Category Archives: Models

This is what we’re all about. We scour the web for the best custom LEGO models to share with you. From castles and spaceships to planes, trains, and automobiles, you’ll find the best LEGO creations from builders all over the world right here on The Brothers Brick.

This Star Wars Royal Guard TIE Interceptor has us seeing red

While we realize May the Fourth was yesterday it’s hard to contain so much Star Wars awesomeness in one day. Take, for example, this stunning LEGO Royal Guard TIE Interceptor by Jarek Książczyk. The complex shaping, the build techniques, even the breathtaking photography are all several notches above standard. The Emperor would approve.

As if the striking red Royal Guard Interceptor wasn’t enough, here is a shot of some other TIE Fighters he’s been working on and perfecting lately. Here we have an updated TIE Fighter, a color variant for Iden Versio (I had to look that one up), the aforementioned Royal Guard Fighter, and a new TIE Interceptor.

He is a Star Wars spaceship aficionado as evidenced by this Razor Crest, and this Y-Wing. If you’re still craving all things Star Wars check out our archive of news and other fabulous creations from a galaxy far far away.

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Battle of the Crusaders

I’m a big fan of seeing historical events recreated in LEGO form. Today’s moment from history is the Siege of Jerusalem, shown here by builder Marco den Besten.

In the year 1187, the armies of Saladin laid siege to the Crusader stronghold of Jerusalem. At the point of the attack depicted above, the walls of the city have been breached. Marco’s use of dark and sand-colored bricks helps establish the Middle Eastern look of the setting. I also admire his woodwork on the siege towers and battering ram tunnel.

The walls are equally impressive, with various bricks serving as weathered stone that has stood through the ages. The arrowslits are well-designed. I like how there are two different versions of them.

As brave as these Crusaders might be, I don’t think they stand a chance against Saladin’s forces.

I find your lack of LEGO disturbing

LEGO artist Ekow Nimako is celebrating May the Fourth with this amazing sculpture of the original Sith lord, Darth Vader. This massive helmet is just about life-size and as is typical for Ekow, incorporates a huge variety of LEGO elements ranging from Technic panels to slopes and even the big quarter saucer panels from the 90s. Ekow says this is only the first part of a larger build he’s working on.

See more of Ekow Nimako’s LEGO models on TBB, and listen to our interview with Ekow about race, inclusion and LEGO.

A getaway to far, far away

I’m drooling over anything that looks like a Corellian freighter. Created by builder Josh, this LEGO starship just might be the spacecraft you’re looking for.

Inspired by concept art from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Josh built this ship for his LEGO role-playing group. I really admire all the angles and curves he managed to achieve on his ship. It definitely has a Star Wars vibe while still maintaining a sense of originality. The choice to use black for engine and wiring detail was good, as it perfectly contrasts with the white hull. And just look at that little landing gear pylon!

The hangar itself is also full of details. For one, it’s incredibly smooth. The bars and piping on the floor add to the worn-in feel of Star Wars. I wish I had the instructions for those cargo pods on the right of the ship. They remind me of the orange ones we saw in Rogue One.

Josh is well known for his Star Wars builds. I hope to see more like this in the future!

A gas mining colony with a view [Instructions]

For the last several years, I can’t imagine the evening of May 4th without rewatching The Empire Strikes Back. Nor the story, neither the sceneries get old. And speaking of the alluring Cloud City, this hilariously tiny rendition of the location by Luis Peña is surely a micro masterpiece. It is built with just 31 pieces, and there are even instructions available for the model.

I adore the use of LEGO cloud elements. So, in case you haven’t got the latest UCS-style 75308 R2-D2 yet, I see no reason not to build a tiny copy of the Cloud City to put on an office desk.

This is the way you build a bigger cradle

What do you do when you really want a plush LEGO Baby Yoda but can’t seem to justify it? Do what Simon Liu did – buy it anyway and build a to-scale cradle to go with it. Of course, you might need some other hard-to-find LEGO elements like sails from Jabba’s barge, but it’s a small price to pay for an upscale ride for your snuggly little pal.

This isn’t the first Baby Yoda build we’ve featured, and I’d be shocked if it was the last. And hopefully, we’ll see more that make use of the plush version of the character. Surely someone is working on a Razor Crest that’s to scale, right? (Well, we can dream.)

A flying Flying V? That’s unexpected.

The Cyber Metal 2, a speeder bike with some highly unusual styling, is a fun creation from Julius Kanand. Sure, you’ve probably heard of Flying V guitars, but how do you like this flying Flying V? I’m particularly fond of the transparent bright green accents, the speaker cones that double as thrusters, and the use of 1×1 round speaker tiles. Part Doof Wagon, part Star Wars, this build is music to our ears.

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Who could say no to a face like that!

Would you just look at this super cute LEGO sloth byChi Hsin Wei. I mean, do you see that precious little face? It is oozing happiness. The use of the wedge for eyes is perfect. Did you know that a sloths’ eyes don’t function all that well? They completely lack cone cells in their eyes and because of this all sloths are colour-blind. They can only see poorly in dim light and are completely blind in bright daylight.

However, the best thing about this LEGO sloth is not their cute squinted eyes, nor their claws which look just like the real deal. It is that sweet smile across that little face. This expression of pure bliss would have been a lot harder to achieve were it not for the perfect use of the sausage as mouth.

Mission Impossible: Prospector Edition

With a skillful use of only 101 elements, Markus Rollbühler takes a deep dive into adventure with 101 Bricks: Dangerous Descent. There are tons fun details, but did you recognize the rocky Bionicle baseplates (turned on their side) that form the walls? I also love the use of monochrome minifigures as carved statues in the background. Looks like there’s some history behind the golden T-Rex. (Hold on. How did an ancient culture know about T-Rexes? Man, this build is just full of mysteries.)

This build is actually a continuation of the story Markus started in 101 Bricks: Discovery. The part limit comes from the RogueOlympics, a contest that has lead to a lot of great featured builds. Check our archives out for more compact goodness from the event!

First rule of being an adventurer: remember where you parked your off-roader

If you take a look at 1saac W. photostream, you’ll notice a lot of brick build cars. They specialize in building brick vehicles. Building LEGO vehicles is something you either hate or love to do. I am not a big fan of cars; therefore, I do not navigate towards building cars out of LEGO. However, I can really appreciate it when someone else manages to do it so well as 1saac W. does. They made a Toyota FJ40, and it looks just like the real deal. There are a lot of small parts incorporated in this build to get the level of detail just right. As far as I can tell, there have to be at least 7 minifigure hands used in the car. The actual number may, however, be higher. To display the lovely FJ40 1saac W. made a jungle-themed base. They even added a driver, and it is no one other than Johnny Thunder. And although we are used to seeing Johnny in vintage cars, The FJ40 suits him very well.

That one frog from the poster!

One of the most famous frogs in the world is the red-eyed tree frog. This gloriously rainbow-colored amphibian has graced many a poster. In fact, I had the one with them stacked on top of each other hanging on my own wall growing up. What I didn’t realize at the time was that those cute little ones definitely aren’t babies… Anyway, Joffre Zheng continues the admiration with this roughly-lifesize LEGO sculpture. Simple but adorable. Fun fact: their vibrant colors are mostly for attracting mates, but also safety. They try to keep the colorful parts of their body hidden while they rest on leaves. Then when a predator comes, they open their eyes and flash those legs to startle the would-be killer.

Another fun fact: the scientific name for this rainforest creature is Agalychnis callidryas, and the species part of that name derives from Greek words meaning “beautiful tree nymph”. Fitting, right?

You can check out more cool animal builds in our archives, as well as more creations by Joffre.

Pollinator from another planet

Far away, on some advanced planet, there are probably cyborg animals. I mean, the likelihood of Earth-like creatures seems reasonably high. And cyborgs aren’t just made from our imagination. Look at prosthetics — medical advancements are headed there more and more. Matt Goldberg gives us a glimpse of that with his latest LEGO build. This bee has circuitry! While the trans-blue Insectoid wings call attention, there are other great features too, like the marbled Bionicle Mohtrek mask used in the abdomen. My favorites are on the head, where skates are used for mandibles and minifigure hands attached to sausages form the antennae. Also, let’s not forget that colorful flower, cleverly built with purple Bionicle Pakari masks.

We try to keep it light here at TBB. But on a somber note, did you know our bees are in trouble? Without bees and other pollinators, we’d starve. We’re not going to be able to develop cyborg bees anytime soon, and even if we could, the real thing deserves our help. Please take a moment to learn what you can do, and check out these sites for more information on bees and their impact. Every act helps – even small and easy ones like planting a little bee garden and providing a refreshing bee bath.