Random part of the day: Plate 1X4, W/ 2 Knobs, No. 2
Posted by Huwbot,
Today's random part is 41740, 'Plate 1X4, W/ 2 Knobs, No. 2', which is a System part, category Plates.
Our members collectively own a total of 4,969,968 of them. If you'd like to buy some you should find them for sale at BrickLink.
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13 comments on this article
Wait till you hear of what he did to No. 1
Not entirely related to the part, but I love how that color is rendered here on Brickset. It's so satisfying to look at.
@Darth_Mule:
The old one wasn’t groovy. This one is.
Counting both versions of this part, I have more than a thousand of these.
I would have guessed, "Oh, probably a hundred or so."
Yikes.
@PurpleDave said:
" @Darth_Mule:
The old one wasn’t groovy. This one is."
Some sets contain both (even in the same colour) - 70430 for instance has in Dark Tan
Nice see-saw.
@AndyB1:
Sometimes they consider a new version to be just a simple upgrade to an existing part design, and sometimes they consider it to be fundamentally different in a way that prevents cross-compatibility. This would be one of the former, with improved clutch and a tile-style groove, but no situations where the new version would not work in old sets and vice versa. In these cases, they appear not to differentiate between old and new variants, and it’s absolutely possible to get both versions in a single set as they delete old stock. I once got a set that Bricklink had inventoried with a pair of 1x1 plates w/ Type 3 vertical clips in dark-bley, but what I pulled out was one Type 2 clip and one Type 4 clip. The Type 2 clip was officially retired in the early 80’s, while dark-bley wasn’t produced until the 2004 color change, so this piece should not exist.
Other times the new part is so different from the old part that it impacts set construction, which I think is when they introduce new design numbers so they don’t mix old and new stock together.
I am so disappointed we did’t reach 5 million. What a miss!
;)
So what's the purpose of this part? I see it used in a lot of sets I've built but I don't think I've ever seen a case where it was needed. Usually they could have just as easily chosen a 1x4 tile or a 1x4 plate instead.
@Nytmare said:
"So what's the purpose of this part? I see it used in a lot of sets I've built but I don't think I've ever seen a case where it was needed. Usually they could have just as easily chosen a 1x4 tile or a 1x4 plate instead."
For me, it is useful for buildings to be opened up floor by floor. It is often used in official sets too. Look here, the top of the wall is covered mostly with tiles, but a few of these pieces allow the next level to connect:
https://images.brickset.com/sets/AdditionalImages/10297-1/10297_Back_02.jpg
For this purpose, it is better than plates since the 4 studs on the bottom hold stronger than the 2 studs on top, so when you pull the floors apart, it sticks with the bottom floor. On the other hand, it offers reasonable clutch power so if you use a few of them per floor, the building doesn't just fall apart easily, you actually have to pull.
@Nytmare said:
"So what's the purpose of this part? I see it used in a lot of sets I've built but I don't think I've ever seen a case where it was needed. Usually they could have just as easily chosen a 1x4 tile or a 1x4 plate instead."
I use this part in MOCs from time to time, e.g. for connections where you need both, studs to attach other stuff on and smooth surfaces for sliding things or just aesthetics. Sometimes the opposite also would be great: two studs in the middle, smooth ends.
About categories: is this a modified tile or modified plate? For me Bricklink is not clear 33909 2x2 tile with two studs is a tile but shows the same amount off studs and tiled surface as today's part of the day.
Seen used mainly to give a few studs to secure minifigs on pavements, platforms etc. which are others built completely from smooth tiles. I've found useful in building GBC smooth slides and chutes where instead of using 2x2 tiles on a 4 wide plate with side walls, you can just build the side walls directly on the end studs. These are also far cheaper than the 1x4 tiles especially in unusual colours.
@Nytmare:
The main purpose seems to be for separation layers. If you use a combination of 1x2 tiles and 1x2 plates, half of the plates will stay on the top of the wall, while the other half will stick to the bottom of the floor above. The first version of this was intended to give a 2:1 advantage to the bottom connection so that didn’t happen. This version reportedly increased the clutch on the bottom, as the first version didn’t really function as well as intended. The groove was added to make it easier to overcome that added clutch when removing the part.
Additionally, they have used this part to add attachment points in situations where some smooth surfaces are still desired, either for aesthetic reasons, or to allow something else to slide through the center.