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.

Having fun for charity at Bricktastic Manchester 2018 [News]

Little more than a week ago, I had the pleasure of attending Bricktastic, in Manchester, England. It is a somewhat different kind of event than ones I’ve attended before: not organised by a regular LEGO Users Group or with a commercial goal, but run by and on behalf of Fairy Bricks. This is a UK Charity that donates LEGO to children in hospitals.

Bricktastic was a two-day public event, that attracted LEGO builders from all over the UK, as well as sizeable contingent from Ireland and small numbers of builders from other countries, including Portugal, Italy and the Netherlands. UK professional LEGO building company Bright Bricks are one of the sponsors of the event and they brought along a collection of “Mythical Beasts” including a stunning seven-headed hydra built using roughly 200,000 bricks, that greeted visitors near the entrance and surely was one of the highlights of the show. During set-up I got to whack some bits of the hydra into place with a mallet, which is certainly not a sentence I ever expected to write.

A 200,000 brick model of a hydra built by Bright Bricks

Bricktastic ticked all the boxes. The quality of the models on display was fantastic. Noteworthy is also that the exhibition room, at Manchester Central, was very nice: it was carpeted and surrounded by curtains. Because of this, the atmosphere was a lot cosier and quieter than is common in exhibition halls. Such a detail may seem unimportant, but imagine spending two days in a bare concrete box with harsh strip lighting and hundreds of excited children. That’s what you normally get an an exhibition hall. The public were wonderful. We didn’t even need barriers to protect the displays, which meant that everybody got a good view of the models and which made it easier to talk to people. The children could get creative themselves using large play areas. Fairy Bricks arranged the hotel for the exhibitors and organised a social program for both the Friday and Saturday evenings. Everyone seemed to have a great time and the proceedings went to a good cause. What more could you want?

See a few highlights and our extensive gallery

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This prehistoric Polacanthus is dino-mite!

Dinosaurs are the name of the game today at TBB, so let’s take a trip to Western Europe and turn our clocks back to the Cretaceous period, because we’re going on a prehistoric safari to find Polacanthus! Polacanthus is Greek for “many thorns.” Vlad Lisin’s version of the herbivorous dinosaur lives up to its name because it looks quite sharp indeed. A mix of LEGO system and constraction elements are used to achieve a wonderfully organic looking dino. Polancanthus’ head is particularly stunning, thanks in part to a realistic-looking mouth achieved through the use of a battle droid torso and Ninjago snake skull helmet. This behemoth looks prepared to graze through some serious vegetation.

As you explore prehistoric past, don’t miss the fearsome Carnotaurus by Nathan Haseth.

A Carnotaurus to add to a growing collection

Recreating the organic body shape of a creature using LEGO isn’t all that easy, but some builders do it very well. One of those builders is Nathan Haseth. His most recent creation, a Carnotaurus replica, is an excellent example of achieving nice curves out of a medium that isn’t all that curvy.

You may recognize the style of this dino from a recent article where we featured several dinosaurs. Nathan has a whole line-up of really cool dinos from the Cretaceous period (with some also appearing in the Jurassic World universe). The others include a Triceratops, Parasaurolophus and Ankylosaurus.

Ogel will mind control you to like this dragonfish!

With Ogel’s mind-controlled army growing by the day, Alpha Team’s chances are looking more and more slim. To make matters worse, Rockmonster 2000 has sided with Ogel to provide him with a mutant dragonfish! Armed with harpoons and an awesomely dated early 2000s slick design, there is nothing that can stop their evil plan to take over the world!

The build is actually an entry for a Bionicle building competition–as if there were not enough early 2000s style in this creation already–which you can see if you look closely at the parts used. The current round of the competition asks for contestants to build a Bionicle creation capturing a particular theme, and Rockmonster 2000 has done an incredible job with his, since there’s no mistaking the Alpha Team in this one. There are various Bionicle parts, like a kanohi mask, and constraction elements like large claws used across it, sprinkled with just enough System bricks to flow perfectly. Alpha Team is a very nostalgic theme for me personally, but I think we can all agree that this creation is great even without its gloriously ridiculous background!

Properly scaled speeders from Solo: A Star Wars Story

Sometimes, the scale of official LEGO Star Wars sets presents a challenge for builders who want to create elaborate scenes to incorporate them into. Microfighters can help in this situation unless you are not a fan of the cute and chunky vehicles in proportion to their minifig pilots. One solution is to do what Brick Ninja did, and re-design the official sets to better match mini-fig scale.

This custom version of Han Solo’s stolen M-86 speeder may have fewer play features and a bit less detail, but it matches the dimensions of the movie vehicle perfectly, and still fits Han and Q’ira side by side.

See Moloch’s landspeeder and compare these to the official LEGO sets

Those who defy the feathered serpent

It seems strange that given how well-received LEGO creations of Mesoamerican architecture are, they are relatively rarely seen in the online LEGO building community, as if they were lost in a jungle. Hidden somewhere deep in the jungles of Flickr, an ancient temple built by Aaron Newman has been discovered, caught in the middle of a human sacrifice, which has angered Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent himself!

The temple serves as scenery for an engaging story hinted at by the builder in the photo’s description. The deity is beautifully sculpted and positioned, giving a convincing impression of graceful motion in the air. I love all the details across the temple, but the altar at the top is definetely the best part. A bit of greenery spilling around the temple and the excellent minifig action complete the scene, greatly aided by the very fitting and expressive background.

When it comes to building your experience points, Squall’s gunblade is a simply striking solution.

Back in 1999, the Sony PlayStation was the undisputed king of home video game consoles. If you owned a PlayStation and were a fan of turn-based RPGs (role-playing games), Squaresoft delivered a treat in the form of Final Fantasy VIII. Those of you who’ve played the game will instantly recognize this awesome model of Squall’s Gunblade by Letranger Absurde. I think it’s safe to say Letranger Absurde has earned enough experience points with The Brothers Brick to level up!

A city is not gauged by its length and width, but by the height of its dreams

There’s no shortage of microscale LEGO cityscapes, but the variety within our favourite plastic bricks ensures no two cities are entirely alike. Marco De Bon impresses with this microscale creation, what looks like a transition zone between suburban residences and the soaring towers of downtown. Check out the angles on the grey and blue tower on the right, and the use of a studshooter part as a footbridge between two of the red buildings. The simple stacking of clear 1×2 plates to create the trio of towers at the rear is surprisingly effective, and the restrained use of sand green studs and lime green ice cream scoops makes for some nice vegetation.

Alright stop, Warhammer time

The Warhammer fantasy universe offers tricky inspiration for LEGO builders. When a fandom is founded on detailed models and painted miniatures, the thought of replicating those creations in another medium can be intimidating, and there’s also the question of how to make it interestingly different. Dwalin Forkbeard pulls this trick off admirably, with this LEGO diorama of Karak Kadrin, the mountain fortress home of a band of fearsome Dwarven warriors. The impressive stone face above the gate might grab all the initial attention, but don’t miss all the texture and the gold details in the construction — nice touches which prevent the walls becoming an unbroken mass of dark grey.

Aside from the looming fortress and the mountain, this creation impresses with the detailed activity and smart landscaping in front of the gate. I particularly liked this band of warriors heading out into the wintery wilderness past the statue…

Off-road adventures with Land Rovers, Chevys and Scouts...Oh my!!

If you have been following The Brothers-Brick for a while, you might remember us sharing Pixel Fox’s off-roading vignettes. One of Pixel Fox’s hallmarks has been blending LEGO bricks with real-life materials for landscaping. His latest model is a spectacular Land Rover Discovery traveling through the African wilderness. The dirt may not be LEGO, but it doesn’t feel out of place and adds an air of authenticity to the vignette.

Next up, we have a bright orange International Scout. Originally introduced in 1961, the Scout is considered to be the forerunner of the modern SUV. This is a really fun scene by Pixel Fox that reminds us why we shouldn’t feed the bears.

Last but not least is a 1970s Chevrolet C/K pickup truck, ripping through the swampland of the Southern U.S. This scene appears to utilize real water but, unlike real swamps, you would be hard-pressed to find any mosquitoes. It also features minifigures making some questionable decisions, but I guess what happens in the swamp stays in the swamp.

Shotaro Kaneda’s Bike from Akira [Instructions]

The 1988 sci-fi Japanese animated film Akira gave life to one of the most iconic bikes that remains entrenched in pop-culture 30 years later. Making an appearance again in the recent movie Ready Player One by Steven Spielberg only further reinforces that legacy. We have Jerry Builds Bricks to thank for sharing a quick build of this amazing bike. There’s no better way to honour this favourite by building your very own miniature version of it.

Click to see the video for the build

Chinese dragon is ahead of all others

The key to many LEGO creations is the model’s “face” — be it the head on a mecha, the front grille of a truck, or the pointy end of a starfighter — often when you crack that part of the build, the rest flows into place. And sometimes, if you get the face right, you don’t need anything else at all, as with this wonderful Chinese Dragon by Pol Mac. The dragon’s head is excellent, with smart parts use offering excellent shaping. Don’t miss the intimidating frown from two pearl gold bananas, the use of Chima armour to create the pug-nosed snout, and the spot-on curved jaw created from red flame parts. Yes, sometimes it’s great to see large-scale creatures rendered in their entirety, but sometimes the full model is simply not required.