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Understanding Lego Part Numbers

brickset.com

1–10 of 16 posts

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#3
post #2

>The allocation and usage of LEGO part numbers is a complex subject that people have devoted their lives to understanding fully. I hope that is something of an exaggeration.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#4
post #3
post #2

>The allocation and usage of LEGO part numbers is a complex subject that people have devoted their lives to understanding fully. I hope that is something of an exaggeration.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

> LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO

That is not limited to LEGO: Some researchers from Lancaster University also were researching LEGO bricks (read: Playing around trying to set record-low temperatures for LEGO bricks); and found out they're excellent insulators at sub-kelvin temperatures: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21884755

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#5
post #3
post #2

>The allocation and usage of LEGO part numbers is a complex subject that people have devoted their lives to understanding fully. I hope that is something of an exaggeration.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

But they don't have to reverse engineer the numbering system to find it out. Day one they just get told "here's how the numbering system works. Don't tell the Internet. kthx."

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#6
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

> LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO That is not limited to LEGO: Some researchers from Lancaster University also were researching LEGO bricks (read: Playing around trying to set record-low temperatures for LEGO bricks); and found out they're excellent insulators at sub-kelvin temperatures: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21884755

Out of curiosity, what is a "sub-Kelvin" temperature? As an absolute scale, isn't it impossible to be off the bottom of that scale?

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#7
post #5
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

But they don't have to reverse engineer the numbering system to find it out. Day one they just get told "here's how the numbering system works. Don't tell the Internet. kthx."

Given that part numbers are quite old, and that they rerelease parts with other numbers, you have far more faith in the ability to trivially understand legacy systems than I do.

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#8
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO That is not limited to LEGO: Some researchers from Lancaster University also were researching LEGO bricks (read: Playing around trying to set record-low temperatures for LEGO bricks); and found out they're excellent insulators at sub-kelvin temperatures: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21884755

Out of curiosity, what is a "sub-Kelvin" temperature? As an absolute scale, isn't it impossible to be off the bottom of that scale?

a temperature below 1 Kelvin.

Re: Understanding Lego Part Numbers

#9
post #5
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, LEGO employs some professionals who no doubt devote their career to understanding many things about LEGO. The part numbers, if assumed to also include things like brick stockpiles and production runs, planning of new bricks, set design requirements, etc. could easily be a major part of their job.

But they don't have to reverse engineer the numbering system to find it out. Day one they just get told "here's how the numbering system works. Don't tell the Internet. kthx."

They are probably told how to query the internal parts DB which is enough of a challenge just when searching by shape/color/version.

I doubt anyone at LEGO fully understands all of the naming/numbering convention decisions that have evolved over 70+ years.

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