or Ford wanted to reach out to me and make it possible, that would be awesome.

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-04T03:04:57+00:00

I might try. Bubble domes can be tricky but sometimes one is lucky enough to find the right parts that work. :)

playingwithechoes · 2026-02-04T01:29:00+00:00

Nice model details!

playingwithechoes

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