The Brothers Brick

LUGNuts is a new Flickr group that focuses on LEGO vehicles. They’ve just concluded their first contest, “Modified Machines,” and here are a couple of my favorites…
Lino Martins‘ 1968 Pontiac GTO:

Nathan Proudlove’s 1964 Chevy El Camino dragracer:

With talented builders like Lino, Nathan, Ricardo “Biczzz” Prates, and Steven Marshall as LUGNuts members, I can’t wait [...]

Melbourne AFOL Teunis Davies defies the usual cross-border rivalry and presents this excellent NSW Class 38 streamlined steam train. It’s a seven-stud wide machine of clever building techniques and sleek design. As an added bonus he includes many breakdown shots so we can all see how it is made.
Now if only LEGO would release regular [...]

I thought I’d try extending my troop of goblins from 7036 Dwarves’ Mine using the mandrake root heads from 5378 Hogwarts™ Castle.
When I finished switching around the legs to make the goblins, I realized that the “leftover” legs would look great with the Clone Scout Trooper torsos I picked up at BrickCon, resulting in a [...]

Kwi-chang is another mecha builder who deserves his own roundup post, starting with a mecha of a four-legged variety:

Next, an Exo-Force mashup and a mecha with a very large Gatling gun:

Finally, a black mecha with big, sharp fingers:

Did you know that the wasabi you usually eat with your sushi probably isn’t actually wasabi? It’s a combination of horseradish, mustard, and green food coloring. Real wasabi comes from a root — like the green one in this very delicious-looking platter of sushi by Turbo.

I had the pleasure of meeting Kevin “Kevoh” Blocksidge at BrickCon in October, where his “Fingobbins Village” floating rock won a well-deserved “Best Steampunk” award:

I waited patiently for him to announce his beautiful creation online, but somehow missed it a month ago. For those who missed it elsewhere, I think it was worth the [...]

I would pay to see a movie with special effects by Mike Yoder.

If you think Bionicle creations are all about Toa and Rahi and other things the average SYSTEM builder would never care about, you’re not a reader of Arpy’s BioniBlog, where I ran across this excellent rose by MuffinToa — an entry in the latest Bionicle Building Contest BZPower.

Karwik (aka Noddy on Brickshelf) created a peaceful and heartwarming scene of a campsite called Holiday Time. Personally, I’ve missed my camping days as a boy scout, so this little creation brings back many good memories.

Particular to note is the use of wedge plates to create the contours of the campsite. Not only does this [...]

Brickshelfer Mahjqa recently won the Lowlug Mini MOC Madness contest with the highway pileup pictured above. (Via MicroBricks.)

…equals the VX-999 - Space Pirate Lair! Dennis Coh emerges out of his year-long building hiatus and presents an innovative cross-genre creation depicting a pirate’s hideout.

Note the ship near the docking port - it is a micro version of Dennis’ Izanami’s Revenge pirate ship. We look forward to more great works from you!

Amazing how certain creations evolve.  First there was the minifig-scale Patrol Boat by Soren Roberts:

That inspired Chuck C. to make Chibi Patrol Boat:

That resulted in a recoloring by Chuck C. called the Iron Minnow:

Well, I do. I love 7036 Dwarves’ Mine! It may in fact be my favorite LEGO set in several years.
It’s got great play features that had me running over and showing my wife as I built the set, and as I discovered each new piece, I kept thinking about how I could use them [...]

Now here’s a cool collaboration story. According to this post on Klocki, dmac designed this AT-ST in MLCad, and then MisterZumbi built and photographed it:

I really like the new AT-ST from LEGO, but this one is awesome! Note the samurai armor under the walker’s “chin.”

For those of you not privileged to live through the 1980s in Japan, SD Gundam was a series of toys, TV shows, and movies spun off from Gundam, featuring squashed, itty bitty (”super-deformed”) versions of the venerable Mobile Suits.
Mumu’s recreation of the main Mobile Suits includes Gundam, Guntank, and several more. Click the image [...]

Azumu presents a batch of micro-military vehicles inspired by the Japan Self Defense Forces, including a Type-90 tank, Cobra helicopters, and Huey. (Via MicroBricks.)

Andrew Lee’s pair of mecha are conveniently numbered for your enjoyment.

Jonathan Watts (Flickr) presents a scene inspired by the cover art for Terry Pratchett’s The Night Watch, which was naturally inspired by the book itself, as well as by Rembrandt’s painting of the same name. Take that, Plato!