text:
How could I add fire-like lighting to Rivendell?
I'd love to add lights to the Rivendell set to improve the look of the displayed model in low light.

Ideally, the lights would provide a flame-like effect where appropriate.
What is the best way to do this using official LEGO parts?

Here's a still photo showing the final look that I came up with:

Here's an animation attempting to capture the subtle flame effect:

Parts
I've used 3 City Powered Up hubs (28738) in this modification:

I used 5 Powered Up lights (88005-1) connected to those hubs:

I also used a few very common parts to make minor modifications to the model and secure the lights.
Modifications
This set is composed of three distinct sections that can be moved independently. I chose to maintain this independence for easy portability.
Left Section
From left to right, the first section is the tower and the bedroom. I chose the hide the battery box where the bookshelf would have been in the lower room:

The hub itself provides a modest amount of light on the lower level and drives an LED in the roof of the bedroom:

The second LED on that pair snakes up to the top of the tower:

Center Section
For the center section, I chose to hide the battery box in the roof. I found that it fits quite nicely once it gets wiggled into position:

One pair of LEDs is used to light the main section. I've attached them via 1x2 Technic bricks in the rafters above the shards of Narsil:

The second set of lights from this hub are split up. One goes to the small tower:

The other light is hidden in roof of the small structure jutting out from the main hall:

Right Section
One pair of lights is used under the bridge to accent the water. These are affixed to a pair of 1x2 Technic bricks placed under the bridge:

The second set of lights are split up. One provides general moonlight-like illuminate for the gazebo:

The final light is placed behind the fire for the forge. It is attached to a Technic brick that replaced the black panel behind the fire in the original build:

Software
I wanted to use the City Hubs for this project, as they are relatively small, widely available, and most compatible with System building. Unfortunately, these hubs can't be used without a constant connection to a smart device using the default firmware.
This limitation can be overcome using Pybricks. I wrote some basic code to the hub that would turn on any attached lights without the need for a smart device. From there, it is fairly straightforward to add a flickering algorithm.
While I was making things more complicated, I figured that it also made sense to leverage the RGB LED built into the hubs. I set this to also flicker in a nice orange hue. The code for all of this is available on Github if its useful to anyone.
I like the final look of the flickering quite well. Here's my attempt to capture it again:

Final Model
Here are few shots from various parts of the model showing off the lighting:

That's nicely done.  I saw something quite interesting about flickering a while back, but I can't find it now.  One thing that's interesting is that a flame that goes steady (after flickering) gets whiter as well as brighter. I played with flame flickering on a Arduino - it was quite effective but I don't seem to have uploaded the code anywhere.  You could simulate different fires flickering separately, but also a breeze causing them to behave in sync


text:
Can someone indentify this clone brand?
Just bought some 12 kilos of unsorted Lego.
As usual there is some other stuff mixed up as well.
Among other things around 60 bricks of some clone brand that I have never seen before.
Mostly 4x2 and 2x2 roof-slopes in red with a couple of roof-cap pieces and some 4x2 and 2x2 bricks. Some roof pieces are dark purplish-blue.
(Edit: Later I also found some white 2x2 bricks and a black 3x2.)
The pieces are fractionally smaller (about 0.2-0.25 mm) than the corresponding Lego pieces.
You can force the bricks on top of a Lego brick, but not the other way around (at least not without risking the Lego brick to break).
The slopes have no tubes or baffles at the bottom and have very narrow studs as you can see in the picture.
The normal bricks do have baffles. 1 baffle across the 2x2 and 2 in the 4x2 (between stud 1-2 and 3-4, no baffle between 2-3).
Probably a European brand as I got these in the Netherlands.
According to the seller all the Lego is from the 80's and early 90's, which matches the included booklets and what I see from the Lego, so the clone stuff is probably from the same era.
Can anyone identify these?

Kinda a duplicate of https://bricks.stackexchange.com/questions/16885/i-got-a-vintage-roof-brick-that-is-very-nice-but-can-t-find-what-it-is

@IvanSanchez You are right. It is a  duplicate, but since my picture also shows the blue ones and the 4x2 and 2x2 bricks I leave my question up. The only extra information I get from that Etsi listing (if that can be trusted) is that these may actually be a lot older (1950's) than I thought.

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

sort: votes


text:
Brick, Round Corner and/or Plate, Round Corner with Curved Cutout fitting radius of 88293 - Brick, Round Corner 3 x 3 x 2 Dome Top
I would like to build a rounded edge with 713 - Plate, Round Curved 4 x 8 Right as base and the 88293 - Brick, Round Corner 3 x 3 x 2 Dome Top on top.
Are there any rounded corner bricks or rounded corner plates (with curved cutout) that fits the radius of the 713 and 88293?
Or is there a construction technique that closely matches the radius?

To my knowledge there are no 3x3 macaroni bricks like you'd really like to be able to use here. There are 2x2 and 4x4 macaroni bricks:

A 3x3 plate exists, but it actually has an outer radius of 2 and a short straight segment:

There are some parts that might be useful, depending on exactly what you are trying to accomplish. There is a 3x3 round window element that could be useful if you are willing to add glass from floor to ceiling:

There is also a half-circle panel in this radius the could be useful:

3x3 wedge bricks could be an option if you can compromise on having a truly round edge:

There are also various ways you can get close to this angle using studs-not-on-top techniques. This can be especially useful if you are going for a brick or stone look. Here's one example:

That's not quite the 3x3 corner you are looking for, but the basic idea could be adapted to best suit your particular needs.
Here are some other possible ideas from existing sets. The towers in Kinddoms Joust:

The lighthouse in Lighthouse Point. This uses 2x2 macaroni bricks to build a not-quite-round 3x3 corner:

The windows on the Pet Shop achieve a good estimation of this radius using 2x2 bricks and hinge plates:

Here's the technique in detail:

Hopefully something in there is useful for inspiration. Feel free to ask for clarification via comments or ask other new questions about how to solve specific issues in your build.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Lego Mindstorms EV3 broken screen cable
While taking apart my EV3 brick I accidently pulled on the ribbon cable connecting the screen to the motherboard too hard and it broke.
I figured I could just get a replacement fpc ribbon cable with the same number of pins and swap out the cable, but turns out the other end is soldered to the screen, so that isn't going to work.
I looked around a lot on the Internet and found several other people with the same issue, but no solutions to the problem. Any advice on what I can do from here?

First of all: before doing anything else, contact LEGO customer support. There's nothing to lose by doing so.

According to the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPNJC5Uz9HY , it's possible to replace the screen with a 1.8 inch colour TFT display with the aid of a flat ribbon adaptor.

I'm unsure if you would need to replace the Lego firmware with https://www.ev3dev.org/ or not.

Edit: Lego offers electronic schematics of the EV3 as part of the "Hardware developer kit" that can be downloaded from https://education.lego.com/en-us/product-resources/mindstorms-ev3/downloads/developer-kits . It tells us that the display connects through SPI, and contains this diagram of special relevance:

You should be able to connect any SPI display, which would need 5 connections: +3.3V (or VDDA), 0V (or GND), clock (CLK), MOSI (or DIN or RX in a SPI peripheral), and CS (or SS). Be aware that the nomenclature for SPI is confusing. The screen does not send data back to the board, so a MISO/DOUT/TX connection is not needed.
The stock firmware should work with any monochrome SPI display, but we hobbyists cannot offer you any guarantee at all.

Anyway, the original screen seems to use a pretty standard 18-pin 1.0mm-pitch ribbon cable. You should be able to unsolder it and replace with a new one. But since the connector at the board is a 18-pin 0.5mm-pitch, you'd need to use an adaptor like the aforementioned one.
Bear in mind that soldering tracks with a 1.0mm pitch requires precision soldering skills (and you can imagine that 0.5mm pitch will just be harder). I strongly recommend practicing your soldering skills first.

Edit: According to the folks over at the Electronics stackexchange, it's possible to repair a flat ribbon cable.

Thanks for your reply Ivan. I did go through that video earlier and it seems like the stock firmware doesn't support the color LCD display. I wanted to know if it was possible to get a screen that is similar to the existing one and works directly with the stock firmware. I'm not very experienced with electronics like these so it'll be quite difficult for me to figure out what wiring goes where, but I'm open to learning.

I think I added enough information about wiring to get you started.

Yes. The added information is of great help. I’ll do some more reading on this and get back to you. Thanks a lot!

I was also wondering if screen size would be an issue. The stock display has a resolution of 178x128 pixels, which seems to be custom designed for the EV3, and I can't find that screen size anywhere. The closest I can find is a 160x128 pixel display. I'm assuming that the EV3dev kernel can adapt the display contents to the screen resolution, which is why it worked with the adafruit 160x128 LCD display (in the video you linked), but I'm not sure if that is the case with the stock firmware. Any idea about this?

Alas, I haven't worked enough with SPI displays to know that. You might wanna ask in https://electronics.stackexchange.com .


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Can someone identify what set(s) these three bags belong to?
My son just bought a bag of LEGO and it contained these three bags.  Does anyone know what set or sets they belong to? He would greatly appreciate knowing.

Thanks!

It looks like these bags came from 76104-1 - The Hulkbuster Smash-Up:

Those 3 bags can be used to build the Hulkbuster from that set:

The instructions for this are available via Rebrickable.


text:
What sets are in these mixed bags?
I don't have the instructions nor the original box so I am unsure what set these are. Does anyone know what are the names of these Lego sets? Where to find the instructions?
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Apparently you have a large amount of sets from different themes and eras mixed thoroughly, which only allows the identification of a few sets that have quite distinct pieces. You could pick out the pieces for those sets and try to identify the remaining heap starting by the most unusual pieces.
For instructions I'd recommend checking Brickset. For example if you need the documents for 3847: Magma Monster, you'd look up that set and find the instructions below the main image.

Now, for your photos:
The balloon tires in the first image are called Tire 81.6 x 38 R Balloon, available in 16 sets. The thinner tire is called Tire 94.2mm D. x 22mm Motorcycle Racing Tread, available in 8 sets. The Orange Dish 8 x 8, as identified by Phil B., appeared in 3 SpongeBob sets from 2006 and a city set from 2010, besides an obscure FIRST LEGO League set.
The baseplate in image #2 is Baseplate, Raised 32 x 48 x 6 with Level Front, contained in 3 sets in gray and two in tan (presumably the one under it has the same pattern).
The wings in the third image are Wing Plate 20 x 56 with 6 x 10 Cutout and No Holes in dark bluish gray, these are definitely from 7683 - Fight on the Flying Wing.
The orange baseplate in image #5 is Orange Baseplate 16 x 16, from 3847 - Magma Monster.
Images #4, #5,  #6 and #7 depict seemingly unopened bags, which would mean their contents belong to a single set.
The top bag of #6 has Technic Engine Cylinder with Side Slots (2850a), Technic, Liftarm, Modified Bent Thick 1 x 11.5 Double (32009) and Technic, Gear 40 Tooth (3649), which together with the red fairing have only appeared in 8051 Motorbike.
Bag #1 here seems to be from 8088: ARC-170 Starfighter, as the Dark Green Brick, Round 2 x 2 Dome Top with Pearl Dark Gray Pattern (R4-P44) only appears in that single set.
Image #6 bag #2 has both Dark Tan Wheel 31mm D. x 15mm Technic and a Light Bluish Gray Technic, Brick 1 x 14 with Holes, together only ever released in 8096: Emperor Palpatine's Shuttle.
Bag #3 of Image #6 seems to be from 7930: Bounty Hunter Assault Gunship based on the Dark Bluish Gray Technic, Axle 8L with Stop, Dark Bluish Gray Plate, Round 4 x 4 with Hole, Dark Bluish Gray Wheel 31mm D. x 15mm Technic, Yellow Cylinder 4 x 4 x 1 2/3 with Pin Holes and Center Bar and Dark Green Cylinder Half 2 x 4 x 5 with 1 x 2 Cutout.
On the bottom left, bag #4 has a Light Bluish Gray Technic, Axle Connector Hub with 3 Axles, a White Plate 4 x 6 and most importantly one White Tile 2 x 2 with Groove with Ninjago Cracked Red Skull on Black Circle Pattern, which only appear together in 2506: Skull Truck.
The packages in image #7 are way too hard to identify, since they are not laid out neatly as in #6, so partially overlap each other and the loose parts underneath them, so please upload a separate image in the style of #6 if your own efforts remain unsuccessful.

That 3961 Dish 8x8 in Orange is in 5 sets, including 3 from the Spongebob series.


text:
Why does my 60198 train get lots of wheel spin?
I was running my 60198 train with the 60197 carriages attached (carriages from 60198 also on the train). My train has started to get lots of wheel spin even while on flat ground. What can I do?

Slipping of a wheel is caused by a too low friction between the wheel and the surface. The most straightforward solution would be to reduce the mass of the carriages the locomotive has to pull, but that would be the least desirable too as you probably want to keep all currently attached carriages.
The other solution would be to increase the friction, for this you have two ways. The first is to increase the gripping forces between the wheel and the rails, for example by adding a rubber band or a thin piece of rubbery plastic (duct tape?) to the rim of the wheel. Texturing the wheel and/or the rail surface would work too, but you probably don't want to damage your pieces that way. The second way to increase friction forces is to add more mass to the locomotive itself, preferably directly above the wheels. This will increase the weight (downward acting force) pressing the wheels to the rails.
An additional, out-of-the-box option would be to convert one of the carriages into a support locomotive, thereby distributing the forces experienced by the drive wheels across more wheels.

Would it be possible to increase the traction by adding weight to the locomotive?

@IvanSanchez "The second way to increase traction forces is to add more mass to the locomotive itself, ..." from the answer already suggests doing just that.

As a more specific suggestion, I can attest that thin rubber O-rings work wonderfully for increasing traction, and they visually blend better with the black wheels found on 60198 (one of my friends had exactly the same issue with one of his builds using the locomotive from 60198, and this was his solution). And, with a bit of leg work, you can find ones that are exactly the correct size for this, which will help them last longer than something that needs to stretch out would.

There is a third option as well, which is to reduce the acceleration. A locomotive that tries to accelerate very quickly will just spin its wheels, but even a train with very little friction in the wheels can accelerate without slipping, so long as it does so gently enough. This solution requires changing nothing about the train itself, only how it's driven.

For a locomotive counterweight, you might consider the 73090a 2x6x2 weighted brick https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemIn.asp?P=73090a&in=S
Bricklink shows them with train sets, but I never had any of the sets they list - I think mine was from a floating boat kit: 4011 Cabin Cruiser.

Welcome to Bricks.SE, Chris! Thank you for a great answer, hope you'll enjoy contributing to the site. Feel free to browse the [help] and [tour] pages if you have any questions. A quick advice: all posts have a transparent edit history, so it's unnecessary to mark your edits as such if not for avoiding confusion (e.g. when editing a post as a reaction to someone's feedback).

Thanks for the edit pointer.


text:
Which Harry Potter set is this table from?

I have been gifted a lot of 10 + years old Lego. I don't have any instructions books. Any idea what sets could these be so I could try to find them online please?

I can identify the following parts:

2 of "Cheese slope" in reddish brown
2 of 1x1 round plate in trans-neon-orange
2 of 2x8 plate in dark tan

A search based on that criteria yields only one result: set 4182 "The Cannibal Escape" from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
One of the sub-assemblies in the set resembles the one in your photograph very closely:

Alas, you don't have a Harry Potter table. You have a cannibal bonfire.

Ah, right, trans-neon-orange... /facepalm. Nice find!

Thank you @IvanSanchez definitely the Cannibal Escape as I have found other elements in my Lego box!. You are such a great help!

Update: this answer is based on a false premise and is therefore invalid. See IvanSanchez's answer instead.

The photo clearly shows 2 of Reddish Brown Plate, Modified 1 x 2 with 1 Stud with Groove (Jumper) and Trans-Orange Plate, Round 1 x 1, and 4 each of Reddish Brown Plate 1 x 4 and Reddish Brown Slope 30 1 x 1 x 2/3. There were only two sets in which all of these have appeared: 79003: An Unexpected Gathering and 10236: Ewok Village - UCS, but neither of these have a 2x8 plate in any colours besides black, green or reddish brown - none of which corresponds to the ones your photo depicts.
So this sub-assembly must not have come from an official set, or at least some parts have been added to it.

Edit based on Henrik's comment:
Updating the search to include piece 15573 (Modified 1 x 2 with 1 Stud with Groove and Bottom Stud Holder (Jumper)) results in matches for 71040 Disney Castle (contains only dark bluish gray and white 2x8 plates), 70677 Land Bounty (just reddish brown 2x8), 40346 Legoland Park (green and white), 910003 Mountain Windmill (reddish brown) and 75220 Sandcrawler (which has the Tile, Modified 1 x 1 with Open O Clip only in dark bluish gray instead of black).
Switching out the jumper plate with groove (3794b) to the one without (3794a) yields no additional candidates.

I don't find it clear from the image that there is a groove on those jumpers, if there isn't those parts are old though, but the 2x8 plates also look old gray to me, which would also suggest some age - and neither of those observations conflict with the conclusion that this is not from an official set.

@Henriksupportsthecommunity The old light gray 2x8 has never appeared alongside reddish brown 1x4s and reddish brown cheese slopes: https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemIn.asp?fromForm=Y&viewMulti=Y&itemType=P&itemNo1=3034&itemSeq1=2&colorID1=9&itemNo2=3710&itemSeq2=4&colorID2=88&itemNo3=54200&itemSeq3=4&colorID3=88&in=S


text:
What Harry Potter set is this assembly from?
I have been gifted a lot of 10+ years old LEGO. I don't have any instructions books. Any idea what sets could this be so I could try to find them online please?

That looks like two Slope 2x2 45° in sand green and a Light Brick 2x3x 1 1/3.
The only set containing both those parts is 4738-1 Hagrid's Hut (3rd edition).
(Now that you know the set number, you can search for instructions in Lego's customer support webpages)

Thank you so so much!!!

@Natalia You're welcome! Since you're new here, I'll remind you that it's good etiquette to "accept" the answer. See https://bricks.stackexchange.com/help/someone-answers .

Thank you again @IvanSanchez, really appreciate it. Have
I accepted the answer correctly? This forum is amazing. I have so many lego and keep checking for answers here, what element is what numer and what sets etc. And will have more questions, so happy I have registered here.

Thanks for accepting the answer! You're welcome to come back, but if you got a big unsorted pile you might wanna read https://bricks.stackexchange.com/questions/404/ for tips on doing the set identification by yourself.


text:
Lego Gray, green, and black parts. What set would these parts belong to?
Lego Gray, green, and black parts.  What set would these parts belong to?
Could you help me identify the set that they go to?

You've got four pieces of part 30246 Panel 3 x 4 x 6 Turret Wall with Window, in light bluish gray.
It's a relatively rare part - only appears in 18 sets, and only 2 of those sets have 4 or more of it. The green roof slopes tell me it's Bowser's Castle Boss Battle.


text:
Mostly gray with two dark gray wheels
Mostly gray with two dark gray wheels.
What set would they go to?

Half cylinder 3 x 6 plus Viking wagon wheel means 75292-1 The Razor Crest.


text:
Here I have mostly white and yellow Legos bu need the set they go to
Here I have mostly white and yellow Legos bu need the set they go to.
Can you help identify the set?

Pearl Gold Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Tooth Vertical in pearl gold plus Plate, Modified 1 x 2 with 3 Teeth in white plus Slope, Curved 6 x 1 Inverted in bright light orange (not yellow!) means 41179-1 Queen Dragon's Rescue.


text:
I have these Legos that are reds, browns, and grays. Trying to find the set
I have these Legos that are reds, browns, and grays.  Trying to find the set.
What set would they go to?

Does this answer your question? Lego Gray, green, and black parts. What set would these parts belong to?

Turns out it's not a duplicate - I missed the 3x3 round tiles.

Base on 3 parts that identified:

8x8 plate w/ 4 feet (66790) in Red
4x4 plate w/ 4 feet (66792) in Dark Orange
And an 3x3 round tile (67095) in LBG

If finding all 3 identified parts on BL results.
This refers to set # 71380: Master Your Adventure


text:
I have these two bags. Top one is mostly grays. Bottom mostly whites with blues and yellows and one gold piece
I have these two bags.  Top one is mostly grays.  Bottom mostly whites with blues and yellows and one gold piece.  Would you know the set they go to?

The top bag appears to be from one of these two Death Stars (almost the same set).
Based on this search for sets with these three parts:


text:
I am trying to find the set these Legos belong to
I am trying to find the set these polybags with LEGO bricks belong to.
Can you help me with identifying which set they belong to?

can you confirm that my answer is correct? Could you find further bags of the set in your collection?

Bag 1:
It is the Amusement Park Roller Coaster (Item No: 41130)
The Yellow Dish 6 x 6 Inverted (Radar) is very seldom, so I searched for sets including this dish and found 41130 Amusement Park Roller Coaster.
Below the yellow dish you see a seldom
Minifigure, Utensil Dish 3 x 3 (Item No: 6256) in the picture.
Bag 2:
This bag is part of the Death Star - UCS
(Item No: 10188-1)
I used the following items in the picture for identification:

Dark Bluish Gray Technic, Brick 1 x 2 with Axle Hole (32064)
Black Technic, Gear 12 Tooth Double Bevel (32270)
Dark Bluish Gray Technic, Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular Double Split (41678)

This is valid for top polybag - the bottom one seems to be from another set.

@Alex good catch. We should split the question then into two set identifications

Not really, we have had multiple questions like that. You can edit your answer to provide details on next set. Someone else could also identify the 2nd set and provide details as another answer.


text:
Which alternative electric connector is compatible with 12V plugs?
Which alternative commercial off-the-shelf electric connector matches with the LEGO 12V connector?
Are there for example mini-banana-plugs which match with the LEGO standard?


text:
Replacement for the Rubber Rim of a 12V Train Motor
The 12V Train Motor Item No: 7865-1 needs a rubber train rim for traction. Unfortunately I could not find any new ones and the old rubber of used items dried out.
The rim must be soft and rough, but also thin. The force of the spring for the contact studs is reduced, if the rim is too thick.
How to replace the rim with products available in Germany?

Some bicycle tubes can be used as a replacement. Depending on the model you find there might be a need to file the seam once you cut a ring from the tube.

While I don't have the original part at hand and so can't compare its physical characteristics, I suppose duct tape (cut to size) might be used depending on the target thickness, pliability and surface stickiness.

Flat square rubber rings like these are used in many types of plumbing fixtures like mixing valves used in bathtubs and showers.
In the USA these are called square rings, Bradley rings or flat rings.
Suggest that the OP look for this at a plumbing supply vendor in Germany.


text:
What is this part? Grey, 3 studs long, with two pins and an axle hole

Grey Lego piece. Says LEGO inside piece, but no ID number.
Thank you!

Does this answer your question? https://bricks.stackexchange.com/questions/4239/

That's part 4261, Technic steering arm.
It's a relatively old part (last produced in 2005 AFAICS), and it was used as part of the wheel steering mechanism in Technic vehicles.

The idea is to use two steering arms; keep the ends with the two pins in a fixed position, and link the ends with a bar that can swivel either way. In the mechanism depicted above, the swiveling 1x8 plate with toothed ends is on top of a 1x4 tile and attached to a gear rack, which most usually would be connected to a steering wheel via gears and axles. Rotating the steering wheel would move the gear rack side to side, causing the steering arms to rotate around the fixed point, and therefore steering the wheels attached to them.

Thank you!
I tried to comment yesterday, but I couldn’t because my account was too new!

As Ivan says it's part 4261 "Technic Steering arm" and was a core part of steering mechanisms in old style (studded) Technic.
Two steering arms were sandwiched either between two Technic plates "with toothed ends" (usually the 1x8 version part 4442) or one plate with toothed ends and a "steering rack top" (part 2792).
An axle with pin (part 3749) was placed in the cross axle holes on the steering arms and a rack to drive the steering was attached to them. There were several different rack arrangements used.

A setup like shown in Ivan's answer, where a separate rack was placed on top of a plate with toothed ends.
A flat gear rack with integrated holes (part 6630)
A round steering rack (part 2791). This was used in conjunction with the "steering rack top", "steering gear holder" (part 2790) and 8 tooth gear (part 3647). This setup provided a really easy and compact way to build a manually controlled steering mechanism with an adjustable steering column angle.


text:
I have a polybag of LEGO pieces and need the set they go with
I have a polybag of LEGO pieces and need the set they go with.
There is one 6x6 large black square and ten light gray 1x2x2
with a small bag inside.
What set are they a part of?

This is 41611: Marty McFly & Doc Brown, based on Black Plate 6 x 6, two of Yellow Brick, Round 2 x 2 with Axle Hole, at least 8 Red Brick, Modified 1 x 1 with Headlight and the Black Brick, Modified 1 x 2 x 2/3 with Studs on Sides.
For future reference, you too can use Bricklink to identify the sets by entering the known parts into this form, to get an answer like this.

ok, from now on, we should mark every question for set identification as a duplicate and refer to this answer. Could you expand your answer how you get to that bricklink form rather than having to follow your URL ?

@MichaelVerschaeve I'll try to write a dedicated question with a self-answer to refer to in the future on set identification.


text:
From what set are these brown, white, and pink parts?
I would like to find the set these Lego bricks belong to.
Browns, whites, and two 8x8 blue plates.

The 2 Light Bluish Gray Plate 8 x 8 and 2 Reddish Brown Plate 2 x 12 have only ever appeared in two sets, none of which has the depicted magenta and transparent bricks. Are you sure the bag is factory sealed?

@zovits After a bit more searching it appears those 8 x 8 plates are actually Bright Light Blue (see my answer below)

This appears to be set 41153 Ariel's Royal Celebration Boat.
The 8 x 8 plates appeared a bit more blue than Light Bluish Grey, so I searched for sets with White 1 x 10 Brick and Trans Dark Pink 1 x 2 Brick w/o Tube


text:
What set would these Lego parts belong with?
What set would these Lego parts belong with?
Whites, light gray, and blacks.
Bag is labled #2

Based on:

Light Bluish Gray Plate, Modified 1 x 2 with Clip with Center Cut on Top
Yellow Technic Bush 1/2 Smooth
Pearl Gold Tile, Modified 1 x 2 Grille with Bottom Groove / Lip
White Wedge 10 x 3
Light Bluish Gray Tile, Round 1 x 1
Black Plate 1 x 8

this should be 75248: Resistance A-Wing Starfighter.


text:
This bag of legos has two gears and is labled #2
This bag of legos has two gears and is labled #2
What set would they go with?

At first glance, looks like some sort of ship.

This set of yours has already been identified. Please read and think before asking so many questions.


text:
Can somebody help me find out what set this bag belongs to?
I found a Little bag from a larger set at a yard sale, and im trying to find out what set it belongs to. It comes with a bunch of lime green pieces, some are also gray and red.

Based on the parts:

Light Bluish Gray Technic, Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular 3L with Center Pin Hole
Lime Technic, Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular 3L with 2 Pin Holes
Red Technic, Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular Double
Lime Slope, Curved 2 x 2 x 2/3

this must be 42138: Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.

YO ty so much for the quick response!

@Sogpog You're certainly welcome! Please take a minute to read the [help] and [tour] pages to find out more about how the site works and what to do when you find an answer helpful ;)


text:
From which set is this bag?
Which set is this bag of pieces from?

Based on the presence of the White Plate 8x8 with cut corner, the Black Plate 10x10 with cut corner without center studs, and the engine nacelles in Dark Bluish Gray, this is set 31066 Space Shuttle Explorer.


text:
Identify a shooter part
Piece is very small looks like a shooter or something that would attach to a figure I have destiny halo Star Trek & a few misc cod & other mega pop culture figures but can’t for the life of me remember what this goes to is this even Lego/mega or did it maybe fall off one of my gundams lol

Need photos, please. Lego does not produce very many guns but piece identification ranges from difficult-to-impossible from a description. When you [edit] the post, you can add a photo with the "mountains and sun" button. You could also upload the photo to imgur and post a link to it here, someone will edit in for you if you have trouble inserting it yourself.

Photo uploaded hopefully can be identified ty

This part is from Mega Contrux Borderlands CL4P-TP BL-U


text:
Identify this bag: yellows, oranges and browns
I have this bag and zero idea what it’s from? Any well eyed individuals who can spot the set?

Based on two 1x4x2 arches in Medium Nougat colour, and four rubber tyres, this is set 10704 Creative Box.


text:
Salt Lake Temple: window bordering
I'm trying to replicate the stonework above the arched windows on the main side of the Salt lake temple.

my current approach is to use a combination of
1x2 SNOT brick to face outward
1x2 jumper plate to center
cheese slope to represent the small knob at the center top of the window

I'd like to solicit suggestions on my current setup as well as suggestions about how to add the horizontal stone edging above the windows.  I'm considering some combination of double slopes but they seem just a bit too big.

I suggest a combination of 1x2 plate with door rail plus 4 x 2½ x 1⅔ mudguard with arch.

Maybe part number 30586? "Plate, Modified 2 x 8 with Door Rail"

yea, I considered those, but they have kind of an 'industrial' look - like it looks like something in a factory or steel mill.


text:
What is this micro Mega Bloks element?
I've got this Mega Bloks brick that's a 2x4 and it's smaller than the standard brick, it's 3/4"x3/8" and half the height as the standard brick. It was attached to a vehicle frame that also had two transparent red flat 1x1 that are 1/2cm attached to the frame where taillights would be. Does anybody know what set is it from?

I added photos of the frame. FYI there is a screw on the bottom.

I don't think it's possible to identify a megabloks set based on a single common part. This is like asking what set a black 2x4 lego brick is from.

I didn't think there was that many sets of there that has those size bricks. I thought maybe it was to a car hauler and the cars were built with the smaller bricks, or something similar like that. How Hot Wheels put out a car hauler with mini cars, which some were color changers.

Smaller 1 Nano, & bigger micro? Micro size of System Lego, & I guess Nano the size of smaller Lego called Modulex. So like 2/5" × 4/5" for 2 ×4.

Guess could be 5902, instructions for sale on eBay, rally car. Could be all 4-wheel bases the same. Hopefully can add Modulex bricks to a base with wheels to make another car.


text:
How heavy is the LEGO Gold Brick?
In this article, it says:

[The Gold Brick is] literally made from 14-karat gold

As anyone who has held gold before knows, it is heavy. Therefore, what is the weight of this brick?

More importantly, does it physically connect with other bricks ?

@Criggie yup, I believe it does as it contains the same indents and extrusions of a 'normal' LEGO brick!

25.65g (0.8246 troy oz)

14k Solid Gold LEGO Employee Brick 2x4 Brick in Display Box
This brick is 25.65g of 14K gold (0.8246 troy oz). The brick is the same size and shape as the original 2x4 LEGO brick.
This incedibly rare piece was given to LEGO employees that had 25 years of employment at the Hohenwestedt, Germany factory and was also given to couple of very special business partners of LEGO of the time. It was only given out from about 1979-1981, only one or 2 per year from my understanding.
This amazing brick comes in its original display box which features the LEGO logo of the time that it was given out. The box itself is plastic and has a minor amount of storage wear on it.

Brick Envy - For Sale by Auction

Another source: https://brickset.com/article/54584/solid-gold-2x4-brick-on-catawiki

Good find! Looks like some of the "median density" assumptions in my mathy answer were quite a bit off.

... Follow up question: Does this fit with standard bricks?  I know that regular bricks have to flex just a bit in order to fit and hold on properly.  A brick made of gold (or any other metal) would be more rigid, and possibly not have enough flex to fit?  I guess since one brick is still plastic it might work.  The real test is if 2 gold bricks would fit with each other as well as standard plastic...

@DarrelHoffman - Lego have made a bunch of metal bricks over the years. They all fit the plastic blocks

@Valorum Yeah, I kind of reasoned myself into that conclusion, but it's whether the metal ones fit with other metal ones that'd be the harder challenge...

@DarrelHoffman - Good luck proving it. This is the only one that's gone to public sale afaik, although owning a full set of all the 'precious metal' blocks would be an amazing coup

@Valorum Precious metal, yeah.  Presumably there are some made of just boring old regular metal?  Aluminum, steel, etc.?  I know of some metallic parts (mostly just wheel axles, and of course wires for any of the electrical systems, and some plates designed to stick to magnets), but none that are a whole brick, not counting special cases like this.

@DarrelHoffman - Worthy of its own question, perhaps

Interesting - 14K gold is only ~58% gold, so as of 2023 this is about $980 USD of gold.

According to this Quora post, the volume of ABS in a standard 2x4 brick is 2.4824 cubic centimeters, which is 34.13g of 14k gold (assuming this brick is the same as standard mold).
Copied math from Quora in case link dies:

According to BrickLink, a 2x4 LEGO brick is about 2.32g. And the median density of ABS plastic (which is what most LEGO is made out of) is around 1.07 g/cm^3. That would put the volume of plastic in a LEGO element around roughly 2.4824 cubic centimeters.

2.4824 * 13.75 g/cm^3 (avg density of 14k gold) = 34.13g.

It wouldn't surprise me if the walls of the gold brick are thicker, like the older bricks.

Some excellent maths here. Alas, incorrect.

@Valorum, I wouldn't say it is incorrect. Upon closer inspection it is clear that LEGO didn't use exactly the same mould to produce this gold brick they use for platic bricks. One obvious thing - absence of LEGO logo on studs. This means alternative production means were utilised here. And if I'm reading correct gold shrinks when cooled down - which means final brick will be smaller than the mould. Taking these both statements into account could explain the discrepancy.

@Alex - It's a great answer to a slightly different question (e.g. "How much would a standard lego brick weigh if it was cast in 14k gold")

Note also that the "standard" lego brick has changed over the decades. This one would be standard for today, but not necessarily for the 1970s

Here are some variants: https://www.flickr.com/photos/111441268@N03/sets/72157648936541745 maybe you can reverse engineer which one was used :D


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Is it possible to use XBox controller with PoweredUp
I have a couple of PoweredUp kits that I tweaked in the app but now, I would like to get more control on them using a physical remote.
I own an Xbox One Bluetooth controller and I thought I saw some people using them with Lego but I see nothing in the available blocks.
Did I miss something? Is it only available with Mindstorms 51515 or did I dreamt all that?
Edit to distinguish from mentionned potential duplicate:
Note that the root of the question is to find a way to use a compatible physical controller with PoweredUp hubs and not necessarily to find an alternative app though the use of a different app may be a solution.

I don't understand why the question was flag as a duplicate to a question that search for an alternative to Control+ when my question is about how to use a physical controller. Could a moderator please explain? Thank you.

It says I have to edit the question to highlight the difference between the associated question and mine but quite honestly, I can't see how I could achieve that since the actual question never mentions Control+ and explicitely mention it is about an XBox controller. I'll try something...

And you can do that with a help of third party app called BrickController 2. Smartphone is required as a middle point connecting both hub and controller. There's a YouTube video explaining how it works.
Supported platforms:

Android 4.3+
iOS 8+

Supported receivers:

SBrick - both normal and plus (output only)
BuWizz 1
BuWizz 2
BuWizz 3
Lego PowerFunctions infrared receiver on Android devices having IR
emitter
Lego Powered-Up hub
Lego Boost Hub
Lego Technic Hub
Lego WeDo 2.0 Smart Hub
Circuit Cubes

Application sources:

Android
iOS
GitHub

Does the job. Just sad it is not directly supported by Lego in PoweredUp so we could also use all the programming features available. Nice App though.


text:
What materials have LEGO Bricks been made from?
Inspired by this comment, I wonder, what materials have LEGO Bricks been made out of, apart from plastic? Can these also interlock with other blocks?
Please Note: I am only asking about bricks, and thusly not any components such as motors.

By "bricks", do you actually mean just bricks ? Or any lego parts that are not motors ? Ie. does the rubber used in tyres, rubber bands, etc. count ? Or the cloth used in various capes etc. ? How about the different types of plastic that are used (sometimes in one part) ?

@SanderDeDycker the question is just asking for bricks, so tyres and rubber bands would not be included...

So you're just interested in the (typically) rectangular 1 stud high parts with studs on top ? None of the following would match that definition ? Something like this (which has a metal axle) ? Or something like this (different materials in the same mould) ? Or this (studs with metal contacts) or even this (with lights) ?

@SanderDeDycker for these examples, I would allow the first, third and fourth options but only if we are talking about the brick itself, i.e. not talking about the axles, metal contacts or LED components. Basically, what the actual LEGO brick shape is made of if that makes sense. I'll allow any 'traditional' LEGO bricks including plates...

Ignoring the different kinds of plastic that LEGO have used for their bricks over the years (formerly CA, HIPS, Bakelite, PC - currently (M)ABS - and a range of different plastic types for parts that need different properties), I can't think of any bricks that came with LEGO sets that fit your criteria.
If we expand the scope to the gear category (things like key chains, clothing, storage solutions, etc. with the LEGO brand), there are a few that seem to fit your criteria. The ones I can think of :

14 Karat Gold Brick made of 14-karat gold

2 x 4 Brick - Sterling Silver (925) Key Chain made of Sterling silver 925

Eraser, 2 x 4 Brick with 3 Holes on Bottom - unsure what it's made of - likely some synthetic rubber or gum (which you might label as "plastic", in which case it doesn't match your criteria)

I have none of these, so can't attest to their ability to interlock with regular bricks, nor to their clutch power. I also haven't been able to find information on this (the former two are very rare).

Exactly what I was looking for - thanks so much!

I had the eraser bricks, and they do indeed work with regular Lego elements! (I'd imagine not very repeatedly though, as they will of course wear quite badly).

As noted in this related question, part 73020b "2x6x2 weighted brick" contains a chunk of (what seems to be) galvanized iron.

Thanks for the answer - this is partly what I'm looking for. Mainly, I'm asking for which bricks have the outer brick made from another material, and a list of these, but still +1 for the answer :)


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How is this setup created?
From
https://www.newelementary.com/2018/10/lego-35787-tile-modified-2x2-triangular-45-cut.html
midpage there is this setup:

Can anyone provide more details how the parts are connected?
Preferably so it could be recreated in bricklink studio.

From the article, the grey triangle featured in the middle is Road sign 2x2 triangle with clip. I figured this information might help someone figure out what it looks like inside.

I think Bar 1L with Angled Hollow Stud is going to be involved here. Don't have too many bricks now to build anything reasonable, but I had this piece and it can give the right angle for LBG road sign triangle.

As that roadsign has a clip (it's in the bricklink name) and not an antistud, I wouldn't think that part had any place in there.

I have been doing a few experiments with part 65578 "Bar 1L with Ahgled Hollow Stud. Using one of them at a distance of four plates from one of the triangular tiles (using SNOT 180° if needed) would work:

Note how the fit is not perfect - in the setup displayed above, the roadsign has one side touching the top tile, but the fit to the side tiles is angled. And if you look closely to the reference image, you'll notice that the perfectly-fitted side is the right-sided tile.
Replicating the whole original setup hints that the bar with stud may be held just by gravity, with no actual connection and no clutch at all:

Note how the stud from the bar fits snugly along the tiles.
However, I suspect that this is not the technique used. Note how, in the reference photograph, we can see through the gap between the roadsign and the top triangular tile; in my CAD design the bar with stud blocks that gap.  There might be some other part (a minifig accessory, perhaps?) in play.
I suggest experimenting with a sausage instead. Its curvature should allow to tweak the angle of the roadsign, and so would make an even better fit.


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How can I identify a set based on one or more original sealed bags?
I have recently come into possession of one or more sets in the form of factory-sealed individual bags made of transparent plastic, containing various LEGO elements. There is neither box nor any instruction booklets. I have checked the bags and the parts contained within them are definitely genuine LEGO pieces (all non-hollow studs have the LEGO logo relief). How could I determine which set(s) I own? The bags have different texts, numbers and codes printed on them.

Does this answer your question? How can I identify LEGO sets from a box or bag of parts?

I don't think that's an exact duplicate, as it's about opened, built and partially disassembled heap of sets - while this focuses specifically on unbuilt, unopened bags.

@Downvoter, what could be improved about this question?

I'm not the dv'er, but it's basically a duplicate of the linked Q.

First of all, congratulations on your new set(s)!
Second, let's just ignore anything printed on the plastic foil itself, as the numbers and codes are independent of the actual contents of the bags - those markings only serve to identify the plastic bag as a packaging material, not the filled bag as part of a set.
Now then, onto the contents of the bags. Take a bag and lay it flat on a surface - you want to see as much of the parts inside as possible without them obscuring each other.
Now try to identify the most unusual pieces, that are most likely to be unique to the set you have. Anything large, transparent, printed or having a complex form is a good starting point; but be prepared to backtrack if needed. Knowledge of the most common LEGO pieces and the most popular colours is a great help in this phase, but persistence can stand in for it just as well.
To identify the exact piece, visit Bricklink's part catalogue, where you can find all LEGO elements ever officially released (and a few more that were never sold!) in neat categories. This is just like a library, where you'll eventually find what you're looking for, but might need to search in a few different sections. Having the dimensions of the part is usually a good idea, as most parts have that in their name. Once you've identified a part in your bag, try to match its colour as well from the list of "Known Colors" under the tab "Color Info". Then count how many times can you see this exact piece in the bag. Note the following for each identified part: 1) Item number, 2) Colour, 3) Amount in your bag.

For example, take a look at this bag:

The key identifiable parts here were:

# on pic
Piece name
Piece number
Colour
Amount

1
Plate 6 x 6
3958
Black
1

2
Brick, Round 2 x 2 with Axle Hole
3941
Yellow
2

3
Brick, Modified 1 x 2 x 2/3 with Studs on Sides
4595
Black
1

4
Brick, Modified 1 x 1 with Headlight
4070
Red
8+

After you have done the above step at least three times, you're ready for the next step. Now open Bricklink's "Appears in" page, of the multi-part variety. Here you can enter the previously found part numbers, colours, and how many times that part appeared in your bag. When done, click the "View Appearance" button.

You'll get either a screen like this:

or one like this:

In the first case, the combination you've entered is not found in the database - most probably due to a mistake in the entered data. Many parts have extremely similar variants, some colours are really easy to confuse with each other and sometimes counting parts is not so straightforward either, so don't get discouraged just now. Try some other combination of parts you've found, maybe attempt to identify another part from the bag and plug that into the form.
In the second case your set might just be among those candidates displayed (but beware of false positives caused by misidentified parts!), so let's find which one. Open the "Inv"entory of the first set (the purple link in the picture) and start matching the parts in your bag to those of the candidate set. If you find a part in your bag that is not included in the set: you've successfully eliminated that candidate - return to the list and open the second "Inv"entory.

If all parts of the bag are found in the inventory, you're (partially) done. Why partially? Because if there are more candidate sets, they might be matches as well! So let's check them too. Note however, that most sets contain many bags which are seldom separated from each other, so check the other bags to help narrow your list of potential candidates.
After you've definitely found your set, it's time to remove from your pile of bags all that belong to this one. With the set inventory in front of you, this will be a breeze compared to the beginning as you just started to look for uncommon pieces and counted studs.
If there are bags that don't belong to that set, put them to the side for another iteration of this same process.
Having collected all bags in your possession to this set, you can fetch the instructions by scrolling to the bottom of the set page on Bricklink, and clicking through to Brickset under "Other Databases:" (or open Brickset and find your set there based on the set number). There you'll find the instruction manual for most sets.

Have fun and feel free to open a new question if you have problems or questions with any of the above steps!

This is perfect - the canonical example of a canonical question/answer on how to do something yourself, rather than a plethora of separate "ID my set" questions.

Perfect answer... but the question already existed. :/

@Downvoter, what could be improved about this answer?


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Selling a physical build from purchased instructions?
I have been trying to find information on this subject including contacting designers. I have heard as long as you don’t include the instructions in your sale, all is fine as that is the intellectual property. But I have also seen instructions barring against selling of the physical model as well. Most information I find is on the piracy of the instructions themselves. I am looking for info on the selling of the actual build. Like, what if I were to purchase instructions of a modular building and after I buy all the parts and build it I see that I don’t like the look of it in my city. Could I not sell the model to someone else?  I believe to understand the intellectual property laws but what about fair use?  Thanks for any help.

For one AFOL to sell a completed build one at a time it's unlikely to be an issue. Doing it as a side hustle or business could be a problem. Your answer depends on the license purchased for use of the build instructions. In the USA there are cases that support the buyers or vendors rights of possession for resale. It will come down to how many pieces can the intellectual property be divided and who owns what. Music, as an example, is quite complex. A song has the writer, performer, recording company, distribution company all with some piece of the "property" and this is just the top four.

This issue is going to be unsettled for some time as any nation's position of the "Right to repair laws" could have an unforeseen impact on your issue.

It would probably be worth your while researching the First Sale Doctrine which provides some precedents about what someone can and can't do with copyrighted material they have bought. Certainly in the case of physical instructions the doctrine suggests you would be within your rights to sell your only copy to a third party, with or without the bricks needed to build the model. With electronic instructions it gets harder because you'd have to find a way of proving that you hadn't kept a copy for yourself.

@john_e, this is the correct answer imho, would you care to expand your comment to an answer?

I'm not a lawyer, so this is purely from a layman's understanding.
You don't say what jurisdiction you're in, so I don't know if what I'm saying applies to you. But in the USA, the First Sale Doctrine means that you have the right to sell your copy of any copyrighted material that you have bought. If, for example, you had bought a physical instruction booklet, you would (in the USA) be within your rights to sell that booklet to a third party, with or without the bricks needed to build the model.
If you received the instructions as an electronic copy, you would still be within your rights to do this, but would need to ensure (and ideally find a way to prove) that you had transferred all copies of the instructions and not kept one back for yourself.
I don't know if there is any precedent for the scenario where someone sells the model (built) and keeps the instructions. Intuitively, I suspect this might violate copyright, as the completed model could be considered a derived work of the copyrighted instructions; either could be used to make more identical models.

This question about who "legally" owns what is a can of worms in a bag of snakes in a room full of spiders.
It is clear that the creator hold a copyright for the instructions but does that creator have any rights to the work product when those instructions are used as intended?
If the answer is yes then it would be foolish to purchase instructions without a clear statement that permits selling the completed build.


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Set identification: Ninjago style dragon
Can someone identify the set containing this (part of probably) creature?
Found it in a box at a thrift sale, along with 2 ninjago motos and snake-headed minifigs, all of this may or may not be in the same set.

Does this answer your question? How can I identify LEGO sets from a box or bag of parts?

I'm not fluent enough in english, so I know neither english part names nor english color names making those tools extremely difficult / impossible to use for me.

This looks like (part of) 70674-1 Fire Fang which is indeed a Ninjago set.

I identified this the hard way, using Dark Tan Barb/Claw/Horn/Tooth Small which looked fairly unique but is actually in many sets.


text:
Print list of parts from various sets in compact format
So I've bought a few big box sets over the ages rambling starts (like just recently, a few 11016 because I could get them cheap, a couple of 11019 (I have an older Mindstorms kit which may or may not still work), 11013 because they're pretty, a 11022 because it was cheap at Costco) rambling ends with the intention of doing stuff and now I'm trying to get around to doing stuff.
This involves sorting and storing them, and that's a bit hard when I'm not as skilled as I pretend to be to people who just see big piles of bricks. It'd be great to have a printout of all the different parts with what categories they belong to and such to help sort them together properly.
What I'd like is to be able to print a list of all the parts I have in something like a set inventory on Brickset (really only need the image > element name columns, although don't care how many in each set column). Several thoughts I've had already:

Sure, I could print the inventory from Brickset for all the different sets, but there'd be a lot of duplicates, and when it can be 20 pages for a set, that's a lot of ink to go through. I could probably mess with the CSS before printing to cut that down a bit, but it doesn't solve the problem with all the duplicates. (Sure, I don't like using too much paper either, but paper isn't run by a cartel  like ink is.)
I can get a CSV list of each set from Brickset, and I can probably merge the files and delete rows with the same part ID, but then it's not exactly a pretty format. (Cue inner geek saying "but Python can do anything!)
Googled this and one of the top results was to create a brick list of Rebrickable and export it as a HTML table. Done that, I mean technically it works, but I'd once again have to mess with the CSS to try and get it to be a lot less free space, and doesn't contain all the info I'd want (like category).
Brickstock is designed for sellers by the looks of it, and has its own print function, but that looks like it's designed for individual orders or something, doesn't contain things like category, and again isn't all that dense (looks prettier yes, takes up way too much paper, yes) and unlike a web service and CSS if I want to create my own look... I could probably figure out Qt Script (looks pretty similar to a lot of C-style scripting languages), but it'd be a lot of effort.

Is there something blatantly obvious I'm missing? Is my mission doomed from the start? Do I just settle for continuing to look at a screen?
Thanks for the help

Do you really need to print this? BrickStock is what I use when I inventory sets. You can change quantities and track what you have this way. Plus it does tell you the category of the element, and you can sort the list by this column,

@PhilB. Thanks for the reply. I'm not really that interested in how many of each piece I have (plus I can't find data for all the sets I've ever bought... but I think that's a matter for another topic) since I'm not planning on selling them or anything, just building stuff myself. I just want to go through my boxes of bricks, pull something out, and be able to flip a page or few until I see a picture that looks like it, then put it in a smaller, more specialised box. Seems like it would be a lot of hassle if I had to keep a device around to scroll around until I find the right picture.


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I have this bag of mostly reds with light grays
I have this bag of mostly reds with light grays.
Some blues, yellows, and orange.
What set would these legos belong to?

A search for sets containing 2 4x10 dark red plates and a 2x2 round brick with grille profile returns just one hit: set 21154.
See also How can I identify a set based on one or more original sealed bags?


text:
help identifying mega bloks parts. AM15057 and AM15049
Good morning, i took a old box i have in my room and i want to know from what sets of megabloks is this thing. The code from the gray parts is: AM15057, and from the big other is: AM15049.
1:

2:

3:


text:
Technique for connecting a tile vertically next to a brick
I'm trying to create this effect, where a 1x1 half-circle tile seems to 'stick out of' a 2x2 brick at 90 degrees:

This is easily achieved with a 1x1 tile with light attachment, as seen here from the back:

However, that particular piece is quite expensive in my chosen color (either orange or dark orange).
I've tried using a technic axle-and-pin connector, but it looks very bulky and the pin itself is also not available in (dark) orange:

I've also tried various brackets in different configurations, but since they're all square, the edges stick out from under the half-circle tile.
Are there other ways to achieve the same, or a similar looking effect?

Some ideas given the color constraints (all used parts are available in Orange, except those not visible). Perhaps none are very compelling, but they might point you in a different direction.
If you're not afraid of stressing bricks a bit (only during (dis)assembly - when assembled, there's no stress), using Hinge Plate 1 x 2 Locking with 2 Fingers on Side and 7 Teeth (50340) :

This next one doesn't actually work as pointed out in comments - the rod attached to the hand is too thin to stay put. Leaving it here in case someone knows of a trick to make it work anyway. When it's acceptable that the tile is slightly off angle, using Hand (983)
and Technic, Brick 1 x 1 with Axle Hole (73230) :

Using Slope, Curved 1 x 1 x 2/3 Double (49307) instead of the tile :

And finally, a very rough approximation of the shape using Hinge Plate 1 x 2 Locking with 1 Finger on Side (44567) (assuming your requirements are quite flexible) :

Those are all great ideas! I love the hand piece with the brick with axle hole. I tried it out with an actual hand I took out of a minifig, but it didn't really stay in place in the axle hole for me. Am I missing something there?

@jqno : you're right - it doesn't work. I thought it was closer to the thickness of a bar, but it's not. Should have tried it out physically before posting. I'll mark it as unusable in my answer.

Perhaps too straightforward: placing tiles between studs is a legal technique (so are plates by the way if the studs where you insert the plate between are hollow):

Oooh that's inventive! But it will leave a vertical slit down the front of I place two of them next to each other. I was hoping to keep that a single piece. I don't suppose there's a 2x2 brick with studs on the sides?

Not a brick, but there's a  modified 2x2 plate with studs on the side in orange. https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=99206#T=S&C=4&O={%22color%22:%224%22,%22ss%22:%22BE%22,%22iconly%22:0}

I'll suggest using a 1x1 plate with clip, recessed half a stud by means of a jumper plate:

I haven't tested this physically, but I assume that the clip will be under stress since (in this assembly) the round tile won't fit through the entire clip.

If you're OK with using dark orange, then you can use 1x2 plate round with some SNOT to achieve the effect:

Dark orange is fine. The round 1x2 plates are a good idea, but can you describe how they connect to the other bricks? I'm afraid I can't really tell from the image.

I've pictured generic SNOT - there are dozens of ways to achieve it. See e.g. the unofficial LEGO advanced building techniques guide for specific SNOT techniques.


text:
Help identifying a brick
Found this part a Lego event and would like to get some but can’t seem to locate.  I believe it’s from a technic set.

this is a CATAPULT ARM 1X4 (88289) in black

Alternative name is Plate, Modified 1 x 2 with Pin Hole and Bucket (Catapult) (Bricklink)


text:
Is there any way to unzip an ev3 file into text and xml files?
I would like to access the text file of the project files (.ev3p) to know their structure. But in the Mindstorms software, I couldn't find any way to download the .ev3p files.

Hi theboguz and welcome to Bricks.SE! It seems there is a significant disconnect between the question title and body - do you wish to download an .ev3p file or unzip an .ev3 file?

Sorry, @zovits! I would like to unzip an .ev3 file into other files. Thanks in advance.

Does this answer your question? Export LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Lab Code

As several previous answers on this  stack exchange site have already clarified, an ev3 file is a .zip file. Rename it and change the extension to .zip and you'll be able to open it. What's inside it is documented here: https://afarago.github.io/EV3TreeVisualizerPages/filesyntax.html


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Can you help identify what set these parts belong to?
Can you help identify what set these parts belong to?
There is two blue octagonal parts, two red parts,
dark grays, blacks and bananas.

It doesn't match everything, but it looks a lot like this set.

Those  Plate, Modified 10 x 10 Octagonal with 6 x 6 Open Center only come in dark azure (and doesn't even exist in any other bluish colour) in two sets; only one of them also has Yellow Banana, and that is the set that Heartspring already has pointed at in a comment: namely  Gorzan's Gorilla Striker.


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Which clone brand with a red logo and an 'M' is this?
While in Poland, I have recently come across this Lego-compatible brand:

What is the name of this clone brand, with the 'M' logo? A Google Images search did not yield any useful hints.
As far as I could figure out, the Chinese text on the box just indicates the name of the model, and that it's a building brick toy (obviously), manufactured by a company in Shantou.

After some Googling, it seems as the name is MG.
I found a page which lists it as a brand:
https://www.lazada.co.id/mg/?spm=a2o4j.pdp_revamp.0.0.705f736fGESNgD&type=brand
I don't even know what language it is, so didn't spend much time on the site, but further Googling of MG yields more similar results.
Looking at the box it says "MG936D". This seems to be the specific ID for this set, while "MG936" is the identifier for all their "Dinosaur World" sets.
They have other knock-off series where there is another three digit identifier.
I'm not a fan of knock-off products, but I like the consistency they seem to apply here.

.id = Indonesia.


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Please help identify this mech robot set
This is some kind of mech robot. I guess it is coming from some Japanese story as on its left leg it has some Japanese writing.
I would love to rebuild/complete it but can't figure out what it is.

Thank you!

That's part of Thunder Raider (70723), a Ninjago set from 2014 :


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What lego set has bag 435R6, 525R6, 625R6
I was given a box of legos and some in bags. My daughter wants to build the set but not sure what these are. It looks like they were started and never finished. I know where to get the instructions.
I have multiple bags of 435R6, 525R6 and 625R6. They all appear to be star war sets of 2015.
Any help is greatly appreciated.

Hi jgemoll, and welcome to Bricks SE! The codes on the bags are merely used in the factory, and don't help to identify the sets you have. Your best chance would be to add a photo of the bags and of the partially completed model

You can also check out the answer to this question to try your luck at finding it yourself

Hi jgemoll and welcome to Bricks.SE! As the other comments, I'd recommend checking out the linked guide and see if you can use that to identify the set yourself. If you have any problems using that, feel free to edit this question with the steps you took and the problems you encountered and we'll gladly help. Meanwhile I'd recommend taking a look at the [tour] and [help] sections to learn how this site operates and how you can get the most out of it. Have fun!


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Is the LEGO train motor 88011 waterproof?
My son has been building a LEGO RC boat and has added the motor (part 88011) from this LEGO City Train Set to drive the turbines. He's pretty keen to try it out on water but I imagine the motor is probably not waterproof. I couldn't find any information on whether this part could be used underwater online so promised him I'd ask the experts here for advice.
Additionally, I'd also like to know if anyone can attest to the waterproofness of the hub with the batteries from the same set (I think it's this part here). While he has stashed that away on the boat above the waterline, it might still get wet if things don't go as planned.

Not directly related to your question, but you reminded me of this incredible series on YouTube where someone build a lego powered submarine... incredible https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGEZApd9MMk&list=PLjs42dxcRiGNsFHHXeu8ES1XDVZCa0CzD&ab_channel=BrickExperimentChannel

LEGO's electric or electronic parts are usually not waterproof, with a small subset that was explicitly designed for such use in a few nautical-themed sets between 2004 and 2007. These motors feature no open contacts, integrated battery holders and gaskets along any seams to provide water sealing.
The components you ask about have open contacts, no sealing - and even if they did, the radio waves required to operate them underwater would be greatly diminished by the physical properties of water to the point of unusability at even minor depths. They were not designed to be used in any kind of wet environment, including fog or rain. Surprisingly, I haven't found any kind of official warning to this effect in the building instructions, but if you'd like, I can ask a representative of LEGO directly.
If you're really intent on using the motors near or in water, you'll need to either build a structure which guarantees that the batteries and motors will always stay above the water line (including any waves and spray) even if the boat rolls or capsizes; or build some kind of waterproof enclosure for them. Beware though, neither of these is an easy endeavour and any mistakes during design, building or operation could easily ruin both the hub and the motor. But there have been people who managed to achieve success with both of these approaches, so these are definitely doable - just with significant planning, engineering and tinkering and at no small risk.


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Identify 2x newish pieces please!
I've got two pieces to identify, and I don't know how to look these ones up on Bricklink so am looking for help here:

Light Bluish Grey 1x4 brick with a slot that a 2x2 round tile fits into

Flat Silver round grenade-looking piece with bar

Searching for "1 x 4 shooter" yields part 16968 "Projectile Launcher, 1 x 4 with Inside Clips (Disk Shooter)".
Paintstakingly looking through the list of all Flat Silver parts ultimately yielded part 40598c "Minifigure, Weapon Larger Blunt Grenade Tip".
(Finally, looking for sets which contain both parts yielded set 76150)

Thank you very much! I did try to look for the 1x4 brick but I was using "slot" and "opening" instead. The grenade piece I didn't bother looking for at all because I didn't want to do what you did and look through all the pieces! Turns out we could have just went with my initial thought and typed "grenade" to find it instantly lol.


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ev3dev vs lejos - looking for a comprehensive comparison
Did anyone make a good comparison of these two environments?
The most important factors to me are OS booting time, RAM usage, application start-up time,, compatibility with USB devices, and power consumption.
As an example, lejos takes 1:20s to boot up and obtain IP address and leaves 4812 kilobytes of free memory.


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Help with differentiating old gray and yellowed pieces
Hi everyone,
I'm having trouble deciding if those pieces are yellowed, old shades of gray, or just natural differences in color because of different LEGO batches. I'm skeptical of old gray because these pieces are from sets from around 2011-2015. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.
P.S. I soaked them in hydrogen peroxide in full sunlight for a couple of hours but there has been little to no effect.

To me, they all seem bluish gray (top foto dark, other fotoos light). I also can't see any yellowing. But I think something like that is really hard to determine from fotoos.

All of these seem to be in LBG and DBG colors. Keep in mind that due to production process (undesired) shade difference could be occur even with a same set, no to mention color difference of pieces produced in several years. Light/Dark Gray pieces are quite easy to distinguish once you get one in your hands.

Thanks for the answers :) I guess I will figure it out sooner or later

To me the first picture seems to contain dark bluish gray pieces while the other two look like light bluish gray. Especially since the Wheel 18mm D. x 14mm with Pin Hole, Fake Bolts and Shallow Spokes was never officially released in any of the old grays, just Light Bluish Gray (and a bunch of other colors that are impossible to mistake for old gray).
Additionally, all the plates here have been released in a lot more sets as their "bluish" versions than in the old "light/dark gray" colors, so unless your collection is known to be composed of older sets, statistically it's much more probable that a random sampling of these pieces would be the new, "bluish" versions. For example take a look at the Plate 4 x 4: it was released in more sets as light bluish gray, as in both old color variants together, and in even more sets as dark bluish gray. The number of pieces in those sets is even more extremely skewed.

Color
# of sets
# of pieces

Dark Gray
29
78

Light Gray
81
129

Dark Bluish Gray
438
946

Light Bluish Gray
349
764

Thank you very much :)


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Rotating and elevating platform
I want to build a platform that can be raised and lowered but also rotate at the same time. Tried scissors and linear actuator, etc. and other techniques but cannot figure out a way to raise and rotate at the same time.

Hi Ken, welcome to Bricks SE! We will find your question a whole lot easier to answer if you include more information about what you are building, and if possible a photo (or rendering) of what you have so far.

maybe the parts 73763 and 73764 will help?

What should be the range of vertical motion? How far should it be able to rotate (maybe unlimited)? Should the rotation and movement be coupled as to happen at the same time or should they be independent? How big should / can the platform be?

They are many ways for a "Lift and Rotate" platform.
The easiest way to do this is by using the rotary part 73763 (Technic, Gear Worm Screw 6L) and the stationary part 73764 (its housing), and a Technic Small Linear Actuator on the bottom that stays in the fixed rotation.
The second alternative is to use gear racks and bevel gears for the same effect.


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Tan castle? or whatever
Bought a batch with quite a few tan bricks,

4 quarter circle panel
4 quarter circle brick
2 tower panel like 1/2 of 8-sided with arch window
arches in 4 sizes
slope 2:1, 3:1 & invert 1:1 (×1 & ×2)
1×1×1&5
1×2×1&5

While identification was possible in this case, it's often easier to identify parts by an image instead of their description.

I also made an edit to more easily distinguich which text refers to which part. Perhaps you can continue that edit for the last bullet point, because I don't know how to read it

I made some guesses as to what parts you are describing. I particularly did not understand your description of the slopes. Luckily the other parts are enough to uniquely identify the set.
There are six sets that use 30246 - Tan Panel 3 x 4 x 6 Turret Wall with Window.

While some of them also use the 30562 - Tan Cylinder Quarter 4 x 4 x 6,

only one uses both it and 48092 - Tan Brick, Round Corner 4 x 4 Macaroni Wide with 3 Studs.

That set being:
4757-1 - Hogwarts Castle (2nd Edition)

Think you're right, as I've also: big door, wings, 1×2 mod. log light grey & stairs.


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What Mega Bloks set is this tile with fruits from?
These pieces are from a Mega Bloks set. Does anyone know which set they're from?


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2×2 & 2×3 that join by ends

Bought a batch & found these, what are they called? What are their uses?

These are various modified Technic Bricks with "Joint Ball Half" and "Rotation Joint Socket" features as they are called on Bricklink. Technic Rotation Joint Ball Loop with Two Perpendicular Pins with Friction are the connectors for this type of elements. Although there are more ways to attach them. These elements have been used in large number of sets, originally coming in brick-built figures like Danju (8770):

Thanks, I've also 2 for his lower leg, 2 1/2's attach to brick.


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Trying to find the name of a LEGO set from a sealed bag
I have got a couple of bags which I think are for the same set.

Hi Terry and welcome to Bricks.SE! Please note that we already have guides on how to identify sets, like for example here: How can I identify a set based on one or more original sealed bags?. After trying the steps described there, edit your question with the details of what you have done and where you got stuck and we'll be able to help you.

This is from The Skeleton Dungeon (21189) set.

Identified by unique combination of:

Orange Plate, Round 1 x 1 with Flower Edge (5 Petals)
Dark Bluish Gray Plate, Round Half 4 x 8
Trans-Dark Blue Brick 2 x 2


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How to buy a lot of 65803 Technic plates for a mosaic project?
I would like to make a pixel-art mosaic and found out the existence of part 65803 for building the base board: https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=65803#T=C
Alternately, there is a chinese clone available under the brand YNYNOO: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004221907158.html
My consideration to get a third-party part is because buying the genuine LEGO versions in bulk seems difficult. There are lots of suppliers on BrickLink, each one with a small inventory.
Is there any knowledge about the relative quality of the third-party equivalent? I guess it may be a tad lower than the genuine part, but the supplier is able to sell enough for my needs in one go.
I am looking for a solution with the least mental surcharge ( = reducing having to deal with a lot of suppliers) to buy the parts, and ideally not too expensive in shipping fees.

Available as a Bestseller at LEGO Pick-and-Build. That means you can order a maximum of 999. Hopefully that is enough for your purposes.
https://www.lego.com/en-us/pick-and-build/pick-a-brick?query=65803

Interesting find!


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Is there a list of all known non-production/q parts anywhere?
Pretty self explanatory, I’ve tried the bricklink color catalogue but that seems to only show parts that are currently being sold, am I missing something?

What do you mean by "non-production/q" ? The bricklink catalogue contains both parts that are currently in production and parts that aren't.

In referring to parts never produced commercially (ie a marbled 2 x 4) Also included are mold and color combinations that have never been in sets. (ie a 2 x 2 tile in olive green) And I’m looking for a list of known parts, not just whats currently for sale.

Bricklink list all parts known to them, whether any is for sale currently. I have bought parts in colours not in any sets on bricklink. But I'm not sure they list everything, in part because it's hard to find out what "everything" is.

Where could I find that list?

If you go to the color info tab for a given part - eg. Plate, Round 1 x 1, you'll find 4 lists of colors for this part - each with their own meaning (ref. What is the meaning of the available color lists in Bricklink searches? for details). For your use, "known colors" == "production parts" and the additional colors in "lots for sale" might be "non-production parts" (or just errors by the seller).

I am aware of that, however I’m looking for a list of all known non-production parts, not just those currently for sale


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Did Samsonite ever made LEGO studs? (1 x 1 round plates)
Having done some basic research it would seem that Samsonite stopped producing bricks before lego introduced studs, however I don’t fully understand the deal lego made with Samsonite, and I don’t fully trust the dates I found, so if anyone could explain it better I would be very appreciative.
As a side note, im curious particularly about the color of the studs. I’m attempting to collect every color of stud I reasonably can and iirc Samsonite used slightly different colors than lego, any info on other 1 x 1 pieces would also be helpful.

What is your definition of a ‘stud’? The little knob on top of a LEGO brick? Samsonite produced licensed LEGO bricks for many years for the North American market, before LEGO bought them out.

My bad, I didn’t clarify what exactly I meant. I’m talking about the 1 x 1 round plates.

According to this listing, it appears Samsonite manufactured square 1x1 plates:

However, I cannot find any record of round variations by Samsonite.

The set you've shown is from 1962 well before the introduction of round 1x1 plates in 1980

I'm aware, I just showed that as an example of the square plates. The fact that I couldn't find any round variations was unrelated to the picture :)


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How to convert Passenger Train 7745 from 12V to Powered-Up?
I would like to convert the High-Speed City Express Passenger Train Set 7745 from the 12V track system to the Powered-Up system.

It seems to be trivial to exchange the old wheels with the new wheels, but I am looking for good ideas on how to embed the motor with the power block in the train.
The installation of the motor should match the old design nicely and the batteries should be easy to change. Any suggestions?

I would suggest placing the Powered Up hub in the front vehicle, replacing the brick-built 'engines' and 12v weights.
Parts required:

Two 1x4 plates with two studs (no. 92593) in any colour;
Two 1x8 bricks (no. 3008) in white;
Four 1x2 bricks (no. 3004) in black.

Assuming that you are building the coach from scratch:

In step 2 of the building instructions, omit the weight brick. Instead, place the two 1x4 plates across the chassis at opposite ends of where the battery box will stand (so there will be six studs in between them).

This not only makes it easier to remove the hub to change batteries, but lifts it clear of the pin on top of the motor.

In step 4, substitute 1x8 white bricks for the 2x8 white bricks.

In step 6, omit the second weight brick and substitute the four 1x2 bricks at each end.

In step 7, replace the engines with the Powered Up hub.

I believe it would be possible to convert the headlights in the same vehicle to Powered Up lighting, by replacing the 12v light brick with a 1x2 brick with two holes (part no. 32000) and mounting the Powered Up LEDs in the holes. I don't think it would be possible to have the lights at the other end of the train illuminate, as the Powered Up light cable would not be long enough to reach both sets of lights at once.

My first instinct would be to replace the train weights in the locomotive with the battery box:

That will require a little reworking of the walls to be 1-wide throughout so the battery box can be included. You would unfortunately have to remove the engine details:

These are behind shutters, so it isn't a major cosmetic issue:

There are 9 modules of space between the rear engine and the front of that compartment, so you should be able to keep the rear engine intact if desired.
The roof on the rear of the locomotive should be easy enough to remove when you need to change the batteries. This process could be further simplified by replacing some plates with tiles and putting tiles under that battery box itself.


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Mindstorms program error when I play in download mode
I can run the program perfectly in the streaming mode, but it will flash a red light in the download mode after getting 5 points. Below is my program code:

...........Updated.............
Finally I solved it when I delete 2 define function and group in the program start. But I don't know why it work.

I believe the problem is due to nested custom blocks. I tried designing a very modular program once, but it would not download at all, and I believe it's because there were too many nested blocks. However, I cannot confirm this as it seems LEGO has published little to no comprehensive information on it's software.


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What is this extra bag from 11019 set for?
This came in the classic 11019 Lego set. No additional instructions. I looked on Lego website and nothing showed up. There was an online locomotive to make? Looks like there’s sets of wheels and gears. Any help is appreciated! The bag that came has the number 135149 copyrighted in 2017

i found 2 of them: https://www.lego.com/cdn/product-assets/product.bi.core.pdf/6394760.pdf and https://www.lego.com/cdn/product-assets/product.bi.core.pdf/6394891.pdf

Does this answer your question? How can I identify a set based on one or more original sealed bags?

Nope. I have instructions, but it came with this spare unlabeled bag with lots of extra pieces

I'm sorry but what is the question? You've already determined that this is from set 11019, and according to the part list of that set, it matches up. Classic sets like this one don't really have instructions because you're meant to make stuff up yourself.

As you've mentioned in your question, the bag is from set 11019.
It seems that the confusion arises from the fact that most Lego sets do not have so many "spare" parts as is the case here.
However, with the Lego Classic line you will often find that there are more parts in the set than building instructions. If you look at the box you can note that it says "Ideas included". I've found that when that text is there, the instructions have several smaller individual builds for most of the pieces, but there is an "extra" bag or two with additional pieces which fits the theme - in this case exemplified by the gears.

This set doesn't have an intention to use all the bricks to build a defined set of models. As seen from description below (emphasis is mine) included instructions is a way for young builders to learn using LEGO bricks in new way and more of an inspiration for own builds. Extra bag is just a bag of more bricks to play with.
Description for Bricks and Functions (11019) set:
LEGO® Classic creations with fun functions
The LEGO® Classic Bricks and Functions (11019) building set comes with a colorful selection of LEGO pieces and instructions to make 7 fun buildable toys with gear-driven functions. Kids get to construct models with moving parts, from a pirouetting ballerina to a helicopter with spinning rotors, before diving into the bags of extra bricks to build their very own LEGO creations.
Perfect for children aged 5 and up
Kids will love building and playing with these functional models. And because each one comes with a step-by-step, pictorial building guide, even first-time builders can experience the pride and joy of constructing their own LEGO toys.
Kids develop key life skills
LEGO Classic playsets inspire children to get creative with exciting themes and building ideas that stimulate open-ended play. Learning has never been so much fun!
Create LEGO® models with different functions – The LEGO Classic Bricks and Functions (11019) playset comes with colorful LEGO pieces and 7 mini builds with gear-driven functions to kick-start the fun

What’s in the box? – All kids need to build a pirouetting ballerina, a push-along helicopter with spinning rotors, an apple with a pop-up worm and more, plus lots of LEGO® bricks for creative building
Open-ended creativity – Kids get to build and play with the 7 included model ideas, then innovate and discover as they find imaginative ways to create their very own LEGO® toys
A gift for any occasion – The LEGO® Classic Bricks and Functions (11019) toy playset is a gift for any occasion. Suitable for kids aged 5 and up
Includes 500 LEGO® pieces – Kids can build whatever they imagine with this original LEGO playset and can combine it with other LEGO sets for even more creativity
More sets to collect and combine – Kids can combine this playset with others from the LEGO® Classic range
Step-by-step, pictorial building guides – Every model comes with easy-to-follow building instructions, so even first-time builders can experience the fun of constructing their own LEGO® toys
Playful learning – Kids develop important creative skills as they build and play
High-quality creative building toys – All LEGO® Classic components meet strict industry standards to ensure they’re consistent and compatible
Safety first – All LEGO® building toys are thoroughly tested to ensure every playset meets strict safety standards

Is it this set? The parts appear to match and it has the same set number.
If so, there should be an instructions booklet in the box (not the bag itself) and possibly a QR code somewhere. Otherwise, you can look at the pictures of completed models (7 in all) that appear on the website. If you've already made them, it could just be spare parts! Legos are for creating your own thing. You can experiment with the parts and make your own contraptions :)


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I want to get started making GBC modules. Which powered bricks standard to choose in 2023?
There seem to be two competing standards for powered LEGO modules in 2023.

Power Functions

Powered Up

I have read that Power Functions may be retired soon, but can easily work in a standalone matter. Powered Up seems to require Bluetooth devices and apps to work correctly.
I would like to get started building GBC modules with motors and, maybe, sensors. As both standards seem not to be compatible with each other, which one would be the most sensible to pick in 2023? I have to pick one before I start acquiring parts.

The GBC setups I've seen/participated in, have included modules using all kinds of electrical components, but mostly Power Functions (PF) since it's not hard to power those with a train regulator that can easily be attached to the power grid.
Recently I've also seen some Powered Up (PU) controlled modules in a setup where most modules where PF.
But as you say PU modules require a bluetooth device nearby, and that gets impractical quickly. Some modules can share a motor, and probably a bluetooth controller, but I don't foresee the guys I know who has 100+ modules buying 100+ phones/tablets. I also don't know if it's possible to make several hundred bluetooth connections within a setup.
As it is now old parts (the train regulator probably takes the lead) are the best for GBC, but that's only good for a limited time (and mostly for those of us who already has a supply of those parts). But I have no idea what the future for GBC will look like (I'm fearing it will just die due to a lack of recent parts that are usable).
Edit: One of the things I set out to write, but forgot as I got into it: If you intend to exhibit your creations (and GBC modules are boring if not), you should also abide by any local rules your local LUG (or wherever you intend to exhibit) has.

This is no longer correct, PU modules do not require a bluetooth device, there is the "dumb" battery box 88015 and Spike Prime or Robot Inventor hubs can also run independently without any bluetooth connection.

Haven't seen that yet, but it does make things a little better. Does that also have a power input so we don't have to spend the whole day changing batteries when doing large GBC setups?

The RI and spike prime hubs have a rechargable battery that you can leave plugged in all day (although the battery actually only charges when motors are stopped with recent firmware). The 88015 has no power input, but modifying so it takes 9V from a transfo should be a trivial mod for an electronics hobbyist.


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Why do Lego boxes not contain the set numbers in Braille?
Why does Lego not stamp the braille set number on to the boxes of sets?  I know they have made audio/braille versions of instructions, but why are they not making the boxes of sets accessible too?

This is one of those questions where you'd get more details if asked directly via LEGO Customer Service.


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Where do you find custom ev3 code blocks?
I've heard of people using custom-made ev3 (code) blocks in the software, but I don't know where to look for them. Can someone post relevant links? Specifically, I am looking for more technical blocks like one to get the character at some index in a string (the second character of "hello" is "e") as I am used to real text coding and the block coding editor is rather... lacking for my needs. Thanks in advance!


text:
Trying to identify these LEGO pieces
Does anyone know what set(s) these belong to? I have been searching but have had no luck. Thank you.

Both the top build and the bottom left build are not LEGO, but from a clone manufacturer.

Really? I just checked and the bricks and they do not say lego on the dots. Thank you very much for pointing that out to me. I was very confused as to why I couldn't identify the set. Lego 101.

The back part of this set is from set 7693 ETX Alien Strike from the Mars Mission theme from 2007. I found this by looking for sets that had at least 4 of the “Plate 1x2 with bar - free ends” in Orange, and then looked at all the matching sets to find the “flag” piece with the (in your case) badly placed sticker.

The front slope with the circled 4 is not from that set; in fact, I cannot find any such piece on BrickLink at all, so this might be from a clone set as were the other items you originally posted in your question but since removed. Does it have LEGO markings anywhere on the piece?

Thank you again. I found a box of broken legos when clearing the attic. This was built like this so I just assumed that it fell off as is. I took it apart now and the "4" does not have lego on the dots.  I know my nephew had purchased a bag of pieces at a flea market years ago. He may have built this, and now I figured it was a broken set. Thank you for your time!


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Hinge parts between instruction steps in Studio 2
LEGO instructions sometimes hinge out bricks between two steps, as shown in this example taken from an instruction randomly:
Step 25:
Step 26:
Is it possible to do something similar in Studio 2?

I don't think so. The only workaround I can imagine is creating the building instructions on BL Studio until the step with the hinge. Then export as PDF. Do the hinge(s) and go ahead with the instructions. At last merge the PDF files.


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Labview Developer mode for EV3 Classroom app
I found a trick to enable labview mode on EV3 Home Edition, however, I cannot find the LEGO Software folder in C:\Program Files (x86) (or C:\Program Files). In fact, I can't even Open file location on the app itself! Is there a workaround for this? I may have downloaded the app from Microsoft Store, I'm not sure...


text:
What set is this from? Or piece #
I have this tote of LEGO bricks and wondering about the large Grey piece - large irregular light grey baseplate with two slopes running perpendicular to each other that don't have pips.
What set is it from so I can maybe download instructions.

I don't recognize this as a LEGO piece. Does it have LEGO logo on studs?

This is a Megabloks Baseplate ( MO1593 )
Source
it is from set #1411
Battle Shell Bridge


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What electronics are inside the SPIKE 3x3 LED Matrix?
What is inside the LEGO 3x3 Color Light Matrix 45608?

Pictures of the assembled Top- & Bottom- PCB would be helpful.

There are 4 clips holding this together. It isn't too difficult to get apart with a little prying. Here's what it looks like with the cover removed:

The board can then be popped out of the housing. Here's a close-up of the front:

There are 9 surface-mount LEDs just as one might expect.
Here's a shot of the back of the board:

The larger chip appears to be numbered:
V0269
3235A

I believe that this part is a 28-port dimmable LED driver. This provides enough output to drive the display (3 x 3 x 3 colors = 27 LEDs).
The smaller chip appears to be numbered:
S103
PHVC
0317

Here's a better shot of that chip:

This looks like an STM8S103 microcontroller similar to the chip used in Powered Up motors that provide position feedback.
There are also a number of smaller chips and passive components on the board, but they are probably a bit less interesting.

Thank you very much !
This Micro seems to be a Standard uC used for this Motor-/Sensor- Interfaces


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What brand of non-Lego bricks are these with hollow studs and diagonal walls on their undersides?
Believe they are from the 1960’s, available in Australia.

I find the article Bricks on Display: a collection of interlocking building bricks on brickset to be a good source of information for this kind of question.
These appear to be Montini bricks (made by Berco Lux in Tiel, Holland, in the 1960s, as a clone of the early Lego Mursten) :

(images are from that same article)
The name of the brand should be engraved on the surface somewhere (between the studs afaict) - can you find it ?

1st guess Montini, made in The Netherlands, but mine had name atop.
Do 2×x have pegs to fit hollow studs? Made of softer plastic than Lego is.


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Cat D11 bulldozer - should the plough and the frame be connected?
I’ve completed this and now have some remedial work to do! Can I please check though, are the two parts at the back (the ‘plough’ and the ‘frame’ with the ‘pistons’ on) supposed to be connected in any way? I haven’t connected them but it seems like they should be.

Step 925 indicates there are four attachment points for the plow. I'd suggest checking your model against this, making sure each point lines up.

Thank you. I ended up rebuilding. I'd put two L shaped pieces on pointing down rather than up hence I couldn't link the back parts up properly. All good now :-)


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Are there LEGO pieces without "LEGO" logo?
I have a LEGO wizard, the green one with a wizard hat that has a dragon on it but the hat doesn't have a "LEGO" logo on it. Also the beard. But the rest of the torso and legs have markings on them. Are the hat and beard fake?

Is this a question about specific items you have mentioned or you'd want to know which LEGO elements have no marking on them?

Welcome to Bricks.SE.  A more general discussion of this question can be found at https://bricks.stackexchange.com/questions/15101/which-parts-do-not-have-the-lego-logo-stamped-on-them .

Does this answer your question? How do I identify a LEGO part?

Does this answer your question? Which parts do not have the LEGO logo stamped on them?

Some Lego parts don't have a logo on them, depending on the mold.
Like the helmet in this question
Need help identifying helmet
your figure is probably this
Part 6131pb03 : Minifigure, Headgear Hat, Wizard / Witch with Black Buckle and Gold Dragon Pattern

from
cas435 - Dark Green Wizard


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Does anyone have any idea what this set is?
I am sorting sets for my grandson. Any idea about this set. I need instructions and parts but don't know the set of set group. Any help appreciated.

This is
Set# 8511 : Frost
key part : Trans-Light Blue Minifigure, Weapon Pike / Spear - Handle with Round End