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.

Don’t scan so close to me, LEGO police drone

Gareth Edwards’ sci-fi epic The Creator recieved a mixed reception when it released last year. But whatever your thoughts about the film’s take on foreign wars and AI sentience, one thing’s certain: it features some of the most striking sci-fi imagery in recent cinema, from many of the same artists who contributed to Rogue One. I’m actually surpised we haven’t seen more LEGO models based on the film. Builder Tom Studs and friends have been correcting this with an Instagram Creator collaboration series, and Tom’s latest addition is a stunningly-recreated police transport. The insect-like vehicle has such an distinctive silhouette, with its bulbous helm and those menacing probe arms, here tipped with LEGO katanas. I love Tom’s mix of dark and medium azure to give the vehicle a weathered look.

Police vehicles from 'The Creator'

Believe it or not, this is Tom’s first spaceship build, a change from his inspiring fantasy works (like this library vignette that floored us last year). We certainly hope it’s not his last dip into the future!

Goats graze by a tranquil LEGO temple

For your daily dose of serenity, you should check out this LEGO temple by Andreas Lenander! There’s lots to love in this elegant and refreshing build. For starters, there are a host of animals that call this temple home; panthers, chameleons, birds, and goats oh my! In the pond on the right, Andreas has notably placed his water lilies upside down (using the power of gravity!) to mount blossoms on the stems, while the elegant temple itself is made from a selection light and dark tan bricks. I sure hope that panther is just passing through!

Temple Al-Jaba´

Behold! Busy bibliophiles blissfully browsing

If you’re the sort who lives to read, chances are you’ve dreamed of having a gigantic library filled with every book your heart desires. Consider that wish granted, even if it’s in tiny LEGO brick form. The “Scriptorium,” an eye-popping build by Montgomery Burns, has everything a book lover might want. Cozy reading chairs! Cool quasi-medieval ambiance! And of course, enough books to keep Albus Dumbledore (spotted on the fourth floor) or William Shakespeare (on his way to the third-level floor terrace) occupied with ample reading material. Said books come in different thicknesses and heights; along with actual minifig book elements, I can spot 1×2 plates with a slide thingy, stacked 1×1 slopes, ingot bricks, and even candle pieces (to represent scrolls), to name a few. (Who cares if you can’t actually read any of these books? They look darn good on the shelf.)

Scriptorium 2.0

The adorable deception of Tyler’s Bubble Dragon

LEGO Masters builder, and half of the winning team for the show’s debut season, Tyler Clites presents us with quite the adorable fellow in his Bubble Dragon build. While one wouldn’t typically associate a dragon with such a cuddly demeanor, Tyler has convinced me otherwise with this deceptively simple creation. At first glance, we’re drawn to associate the CGI bubbles in both the foreground and background to the title. However, a closer examination reveals rounded, or bubbled, claws on the feet, hands, teeth, wings, and the cutest rounded belly. It’s putting to use just about every curved slope and rounded plate and tile that one can find in turquoise and orange-yellow!

Bubble Dragon

A “train”-ing spaceship in blue and yellow!

If you need a space fighter to hunt bogies with, this LEGO ship by Linus Bohman might be just the thing you need. Linus built this fighter around a skeleton of railroad track parts including curves and straights from the 4.5V era and six Duplo curve sections. I’d argue that this build is all horsepower, no ballast, with huge engines embedded in each wing. All-in-all, the grey details between the rails provide a nice buffer, while the rails themselves couple everything together!

Overview

An interstellar waystation fueled by imagination

Space is big. Vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big. For LEGO explorers running on empty while traversing the deep cosmos, Bart De Dobbelear has you covered with the Liquid-Core refueling station. When filtered through the mind of this Belgian builder, even a gas station in the stars becomes a scene of wonder, where brilliant technique blends with evocative lore. Space is a popular theme for builders, whether inspired by the LEGO sub-themes, sci-fi films, or swooshable ships and chonky rovers. Bart is an artist who pushes the theme further, whose work feels truly cosmic, offering glimpses of a vast and ancient universe that we can only understand in glimpses. His builds often remind me of the sci-fi work from Jean Giraud (aka Moebius) in the way he blends organic and mechanical, where technology is so removed from our understanding as to border on the magical. You can see that here with the eerily reptilian solar fins, sourced appropriately enough from a Ninjago NRG Dragon, and the fuel chambers made from the milky green domes of Yavin 4. This Liquid-Core station is fairly unique among Bart’s builds in that it features inviting human typography, suggesting maybe we aren’t so alone in the great unknown of space.

Liquid-core refueling station

Once you’ve had your fill of this station, set a course for the Bart De Dobbelear archives to see why he is considered cosmic royalty around these parts.

A complex train build that never goes off the rails

Look, I’m not a train guy. I can barely tell a caboose from a boxcar, and yet even I am in awe of Smile Leo‘s amazing LEGO train, depicting a China Railways DF11G locomotive. The first thing to notice is the variety of angles at which the bricks and plates all fit together for the smooth, rounded angles of the train’s nose. Next, check out the intricacy of the machinery around the wheels. With another model, I might just classify it as a bunch of greebling (you know, little mechanical details that are there just to look cool rather than have any particular function), but it’s clear that every meticulously chosen element mimics an actual train part. I can almost hear the churning of pistons and the whine of wheels on rails.

This little Star Wars astromech is bursting with personality

Everyone’s favorite little droid with a huge personality is back in brick form, built in LEGO by Ron McPhatty. Ron has managed to pack an impressive amount of detail into Chopper’s diminutive stature using solid building techniques. That yellow 1×1 tile on Chopper’s chest perfectly matches the original design, and the 2×2 triangular tiles match his patchwork metal plating. Ron also models a variety of Chopper’s exposed internal components with various LEGO pins, bars, and bushes.

MOD 75379 Chopper P4

Even better, Ron has built Chopper to be in-scale with the new LEGO R2D2 set and provided Chopper with some added accessories that model his middle wheel and head arms. I’d argue that hijinks are un-a-droid-able!

MOD 75379 Chopper P3

A tiny kingdom of towering LEGO trees

A vertical kingdom of stone surrouned by towering pines overlooks a pale blue lake in Eli Willsea‘s stunning LEGO diorama titled Heart of the Kingdom. The whimsical architecture, lovely colors, and striking verticality are reminiscent of the Monument Valley games, but the details are utterly original and evocative. This build marks Eli’s return after a busy 2023 when he competed in three heats of the Iron Builder competition and is a clear reminder of why he’s a NPU (Nice Parts Usage) star. How to pick a favorite detail? The elegantly angled tooth bars serving as micro stairs? The grey roller skates adding a decorative touch to the 1×1 towers? The wands still on their sprue for the portcullis? I have to go with the grey popsicles flanking the cave beneath the castle. Even though there is nary a stud to be seen, with its right angles and clean lines, Eli’s model celebrates the aesthetic of the brick.

Heart of the Kingdom

Mario Kart Inspired build: Exploring Cecilie Fritzvold’s LEGO Creations

Crafted by LEGO builder Cecilie Fritzvold, the ‘Baby Mario Kart’ build stands as a testament to imaginative construction and clever design. Inspired by the beloved video game franchise, this creation showcases remarkable attention to detail and inventive techniques. One striking feature of this build is its unconventional base construction. Rather than being built upright, the entire scene is cleverly crafted on its side, adding a dynamic element to the display. Each kart within the scene is meticulously designed, employing unique building techniques to convey a sense of action and motion, even when at rest. The ‘Baby Mario Kart’ build is a testament to Fritzvold’s creative prowess and technical skill within the realm of LEGO construction. With each new creation, she continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible with these iconic bricks, leaving fans eagerly anticipating her next innovative masterpiece. Have a look at some of her creations in the Cecilie Fritzvold archives.

Baby Mario Kart

This Bavarian beauty goes full steam ahead

Should you find yourself in the 1920s and need to get from Munich to Nuremberg in record time, then you’ll want an express ticket to ride behind the Bavarian S3/6. This majestic steam locomotive is meticulously recreated in LEGO by Bricks_n_Trucks. At 10 studs wide, the engine is comparable in scale to the Hogwarts Express Collector’s Edition, but unlike LEGO’s largest steam engine model, this train is fully motorized with a BuWizz engine (see the video below the fold!). The version you see here is an update to the builder’s first iteration, and spotting the differences highlights how much thought went into the smallest details.

Bavarian S3-6 (BR18.4)_(Update)

But what’s a Bavarian steam engine without luxurious cars to pull?

Click to see the train cars and video!

Begun, the Clone War has—and it’s lookin’ good

Like a regular guy who dutifully appears at family reunions only to get shown up by his neurosurgeon cousin, the Acclamator-class assault ship tends to get overshadowed by its more famous descendants. But this humble Acclamator (by FlyInSpace) looks amazing enough in LEGO to have us forgetting about mighty Star Destroyers for a few parsecs. Executed with nary a stud in sight, it uses SNOT bricks to simulate the smooth-yet-textured hull plating to great effect.

Acclamator • Main View

Here’s an aft view. That dark bluish-gray greebling is just superb.

Acclamator • Rear View

But wait! There’s more!

How do the clone troopers board? We’ve got you covered.