If you're one of those kids who grew up building and loving LEGOs, your heart probably skips a beat whenever you hear about a new life-size sculpture of everyday things, like cars or robots, or about a LEGO set brought to life as a real-scale object. Today, we'll bring out the nostalgic kid in you by presenting a rideable LEGO Technic-inspired cafe racer that was built using 3D-printed components.
This rideable motorbike is the creation of Matt Denton, a popular YouTuber and expert in animatronics, best known for creating and operating the BB-8 droid from the Star Wars franchise. A single glance at Denton's YouTube channel is enough to realize the man is really passionate about LEGO and likes to build life-size LEGO Technic kits and show the result to the world through his videos.
His latest project is based on the LEGO Technic 8810 Cafe Racer, a set that was originally released in the 1990s, and combines the joy of LEGO building with modern innovations like 3D printing and battery technology.
Denton's cafe racer is not exactly a real-scale recreation of the LEGO set. Actually, his project is based on an electric monkey motorbike, but the design faithfully follows the LEGO 8810 kit, and the 3D-printed parts are modular. This means they can be attached and detached like real LEGO blocks. According to Denton, these giant blocks are made of PolyLite material combined with polycarbonate, which makes them durable enough while also retaining the look of original LEGO bricks.
Photo: Matt Denton/ YouTube screenshot
The initial plan was to also 3D print the wheels and tires to make it look much more like the original LEGO model, but he ended up ditching that idea. Instead, he used an e-bike kit that included essential components he needed to inject the bike with real working functions, such as a motor controller, screen, disc brakes, wheels, tires, and brake levers. Nonetheless, many of these components are hidden under his 3D-printed LEGO parts. Most of the wiring is also concealed inside the custom-made frame, which helps keep a clean exterior look.
He glued all the LEGO parts but also used bolts to connect everything together and added some hardware reinforcement to make it strong enough to ride and ensure durability.
When it comes to the battery (a 48V 7 Ah Lithium Ion battery), he originally thought of putting it under the 3D-printed seat or inside the rear frame, but he eventually came up with a way better idea. To seamlessly integrate it into the design, he used a special water bottle-shaped compartment for the battery, as well as a "bottle holder" frame that doesn't disturb the overall aesthetic of the bike.
Photo: Matt Denton/ YouTube screenshot
When everything was assembled, Matt Denton took the LEGO-inspired bike for its first trial ride indoors inside his workshop. And though it handled pretty well, he decided it needed some power and steering adjustments before testing it outside. In the end, he concluded that it's not very comfortable to ride and the steering system would use some tweaking, but it does function and it looks amazing, so all his hard work did pay off. .
You can see for yourself how the test rides went in the second video below. You’ll also see that special effects designer Adam Savage, who's also a YouTube personality, gives it his seal of approval.
After spending a few years as a copy editor, Ancuta decided to put down the eraser and pick up the writer's pencil. Her favorites subjects are unusual car designs, travel trailers and everything related to the great outdoors. Full profile
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