Review: LEGO Ideas Clockwork Robot
Posted by Huw,
Following last Friday's review of iso3200's project Hover Scout and Recharge Dock and the Interesting Ideas article we were inundated with requests from people to promote their projects.
Brickset member Adeel Zubair, aka adzbadboy, was one such person who wanted us to promote his Clockwork Robot project. It had caught my eye some weeks ago because it's an extremely impressive and attractive model so I am only too happy to do so. In fact, I thought I'd go one further and actually build it from parts in my collection using Adeel's LDD files so I could photograph it and appreciate it for myself 'in the flesh'.
364 parts and a couple of hours later, here are the results...
First, a bit of background. Adeel designed this for a project which was part of a BTEC art and design course at college. He documented the design process for the project which makes for fascinating reading. He passed the course, and is now studying product design at university. He has his sights set on working for LEGO. But first, let's get this project to 10,000 supporters...
The project proposes a Creator style 3-in-1 set, the primary model of which is a clockwork robot.
The first thing that strikes you is how bright and colourful it is and how much character Adeel has managed to endear it with. The primary colour scheme really pops and makes a refreshing change from drab colours that are usually used for this kind of build. Its retro style is both child-like and playful.
Ten points of articulation allow it to be posed in a variety of ways. I particularly like that the tilting and rotating neck joint that allows its head to be positioned so it's looking up or down as well as to the sides which thus enables a wide range of emotions to be implied.
Round the back there's a gear for the wind-up mechanism. Something resembling a key might have been more appropriate but the gear wheel suffices.
He's an acrobatic chap, he can stand on one leg...
...oh his hands...
...on one hand!
While I was putting it together it was clear that a lot of thought had gone into the design. It's pretty much a perfect model, one which would not need a lot to be changed when it becomes an official model. This is particularly impressive given that Adeel designed it in Digital Designer and hasn't actually built it himself with physical bricks yet.
Not only is the main model of the proposed 3-in-1 set fantastic but the other two models are as well.
The second model is a Robo Dog who's reminiscent of a certain robotic canine from a popular TV show that LEGO has just snapped up the rights to. As you'd expect it's constructed entirely from parts of the clockwork robot.
It too is clockwork judging by the gear at the back.
The third model is an insect mech whose head resembles an Alien xenomorph. Like the robot it's highly articulated allowing for a variety of poses.
Hundreds of projects on Ideas are doomed to failure before they get their first supporter. They are either too big or are tied to an IP LEGO has produced products for in the past, or one that is inappropriate. This is not one of them. It's exactly the right size and is of course IP-free. When it reaches 10,000 supporters it has a good chance of passing review.
LEGO makes loads of robots and mechs and the fact there are so many of them proves that they are very popular However, none are like this one. The very attractive colour scheme and retro-vibe make this project stand out from what's gone before. It would look great on the shelf and I am sure will appeal to AFOLs and also to casual present-buyers, who will be attracted to its colours and personality.
Pledge your support today and make Adeel's dream a reality... :)
Want to see more?
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Feel free to continue to send us requests to feature your projects but note that we can't do so for them all.
2 likes
35 comments on this article
Delightfully fun design. Looks like something that would really catch the eye on the shelf and I'm sure my son would love to play with this for hours.
It's impressive that the robot can stand on one hand, says a lot about the robust nature of the design.
Awesome set, and I'm surprised how much I love the color scheme. Good job, adzbadboy!
I really like this one! I would buy it in a heartbeat.
@ Huw what is your IDEAS username?
That robot is charming. Very good. To my eye the only thing that's missing is a winding key attached to the robot's back.
Love it, instant support!
Are Adeel's LDD files public so we can also build it ourselves, or were they only made available to HUW for the purpose of this article?
I supported this as soon as Adeel put this up a while ago. I think it's a really tight brand fit indeed. The reds, blues and yellows make for a pure classic lego palette - very nostalgic while keeping the model itself very modern. My 11 year old thinks it's cool so it passes the small boy test ;-) I've been surprised about the lack of support for the model so far, but hopefully this review will throw it open to a wider audience and it'll be trending before the weekend is out. Best of luck Adeel.
I found this on Flickr this morning, way before this article was published :) It immediately caught my eye. I love the design, the color scheme and most the expressiveness of the robot. Supported!
shut up and take my money :)
I think the colors are a bit too primary and distracting for a clockwork robot (I'd expect more of a grey base with colored details) but I really like it! The poseability and stability is certianly very impressive, and I love robots, so I will definitely support it.
I just supported (171) based on reading this article, and left a comment that I found it on Brickset.com. :-)
Only 170 votes? Come on Brickset! Lets show this awesome project what we can do!
Nice model! Just supported it. I'd like to see what lego would add to prevent people to make one themself though. The main model seems to have the same articulation as 31007 power mech and the tertiary model as 9455 fangpyre mech. I love the latter and don't own the former. Also, great idea to give it three models :D
probably not something I would buy, but I think this is exactly the *kind* of model that Ideas should be all about. Get rid of all the never-ending glut of current new and current IP stuff, all the mega-sized projects that would be far too big and expensive, and focus on original content that is appropriately sized and well-designed. This fits the bill to a T, so I supported it.
Have just added my support. Suggestion: the above pictures 'sell' the project better than the current Ideas pics - an update might help move the support along.
Very impressive model, and balancing. It looks too heavy to balance. I have to say the first thing I had to ask when I read the article was what are the chances of huw having the right bits in the right colours. I never have the right bits for polybags i see......Do you have a shops worth of spares or did you rob 2-3 pieces from many models........
Only now I have had the chance to sit down and read the comments. Well I can say a very big thank you to Huw for considering to showcase this MOC. Thanks everyone for the feedback and supports!
I was originally going to add a winding key how ever It was already 'blocky' and I didn't feel it needed more mass to the design plus I had to stick withing the 'price' so the alternative was a Technic gear that I had lying around from my Cyclone Defender set.
Yeah it's missing the knee articulation however the model is better without it because then it would be less stable and add to the 'cost' of parts used in the model.
If you go back to the 'Behind the Scenes' you will see that I did start out with greys but it seemed to bland and boring, as it's part of the LEGO Creator it had to have a primary colour scheme.
LEGO Digital Designer Files:
Clockwork Robot:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/008un3vif46cl9t/LEGO%20Creator%20Clockwork%20Robot%20(31040).lxf?dl=0
RoboDog:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/z1juoj5dq6p9uh3/LEGO%20Creator%20Clockwork%20Robot%20(31040)%20(Alternative%20Model%20-%20Robotic%20Dog).lxf?dl=0
Insect Mech:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/w5qdz0qfr49e5m8/LEGO%20Creator%20Clockwork%20Robot%20(31040)%20(Alternative%20Model%20-%20Insect%20Mech).lxf?dl=0
I would be grateful for any feedback, reviews or pictures of the built models.
Happy Building!
Adeel
Good luck Adz!
I want! Lets get this to 10,000 :)
grate model good luck Adzbadboy.
but i cant get the LDD files to work.
That is a charming, unique model. I'd buy it on the first day of release.
The model could on many occasions be paired with the lego mini figure clockwork robot, so that would be a cleaver marketing technique.
Sorry, there's no way I'm going to support this model today. Because I supported it weeks ago. ;o)
The more I look at it (and the amazingly thoughful, researched, and professional development), the more I want to see the model on LEGO shelves. It's colorful, creative, charming, and fits in with the theme perfectly. Best wishes and good luck! This time, I honestly can't see where LEGO would improve it.
"...on one hand! " :D - I feel entertained. Set looks beautiful in flesh, great work with the colours.
Looks great adz!
I know that I already commented, but I wanted to point out that I showed it to a few people and there is definitely a big interest! Hope you make it!
Where can I send an Email with an LDD file to so I can get at lest one of my projects reviewed?
I'm on Brickset everyday, but I'm not often driven to comment. This Robot however is worth breaking my silence for. I have already 'SUPPORTED' on LEGO IDEAS. I also love the development work on Flickr. The links to the LDD files seem to point to an error on Dropbox. I'd love to have the files just incase it doesn't become a set. Perhaps our friends at Brickset could help? This is much nicer than the Wall*E which, lets face it, is a bit late to market?..... I'd much rather see original ideas instead of the steady stream of Film/TV related ideas. I spend my time designing Modular Buildings, and am waiting to see if the very worthy Natural History Museum gets through the next review and becomes the first Modular set to make it in Lego Ideas..... I'd buy this Robot in a second!
Very nice! I can't run LDD on my old computer. Can somebody make a PDF for me? Please send me a PM if you can help.
I just showed this to my wife and she is in love with it. She wants to buy it now!
This is now the very first set that I have offered my support to on Ideas :0)
^^ LDD-generated PDFs of all three models: https://www.dropbox.com/s/12lejuhmuigmrza/Clockwork%20Robot.zip?dl=0
@Huw, thanks a lot for sharing this!
Thanks Huw for the PDF's. Thanks everyone who said they would like this on the shelves, all you can do is share and wait for it to reach 10,000! Or if that day never comes I may produce kits for this, similar to what Chris McVeigh does but until then please enjoy the PDF files provided by Huw. Please do share photographs with me if you do build one of the models.
Happy Building!
Adeel
Yes thank you for the PDFs. Good to have. If the Robot doesn't make it through Lego Ideas I'll be off to BrickOwl. This model has inspired me to try my hand at something other than Modular Building Designs. This is me:
http://www.mocpages.com/moc.php/405639