Monthly Archives: June 2011

A4 Pacific

A4 Pacific..The journey nears its destination

Carl Greatrix (bricktrix) has a habit of building the impossible. But this A4 Pacific has to be his most extreme example. Some of the drivers, stickers and pipes are custom but the rest of the build is 100% LEGO

Here you shall find your inner peace

Sam W. (-infomaniac-) presents the Temple of the Tan Tiger complete with an interior, a backstory and his thoughts. It’s also a surprise to see a sci-fi builder build castle. Even among castle builders, it is rare to find a Japanese castle of this size and quality.

Burning the midnight oil

Wami Delthorn successfully channels both Pete Reid and Alex Eylar for a wonderful photo of a wonderful LEGO model.

"Burning the midnight oil"

Blacktron “Misery” main battle tank by Lego Junkie

For reasons lost in the mists of time, my brother and I split LEGO themes growing up, resulting in no Futuron for him and no Blacktron for me. But I still appreciate a great LEGO model in the Blacktron theme, like this formidable tank by Evan B. (Lego Junkie).

Blacktron "Misery" Main Battle Tank.

Though a bit on the slow side, the tank moves under its own power and the turret spins.

Legodtenstein Bundes Bahn 85 Class 4-4-2 Atlantic

Gambort usually posts the trains here, but I had to steal this one from him. Dave Stannard recently rebuilt one of his earlier trains and the result was this. I have to say that this locomotive is gorgeous. It almost makes me want to go build a train.

Meditation is good for your bones

Clay Morrow enlightens us with his hovering skeleton.

He also has nifty instructions for the skull…

Comunidade 0937 interviews Mark Stafford, LEGO Designer

A couple years ago, we ran a series of three interviews with LEGO Designer Mark Stafford, covering his journey from LEGO fan to set designer, as well as what it’s like to work as a designer and the distinction between being a fan and being a designer.

The online community has been a bit overdue for an update, so I was very pleased to receive a link to this interview by the Portuguese-language Comunidade 0937. They’ve asked a lot of great questions, and Mark has included several prototype design photos in his answers.

Most of the “spacers” of 0937 are advocates of a more peaceful approach to the theme than space-based conflict…. We also think there is a market for products placed in a more exploratory theme. Is there any chance of the LEGO one day to embark on a theme such as this?

First I want to point out that LEGO space has rarely been peaceful, talking to the original designers of the classic space sets during its concept phase they envisioned it as a competitive ‘space race’ between astronauts in white and cosmonauts in red. Those probes and radar dishes looked a bit like weapons because they knew exactly how most kids would play with them!

That said, I understand your point, and of course LEGO City has just released a space port line with vehicles inspired by today’s peaceful space explorers and their space agencies.

Read the full interview with Mark Stafford on Comunidade 0937 website.

Syrena 104 in LEGO

Jarek (Jerrec) used to be a very regular feature here but it’s a while since I remember noticing anything new from him. But it’s been well worth the wait for this amazingly detailed Syrena 104. I love the real cars and cannot believe how perfect Jarek’s version is.

Iron Mecha 2

Many years ago, Mark Neumann introduced a mecha challenge to the unsuspecting LEGO world on LUGNET. Its name was Iron Mecha. Its premise was simple: build a mecha based on a design Mark posted. The winner was an uninspiring chap called Mark Stafford who never went on to much. He did have a pretty cool mecha though.

Five and a half years later, Soren Roberts and Mark have joined forces to bring a new version of Iron Mecha in the MechaHub group on flickr. There’s no prizes and no promise of rankings but it’s a little bit of history I plan to particpate in.

And there is great honour in being crowned ‘Iron Mecha Chef’.

Iron-Mecha-Inspiration Image

As Mark described the original:

I shall pick a graphic of a mecha. The builder will build a mecha based off of that graphic. Artistic license is encouraged. You may build macro, micro or anything in between. The Build does not need to be an exact copy of the graphic but we should be able to see how you got from the inspirational image to your build.

so follow the link and enter the fray.

10,000 piece Lego Star Wars Sandcrawler measures over 3 feet long

Hannes Tscharner spent the past 9 months building this truly faithful recreation of the Sandcrawler in Lego. This massive minifig-scale model retains a high-level of details despite its size. The builder goes beyond to add remote-controlled steering and other functions such as a motorized crane and conveyor belt. A fully detailed interior completes this perfect build.

Pictures of the completed model can be found on Flickr as well as work-in-progress shots.

Here is the video showing the working features of the Sandcrawler.

First images of upcoming 7879 Hoth Echo Base

LEGO is releasing another Hoth Echo Base set, which features more sections of the actual rebel base and some interesting minifigs such as R-3PO.

From FBTB via Eurobricks

Arte em Peças 2 Lego event in Portugal, June 8 – 12

The second annual Portuguese Lego event called Arte em Peças (Art in Pieces) will be held in Paredes de Coura from June 8-12. Special guests include Jan Beyer from LEGO Community Development and LEGO Designer Marcos Bessa. You can check out a video introduction on YouTube that contains highlights from last year’s event.