I was checking the Mursten-era parts (the u80xx series) to see if they needed to be corrected with non-logo studs, and I was glad to see that Magnus has already submitted fixes for most of these. But after reviewing the research, I realized that this fix isn't necessary in some cases—specifically, the non-slotted bricks (u80xxa variants).
tl;dr—
Basically what I'm asking is this; read on below the break for more background.
Now, back to our story…
It appears that stud logos were first added to the molds at the same time that TLG switched over to studded windows and doors—and thus bricks that no longer needed slots. Prior to this time, all the different available bricks had at least one slot, which means that all bricks without stud logos (with a few random exceptions* that probably aren't worth modeling) would have had at least one slot.
So basically you have two distinct periods for these early bricks:
There is one snag, though. There was limited production** of some bricks that had both slots and stud logos (and in some cases also underside logos!). In general, I think it's correct to model the slotted bricks without stud logos, but it's worth being aware that there are some real-life cases where examples of either can be found.
So, I've put together a summary of the Mursten-era bricks that are in the library and what I think their status should be. I'm starting with standard bricks; I need to dig a little further into beams and baseplates. Open to ideas and suggestions, of course!
I. Standard bricks
A. Non-slotted, hollow-bottom with stud logos (no fix needed):
* The random exceptions are things like Swedish PRIMA bricks that had their own special molds. In fact, the only example I can point to off hand is the 2x8 beam, which was produced in Sweden without slots from a non-logo mold. (Ironically, this part would be u8005a, which is not yet in the library.)
** This mainly seems to be due to certain markets like Norway, which still sold slotted bricks after the changeover happened elsewhere, because they were still using these older molds after Denmark was done with them.
tl;dr—
Basically what I'm asking is this; read on below the break for more background.
- The Mursten bricks in the official library have stud logos. Real-life slotted bricks generally did not have stud logos, but non-slotted bricks always did. Which library parts, if any, should be fixed to have non-logo studs?
- For parts that existed both with and without stud logos (e.g., 1x2 slotted bricks), which variant should the official part reflect? Or, should a new version be submitted so that both are represented?
Now, back to our story…
It appears that stud logos were first added to the molds at the same time that TLG switched over to studded windows and doors—and thus bricks that no longer needed slots. Prior to this time, all the different available bricks had at least one slot, which means that all bricks without stud logos (with a few random exceptions* that probably aren't worth modeling) would have had at least one slot.
So basically you have two distinct periods for these early bricks:
- Slotted bricks (Automatic Binding Bricks and early LEGO Mursten, c. 1949–1955). These had no stud logos (and their undersides had either no logo, or one of two general logo styles—plain or "dogbone"—but we don't model these underside details anyway).
- Non-slotted "hollow-bottom" bricks (late LEGO Mursten and early System, c. 1956–1957. These had stud logos (and their undersides typically had no logo, but some molds also had a plain style underside logo).
There is one snag, though. There was limited production** of some bricks that had both slots and stud logos (and in some cases also underside logos!). In general, I think it's correct to model the slotted bricks without stud logos, but it's worth being aware that there are some real-life cases where examples of either can be found.
So, I've put together a summary of the Mursten-era bricks that are in the library and what I think their status should be. I'm starting with standard bricks; I need to dig a little further into beams and baseplates. Open to ideas and suggestions, of course!
I. Standard bricks
A. Non-slotted, hollow-bottom with stud logos (no fix needed):
- 2x4 (whole or 1/1 bricks): u8004a
- 2x3 (¾ bricks): u8003a
- 2x2 (½ bricks): u8002a
- 1x2 (¼ bricks): u8001a <- this is essentially identical to 3065.dat
- 2x4 with 1 slot: u8004b
- 2x4 with 2 slots opposite: u8004c
- 2x4 with 2 slots adjacent right: u8004d
- 2x4 with 2 slots adjacent left: u8004e
- 2x4 with 2 slots adjacent close right: ? u8004f (not in library)
- 2x4 with 2 slots adjacent close left: ? u8004g (not in library)
- 2x3 with 1 slot: u8003b
- 2x3 with 2 slots opposite: u8003c
- 2x3 with 2 slots adjacent right: u8003d
- 2x3 with 2 slots adjacent left: u8003e
* The random exceptions are things like Swedish PRIMA bricks that had their own special molds. In fact, the only example I can point to off hand is the 2x8 beam, which was produced in Sweden without slots from a non-logo mold. (Ironically, this part would be u8005a, which is not yet in the library.)
** This mainly seems to be due to certain markets like Norway, which still sold slotted bricks after the changeover happened elsewhere, because they were still using these older molds after Denmark was done with them.