InterCityNight (BR 101 & Talgo waggons)
The InterCityNight is a rarely seen train in Germany. The Talgo sleeping cars are fixed together and the have a shared 1-axle truck. Building a working 1-axle truck for the LEGO tracks is a real challenge. It took quite a time to find out, how it might work in LEGO.
In the beginning all waggons were build with fixed axles, but I realised that this concept will not work on the LEGO tracks. They have to pivot somehow, even if this stands in contrast to the principle of train wheel(s) and track. So how could this work for a LEGO model?
The 9 waggons are 27 studs long each, only the first and last waggons have fixed axles. Again, the length of the waggons is a compromise to the geometry of the standard LEGO track system.
Electric engine BR 101
The model of the electric engine BR 101 is my first electric engine I've build. The idea started with the 22° corner slope to model the upper corners of the side walls next to the cabins. SNOT is used all over the side walls and many 2x2 tiles in red were used.
1-axle trucks
A real challenge were the tight couppling of the sleeping cars. But I was aware of a very rare special brick which might help to solve the problem. The magic brick is called Brick, Modified 1 x 2 x 2 1/3 with Spring Unit.
This "spring brick" allows to create a flexible pivot point. In curves the waggons are pushed so they can pivot. On straight track the spring tightens the waggons again. It took about 90 minutes to figure out this concept, now it works fine on standard LEGO train track.
Specifications
| Drive: | 2x 9V train motor in BR 101 engine |
| Type: | 8-wide, electric engine with 9 waggons |
| Length Lok: | ~40 cm (~50 studs) |
| Length Waggon: | ~22 cm (~27 studs) |
| Total Length: | ~2,35 m |
| Year of Construction: | 2001 |
Building instructions and part lists
There are no building instructions und part lists available for the models shown on this web site. There are no engineering drawings available. To build the LEGO models only photographs from the real prototypes were used. All models are unique and not for sale.