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.

Hot dog or hot rod?

Abandon all logic! David Roberts is back at his surreal best, with this fine meat-based entry to the Febrovery building event. David asks us why we wouldn’t want to drive around in a car shaped like a hot dog, and I really have no answer for him. Taking his inspiration from master children’s illustrator and author Richard Scarry, whose mad world saw anthropomorphic pigs at the wheel of just such vehicles, this build ticks all the LEGO fun boxes. Take a final moment to marvel at its mustard windshield, sausage chassis and wrap around bun – genius!

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Build your own baby

I love a bit of creepy LEGO, and this scene by Leonid An is probably as unsettling as they come. The Scala baby figure is a perfect foil for this grim tale of genetic experimentation. Lit from below in its artificial birthing pod, the infant’s eyes are covered, as it is slowly infused with whatever vile substance lingers in the second dome. The control panel has a retro-futuristic feel, with its rainbow displays and offset cartridges; an ominous bin of discarded limbs at its side. It’s just another example of the LEGO brick’s untapped uncanny potential.

Ace lace work

I’ve been advocating for many years now the joys of building LEGO models that use bricks as a two-dimensional medium. This genre often works best when it takes its cues from folk art, and Azurekingfisher has done just this in their run of lacework-inspired squares. Whilst essentially simple monochrome designs, the repeats and generation of negative space created from the selection of bricks result in sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing patterns. As a sequence, the stepped scaling of the three pieces adds further interest. Frame them, hang them on your wall and you have that most elusive of things: LEGO art!

Steamboat Willie and TV Show Friends will be next LEGO Ideas sets, second 2018 Review Results reveal [News]

It’s been a long time since the last LEGO Ideas announcement, so here are LEGO Ideas Second 2018 Review Results! Ten brilliant fan projects competed to become the next official LEGO retail set, and only one idea was approved by the LEGO Ideas team…

Click here to find out the name of the next LEGO Ideas set!

The SS-20 “Saber” is a sinister Cold War relic

A little more than forty years ago, with the Cold War still in full swing, the Soviet Union introduced a new ballistic missile: the RSD-10 “Pioneer”. NATO code-named it the SS-20 “Saber”. It had a range of 500-5500 km and carried three nuclear warheads, each of which was roughly ten times as powerful as the bomb used against Hiroshima. It seemed purpose-built to threaten Western Europe. The missile’s short flight time, of roughly 15 minutes, left very little warning. Furthermore, it was mobile, which made it even harder to counter. A large six-axle MAZ-547 transporter erector launcher carried the missile, housed inside a large cannister, to dispersed launch sites.

My diorama shows the launcher at a snow-covered launch site, with the missile cannister raised upright for launch. On the model it is almost solid, so there is no actual missile inside, but you can just see the tips of the three warheads. Unlike most of my models, it is minifig-scaled (I picked 1/43) and built mostly without visible studs. I built it for a Cold War themed collaborative build for BrickFair Virginia, in the coming August.
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The little red Alfa that could

Back in the 1930s, Enzo Ferrari teamed up with automobile manufacturer Alfa Romeo to make history on the racetrack. Ferrari wasn’t in the business of making cars yet, but their famous prancing pony emblem was used on team Ferrari cars. One of the most famous team Ferrari Alfas was a 1934 P3, which won the 1935 German Grand Prix with Tazio Nuvolari behind the wheel. Thanks to Pixeljunkie, Team Ferrari’s P3 has been brought back to life in LEGO-form. There is some excellent visual storytelling here, with an intrepid female driver making a pit stop in the woods to admire local wildlife. Both the car and surrounding landscaping look beautiful.

Like many of his other cars, Pixeljunkie places the Alfa in different scenarios. Here, we get a look under the hood at the expense of some engine trouble. Fortunately, the driver remembered to bring along her toolkit.

I particularly enjoy this playful image, which shows the driver’s reflection in the car’s rear view mirror. With the engine fixed, she’s ready to hit the road again!

The Alfa Romeo P3 is just one in a growing number of cars built by Pixeljunkie and featured on the Brothers Brick, including a Ford Model T, Mercedes Benz W196, and Type 37A Bugatti.

U-Pull, We-Haul

If you find yourself stressed out about a big move, why not procrastinate in the best way possible and build a LEGO moving truck? Robson M’s “U-Pull” truck looks delightful with its rear doors open, perfect for loading all your minifigure belongings. The design and name of the truck are clearly inspired by those iconic U-Haul trucks often seen while driving along North American highways. The U-Haul company is famous for the region-specific artwork gracing the back sides of its trucks, and Robson M’s “U-Pull” follows suit with an African-themed Duplo motif.

Robson’s vehicle looks great from both angles and fits nicely in front of Assembly Square.

Swedish truck hitting Brazilian roads

It turns out building too much with LEGO has its cons. Look at Dennis Bosman, who cut his teeth on building some of the most jaw-dropping copies of heavy rigs and trucks! With his enormous experience, building yet another popular European truck might become repetitive. This is also when finding inspiration for the next build might prove challenging, but Dennis is full of surprises. How about an orange Swedish Scania LK141 roaming the roads of Latin America? Dennis wouldn’t be himself if he didn’t manage to deliver another brick-built masterpiece.

Removing the cab reveals a fully-finished chassis, and it’s so easy to fall in love with all the tiny mechanical details. Individually, each of them (gas tanks, tubes, mudguards, etc.) look rather clean and simple. When blended together, the results look outstanding.

The great Arctic wanderer

Do you ever wonder what a polar bear thinks as he or she travels hundreds of miles, alone, across the vast ice? Other than, “I can smell a seal about 14km away,” there has to be something they daydream about. Doesn’t this tiny LEGO version of the half-ton carnivore, built by Chi Hsin Wei (LEGO 7), look like he has a lot on his mind?

My favorite parts are the tiles in clips for ears and the car hoods on his sides. This build is great, but it’s only one of many incredible creations by LEGO 7, our 2018 Builder of the Year. This talented artist builds just about everything!

Build your own bento

In Japanese cuisine, bento is a meal in box for take-out or eating at home. Leonid An has built a delicious looking LEGO bento, which includes sushi rolls, nigiri, vegetables, wasabi, and a hearty serving of white rice. Each dish is able to stand on its own, thanks in part to a diverse range of colors and building techniques. The pieces of nigiri use a mix of curved slopes and constraction figure elements to form slices of raw fish. Black tires and white tires are cleverly used to represent the seaweed and rice in the sushi rolls, and lime green Bionicle Krana Za masks are used to form the side of wasabi. Meanwhile, a pair of chopsticks at the base of the box signals it’s time to eat. Itadakimasu!

Best two out of three?

I’ve always wondered who came up with the idea that paper beats rock in “Rock, Paper, Scissors.” According to Adam Dodge it must be a fixed match, and I’d have to agree! Especially when it comes to Big Ugly Rock Pieces (BURPS); they’re practically indestructible! How does Paper have a chance? Apparently he’s a “danger between the sheets,” as Adam says.

Of course, we all know what the result would be if Scissors stepped into the ring with Paper. The winner of that bout is pretty cut and dry… Puns aside, this clever build is pretty hilarious. I just wish I had thought of it first!

Adam is a witty guy, but he’s also an exceptional builder. For example, check out his rainbow landscape or his Dr. Who chess set.

A minifig scaled tumbler to fit the Dark Knight’s darkest mood

When it comes to building minifig cars with minimal parts and maximum details, Calin stands out as one of the best craftsmen. Take his latest model of the Dark Knight’s Tumbler, which uses a number of wedge plates along with some mind-boggling construction techniques to create the very complex angled profile that makes this prototype vehicle from Wayne Industries R&D department so unique. And according to the builder, this model even opens up to fit the caped crusader.

If you noticed the triangle road signs and are wondering what set they come in, you are out of luck. These have been painted black (very well, by the way). The wheels come from a model kit but fit in very nicely. Another great and missable detail are the tiny struts for the rear spoilers, made from minifig hands.