Cement Mixer 

       
 
 
Cement Mixer
Cement Mixer box Cement Mixer interior Cement Mixer side detail Cement Mixer operator Cement Mixer and operator Cement Mixer rear

 

As part of LEGO's classic Town theme, they released the #6682 Cement Mixer in 1985. As with other construction vehicles of the time, it was a simple 4-stud wide design that had little in the way of details. A little over 20 years later, LEGO released this truck as an homage to that original design. Both were blue and white mixers attached to cab-over trucks and had a single overall-clad operator. But in keeping with contemporary builds, this truck uses a 6-stud design and has both greater realism and better detailing.

The minifig has a red hardhat, yellow head with brown eyebrows/cheek lines/cleft chin, a white torso with blue striped overalls/dark bluish gray hands, and blue legs.

The truck is a slab-fronted design with four axles and a heavy front bumper. The cab lacks opening doors, having smooth panels along the sides instead. The sideview mirrors are 1x1 clip tiles mounted on upturned taps, and other details like the sun visor and steps are captured by cleverly using slide plates and tiles. A single seat is inside the cab, along with a lever and grille detailing. Behind the cab is a large, complex structure representing the motor that rotates the drum. This is also functional thanks to a knob on the right side of the truck that is geared to the base of the drum. The knob gets a sticker indicating the direction to turn it, though real cement mixers rotate their drums both directions (depending on whether the load is being charged or discharged), so having a single direction noted is a little odd. The area between the forward and rear axles has grate detailing on the right side, and a grate, lever, and gauge on the left. The drum actually has a spiral blade inside, and correctly does not tip. Instead, the material has to be delivered via a concrete pump mounted on a swivel joint at the back of the truck. The pump has a tall L-shaped tube and a flexible hose that ends in a bright yellow nozzle. It may not be 100% accurate, but it looks great and is much more realistic than the usual tilting drum trucks. Twelve dark gray 1x1 round plates are provided to act as cement, and stickers are provided for the license plates, drum, and roof sign.

LEGO has done very few mixers, so there is a lot less to compare this to as opposed to something like a Fire Truck. I like that LEGO decided to embrace the nostalgia, and made this a direct update to that original design using modern building techniques and styling. It looks great, and is a welcome addition to any post-2000 construction site.

 

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