Posts by Norm Harper

A tiny rover with some big time wheels

Febrovery is usually a time for LEGO builders to break out their biggest and best tire pieces. But Andreas Lenander has a knack for approaching the theme just a little differently. Last year, Andreas wowed us with an impressive set of bubble wheels, and this year it’s a rover with brick-built wheels, using a technique I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. Round 1×2 plates and many curved arc tiles blend beautifully to craft a set of hollow wheels for a rover that’s so cool it barely needs any central vehicle parts at all.

MaccaRover

A cyberpunk sequel that doesn’t disappoint

Sebastian Bachórzewski previously wowed us with a one block stretch from a cyberpunk city, and now there’s more of the city to explore. The distinctive signage and railing over the street helps keep continuity between the two builds, but this section has a personality all its own. The high-rise hotel makes excellent use of some turntables for texture along the sides, while the street market area is loaded with grungy greebling and terrific techno-bits. We can almost hear the hum of the electricity running through the place.

No Name City - Building No. 1

A cute car with a clever conversion

Student Scissors has impressed us before with transformable builds based on characters from The Transformers franchise. But it’s one thing to try and replicate an existing character/transformation scheme. It’s a whole other challenge to invent one yourself. But that’s exactly what Student Scissors has done here with Cuff – a transforming police car who isn’t based on any particular Cybertronian, but who would fit right in amongst the Autobots. Cuff’s novel transformation involves the car’s windscreens and roof splitting into thirds to become both of his feet and the center of his chest, while the car grill forms his waist and hips. It’s an inventive solution to the problem of turning a car into a humanoid robot that I hope we see in the official toy line someday.

Lego Transformers Cuff

You won’t be-leaf this amazing vignette.

As part of the Iron Forge competition, gGh0st is putting LEGO leaves to work in as many places as possible for this kitchen vignette. From the curtains to the tablecloth, and even as spilled orange juice on the floor, there’s almost nowhere you can look in this build and not spot a leaf piece. But the real kicker is the wall construction, which allows for a framed portrait of Kermit the Frog in an almost Haunted Mansion-style effect.

Kitchen Vignette

Dengar’s dangerous in this Dieselpunk dynamo

Greg Dalink is a builder on a mission. For the last couple of years, Greg’s been outfitting the bounty hunters from The Empire Strikes Back with themed mechs that would make Tony Stark swoon. Greg’s latest proved to be a bit of a challenge. Unlike his fellow bounty hunters, Dengar isn’t a Mandalorian, or a lizard person, or a cool droid. He’s just some dude with some bandages on his head. So Greg kept to Dengar’s color scheme, but let the build move beyond the usual “giant robot version of the character.” The result is a Dieselpunk-style walker with an incredible arsenal on its back – everything from missiles to a couple of old pirate cannons. Now I kinda regret calling Dengar “just a dude with some bandages.” No hard feelings, right, Dengar? Old buddy? Pal? Yikes…

"A Message for Dengar"

Dig this Imperial base carved from alien stone

Jonas has crafted an original Imperial headquarters that speaks directly to my inner child. See, when I was a kid, there was absolutely nothing cooler to me than a base built into a huge chunk of rock. Whether it was Cobra Commander’s latest hideout, Boulder Hill, or the Autobots’ ship crashed into the side of a volcano – if you combined a high-tech headquarters with a massive hunk of rock, I was all in! And now to add Star Wars into the mix? It’s too great. This smooth metal space headquarters, with its curved edges, blends brilliantly into the hard, studded angles of the nearby alien landscape. It suggests we’re just seeing a single piece of the puzzle and there’s a whole cliffside that stretches on beyond the frame. It’s exactly the kind of place I always wanted to work. Instead, I have a home office in a duplex in SoCal. Which is kinda cool, I guess. Anyway, check out more of Jonas’s work blending nature with Imperial tech in our archives.

Entrance

Do you have a green thumb, or is that just paint on your finger?

Thanks to recent sets like The Starry Night and the Botanical Collection, decorating your home with LEGO is beginning to feel down right classy. Chi Hsin Wei has upped the ante by combining the two in this brick-built recreation of one of Van Gogh’s sunflower studies. While the background of this “painting” stays true to the feel of Van Gogh’s brushwork, the flowers feel freshly picked. The result is a beautiful study of contrasting build styles that works harmoniously as a single piece. Now that’s art!

Van Gogh's Sunflowers

I feel the (tiny) need for (itty-bitty) speed

Greyson is writing checks that LEGO alone can’t cash. This tiny F-14 Tomcat gets a little help from the BrickArms monopods so that, even at this scale, the wings can sweep out, just like the full-grown counterpart. If you ask me, non-purism is a small price to pay for functional wings at this scale. But if you’re the kind of builder who prizes brand loyalty, check out some of Greyson’s other microscale aircraft in our archives.

Teensy-Weensy Tomcat

This snowy inn takes medieval construction to new heights

In this frozen wilds scene, Jake Hansen (Mountain Hobbit) has brilliantly captured the feel of a rough and snowy wilderness. The fatigue of that poor traveler comes right through in this image, thanks in part to the steep stone stairs with the snow collecting in their cervices. Thankfully, the traveler has reached a warm and inviting inn and can now claim a well-earned night’s rest. But, were I the traveler, I might take one lap around the inn and enjoy its shades of blue, and the intricate roof awnings. There’s always time to appreciate good craftsmanship. Besides, if you just climbed 1000 feet, what could a lap around the inn hurt?

The Inn on the Mountain Pass

A spaceship scene that is truly “in tents.”

OA KD has a real knack for taking unusual LEGO elements and working them into brilliant Classic Space homages. Last time, a Duplo windscreen did its duty on a massive cargo freighter. This time, a Belville tent frame from 5846 Desert Island forms most of the hull of a tiny fighter. While white isn’t typically part of the Classic Space color scheme, the effect works here thanks to all the dark gray provided by that beautifully-textured background.

Moon escape

Two LEGO themes that taste great together

In some form or another, the Space and Town themes have been some of the most consistent offerings from LEGO over the years. But sci-fi builder extraordinaire Tim Goddard imagines a world where they’re one and the same. This trio of trucks are traversing a terraformed territory to bring the settlers the same goods we enjoy here on Earth – including new LEGO sets! In a world without invading space aliens, these microscale big rigs bring plenty of futuristic flavor without the need for any laser weapons or photon torpedoes. And, just like the semi-trucks you probably see on the highway daily, Tim has given the same basic design a wide variety of color options. The result is a set that feels more like three independent truckers than it does militarized space fleet.

More Space trucks!

Sink your teeth into this gorgeous architecture

When the Forest Elves need weapons and armor, they come to this forge crafted by gGh0st. With vertical and horizontal tooth plates galore, the building itself almost looks like it’s wearing scale armor. Not only is the result beautiful to look at, but I bet it makes any orc armies think twice about invading.

Elven Forge