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.

Like a wheel within a wheel

This LEGO concept car by Vince Toulouse has super-strong TRON:Legacy vibes. I mean…c’mon. Hubless Car could have been lifted right off the game grid. Okay, it’s not all black and neon like the rest of that world. But if Master Control ever lightened up on the color choices, red and sand blue would be awesome additions. Certainly, no one will complain about the general shape; it’s futuristic, sleek, and streamlined. And it’s just “real world possible” enough to feel like something you could drop a ton of money to own in the real world.

On the LEGO front, there are some fun part choices to call out. The canopy is a 5x9x5 half-sphere from the Jurassic World sets. The fins on the side are Bionicle skates, with the printed 2×2 logo tile sourced from a 2004’s Alpha Team: Mission Deep Freeze sets.

In this alternate angle, you can really see the intricate shaping that makes this model pop. I love the curves coming off of the rear wheels, and bracketing the spoiler. And those front forks… If you’re not a fan of TRON, maybe you’d be comfortable dropping this vehicle into the Blade Runner universe as a variation on the Spinner.

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Out, into the dark, with a precious cargo of plants

If we can find an Earth-like planet within a reasonable distance, or perhaps terraform one of our closer neighbours, then we’re going to need to transport a bunch of plants to its surface. In this LEGO space scene, Sam Malmberg imagines how the interior of a seedling transport ship might look. There’s an impressive variety of plant-life on display, within an equally smart selection of vivarium equipment. The viewport and the wall panelling brings the styling of the Nostromo to mind, but thankfully there are no terrifying aliens threatening the crew. I love the inclusion of a microscale companion vessel, visible through the window, creating the sense of a convoy of intrepid colonists heading out together for a new world.

Deserted in the desert

“Eventually it shall be reclaimed by the sands. But until then, it stands there still — empty and abandoned. A warning to us all.” I love when a LEGO model begs the observer to create a story, when narration springs into the mind as you look over the builder’s work. This excellent microscale castle by Eli Willsea somehow demands the creation of a backstory — its formidable walls and soaring towers seem to require an epic history to explain its emptiness and sense of decay. The model is well put-together, with a nice depth of texture despite a relatively limited selection of bricks and a monochrome colour palette. And its that colour selection which is key to the scene’s appeal, immediately placing the model in a desert environment and conjuring up an atmosphere of decay and mystery and romance.

Your father’s Backdraft

“Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble, Grub.” If that means nothing to you, then you missed out as a child. The stop-motion animation show Trumpton — and its sister shows Chigley and Camberwick Green — were staples of British kids’ TV during the 70s, and repeated regularly into the 80s and 90s. Gentle tales of town and country life, narrated in the dulcet tones of UK-kids-TV-superstar Brian Cant, these series were charming and beautifully made — just like Jason Briscoe‘s latest LEGO creation: Trumpton Fire Station and its famous engine. For most kids, the undoubted stars of this particular fictional “universe” were these guys — rushing to the rescue of cats in trees, and even extinguishing the occasional fire.

Retro, and chunky, and deliciously smooth, Jason’s re-creation of the Fire Engine and its crew is spot-on. I suspect this model may leave younger readers a little cold, but for anyone over the age of 40, this is likely to bring a warm rush of nostalgia. However, regardless of your knowledge of, or fondness for, the source material, these models are wonderfully made at an interesting scale, allowing Jason to faithfully capture the shapes and styles of the inspiration.

Even steampunks go to church

I have never been enthralled with steampunk. Maybe it’s because I’m not the biggest fan of the Victorian Era in general, let alone a fantastic version of it filled with steam-driven automatons. Despite that, I can recognize a cool LEGO build when I see it, no matter what era it is from. And that is what this steam-church by Dwalin Forkbeard is. Inspired by a church in Ukraine, this particular one lacks a second tower (due to lack of parts) and the square in front (also due to a shortage of parts), but it looks great just as it is. I love how the smaller chunks of city life are connected to the central build by pipes, linking them together without needing to make a giant plaza. And I do like pipes. I also like seeing the planet half-spheres used for domes. Add in some handcuff ornaments and one amazing gas lamppost, and you have something special. Isn’t that right, old chap?

This epic Eurofighter Typhoon will blow you away

As a kid, I built a lot of model airplanes. I loved gluing them together and painting them, but never liked applying the decals. I read books about military airplanes, too, and played with tiny toy planes. I loved airplanes, at least ones that carried missiles and guns. I’m going out on a limb here, but I would hazard a guess that James Cherry loved airplanes, too, and still does. Why would I guess that? Because he has built an amazing Eurofighter Typhoon airplane out of LEGO bricks. Measuring up at over a meter in length and 73cm across at the wingtips (it’s a European plane, so we have to use metric), this is one beast of a creation, too. The whole thing is tiled an oh-so-smooth, with a custom canopy and nose cone, since The LEGO Group does not manufacture anything close to these specs.

Click here to see details of this fabulous fighter jet

I object, you object, we all object. But not to Object-8

The line between art and craftsmanship is a tricky one to walk. I know I’ve gotten into a few deep (and sometimes tense) conversions with my friends about the distinction. Things get even trickier when you apply that sort of judgment call to LEGO creations. I think, though, that most would agree that Mitsuru Nikiado‘s works fall on the side of “art.” Not only is Object-8 titled like something you’d see in a gallery show, it looks like it’s right at home in a sculpture garden. In contrasting red and grey, Mitsuru has created a dynamic image of destruction.

That said, there’s still a lot of craftsmanship to appreciate. As you can see from this alternate angle, every bit of the exploding wall is connected. Building on the techniques in Object-5, modified 1×1 round plates and open-stud connectors combine to allow for some pretty crazy angles.

I recommend checking out Mitsuru’s photostream to see the other Objects in this series. (Object-4 is a personal favorite.)

The treasure is knowledge

Of the two similar structures in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Petra in southern Jordan, Al Khazneh and El Deir, the iconic “Treasury” featured in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is much more famous than the larger (and arguably more spectacular) “Monastery” deeper in the Nabatean archaeological site. So it’s no surprise that we’ve seen Al Khazneh depicted in LEGO many times over the years, with nary a Monastery in sight (or brick). Nevertheless, I appreciate each new LEGO Petra, like this one by Inthert built only from tan pieces.

What’s especially notable about this build is less its monochrome color scheme than the variety of interesting “illegal” techniques Inthert uses to achieve shapes and angles at this scale. LEGO’s internal design team follows a strict set of guidelines to ensure that official LEGO sets are study in the hands of grubby little hands, while adult builders and other LEGO fans have no such restrictions (so it’s rather amusing when commenters decry the use of such techniques in fan-built models — stop it). Specifically, many plates and tiles are half-attached to studs or wedged in with friction, while a number of the Technic pins used as columns are connected using the gaps that allow the pins to flex for clipping into place. But my favorite detail is the Technic gear atop the “roof” of the central section.

Be sure to click through to the full-size photo and expand it to take in all the interesting details and techniques.

A little bird to watch

With all the time I have been spending at home lately, I find myself paying more attention to the birds that live in my neighborhood, from feeding a family of crows in my backyard to listening to the calls and songs of feathered friends of all shapes and sizes. This tiny LEGO sparrow by Luis Peña is quite a lovely model, and very expressive. Luis shapes the wings with quarter tiles and that flat tail captures the look of the real-life inspiration, the Rufous-collared sparrow.

If you enjoyed this bird, be sure to check out more recent birds from Luis on his flicker page

And I thought meetings at work were bad

I saw this LEGO scene by Midwest_Builders and just had to chuckle. A month ago the humor might have been missed but as many of us are now working remotely, we have more virtual meetings. During video conferences, I’ve seen some very relaxed dress and grooming standards on behalf of my co-workers. Hair got frizzier, dye-jobs are fading, bags under eyes got baggier. Week after week I’m watching my co-workers age and, in some cases put on weight, right before my eyes. And that’s not to mention how I must look during video conferences. Miles O’Connor here is trying to hold a Zoom meeting with his associates Jimmy Plate, and Morgan Greebles but weeks of quarantine have made everyone a little crazy. Jimmy is shirtless and chugging a beer while Morgan is having a bit of a tinkle. And while Miles seems the most put-together, his baby has interrupted the meeting riding on the doggy.

Child and dog interruptions are bound to happen with home conferences but let’s hope we can at least keep our shirts on. And for the sake of our sanity, stay the heck out of the bathroom during conference calls. Please.

Moody musician turns up the bass

When I first saw this LEGO model of a musician with headphones by aido k, I laughed out loud. I thought it was so expressive, with his floppy hair, and sleepy eyes. And those headphones are so amazing. Then I found out it was a tribute to a Youtuber, and I loved it even more. Aside from the face, I think one of my favorite and easily missed details is the white stripes of his sweatshirt, along the shoulder and arms.

They sure don’t make them like they used to

Joe Klang is back in the workshop making more amazingly deceptive 1:1 scale models. If you thought his LEGO Etch-a-Sketch and Atari were neat, prepare to do a double-take with his cordless power drill.

Although the drill is what caught my eye I think my favorite tool is the orange adjustable box cutter making great use of the newer rounded plates to provide both smooth AND textured edges.

1:1 LEGO models are among my favorite fan creations, particularly because I appreciate the immense effort of manipulating the vast system of pieces (most of which have studs that would immediately give the game away!) into something familiar and handheld that seems like it couldn’t possibly be built out of LEGO.