Random part of the day: Rectangular Air Inlet
Posted by Huwbot,
Today's random part is 46453, 'Rectangular Air Inlet', which is a Technic part, category Decoration Elements. It was introduced in 2003 and was last used in 2007. It was made in 1 colour and has appeared in 3 sets, one of the first of which was 8376 Hot Flame.
Our members collectively own a total of 1,997 of them. If you'd like to buy some you should find them for sale at BrickLink.
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I have got 2 of this piece and honestly I find it useless!
@Lego_mini_fan said:
"I have got 2 of this piece and honestly I find it useless!"
Well, then you're not trying hard enough! :)
Pretty specificied part here
I have never seen this piece in the flesh, I think. Mighty as my LEGO fandom is, I don't think I'm missing out.
Great for those MOCs where a square air inlet just won’t do.
It was in a set called Hot Flame. Great job Lego, remember the last time a flame was cold? Yeah, me neither...
Very rectangular.
Looks cool in person but I haven't built it into a MOC
Ha! I just sorted this thing the other day! I have the pickup truck it came on, I think. That was one of those impulse clearance buys to bulk up Technic and space parts collection.
Had I known how many Technic parts TLG would eventually start dumping into just regular sets, I would not have pulled the trigger.
EDIT: Also I would argue this is a not merely an intake, but meant to represent a roots-type supercharger. If you look at the other side, there’s clearly a geared drive belt portrayed - a hallmark of a blown engine like the ones portrayed in these models.
I thought I recognized it from 5984 Lunar Limo, but nope, different part.
3 set appearances in 4 years, I am guessing this is exactly the sort of thing that was helping to kill Lego’s profitability around this time. Am I in the ballpark here?
This is one of those pieces where I simply wonder why LEGO even bothered to develop a mold for it, considering how much these supposedly cost. Just like with any piece actually that saw use on just a tiny amount of sets. Plus it doesn’t even add anything meaningful new to the LEGO parts inventory.
Moving on.
As a parts collector myself, I actually think this piece actually looks pretty cool, and I think it would be very useful for all sorts of Technic builds.
Everyone in here who thinks it's useless are obviously just not using it right.
I do kind of wish the Technic sets of today still included a few detailed pre-fab elements like this one besides just the wheels.
Now there's something that even I'd say doesn't look like a Lego piece...
@gorf43 said:
"It was in a set called Hot Flame. Great job Lego, remember the last time a flame was cold? Yeah, me neither... "
In fairness, it's somewhat more reasonable than it first appears; H.O.T. was one of the racing teams in the Drome Racers story material. So the set name really means that it was a car called Flame that belonged to the H.O.T. team... however the fact that it was meant to be an acronym seems like it consistently got lost along the way between the story department and the set designations.
...on an unrelated note, do I see Bohrok windshields in that set? That's an... unexpected place to find those.
This is taking Technic fake engines to a whole new level of non-existent.
I have 3 as I have the to Nitro Power Racers, 8146 and 8682
I missed the 8649 having the ROUND AIR INLET, 4203308 which I have one part in 8651
@gorf43:
Coldfire Trilogy, C.S. Friedman.
@cm5878:
This was 2007, so a few years after the two big losses (plus there was a very small third loss you don’t hear about much). By this time, I suspect they were heading back in the right direction. Mostly.