By harnessing the power of ever awesome lime (an even more potent power source than screams or laughter), Dave Shaddix has rendered both Mike Wazowski and the famous doorway from Monsters Inc. in 100% pure LEGO brick. As well as the excellent sculpting work on Mike, the various details like the clipboard really make this diorama stand out.
I first posted (very briefly) about Nathan Thom’s Rebrickable when it launched two years ago. Since then the site has been getting better and better so it’s time for a revisit.
The basic gist of rebrickable is that you select a LEGO set, uploaded digital (LDD and LDraw) design (see eg. the rover we featured a while back) and it tells you if you can build it from your own parts. Which is pretty cool. Basically, it’s a library of sets and MOCs that not only shows you how to build things, but helps you find the parts you need to build them.
And it does all this from a slick interface. As a site, it’s useful for people who make their own designs (in LDD or LDraw), and for collectors. You can also compare two sets to see what parts they share. Or generate a part list from a CAD file and see how much it will cost.
What can you build? Rebrickable is there to help you answer that question.
This beautiful cottage by Luke Watkins Hutchinson (-Derfel Cadarn-) is full of incredible details. The textures and shapes of the walls are fascinating. Then there is the lovely color scheme, flowing from the blues of the upper story to the patches of grass and the customized tree branches. It is an incredibly well-thought creation.
This diorama of a crashed space ship is rather striking. I love the post-apocalyptic feel. According the builder (Master Beef (with fries)), it is set in the Star Wars universe. But that neither detracts nor adds to this build as it really is able to stand on its own. There is just enough details of the ship to give you a sense of what the entire craft may have looked like, while the drifts of sand really add a sense of time…how long the wreck has been there. The makeshift shelter is also a very nice touch.
This stately raven is a lovely build and it compelled me to start reciting Edgar Allen Poe, so that is something else in its favor. I love the bird itself but showing it perched on a skull is even better. I’m naming the skull “Pallas”. Adam Dodge built this during a session he did on CTV Regina, promoting a show by SLUG.
Dennis Glaasker (Bricksonwheels) is no stranger to this blog and his latest build surely doesn’t disappoint. The bright yellow and heaps of chrome make this bike a real load of eye-candy.
I love this small scene concocted by Justin (CrazyLlama2). The floor technique is nice. The walls and windows show some really good skills, but that scroll puts it over the top.
If, like me, you’re into LEGO aircraft models, this week is off to a rocking start. Yesterday I had the pleasure of featuring mrutek’s P-51 Mustang; today I am happy to present the P-61 Black Widow by Sydag.
![[P-61B-15] The Black Widow : A Study In Black.](https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/media.brothers-brick.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/9350487080_0e605302ab.jpg)
The first radars entered operational service prior to the Second World War, but during the war the equipment became sufficiently compact to be fitted to aircraft so that they could find targets at night. However, radars were still fairly bulky and interpreting their signals was a fine art. Some single-engined single-seat fighters were equipped with radars, but most night fighters were bigger twin-engined machines, with a dedicated radar-operator in addition to a pilot. The P-61 Black Widow was the US Army’s purpose-built night fighter, used during the latter part of WW2. It carried a gunner as its third crew-member.
Having built my own version of the P-61, I can really appreciate the shape of Sydag’s model. Our models are similarly sized, but because he has decided to forgo having space for a minifig crew, the fuselage on his model looks far more accurate and elegant. It’s sinister and beautiful at the same time.
This miniature motorbike is representative of everything that makes this a great hobby. It was built spur-of-the-moment with random pieces, while hanging out with friends, and incorporates uses and connections that LEGO never intended. Jonas claims that it is just a bit of “tablescrap”, LEGO fan jargon for something thrown together from various pieces that are leftover after a “real” build, but I think it is quite a bit more than that. It takes a good builder to come up with something like this on a dare, with an odd assortment of bits. Tablescrap? I don’t think so. Just a little bit of awesome mixed with a healthy dose of good times.
I have come to admire mrutek for his models of some of the lesser-known aircraft of the Second World War, such as the A-20 Havoc and the Yakovlev Yak-1, but he has now turned his attention to a rather more famous aircraft: the P-51D Mustang. The P-51D combined a license-produced Merlin engine (famous for its use in the British Spitfire) with an airframe that could carry enough fuel to fly all the way from England to Berlin, escorting bombers. Nonetheless, the aircraft was sufficiently fast and agile to take on the best the Luftwaffe could throw at it. The P-51D was the first Mustang version with a bubble canopy, that offered excellent visibility to its pilot, and is an aviation classic.
The model carries very attractive markings similar to those of the USAAF’s 361st Fighter Group on D-Day, with its yellow nose and invasion stripes. It’s not all perfect, though. For instance, I think the nose is a bit too long and should curve upward more at the bottom (I have purposely chosen a picture where this isn’t obvious). I also think that the distance between the leading edge of the wing and the front of the canopy should be a bit bigger. I know that building WW2 fighters isn’t easy, however, and overall this is an instantaneously recognisable model with some very nifty techniques.
Okay Yaramanoglu (Oky – Space Ranger) built a lineup of mini-racers for Lego’s super heroes minifigs. Each racer is suited to the driver’s style (just like in Mario Kart). Which ones are your favorites?
One last bit of news from San Diego Comic-Con. LEGO announced a new property in association with Cartoon Network. The IP seems to be about some Pokemon like creatures, one is electric, one is fire and one is earth. There is no further information as of yet regarding this new IP.
Image courtesy of Joe Meno.
However, the most notable aspect of this announcement is the introduction of new elements, in particular, a new system of micro cup and ball joints. The balls seem to be the same scale as previous “tow ball” elements. This new joint system will allow for small scale articulation and give fans the ability to build creatures and characters with a new range of play action. Instead of joints with one direction of bend, these will add twist and rotation into the mix. There is also great potential for creating curves and compound shapes.
UPDATE: Mixels is a jointly produced property between Cartoon Network and The LEGO Group. This property will include animated shorts, a digital gaming experience and a collectible toy line.
Mixels are colorful creatures “that can mix and combine with one another in creative and unpredictable storylines.” Low priced mini sets will launch in three waves in 2014.