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.

Introducing the Like Launcher [Video]

Over the years, we here at The Brothers Brick have written a few guides about how to get your LEGO creations featured on our website. But what if you want more? Well then janbenedict_yap has the solution for you! Introducing the Like Launcher!

Use it launch some Facebook likes into the world and maybe some of those good vibes will come back to you in the form of likes on pictures of your LEGO models. Simply load a like into the launcher to fire it at what pleases you. You can utilize it in one of two ways: Trajectory Mode or Direct Fire mode. I know when I like something, my favourite way to let you know is to shoot a thumbs up, right in your face. And now you can too! But don’t take my word for it, check out on video.

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Please wash hands after handling the dead monkey-robot thingy

For most of us, our LEGO mistakes never see the light of day. But for Fedde Barendrecht, his mistakes–scratch that–his abominations make it onto The Brothers Brick. This unfortunate…um…dead robot-monkey thingy is a result of Fedde ordering the wrong parts, then making do with what he had. Among this pile of brown goo, I see a K-2SO head, a curled monkey tail and a DUPLO bearskin. You may squabble over whether or not this utilizes legitimate build techniques, but I am intrigued nonetheless. For me, it’s in the realm of those curio hoaxes such as the Fiji Mermaid or the Jackalope. Just like watching some fool jumping on a trampoline with a bowling ball, it’s bound to get ugly, you don’t want to see it happen, but you can’t turn away either. What is seen can never be unseen. Thanks, Fedde!

Something about this build bugs me

If I had to identify my favorite insect, I would easily respond “dragonfly.” Why? Because dragonflies eat mosquitoes. Simple as that. Now, they also have a cool name — I mean, who doesn’t like dragons, right? They also have fascinating eyes and neat wings, and they don’t sting, bite, or infest; really, what’s not to like? And indeed, what’s not to like about Grantmasters‘ dragonfly build? The insect is perfectly poised above a verdant leaf with eggs of some sort on it, ready to zoom about eating things that want to eat me.

The wings, so delicate and transparent, make brilliant use of some garage doors. Rancor fingers and paint brushes make for some crooked legs. Palm tree trunk sections create a wonderfully segmented tail, just like the real thing, and the mandibles are recreated by a fist. Then, of course, there is the banana bee, and the egg-eating snake worm, and a leaf made from a watering can and dragon wings (appropriate enough for a dragonfly, right?). Nice piece usages abound!

The future of Harley-Davidson is bright. Also sea-foam green.

When you think of Harley-Davidson, you probably think of growling fat hogs that guzzle gas and leak oil. But Tong Xin Jun has seen the future of Harleys and it is bright and clean. What you are looking at is a color-modded render utilizing some parts you wouldn’t readily think to use. You may recognize a Mindstorms EV3 Ultrasonic Sensor just over the front tire and Technic actuators act as shock absorbers. Unless there is a stash of odd-colored parts that I don’t know about, this sea-foam green, orange, white, pearl gold, light gray and dark gray combination can’t quite work in real brick with this model. Still, it is an inspired choice by the builder and lends to a sleek, futuristic feel to the bike.

Here is an alternate view better showcasing those transparent piston cylinders. It would be neat if motorcycle tires came in anything but black, but for now, computer rendering, photo manipulation, or some good old paint are the only ways to get that done.

Everybody scream! Everybody scream, In our town of Halloween!

Halloween is just around the corner and builder monstrophonic is bringing the spooky with this excellent rendition of Jack Skellington’s house. The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my favorite holiday movies and it pulls double duty as either a Halloween or a Christmas movie. Of course in my house we watch it at both times. And sometimes, just because.

Tim Burton’s visual style is so unique and I was thrilled to see this pitch-perfect rendition of Jack’s kooky domicile. The skinny stone steps are just great and the builder’s skill in creating a building that seems to defy gravity is fantastic and not an easy feat. The tile work on the house and shingles of the roof give a nice ramshackle feeling to the whole thing. The chimney is wonderfully creative, being made from different sizes of barrels. All of the little details employed to flesh out the final look work beautifully including the yellow bat topper, a decorative window treatment utilizing printed Unikitty tails and the curvy supports on the front porch.

Read on for more eerie fun.

Menacing manga mech warrior swings a mighty sword

If you are a manga warrior in a mech suit, you are judged by two things. How tattered your cape is, and how big your sword is. By these criteria, this hulking mech suit inspired by the manga/anime Berserk, and brought to brooding LEGO life by Marco De Bon is winning top marks. And with boots sculpted out of this layered shield part, he looks like he’s also ready to kick butt in the battle of the metal mech bands.

The hands are a perfect size, with my favorite detail part, the ingot piece, and the interior looks pretty comfortable as well.

A few bricks down by the farm

This tranquil LEGO scene from Damian Z. is a great way to highlight the real star, the tractor. The Polish Ursus C330 is a wonderful piece of work with lots of detail despite its small minifigure-scale size. A handful of common clips and other bits stand in for the engine details, while Technic pulley wheels work as the hubs to make tractor-like tires out of larger-scale racing tires.

Jason, watch out! Here come the skeletons!

One of the most memorable movies of my childhood was the 1963 stop-motion feature Jason and the Argonauts which features the work of animation master Ray Harryhausen. This pair of skeletons by Moko look like they jumped right out the movie, passing through a Terminator filter on the way out. The skulls, made from this Bionicle skull part, are a perfect choice, and those ribs made from a creature claw are great too.

Neptune Discovery Lab, the 1990s LEGO classic from Aquazone, gets a serious upgrade

For the past year, Peter Carmichael has been texting me updates about an Aquazone base he was building. We both grew up in the 90s, so the classic LEGO themes from that era are full of nostalgia for us, and I’m always excited to see old favorites get a new makeover. But Peter said his update to the 1995 set Neptune Discovery Lab wasn’t going to be a simple redux with modern elements, but something grander. At nearly 6 feet long and using more than 50,000 pieces, I think he delivered.

The highlight of the base is the working Aquazone monorail track, an idea LEGO contemplated in the 90s but never ultimately released. The track makes a large figure eight, winding through the central base before looping around the edges.

Continue reading →

Get your octopus on

We all have LEGO rooms or at the very least a designated work-space to build our creations. One LEGO space I’d love to see is that of Mitsuru Nikaido. Sometimes it’s satisfying to have “a thing” and Mitsuru’s “thing” is white animal mechs with dark gray interspersed throughout. If Mitsuru is the type of builder who keeps most of his creations, I bet I’d be treated with a menagerie of intricate animal mechs peering at me from his shelves. This octopus is his newest and among my favorites thus far. Whether it be for a flared fender, hot-air balloon or, in this case, an octopus head, this tapered piece is a godsend. This wily cephalopod is certainly brimming with character. Be sure to check out some of his previously featured friends including a frog, a crocodile, and a locust and crane creature double-feature.

The Disqualifier falls short by a micro-smidgen

According to the Triassic Era LEGO gods who made this stuff up eons ago, a SHIP (Significantly Huge Investment in Parts) must measure at least 100 studs in any one direction. This craft by Filler Brick, aptly named The Disqualifier, measures in at precisely 99.9 studs. Close! So damned close! It would have been easy to take this creation to within specs but I get the hunch this builder liked being the underdog here. As someone who has often fallen short by a smidgen in so many different ways myself, I can relate. (Shut up, you!) Perhaps we could overlook its shortcomings with excellent presentation and the fact that this took thirty-one grueling days to build and somewhere between 3000-5000 pieces. It’s not about the size of the dog in the fight but rather the size of the fight in the dog. Or something. I’m feeling the love here, how about you?

The Dark Crystal Skeksis will feast on your essence

Show of hands, who is watching the new “Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance” series on Netflix? Go ahead, put them up, I have Aughra’s eye and can see you. Wow, that is a lot of hands! The rest of you should get on that. Especially you, Matt Wilson of Topeka, Kansas, you’d totally be into it. With beautiful sets, masterful puppeteering and phenomenal voice talent, I am truly enthralled with the world of Thra all over again. Hongjun Youn has built a Skeksis that looks so accurate, you can almost hear them squabble and Chamberlain squeal. His ragged clothing is comprised of some of these cloth dragon wing parts. The head is so on par with the Skeksis you’d think LEGO had a license with Jim Henson’s Studio, but alas it is a Chima Vulture head. Now hold still while we drain your essence!