While others may have been more impressed by Karf Oohlu‘s recent armored vehicle, I’m a sucker for his weaponized LEGO animals. Hilarious, yes, but the “Cowabanger assault bovine and Rashbacon support pig” are actually rather well built, with some interesting techniques and parts usages, especially on the cow’s smaller porcine companion.
Though the inspiration for this little mecha by Chris (Ironsniper) may appear to be tachikoma from Ghost in the Shell,
As LEGO spreads various parts of its supply chain and manufacturing process beyond Billund, Denmark and Enfield, Connecticut, the number of countries listed on the box after “Components made in…” has increased dramatically, making it unclear exactly where specific LEGO elements and aspects of the product packaging come from. Some LEGO fans have been concerned about the fact that the country list now includes China. After all, the PRC is not particularly well known for its positive environmental record, nor for hitting the high quality bar set traditionally by LEGO.
Although LEGO has not yet confirmed — despite general consensus among fans — that products like the Collectible Minifigures and magnet sets are manufactured in China, LEGO has recently come clean about its packaging.
Environmental advocacy group Greenpeace reports that LEGO has agreed to stop sourcing paper and pulp products from Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), a company based in Singapore notorious for harvesting Indonesian rainforests in an unsustainable manner. LEGO packaging I’ve reviewed does not list either Singapore or Indonesia — though APP does operate plants in China. LEGO’s original response to Greenpeace identifies the offending item as a licensed product actually manufactured by Dorling Kindersley (most likely a book) and therefore not part of LEGO’s core product lines. Nevertheless, Greenpeace has complimented LEGO on its responsiveness to the issue and leadership among toy companies. (Packaging news via Environmental Leader.)
Meanwhile, LEGO is further improving its environmental record by making its boxes smaller. Astute readers will already have noticed that the latest line of LEGO Star Wars battle packs are in smaller boxes, reducing the amount of paper needed to produce the packaging. This is apparently a general trend across all product lines.
Our sources tell us that the move toward smaller packaging was entirely business-driven — that the smaller boxes allow more product to be placed on shelves, while simultaneously giving consumers the impression that they’re getting more LEGO by increasing the “perceived density” of the product (a counter-intuitive result from consumer research). Whatever the reasons, LEGO will be using less paper in its packaging going forward, and that’s a good thing.
Next time you call LEGO, let them know that you’re thankful that they’ve taken these steps to improve sustainability and environmental stewardship.
Phall has named his latest spaceship after his favorite LEGO element, the “macaroni” brick, but enough cheese slopes are in evidence that my post title seems warranted. The chunky Macaroni is a hearty delight.
Thanks for the tip, Jamie!
Lego.Skrytsson‘s modular house shows an interesting and useful technique. Take a look at the sand red wall and note how the builder used slanted slope bricks to create a unique texture. These two shots reveal more about how it’s done.
Victor Martinez N. gives the hardsuit concept a twist and outfits his Martians in protective outer body enhancements.
UPDATE: Victor has posted a video showing how the jackhammer mechanism on the miner suit actually works:
I’m a sucker for LEGO chess sets. I’ve built several myself and once you get going, it is hard to stop. This miniature set, by Matt Armstrong has a deceptively simple quality to it. The pieces are all made from the micro trophy figure, from the Collectible Minifigure series, and at first glace are nearly indistinguishable from one another. However, the bases of the chess pieces are just different enough that one can tell the various pieces apart at a glance. Now I want to go make some more chess sets…
Thomas Oechsner supplies his Neo-Classic Space fleet with an Octan fuel truck. The contrast between the greebly esthetic of Neo-Classic Space and the smooth fuel tank gives this build quite the look!
It’s been a while since Tim Zarki (spook) has posted a polished MOC but this beauty shows he’s still got his skills. Awesome Syd Mead vibe.
The good folks at RAILBRICKS have just released the 9th issue of their excellent free e-zine.
This issue focuses on trams but, as usual, there’s plenty of articles for LEGO train fans and LEGO builders in general including
The low-res PDF can be found here (RAILBRICKS are having issues – try here for an online copy) but the site contains links to other formats.
Garry King finished his largest creation: a massive brick-built version of the Battlestar Defender from Battlestar Galactica. He estimates that between 30-40 thousand pieces were used in the model. You can see work-in-progress pictures on Brickshelf.
In small dioramas it’s the little details that matter. de-marco packs a bunch of cute touches into this idyllic scene. This is not Farmville.
