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.

Voltron’s Black Lion gets a build all to itself

We’ll be getting an official LEGO Voltron set soon thanks to LEGO Ideas, but the designs of the individual lions may not be quite as detailed as you’d like — presumably to save on part-count and/or to allow them to fuse together. The creator of the original Ideas submission, Leandro Tayag offers this fantastically-detailed Black Lion in mitigation.

The shaping around the chest and head are my favourite parts of this near-perfect creation. There’s a lot of little details that deserve attention too, though. The claws, for example, are made with only two pieces, but still manage to look just perfect.

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The tunnels hold many secrets

These two adventurers seem to have come across quite an interesting structure – mysterious ancient catacombs. While in real life the dangers are limited to unstable ceilings and toxic mold, I expect a more fantastic fate to befall them if the builder, Forlorn Empire, continiues their story.

But for now, all that we know the catacombs contain are some amazing techniques and architectural details built from cheese slopes and masonry brick. The builder mixes different earth tones and careful lighting to create an immersive scene, and while the details and construction techniques definetely are the best part of the build, it is the composition in the photo that really brings it all together.

Though she’s called The Nadir, she looks like the acme

I apologize for my supercilious vocabulary, but Swedish builder o0ger has named his most recent YT Corellian Light Freighter-inspired spacecraft “The Nadir” which, by definition, pretty much means rock-bottom. Either the owner of this ship has very high expectations, or nadir means something else in Swedish, because this ship is quite remarkable, and I don’t see why it wouldn’t be the crown of any space shipping fleet. The integration of the cockpit into the side wing is superb, and there is just the right amount of color throughout.

If you feel inspired by this sublime spacecraft, feel free to check out our contest where you can build the Millennium Falcon herself.

Piano model is just grand

Who wouldn’t want to sit down at this lovely LEGO piano and pick out a tune? Robert4168/Garmadon has put together a fantastic model — from the spot-on shiny black curves of the shape, through to the instrument’s innards visible beneath the hinged lid. There’s a bunch of nice details which also elevate this creation out of the ordinary — in particular the gold touches on the pedals and the rings used at the feet of both piano and stool. Excellent presentation too — that wooden floor is the perfect setting. It doesn’t distract attention from the main model, but creates a simple surrounding impression of a stage or practice room.

Every man is an island above an azure sea

John Donne wrote that “no man is an island”, but when it comes to LEGO creations, famous poets do not restrict your imagination. Ben Fitzsimmons has turned that saying around with his huge LEGO diorama depicting a multitude of islands each inhabited by wandering travellers. Each unique little island is a place for rest and trade above the expanse of dark azure ocean. This is a beautiful, fantastical build with a touch of steampunk. The islands are all full of creative buildings like the tall lighthouse on the far right, and nice landscaping such as the waterfall spilling back into the ocean and the colourful trees.

A closer look at one part of the diorama shows some of the fun details. I love the propeller-powered pack that one traveller is wearing to cruise between islands, while the use of the ‘hot air balloon part’ as a sail works well at this scale.

Ben’s diorama won the Steampunk category at Brickfair Virginia this year and I imagine the build was even more impressive to see in person.

Kaneda’s motorcycle was smaller than you thought

We’ve seen many LEGO versions of Kaneda’s red motorcycle from Akira, but they’re often larger-scale models like the beauty we saw last year. At the other end of the size spectrum, Grantmasters‘ latest creation is a tiny microscale version of the iconic bike. Grant has used the perfect combination of red pieces for this little masterpiece, although purists may quibble that most of them seem to be balanced atop each other rather than attached. Nice work on the figure too. Overall this passes the “microscale test” — ie. is it immediately recognisable? There’s no doubting that. All together now… “Kaaaannnedaaaa!”

Star Citizen fighter built in LEGO by German citizen

The SHIPtember challenge is in full swing, when LEGO builders around the world look to build large-scale spaceships of at least 100-studs in length. German builder Stephan Niehoff breaks the mold of the more common microscale capital ships with this highly-detailed Gunboat from Star Citizen. The model is minifig scale and very impressive, particularly as it was put together in less than 3 weeks!

The bold colour scheme really stands out, aided with some carefully placed stickers. Yellow lines accent the complex angles well, and the use of different grays allowed Stephan to achieve some nice details. My favourite areas are the nose, with its rich collection of guns and utensils, and the “air intakes”, with the pin connector construction above it.

All sorts of shady activities at the pirate’s harbor

Nothing valuable is safe from the hands of pirates in Mark van der Maarel’s harbor scene. The construction of each building, the movement of the water, and the scene populated with sketchy pirate operations are all well done without making the overall build appear busy.

The close-up of the alley showcases the subtle offsets to achieve the detailed features of the two buildings. The use of minifigure hands as clothespins, both in appearance and suspension of the tiles, is quite clever.

Gorgeous 1957 Harley-Davidson Sportster XL in LEGO has a heart of thunder

With several official LEGO Technic sets over the years (most recently the 42063 BMW R 1200 GS Adventure), LEGO motorcycles are a frequent subject among custom model builders, but none in the last year or two have quite captured my attention like this fantastic 1957 Harley-Davidson Sportster XL built by Taiwanese LEGO fan Maxime Cheng.

Click through to see more details of this beautiful LEGO Harley

While away the time in your cave with a game of Paleolithic ping pong

The Paleolithic era wasn’t just painting mammoths on cave walls and running screaming from saber-toothed tigers and onrushing glaciers. Inspired by the book Barna Hedenhös by Bertil Almqvist, Swedish builder Sarah demonstrates that it was also important to take time for yourself — to relax and have a good time. The wooden table tennis setup with wooden sticks for the net is adorable, though I question where a pair of Cro-Magnon people got metal frying pans for their paddles. I’m betting it was Doctor Who…

Drop feet first onto Requiem with the Master Chief

TRLegosfan shows some love for Halo 4 with a colorful diorama depicting the inner surface of the Shield World of Requiem. The aesthetic of the Forerunner world – tall, angular structures upon artificial landscape overgrown with alien vegetation – is shown beautifully in the bricks.

Let’s go on a wild goose chase! [Video]

Jason and Kristal from JK Brickworks have a knack for making LEGO builds come alive with movement. To celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday recently, they’ve built the Canadian goose! The mother goose is a remote-controlled motorized build with a string to pull along her little goslings. The result is a very realistic family creating havoc at your command!

I don’t want to spoil all the fun in how it’s all put together, but you certainly do want to watch the video feature.