236
37,112 times
Well I did it. I built a machine to test this. It took 10 days until the LEGO at the bottom couldn't stay on anymore.
>>> Check my blog for more details
30
Actually, it depends on the part.
Most parts are indeed ABS as it's a very sturdy plastic, but sometimes it's not suitable, or downright impossible to use. I've seen a presentation on quality issues given by a LEGO employee in LEGOworld a few years back, and as far as I remember there were between 10 and 20 sorts of plastic in use. The ones I remember are:
...
27
ABS maximum temperature is 80°C (176°F) and melt at 105°C (221°F)
Polycarbonate plastic used for transparent bricks melt at 267°C (512.6°F)
Since a candle flame has a temperature in excess of 1000°C (1832°F). I would advise against making a candle holder of LEGO bricks.
Plastic types are explained on this question.
23
All of this is correct, ABS can't be transparent and thus transparent parts are made of PC.
PC against PC bonds way too tighly and designers are actually forbidden to do that in their models. (I've a 4L lightsaber blade stuck in the crossend of a Technic beam, both trans-red, and I can't get it out.)
I'm fairly sure there's a designer (possibly Jamie Berard ...
18
The main restaurant in the LEGOLAND park in Windsor has quite a lot of LEGO creations in fishtanks. In the same park, the Sealife attraction 'Atlantis Submarine Voyage' has 50 species of sharks, rays and tropical fish that happily coexist with the LEGO models.
Keep in mind that LEGO is safe from children saliva, which I'm willing to bet is more aggressive ...
17
The LEGO company switched to ABS in 1963, bricks produced before that have a markedly different quality.
However, if your sets are from around 1980, they should use ABS already and there should be no reason that the plastic is different.
Other possible explanations would be bad storage conditions (too warm, direct sunlight, maybe), or the fat that the set ...
17
The optimal clutch power is attained after 8 to 10 couplings(search for "clutch"); that is, before that, the bricks will sometimes cling a little too much on each other.
However, I don't think anyone ever actually stated when clutch power would start to deteriorate. I'd tend to assume that once the optimal clutch is reached, there is just enough plastic at ...
16
Black.
Peeron.com has a colour table that lists how many pieces of each colour you would have if you had one of every set in their database.
Obviously their database is not complete, it doesn't relate to when ABS was introduced (but most of the pieces produced in all time will have been since then), and some sets have been produced in higher numbers, so ...
10
According to a letter from a LEGO representative posted at this site:
Tires and elastic materials found in some LEGO sets are manufactured
from Styrene-Butadiene Styrene (SBS), a material commonly found in
vehicle mud guards and shoe soles.
9
LEGO bricks should be safe for fish. Avoid using small parts that they could mistake for food. You also might be cautious on the paint, but I'm sure it's still safer than the paint used on the cheap stuff you'll find at fish stores.
9
I'm not sure there's any official answer for this, however I can answer with an anecdote.
There have been a few times where I've come across old bricks that have been assembled together for a very long time (ie many years). When prised apart, I've spotted that the studs have actually made an indentation on the sides of the tubes.
Based on this, I wonder ...
8
LEGO baseplates are made from ABS plastic, like most of the opaque rigid plastic LEGO elements since 1970. ABS is a thermoplastic consisting of a styrene monomer with the addition of an acrylonitrile momomer and a butadiene monomer. There is no PVC or vinyl present.
I suggest reviewing this thread for more on laser-cutting ABS. It is not a trivial matter to ...
8
I suggest calling Lego customer service (1-800-835-4386) to ask them about a bulk order. Professional "brick artists" like Nathan Sawaya buy their brick directly from Lego. The bulk prices are decent as well. For example, through the LUGbulk program, we got 2x4 bricks for about 9.6 cents each (these sell for $0.30/ea on the Pick-a-brick website).
Also, here ...
7
Quorneng's answer is spot on, even bricks that were from the same set might have been made from differing batches of a particular color and slight variances will produce differing colors. Purple is the most notorious Lego color for having a great deal of variance between bricks, and red is not surprisingly, also inconsistent at times.
To add to the mix, ...
7
I think this one would be in the top 5:
6
Most LEGO and DUPLO parts are made from ABS plastic. ABS does not contain BPA. Here's a statement from LEGO about the safety of ABS:
The majority of LEGO elements are made from ABS plastic (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), a high-quality plastic that meets our extensive list of safety and quality specifications. The colors and materials in ABS plastic do ...
6
LEGO switched from cellulose acetate (CA) plastic to ABS plastic in 1963. They continued to distribute CA pieces in sets until their existing supply was exhausted, so during the transition beginning in 1963 both types of pieces were sold in sets. In North America, LEGO pieces were manufactured beginning in 1961 under license by Samsonite, which continued to ...
6
I am also going to recommend Technic as the stronger support option, but I would make the case out of "normal" Lego, and then implement 2 Technic rectangular "rings" around the case at the place of your pillars, joined at the top and bottom (on the top the joint could form the handle). Make these rings or braces by overlapping Technic pieces and joining them ...
6
The 1x1 brick is both small enough to mean that you get edges no matter which way up it is, and has all the sharp edges and corners of the 2x2 brick, just packed into a smaller, more evil form.
That naturally leads to the headlight block, which has all the same features, but, if you are unfortunate, can also attack with the lip on the bottom.
5
Generally LEGO Technic structures (pins and beams with holes) tend to be lighter and stronger as System structures (classic bricks). The generally accepted best practice among amateur and professional LEGO builders is to have a light and strong internal structure (either Technic or other materials, like wood or steel) that can then be decorated on the ...
5
There are several reasons for this:
There isn't just one formula for the ABS plastic that is used in
LEGO. There are actually quite a few. Depending on the color,
translucency, and function, the mix of materials will vary.
Translucent pieces are quite a bit harder and more rigid than other
Lego bricks. Mini-figure accessories tend to be quite a bit softer
...
5
The colour of virtually all plastics, like paint, is an 'added' pigment so it is difficult to maintain exactly the same colour.
As others have pointed out some pigments are more susceptible to the effect of sunlight than others - red goes pale - white goes yellow.
4
The LEGO Group has already created clear sustainability goals.
TLG is currently investing money to try to find sustainable and non-petroleum based ways to design LEGO bricks. Here's some info about the new Sustainable Materials Center that TLG is working on:
http://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/news-room/2015/june/sustainable-materials-centre
It sounds like ...
4
They are made of SBS rubber.
According to user "B. Lister" on eurobricks.com, these bands are silicon rubber, used in medical and dental work for long lasting connections and tension.
Source
However, a LEGO representative at a toy safety site indicated otherwise:
The colors and materials in ABS plastic do not rub off or leach and, in fact, meet the ...
4
I nominate this little bugger:
Got it in a bulk lot, and oh boy is it painful to walk on. it rests flat on the ground thanks to the wings, and the crest is a nice touch for delicate underfoot.
3
As 62Bricks has said, this can be an art.
Based on my experience (in the UK):
CA bricks tend to have less clutch (stickiness to other bricks) than ABS bricks. I'm not sure if this is because they are more prone to wear, because they tend to warp or just because they're old and worn out. Nevertheless, some of my CA bricks are so non-grippy that they're all ...
3
The clear PC arms are more brittle, however you should be able to replace them at least once, since the torso you are placing it into is ABS - so there is a bit of a give/flexibility on that side.
One thing to be careful of, is when you take out the PC arms (and when you put them in a new torso), do not hold the arms by the hands! This will put pressure on ...
3
I had Lego MOCs loose their clutch on me after being left in a car for 9 hours during the summer. Outside temp was about 100F, so inside was quite a bit hotter. After this, I had to glue the MOCs back together.
So, the shorter answer is that I'd imagine that a candle could damage the plastics at least to the point where the bricks would not hold together ...
3
Unfortunately, I'm not aware of specific factories that are currently tooled to make compatible bricks that you could get in touch with. I have noticed an eBay user that consistently sells Canadian made compatible basic bricks, so it might be worth contacting them to see if you could work out a deal.
There are also many companies who will do custom ABS ...
3
This sounds like something to ask the corporate offices. They may be able to arrange shipments that even the LEGO stores can not. For instance, Thomas Nielson is the VP of manufacturing at TLG http://dk.linkedin.com/in/thomasnielsen?trk=pub-pbmap
If the stores can't get it to you, go to those who supply the stores. It certainly sounds like you generate ...
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
