#letourneau

[rollerman1]

Letourneau L-2350. The largest rubber tired front loader made. Even if you don't find heavy equipment interesting, you have to be in awe if you ever get near a behemoth like this working.

[0poolesketch]

The Birthday Boomer

[0poole]

Northernlion

There’s a serious oversaturation of people trying to live off of playing games on Youtube/Twitch. Really, it’d take a lot to get me to watch anyone new, just because the people I already follow already check off all necessary boxes I’d want in a channel, pretty much. Not to mention that no one (and I do mean “no one”) could top Northernlion. He’s easily my favorite of all #gamer Youtubers/Twitch streamers, and it definitely wouldn’t be wrong to say he’s my all-time favorite of those (although it’s hard to be sure because the previous favorites either stopped uploading stuff or started uploading a lot less/different content).

And, since Youtube is trash for fiscal purposes, I finally went and bought a subscription to him on Twitch. Really, the only thing holding me back was the scary commitment of a monthly payment, as I’m sure many feel. It’s made worse by how I don’t have a steady income yet.

Anyways, there’s something subtly unique about Northernlion (AKA NL) and his friends. It’s kind of hard for me to say exactly what makes him likable. Other content creators try to be unique by being really good at a game, having a more unique set of humor, or even doing skits outside of the gameplay (of course not to say any of that’s bad), but I think what makes NL different is that his “gameplay” content is practically a podcast as well. 

Literally any moment of his videos, he can divulge into either an anecdote or some random thought he had about whatever and why it’s odd. That’s the selling point of his 1000+ episode Binding of Isaac series, which he’s played enough of for some of the more complicated actions and choices to become second nature, letting his mind wander. Then, on his live shows, he has a handful of his friends to bounce off of. 

His live shows are easily his best content, thanks to every one of his cohosts bringing their own flair to whichever show they’re on, ranging from the insane Josh to the innocent Hafu. People always act like some shows are ruined by one or two specific cohosts being on, but honestly I can’t see any of them actually ruining the show. Obviously no one is perfect, but saying something like that just makes you a supreme asshole. See: Nick.

It’s funny, because they have a habit of revealing a lot about their day-to-day life, meaning people should see them as actual people and not just a mindless funny-machine. 

One of the big things about NL specifically, though, that is a serious breath of fresh air in the modern Youtube landscape, is that he doesn’t edit his videos at all. Literally no editing is done in his videos, and when there is a single jump cut or something, people make a spectacle about it. That means if he ever has to take his cat off of his keyboard, let it out of his office, talk to his wife, whatever... it’s all recorded, and seamlessly put into each video. Sometimes his wife will even sort of join in on the commentary for some videos. It’s so casual, not just in the commentary but in the whole entire presentation. His titles are even casual, where they’re basically just the usual “The Binding of Isaac: AFTERBIRTH+ - Northernlion Plays - Episode 1,000,000″ with a completely random keyword for each episode. Absolutely no clickbait, or even remotely interesting content presented, apart from the idea that NL is playing the game. 

Obviously it wouldn’t be as fun if the community around him and his show wasn’t both big and involved. It’s crazy, I go to the streams of other people outside of the NLSS crew and the chat is just in disarray. No one’s really talking about what’s going on, or even especially reacting to it. Even the smaller streamers basically just have people asking occasional questions, with a bit of reaction. Not to mention that other streamers feel the need to shout out each and every one of their supporters the instant they support them, making their streams feel so choppy. I get why they do that, it’s just seriously annoying. Some of the NLSS crew do that too, but during the shows they go as far as to mute themselves to do it. That kind of respect for the show makes me (and probably a lot of other people) respect it a lot more.

Back to the community, though... It’s insanely active. Every meme that comes about on each show is marked by the sheer amount of posts and comments people make about it. Even in a live chat, everyone can seem so unified in how they’re responding to the humor. It kinda helps my monkey brain enjoy the probably really low brow parts of their show, just because it knows so many other people find it funny too. Sometimes, while I have their show in the background, I’ll occasionally tab back in just to see chat react to a funny thing they’ve said or done. 

If I had to pick a specific running joke that’s the best, it has to be calling NL an “egg” just because he’s bald. I feel like he deals with that joke in the best possible way: obviously not getting super annoyed about it, but not going so far as to make it his entire brand as well. He’ll definitely acknowledge it when it comes up, and he might get playfully annoyed about it, because a hint of anger does make things funnier. Of course, he doesn’t go around calling himself an “egg” a lot either, so the humor in the joke sort of stagnates with the fandom and isn’t driven into the ground by his overuse. Really, that’s how a lot of their memes go. They mine it for a bit, then resent it, then mine it resentfully. They’ll even sometimes keep the meme alive by calling back to it every once in a while. It’s like the perfect method for humor, at least in their scenario.

As for a favorite? It’s actually seriously hard to say, considering almost every single one has driven me to actually laugh out loud (which, for someone as quiet as I am, shows a lot). Dan, for sure, has to be the source of most of that laughter, since he’s such a strange person. He’s the perfect hypeman, and doesn’t shy away from an odd bit, making him a total gem to have on anything. Every time he Cracks Open a Cold One for their tuesday shows, he just gets me super excited, even if I’m not into the game they’re playing for that. It’s crazy. I especially love it when people compare his laugh to a hyena’s. It’s a perfect analogy.

Anyways, thanks for coming to my TED Talk, etc. etc. and go watch his/their stuff.

[theivorlegov1]

LEGS Overview

[firestartoys]

Marathon LeTourneau L-1200 LeTro-Loader by Beat Felber Via Flickr: Diesel-electric wheel loader The prototype featured a 22-cubic-yard bucket and was suited to load 150 to 170 ton haul trucks like the Euclid R-170. My model in scale 1:28.5 has all the functions of the original: - All-wheel drive with planetary gear reduction in each wheel hub using two PF XL motors - Articulated steering by means of two linear actuators powered by a PF M motor - Pneumatic lift arm with four-cylinder pump, driven by a PF L motor and PF Servo actuated valve - Pneumatic bucket with four-cylinder pump, driven by a PF L motor and PF Servo actuated valve - Oscillating rear axle - Work and rear lights using four pairs of PF LEDs in total The wheel loader is remote controlled using PF speed remotes and three PF receivers, one of which is a V2.

[rollerman1]

Letourneau LT-300 double bowl scraper. Built before hydraulics & used diesel engines to power generators, that in turn powered electric wheel motors (like a modern diesel electric locomotive engine) that moved the machine & operated the scraper bowls.

[rollerman1]

1940 LeTourneau Model S pull scraper