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Excited for the return of gear functions?


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Gears are one of the three things that made me most excited for the Bionicle relaunch (the two other things are the skull masks and the old Toa returning in spirit). They're an example of fun engineering and the fact that Lego managed to fix their worst issue (Interfering too much with articulation) means they only add to the sets. 

 

One other thing I noticed: The return of gears means the Toa sets actually have some depth in their bodies. No more flat Inika torsos!

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I'm definitely excited to see Lego fuse together modern articulation with retro gear functions. 

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Ohhh... Oh yes. I was quite happy to learn they were returning. And the sets still retain full poseability? Fantastic!

 

I'm sure they'll be most gratifying to build and use. :)

 

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Did you guys all like the similar function on HF Brain Attack figures with the red levers that moved their arms?

Only two figures actually had that feature, and honestly the new gearbox is much more effective and elegant.

 

So, anyone going to comment on the pictures I posted? :P

Edited by Lyichir

Formerly Lyichir: Rachira of Influence

Aanchir's and Meiko's brother

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Is there going to be a locking mechanism like there was with the Mata sets?

No, but you shouldn't need one. As I pointed out in the comments to one of the pictures, the sets add friction to the gearing in numerous ways which should ensure that the pose won't slip if you're not actively turning the gear on the back.

 

If you did want to lock the gears for whatever reason, it also wouldn't be that much of a challenge with other Technic parts. But a locked gear might as well not be a gear at all, so I don't really see the point.

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Formerly Lyichir: Rachira of Influence

Aanchir's and Meiko's brother

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I'm assuming if you want to lock the gears, then you don't particularly care about the function and just want a poseable figure. In that case, all you should have to do is take some of these (like three of the Toa already use) and put those in the spot where the gears would otherwise go. That way, you preserve the original proportions.

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So the gearbox is a new specialized part. Dang it.

Specialized? Barely. It's a pretty versatile Technic part, that happens to be ideal for adding gear functions to CCBS figures. And it's less specialized than pretty much any Bionicle torso ever.

Edited by Lyichir
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Formerly Lyichir: Rachira of Influence

Aanchir's and Meiko's brother

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So the gearbox is a new specialized part. Dang it.

Specialized? Barely. It's a pretty versatile Technic part, that happens to be ideal for adding gear functions to CCBS figures. And it's less specialized than pretty much any Bionicle torso ever.

 

What I mean by specialized is that to put a gear on a CCBS MoC, I'd have to use that piece. I thought that I could construct that gearbox using Technic parts I already have to test it out before I get the sets. 

 

Now it looks like I'm just going to have to wait. Darn. 

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How far out does the gear stick out? I can see it on Onua's back in his stock photos, so it seems pretty far out.

Well, really as far as you want it to stick out. I'm pretty sure that on the actual sets, all of them stick out about five modules behind the neck. Onua's seems like it might stick out farther, but I'm not sure. And it's very easy to mod the length—on the figure I built Thursday I used a Technic extender to have it stick out one module more, since otherwise my figure's wings made it slightly hard to reach.

Formerly Lyichir: Rachira of Influence

Aanchir's and Meiko's brother

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So the gearbox is a new specialized part. Dang it.

Specialized? Barely. It's a pretty versatile Technic part, that happens to be ideal for adding gear functions to CCBS figures. And it's less specialized than pretty much any Bionicle torso ever.

 

What I mean by specialized is that to put a gear on a CCBS MoC, I'd have to use that piece. I thought that I could construct that gearbox using Technic parts I already have to test it out before I get the sets. 

 

Now it looks like I'm just going to have to wait. Darn.

 

Building a custom gearbox out of basic Technic wouldn't be hard. You wouldn't be able to get it EXACTLY the same, but I've seen some concepts that have similar proportions.

 

The simplest way to do this:

This design is for a simple gearbox with no friction (or gears and friction pins built into the shoulders the way Lewa does it). You could make it even more accurate to the Toa with some slight modifications, but those would make it more difficult to describe without an illustration. The biggest drawback (and the only one I haven't easily been able to overcome) is that it doesn't allow you to armor the lower back as easily as the gearboxes in the actual sets.
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I'm SUPER hyped for the return of actual set functionality (that isn't just the launcher of the year), and if anything this should bode well for more great titan sets. I loved the functions up until they pretty much removed them in 05 (the hordika can only slash a lower arm? laaame) and this is one of the many reasons why I'm getting back into the series and getting all the sets no matter what.

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2015: 18/18 2016: 11/17

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 There's a YT video review on Tahu that shows this function very well:

 

 

 I am so excited.

 

On an off-note. I was a bit iffy on the Hau when I first saw the finalized pics, but I must say....once I saw them in 3d, I was sold. This is arguably one of the best reiterations of the Hau that I've seen. This is what I imagine a "Tahu-Hau" in the movies would look like as opposed to a "Lhikan Hau". Very happy. :D

Edited by Prime Axiom
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 There's a YT video review on Tahu that shows this function very well:

 

 

 I am so excited.

 

On an off-note. I was a bit iffy on the Hau when I first saw the finalized pics, but I must say....once I saw them in 3d, I was sold. This is arguably one of the best reiterations of the Hau that I've seen. This is what I imagine a "Tahu-Hau" in the movies would look like as opposed to a "Lhikan Hau". Very happy. :D

Thankyou for linking that video, how did I miss that when I was browsing on Youtube

It looks like such a good set, the new gear system is absolutely brilliant!

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I used to hate gear functions. But then I took a LEGO gearbox to the knee, because this joke hasn't been used over 9000 times in the past.

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 There's a YT video review on Tahu that shows this function very well:

 

 

 I am so excited.

 

On an off-note. I was a bit iffy on the Hau when I first saw the finalized pics, but I must say....once I saw them in 3d, I was sold. This is arguably one of the best reiterations of the Hau that I've seen. This is what I imagine a "Tahu-Hau" in the movies would look like as opposed to a "Lhikan Hau". Very happy. :D

Thankyou for linking that video, how did I miss that when I was browsing on Youtube

It looks like such a good set, the new gear system is absolutely brilliant!

 

  

Lego really took it to the next level with the build they put into the Toa for Bionicle 2015. Everything from the slide on mask, to the full articulation with gear function, to the multi weapon playability. Is it wrong for me to say that I like these sets better than the Nuva, or indeed *gasp* the original mata, as sets? I mean, just look at the masks. They are have elements from the classic (with the exception of Gali's but even then, I think I'll wait till I actually see the 3d version to judge seeing as that's what happened with the Hau), but are modernized and look so slick.

 

I can't help but think that these sets would have been perfect if they were released in 2008. By then, the Inika/Piraka build was getting stale, and this new system would have brought some spice to the sets. I cant help but think that if it wasn't associated with HF, then the negative vibes of this system wouldn't exist at all. Then again, I suppose Hero Factory allowed for Lego to do 4 years of test trials. What we are seeing is the best the system as to offer.

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Thanks for that video. The new Tahu is an absolutely beautiful set. That armour just looks so great and I love the proportions for once. The weapons and mask are fantastic.

 

The gearbox design is definitely a pretty cool feature. Implemented very well. But what is that small gear doing on the top? Is it just an aesthetic choice?

 

-NotS 

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Thanks for that video. The new Tahu is an absolutely beautiful set. That armour just looks so great and I love the proportions for once. The weapons and mask are fantastic.

 

The gearbox design is definitely a pretty cool feature. Implemented very well. But what is that small gear doing on the top? Is it just an aesthetic choice?

 

-NotS

Nope. The small gears are used to add friction. Tahu, Gali, and Pohatu all use them in the center like that, Lewa and Kopaka use them in the shoulders, and Onua instead has a ball joint and Y-joint to add friction in his right shoulder (since his hammer is one of the heaviest weapons, presumably).

 

This allows the figures to hold a pose where the arms are raised, something the old Toa could not do so well unless you put a gear on the back to "lock" the function.

Edited by Aanchir
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  • 2 weeks later...

 

Thanks for that video. The new Tahu is an absolutely beautiful set. That armour just looks so great and I love the proportions for once. The weapons and mask are fantastic.

 

The gearbox design is definitely a pretty cool feature. Implemented very well. But what is that small gear doing on the top? Is it just an aesthetic choice?

 

-NotS

Nope. The small gears are used to add friction. Tahu, Gali, and Pohatu all use them in the center like that, Lewa and Kopaka use them in the shoulders, and Onua instead has a ball joint and Y-joint to add friction in his right shoulder (since his hammer is one of the heaviest weapons, presumably).

 

This allows the figures to hold a pose where the arms are raised, something the old Toa could not do so well unless you put a gear on the back to "lock" the function.

 

 

 How exactly does the small gear add friction? I'm having trouble visualizing the process. 

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Thanks for that video. The new Tahu is an absolutely beautiful set. That armour just looks so great and I love the proportions for once. The weapons and mask are fantastic.

 

The gearbox design is definitely a pretty cool feature. Implemented very well. But what is that small gear doing on the top? Is it just an aesthetic choice?

 

-NotS

Nope. The small gears are used to add friction. Tahu, Gali, and Pohatu all use them in the center like that, Lewa and Kopaka use them in the shoulders, and Onua instead has a ball joint and Y-joint to add friction in his right shoulder (since his hammer is one of the heaviest weapons, presumably).

 

This allows the figures to hold a pose where the arms are raised, something the old Toa could not do so well unless you put a gear on the back to "lock" the function.

 

 

 How exactly does the small gear add friction? I'm having trouble visualizing the process.

 

One of the small gears is connected to the larger knob gears via an axle, and the other one is attached to a friction pin.

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Working gear functions and full posability? I never thought I'd see the day! Definitely looking forward to this!

 

It also looks like the build is a tad more complex than the average HF set, but I could be wrong there. I haven't really looked at them in detail.

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Working gear functions and full posability? I never thought I'd see the day! Definitely looking forward to this!

 

It also looks like the build is a tad more complex than the average HF set, but I could be wrong there. I haven't really looked at them in detail.

 

The builds are generally more complex than a typical Hero set (largely because of the gear functions, and the attachment points the gearbox provides). Onua and Lewa are probably the most complex of the Toa, at least in my opinion, although Gali, Tahu, and Kopaka are also more complex than your average humanoid hero. Pohatu's a bit more basic (not that that's a bad thing).

 

The most complex set of ALL would be Lord of Skull Spiders. He's the closest thing we've had to the Technic-based 2001 Rahi since 2003's Pewku or Gukko sets. And he's only $15!

 

Of course, this year's Hero Factory sets weren't shabby either, since the change to minifig-scaled mechs rather than actual characters allowed for much more diversity and complexity in the builds than previous years had.

Edited by Lyichir

Formerly Lyichir: Rachira of Influence

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I can honestly say I believe Lego has done a perfect job on all these sets. I'm very pleased with all the new designs. They really capture the characters. But when I heard gear functions were returning I was afraid that might ruin posability. But it appears Lego has finally implemented a way to add gear functions while maintaining posability. Now I could never be happier with these sets. I am concerned about the masks coming off so easily though. That was a problem I always had with the 2001- 03 sets... Other than that, these sets are a dream come true. :)

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I can honestly say I believe Lego has done a perfect job on all these sets. I'm very pleased with all the new designs. They really capture the characters. But when I heard gear functions were returning I was afraid that might ruin posability. But it appears Lego has finally implemented a way to add gear functions while maintaining posability. Now I could never be happier with these sets. I am concerned about the masks coming off so easily though. That was a problem I always had with the 2001- 03 sets... Other than that, these sets are a dream come true. :)

Yes I agree with you completely, these sets are a dream come true, they look like they have so much functionality and they remind me a lot of 2001-2003 which is really exciting!

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