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Set 8485 Control Centre / Control II
Universal Building Set

Control Centre / Control II

Set 8485, Control Centre / Control II, dates from 1995 and holds 1,067 pieces. It is filed under Universal Building Set and centres on a control unit for driving motorised models.

Set number
8485
Year
1995
Pieces
1,067
Minifigures
0
Theme
Universal Building Set
Different parts
143
What can I build with it?

Parts list 143

As BrickLink list (XML)

Import on BrickLink: Wanted → Upload, upload the file (or paste its content), pick a Wanted List and add the parts.

Spare parts (8)

These extra parts come with the set in case one gets lost.

Description

A controller in the box

Long before smartphone apps and Bluetooth hubs, some LEGO® sets shipped with a dedicated control unit. The Control Centre named in this set is one of them: a device that drives motors and lets you set up sequences of movement. The II in the title marks it as the second version. Mindstorms, which brought programmable bricks to a much wider audience, only arrived in 1998, so 8485 belongs to the earlier chapter of controlled models. The instructions are the best guide to how the unit is operated.

What Universal Building Set implies

Sets in this category are designed as toolkits rather than as a single subject. Instead of one fixed model, you get a broad supply of parts meant to be built into several different machines. With 1,067 pieces and 143 distinct part types there is plenty to work with. That approach fits a control set naturally, since the point is to experiment: build something, connect it, see how it moves, then change it and try again. It rewards curiosity more than it rewards display.

Mid-nineties materials

The main colours are black, light grey, yellow and red. Light grey is the older shade that was later replaced by light bluish grey, and the yellow and red give the set the bright look typical of the period. From 1995, the build relies heavily on studded Technic bricks with holes for pins and axles, quite different from the studless liftarms of later sets. If you mostly know modern Technic, working with these parts is a useful lesson in how the system developed.

Checking an older set

Vintage sets with electronics are often incomplete, and missing pieces are not always obvious. The inventory on this page lists every element with colour and quantity, so you can check a second-hand copy carefully. The What can I build? tool shows which other sets you could assemble fully or partly from the same stock, useful if you want to put the classic studded Technic parts back to work even without every component.

FAQ

What is the Control Centre?
It is a control unit that drives motors and can run sequences of movement. Set 8485 is named after the second version.
Is 8485 a Technic set?
It is catalogued under Universal Building Set, although it uses classic studded Technic bricks, pins and axles.
How many pieces are included?
There are 1,067 pieces across 143 different part types.

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