Subject:
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Review of the 5571 Black Cat / Big Rig / Big Truck
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.loc.au
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Date:
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Fri, 1 Sep 2000 02:00:00 GMT
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Viewed:
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607 times
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It's been a bit quiet lately so time to inject some conversation starters
...
I finally acquired a 5571 Black Cat / Big Rig / Big Truck via e-bay. FYI, I
paid A$262 (from memory) plus postage. Allegedly it is the largest Lego set
in terms of the number of pieces (1700+) and I think this is part of its
popularity. There is a thriving e-bay trade in 5571s, and you can almost
always find one being auctioned there, and they seem to hold their price
pretty well. This was important for me as I wasn't entirely comfortable with
spending that kind of money on a set without the potential of recouping some
of it by subsequent resale.
Aside, I recently saw the 5571 described as one of a number of "benchmark"
sets that can be used to monitor price trends on e-bay. Rather like the Big
Mac indicator that seems so popular with economists these days (which
probably says more about economists than Big Macs). Clearly we'll have to
ask Todd Lehman for a "Dow Jones" style index for the e-bay Lego prices
complete with the graph-with-a-non-zero-origin to ensure that any minor
price fluctuation looks like a massive swing, so we can all get into a
frenzy about booms and busts in the Lego market just like the financial
press. But I digress.
The 5571 is part of the Model Team series, and so the aim of the game is to
achieve a realistic looking vehicle but without the use of lots of
specialised parts (minor decorative items excepted). Well, that's what I
perceive Model Team to be about, anyway, your comments welcome. Coming out
from a Dark Age that started in the 1960s, I have a horror of the modern
trend to SPUDs, POOPs, juniorisation etc. So Model Team appeals to my purist
instincts.
So, how does the 5571 stack up? Pretty well.
Although it has the largest piece count, it is not the physically largest
Lego model, as many of the pieces are very small in order to give the
realistic styling and decoration. Nonetheless it is still quite a large
model.
The beauty of this set is in the detail. It really looks like the big rigs
you see on the highways as working trucks. It has striking black and red
"paintwork", mostly achieved by red and black bricks but there are a few
large red stickers on the black doors and airfoil to complete the effect.
The metal work of the truck is built using grey pieces with a few silver
pieces (headlights and "chrome macaroni" exhausts). I actually think that
most of the big rigs I see on the highways have more shiny chrome work than
dull metal work and so I think the 5571 could have a bit more silver/chrome
without converting it from working truck to "racing truck". In particular, I
think the large wing mirrors should have been silver not grey.
The interior fittings are mostly done in yellow (which I guess isn't
realistic but looks really nice). Apart from the front seats which come with
a coffee maker (or is it a water cooler?), there is a rear sleeping cabin
with a reading lamp, TV, sunroof etc. The bonnet tips forward (hinged just
above the front bumper bar) to give access to the engine done in blue and
grey. Naturally the cabin doors open, as do some of the windows, including
the sun roof. Also, there are two tool hatches which open to reveal an
assortment of tools. At the rear of the cabin, there are a shovel and
ladder. On top of the vehicle are the usual assortment of antennae, lights,
horns and air intakes that these kinds of vehicles possess. And finally,
there is the Black Cat bonnet ornament (although I didn't get the joke until
my husband explained it). Do you guys get the joke?
Mechanically, the set offers a rack-and-pinion steering system operated by
Hand of God (the steering wheel at the driver's seat is purely decorative).
The Hand of God knob on the top does not detract from the appearance as
trucks do have ventilation systems at that spot anyway. It's a 6-wheeler
with the appearance of a front axle and two rear axles. However, each wheel
is individually connected to the chassis (so they aren't true axles) and
each wheel moves purely by its own friction. There are no differentials, no
suspension, no drive shaft, no gears and no working pistons. This is a set
to look at, not a set to awe you with its mechanics. Another small reality
quibble is that a real rig would probably have 4 wheels on each of the rear
"axles" not just two because of the weight of the trailer at that point.
Piece-wise, there are ... a lot of them ... but there are a few worthy of
special mention. There are a lot of large vertically- curved pieces of
varying sizes used to make wheel arches, curved ends of the bumper bars,
and curved top of the bonnet. They are also used to make the plate that is
used to connect the trailer (is there a technical term for this thing?).
There are also a number of horizontally curved pieces used to get the
rounded corners of the cabin.
Generally speaking, it is not a model to handle a lot of stress. It is
fairly easy to knock off a number of the decorative elements while handling
the model, since many are held on by a single stud connection or a single
clip. Also the wheel arches on the rear wheels are cantilevered and being in
the middle of the model, you tend to squeeze on them when you pick the model
up and then break them off. There needs to be a piece to lock down the
connection of the wheel arch to the chassis. Of course, all of the bits that
fall off are easy to put back on again, so it's no great drama. However, it
might impact on the playability of a set for younger children, but I suspect
Model Team is aimed at an teen/adult audience anyway.
I can't recall how long it took me to build but it was many hours over a
number of sessions, given the number of pieces. For me, a long building time
is important. I don't feel I get value for money if I can assemble a set
quickly. However, paradoxically, I tend to pre-sort the parts to reduce the
"hunt the part" time, which I find frustrating.
Finally, the set has stickers, some of which span multiple parts, which I
don't like.
So, is it worth spending $250+ to get one of these sets? Well, I'm still
feeling good about the purchase, and I don't always feel that way, so for
me, I guess it was. However, I cannot deny that one element of my pleasure
is the "owing the largest Lego set" euphoria, and I suspect this is a large
part of the reason that this set is so popular. It will be interesting to
see if this set holds its value if/when Lego release a set with a larger
piece-count.
However, before you go and spend the money, be aware that the 5571 is very
similar to some of the other Model Team sets, just a bit larger and with a
bit more detail. For example, I know many of you bought the 5561 Bigfoot
when KMart was selling them off cheap earlier this year, and the 5561 and
the 5571 are very similar. Same rack-and-pinion HOG steering. Very similar
two-tone styling but the 5561 is white and red, not black and red. Same
decorative items: antennae, headlights, horns, bumpers, doors and other
chrome macaroni features. Same stickers-across-multiple-parts! So, if you
don't feel you need the "biggest set" euphoria, you might be just as happy
with the 5561 at a fraction of the price.
Kerry
--
Kerry Raymond
kerry@dstc.edu.au
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: Review of the 5571 Black Cat / Big Rig / Big Truck
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| (...) <much snippage of a great review> (...) Unless the joke is that it's a Black Cat, I guess I don't -- please tell! (Trivia note: James H told us that the _only_ other set that has that cute little feline in black is <set:2872 Witch's (...) (24 years ago, 8-Sep-00, to lugnet.loc.au)
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