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.

Futuristic automobiles take off... and hover

In the future imagined by Polish builder Jerac, the younger generation cruise around in yellow hovercrafts while the ‘dad-taxi’ family car looks a little bit cooler than your average Toyota.

Firstly, we have the Aeris, the 4-person family car for collecting the groceries and taking the kids to the movies. Even Jerac has to admit that this is “slightly more luxurious” than the average family car (they must be from the nicer side of the City). Honestly, I’m not trying to sell you this car, but take a look at the rear – the building techniques used are fantastic!

Next, we have the Athame, a hovercraft aimed at the cool kids who yearn for a sportier, faster, more eye-catching ride. This hovercraft has the added adrenaline rush of a transparent floor – definitely not for the feint-hearted. I love the shaping of the front, very nice curves.

Sadly, the exuberance of youth means that the Athame is sometimes exposed to more ‘aggressive driving manoeuvres’ and the resulting vehicle breakdown requires a futuristic rescue truck. Here we have the Cobbergoot Hoverlift-3. The Hovlift-3 has a great extendable lift at the back, to cater for even the largest of future hovercrafts, and collapses neatly to allow a more streamlined look when not it use.

Despite being a (relative) ‘youth’, I think I will stick with the luxurious Aeris as my future car. That transparent floor on the Athame is just too much excitement for me…

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Unexpected LEGO parody of Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus”

“The Birth of Venus” by Sandro Botticelli is one of those paintings that you study in Art History, poring over the symbolism and innovative Renaissance techniques until the painting becomes one with the millions of reproductions you’ve seen all your life, losing any interest or meaning it may have had. (Clearly, I much prefer “Primavera”…) So, I’m always pleased to run across a refreshing new take on a classic work of art. Polish builder Bartłomiej Sekuła has built a three-dimensional version of the painting reminiscent of a tableau vivant, with minifigs representing each of the figures in the original work.

That’s actually pretty cool on its own, but Bartłomiej goes one step further with a parody version of this iconic scene.

Click for the big reveal!

In this world, only winter is certain

Whether you’re a fan of the television series or the books, everyone can agree that the next installment of Game of Thrones is simply too far away. Season 6 won’t be here until April 2016 and George R. R. Martin’s final two novels, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, may never be here. So while you’re jonesing for your next fix, check out these sweet Game of Thones-inspired LEGO builds.

Midas Touch‘s microscale Castle Black is perfect. The Wall, a colossal structure built from ice that protects the Seven Kingdoms from white walkers (or “the others” if you read the books), is instantly recognizable, as is the elevator which carries the Night’s Watch to its top.

Speaking of the top of the wall, nameless_member has built an equally impressive scene from Game of Thrones using forced perspective. This haunting scene of John Snow overlooking the lands beyond the wall uses very few parts, but packs a heavy punch.

Do not adjust your television screen

I assure you: you’re seeing the image correctly. Jimmy Fortel presents this glorious retro television for all of your family flashback needs. Complete with bright colors, knobs, and no remote, this excellent little build is packed full of nostalgia.

And by nostalgia I mean that hideous (and yet so wonderful!) wall-paper.

Maschinen Krieger + Vic Viper = Maschinen Viper? Vic Krieger?

LEGO mashups are always an interesting affair. They can go so wrong so fast, but occasionally you’ll find a mashup build so good it even puts its famous parents to shame. Take for instance this creation by Nooroyd, who blended together two of the most popular themed month building styles — the Maschinen Krieger style from Ma.Ktoberfest and a Vic Viper from Nnovvember — to form the ultimate VV Ma.K. vehicle.

Nooroyd’s theme-blending created a stunning vessel — one with eye-catching techniques, such as the use of multiple minifigure helmets, flex tubes, and even an entire Dewback!

Double whammy dreadnought

Conveying raw strength with stance and proportion is something the recent Hulkbuster set did really well, but this “dreadnaughtwhammer” by chubbybots blows it right out of the water. It’s got so much going on, so I won’t zero in on all of it, but I have to point out the use of the brown barrel pieces on the arm as a great way to break up the shapes as well as proving some color variance.

Be sure to check out the builder’s photostream to see the progression of this model.

Bricks vs Pixels: the ultimate showdown

OK, so we all know the movie Pixels didn’t turn out how we’d wished a real life- and video game-mashup would, but it’s still a mighty cool concept. South Korean professional builders Olive Seon have run with that concept with an awesome diorama loosely inspired by the movie Pixels. Featuring the iconic scene of Pac-Man munching down a street, the builders have added some characters from Minecraft and several other games also. See how many game characters you can find!

Hidden in the mangroves

Mangrove trees have a chaotic, almost alien feel to them. In salty, waterlogged conditions, where other trees flounder, they thrive. Tirrell Brown has perfectly captured the majesty of these strange trees in his most recent build. His swampy scene, which was built for Eurobrick’s Guilds of Historica, depicts a hidden croc warrior desperately fleeing a pair of dangerous dark elves. For now, the croc is escaping their notice. Can you spot him?

Reaching higher with Beat Felber

Since mid-October I have had a pretty crazy time at work, very much at the expense of my blogging and pretty much everything else. I have built a few things, but I told my fellow contributors that I would only write something if it knocked my socks off. Well, consider me barefoot. The culprit is Swiss builder Beat Felber and his AR-1200M Mobile Crane. Tadano is a Japanese manufacturer of cranes and the model carries a Japanese livery, of the Showa Co., Ltd. of Kobe. This already makes it a bit more interesting than your average Liebherr. Furthermore, as you would expect from a builder who goes by the name Engineering with ABS, his model is full of working features.

It uses Power functions for the drive, for steering on all five axles and to extend the stabilisers on both sides, with pneumatics used to raise and lower the struts. The crane boom can be raised, slewed and extended using Power Functions and, of course, the winches are remote-controlled. It also has working lights. The boom reaches a height of 2.15 m (more than 7 ft.) and can be extended even further by adding a separate jib. This is not the tallest crane we’ve ever blogged, but size is not everything. It is gorgeous.

Death-dealing strider in lush scenery

I guess we’ve all missed seeing some impressive Black Fantasy creatures for quite a while. All of a sudden Leonid An, a talented young builder from Moscow, Russia, bridges this gap. His strider is not only remarkable for a wide range of classic build techniques, but also completed with a stunningly landscaped base. Who could knew that typically girlish pieces from Clikits sets could complete such an ominous creature so perfectly.

Needle Town...sew perfectly balanced

The Colossal Castle Contest continues and Polish builder crises_crs brings us this perfectly balanced creation entitled Needle Town.

Needle Town is an entry to the Microscale Medieval Life Microscale Castle MOC category, in which entries must be built on a 16×16-stud or smaller plate.

Crises_crs has balanced this entire castle town on a tower of 1×1 light blue grey plates that rise up from an island. I love this unique take on building within a 16×16 plate, certainly an eye-catching entry. In addition, the angled wall that encircles the town has a fantastical feel, like one of Saturn’s rings around the ‘planet’ where Needle Town rests. The coloured houses and touch of greenery gives plenty of detail although my eye is constantly drawn back to that foundation tower of 1×1 bricks!

M.C. Escher’s “Hand with Reflecting Sphere” rendered in LEGO

While I share a certain ambivalence about LEGO renders with the Grumpy Old Man contingent of TBB contributors, I have to admit that I’m increasingly impressed with the high quality we’ve begun seeing from “virtual” builders. One of my recent favorites is this LEGO-ized version of M.C. Escher’s print “Hand with Reflecting Sphere” by Gabriele Zannotti. Gabriele used Mecabricks to build the scene, and Blender for the final 3D rendering. Spend some time looking at all the details reflected in that sphere…