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.

Epic triple-decker pinball wizardry [Video]

We recently featured a pinball machine with a modular play field. I’m not sure why there is a sudden uptick in pinball builds, but I am totally on board! Bring them on, pin-wizards! I have to say, you may have a tough time competing with this one, created by Nachapon Lego. I’ve seen a few multi-tiered LEGO machines, but this is probably executed the best. The physics behind pinball can be complicated. The size of the field coupled with the size and weight of the ball, plus the angles of the obstacles, all make for a tricky design process. Then you bring LEGO into the mix and the constraints take on another level of difficulty.

The Star Wars theme will be popular for many of you, but if that’s not your thing, the builder made a sister-table. The obstacles are the same, but this one has a creative and colorful adventure motif as a tribute to the vast possibilities of LEGO. The game-play video below will have you wishing you could have a go at it yourself! I particularly like the ball-saving that can be done by kicking it back to the main level once it drains.

If you haven’t already, definitely take a peak at some of our other featured pinball articles! You’ll find my own Classic Space pinball machine, along with a few others that will get you excited about making one too!

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No Pain, no Gain! Feel the burn!

LEGO builder Patrick Biggs presents us with two demons; their names are Pain and Gain. No one knows which is which but they always work together. Their dumbells were cleverly constructed using tires and rims and their clenched teeth are emulated using bevel gears. These are popular demons that are frequently summoned by every meathead dropping their weights and exhaling the ancient spell: “No Pain, no Gain”. Incidentally, the same can be said after eating an entire gallon of ice cream in one sitting. Despite building the very personification of the “no pain, no gain” motto, Patrick tells us he didn’t spend his time wisely and had no winning plans for building this duo. That right there is why he wins the internet today. Here are several other instances where Patrick has totally won the internet.

Getting ready for some historic driving

Like most hobbies, once you start to learn about LEGO you find that there can be a shocking amount of complexity behind just about every aspect. Sure, you can just sit back and enjoy the great photography and clever building that Faber Mandragore accomplished with Roadster Hot Rod. But let’s dig a little and peer into those murky depths. We can start out easy; the air filter in the car is a neck ruffle. An unusual choice, in that the element originated in the Collectible minifigure theme. Those sure look like steering wheels repurposed as the front wheel rims, inside tires introduced in 1959 and not produced since 1977. And is that a bucket handle forming the steering wheel? Each of these parts has a history in other sets and contexts that’s there if you want to go looking for it.

But the deepest cut of LEGO history? Those exposed orange-ish bricks in the background are Modulex. Those are tiny architectural planning bricks that LEGO spun off as a side line back in the 1960s. Incorporating them into a standard LEGO creation is never easy, but it’s done here in a seamless fashion. Well, neglecting that the seams between the bricks are what helps unify the whole wall, anyway. *sigh* You know what I mean.

A peaceful oasis in troubled times

While lighthouses used to serve a very valuable purpose, with all the advances in technology it seems like these days they are more likely closed and abandoned. But in this pastoral scene by Anthony Wilson, four friends are enjoying the peace and quiet to do a bit of fishing, and to gaze out to sea. There are lots of great details from the curvy whitecapped made from a variety of unique parts to the old truck and the weathered boat. But my favorite part is the rocky shore, which uses some long sloped parts more often used in spaceships.

Modular pinball for all [Video]

Some of you may already know I’m a little obsessed with pinball. I just can’t help being enthralled with the awesome engineering that lies within a pinball machine. It’s like an obstacle course for your mind, but tangible. And nothing makes me more giddy than one made from LEGO. This little machine, built by Dawid Marasek, may look simple, but it has a great asset: it’s modular.

Click to watch the video of how it works!

Doggone adorable prairie dogs [Video]

These little LEGO fellers are cute as all heck! In true JK Brickworks fashion, builder duo Jason Allemann and Kristal give us not one, or two, but four critters with entirely different movements. It’s a bit maddening that they make it look so gosh darn easy. These simple mechanisms come together in a fun and unique display of kinetic magic.

Of course, standing still in the picture above doesn’t do them justice. But as soon as you see them move, you’ll be captivated. Click the link below to watch the full video!

Click to see how it works!

The Star Wars StarFortress is loaded and ready

The sequel Star Wars movies brought us the MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 Bomber. Nevermind trying to figure out how bombs can drop in the vacuum of zero-gravity space. Forget that they seemed to be dangerous fiery tinderboxes that would engulf its crew and anyone else within farting distance. They were neat and rather imposing visually, and when it comes to selling movie tickets and merchandise, that’s all that matters, really. Thomas Jenkins gives the Resistance bomber the LEGO midi-scale treatment and the result is quite good. LEGO sold us a minifig scale 75188 Resistance Bomber back in 2017 with, I would imagine, some moderate success. But this model, though smaller, seems to portray its shaping and proportions better. It just goes to show that you don’t need a massive payload of bricks to drop an accurate looking bomber like this one.

George Floyd was human, just like us

LEGO builder and Instagram user Pedro Sequeira reminds us that George Floyd was…a human, just like us. George’s May 25th death, his suffocation under the knee of a police officer, has sparked outrage around the globe. This phenomenon is not new, not by a longshot. People of color have not had an easy go, or even a fair go, in the US and elsewhere. Peaceful protests, while admirable, often go unheard, and can in turn sometimes lead to violence and looting, which is also not the answer. This leaves us wondering what can be done to enact change — real lasting change. If leadership cannot address civil injustice at their level then it is often best to begin to enact change ourselves with our votes and our wallets. Treating others fairly should be a no-brainer but often this requires the help of grassroots organizations, and the SPLC and the ACLU come to mind as good places to start. Please support them if you can.

How many LEGO studs can you spot?

The everyday objects built with LEGO bricks can be a visual eye-candy, especially when it’s built to perfection. How many LEGO studs can you spot in this creation? Yes, go, right now, count them all before you read this article to the end. There’s a sense of ASMR even though this is a static image built by Roman. My eyes just want to gloss all overlooking for imperfections in arrangement and alignment and how they all fit together almost naturally. And, just in case you thought you found it all, don’t forget to count the one on the door knocker built with the Yellow Lantern piece smacked right in the center!

Black lives matter, even among privileged LEGO builders [Editorial]

Here at The Brothers Brick, we’ve taken “political” stands on matters of peace and justice for as long as the LEGO building community has created LEGO art that communicates an important message, whether that message was in support of marriage equality way back in 2006 or freedom of discourse in response to the Charlie Hebdo massacre in 2015. Dave Kaleta joins a chorus of people around the world who choose not to remain silent in these excruciating, infuriating times.

From a LEGO build perspective, Dave uses largely disconnected white slopes, tiles, and plates to surround solidly attached black bricks. Dave also leverages the new range of small curved tiles to create the lettering along the bottom of the mosaic. But the build and its techniques are hardly what grab my attention.

A few thoughts on the intersection of LEGO, art, politics, and privilege

What does it take to be human?

This out-of-this-worldly LEGO creation entitled “Trying to be human” by Grant Davis is a mechanical humanoid meditating and presumably figuring out what makes us all tick. What’s the lure of being a human when you can process googol calculations in a second and perhaps never die? It seems way more interesting than a fragile human life that ends so easily. My take is, if a non-human entity is able to figure out and become more human-like, I’d say we’re in big trouble!

A cozy cabin where you can play through the winter

We might be heading into the summer up here in the northern hemisphere, but this LEGO model by Little John is all about cuddling up by the fire as the cold nights draw in. This rustic cabin makes for a cozy home for a family and their pets. They seem to be LEGO fans too, maybe even collectors, judging by the set boxes on display around the room. There’s an excellent use of printed tiles as pictures throughout the scene, and the furniture is simple but in keeping with the rest of the interior. I dread to think how long it took to put that floor together; it’s made entirely of brown plates in a selection of shades — an effective way to create a wooden floor look. My favorite detail is the boy playing with the toy castle — check out the wonderful little dragon with which he’s threatening the ramparts.