Main Battle Tank!

A Main Battle tank by knock-off brand E.Z.Blox we substantially improved. More informations in the form of photos or a video might come soon. 

Armoured Car

An awesome Armoured Car I made from scratch during the summer. What is even more awesome is the high value production video you can watch to see it in action!

1989 Tipper Truck

This is a vintage tipper truck from 1989. I pieced it together from parts that I had and others I ordered specifically.

The only thing I “upgraded” is a newer front grill (the part did not exist at Lego before the early 1990’s) and the safety beacon on top of the cab. I’m sure the original designers wouldn’t mind. Do you?

Despite its small size, the truck is capable of some pretty heavy duty work!

Pretending to keep the truck clean after having pretended to work.

Tracked Backhoe Loader

Today we’ll have a look at two tractors, and among them one more specifically.

The red tractor on the left is one I got in 2009 when it came out. It has barely got modified since then, and I added a front bucket to it very recently.

The yellow one is a brand new custom model, in fact a backhoe loader I made based on the red tractor.

As you can see, it is also equipped with tracks instead of tires, giving it more off-road capabilities on mucky grounds, allowing it to stear more easily in tricky environements and even permitting it to U-turn on the spot, which can be invaluable to do on a narrow cliff-edge mountain road. Oh, OK, the true reason why it has tracks is because I love tracked vehicles.

Here it is again with all arms deployed.

As for the chrome chimney stack and the “50” sign on the rear, they’re here more for the looks than for anything else!

The tractor is able to do real work though.

To use the rear digger, you first have to rest your front bucket flat on the ground and lower the rear outriggers to add more stabiliy to the machine.

The cab is equiped with levers instead of the stearing wheel you’d find on a classic tractor.

Operating with the cab removed is by the way a very nice thing to do in summer, adding also a very different retro look to the machine, though I’m afraid modern health and safety regulations wouldn’t allow it on a work site!

At last, here we are off-road pretending to do some real work. (The backhoe loader belongs to my personal collection and not to my construction company and probably won’t see any real construction site any time soon.)

The old lady I met and her dog and myself posing in front of the backhoe with the shell we found when moving stones around.

I hope you enjoyed the tractor and the presentation!

Finally, if you’d like to see the machine in action in a video, here it is :

Broncozorus

Hi folks! You may recognise this road from the previous post, but do you recognise the car? It is one of the first vehicles I have shown you on this blog, right here. I was writing at the time that it was an excellent car which I had therefore barely modified. It is still excellent, but I made a few changes to it. The car is slightly higher, slightly longer and the bonnet slightly lower and slightly longer. You have to know the vehicle well to notice all that! Most conspicuous is the rear white structure I had in mind for a long time. My model for all that is, of course, the Ford Bronco from the 1980's. 

From above, it is easier to sea the police and light bar on the roof and the air vent on the bonnet. I don't consider the work to be done once and for all! The car is more of a work in progress.

For a lower profile, the light bar on the roof can be easily removed. With the police lights on, no specific marking and its dark red colour, this 4x4 is a perfect patrol and transportation mode for my jobs as a Sheriff and a Fire Marshall, as well as a very convenient "civilian" car for every other occasion. 

The 4x4 in a slideshow presentation here :

Lego City set 4437 MODified.

The Last Defender

Hi folks! This is my new toy! I managed to convince those chaps in Solihul to make a last effort at transforming my newly acquired Lego 4x4 (set 60165) into a Land Rover Defender inspired car. While I was here, I went for the full length version. It is absolutely sturdy and reliable despite its size, and perfectly versatile. 

The rear hatch opens for easy access to the vast boot, which is very convenient for loading your grocery bags or for other purposes.

(Please also notice the clever system imagined by His Grace the Duke to prevent the antennae from breaking if the car is driven underneath some low obstacle.) 

But my favorite position when traveling in this car is definitely standing through the sun roof I had added in the middle. Once again, this aperture is pretty convenient for all sorts of reasons. Oh, and of course, I have to have a driver taking care of the driving bit while I stand through the roof! 

(Please, notice the red and blue police lights discretely fitted in the front and protected by a very straightforward and solid bull bar.)

This brand new car, with its distinctive 'Jam Sandwich' style pattern is already one of my favorite ones in my entire collection.

At last, those same photos as a YouTube slideshow:

Thank you for stopping by!

Lego City 4x4 Response Unit set 60165 MODified.

Eight Wheeler

Guest Vehicle !

You may remember a few articles ago, I offered you the opportunity to win on that blog an eight wheel military vehicle. The winner is back and presents his price perfected with some modifications of his own. What is most amazing about the whole story is the fact that the private owner managed not to cause havoc in the streets with his armoured cannon bearing troop transport 8x8, and not having it confiscated. This deserves to be recognized!

HDH C.V. Durobot in front of his armoured troop transport.