Tag Archives: Space

From giant space carriers to starfighters, moon bases to moon buggies, whether you love LEGO models inspired by real-world space programs or science-fiction, you’re in the right place.

The gelatinous wonder from space

We may sound like broken records here at The Brothers Brick every year when SHIPtember rolls around, but I really do believe that spaceships people build are getting more and more imaginative. Inthert‘s contribution to this year’s event is a prime example of that.

Pleurotus Flight - Poster Shot

The spaceship looks almost alive, like a mix between a jellyfish, a mushroom and pure mechanical evil. Shapes are nothing LEGO bricks naturally support, but the builder has managed not only to make the dome at the front look good but also to make it open, with a beautiful mechanical interior. General consensus for conservative spaceship colour schemes suggests fewer colours used, carefully separated by clean lines, but somehow Inthert has managed to make his build look great even with multiple grays, black, brown, gold and green used in very intense combinations. The secret here is that each colour has a strongly defined role and makes sense in the build. As far as details go I could not even begin to cover all the ingenious little parts, but my favourite by far is the central section, where mechanical tentacles can be seen through transparent panels.

Pleurotus Flight - Open Dome

Maintenance mech may move minifig materials

It’s a delight to be in a position where we can watch certain builds (and builders) evolve over time and improve on past designs. Today’s example is from Devid VII who has tinkered with his LEGO Ideas Exo Suit-inspired mini mech.

Mini Exo Suit II

This “maintenance mode” rendition follows Mini Exo-Suit 1 which Devid unveiled back in January. You can compare the variants by checking out our previous coverage of Mini Exo Suit 1, but I also want to zoom in on a couple of points specifically to show how the model has been refined and upgraded over the earlier model. Many studs have been covered up generally across the model, but the chest has seen the most refinement. Take a look at versions 1 and 2 here:

You could say it’s splitting hairs, but I appreciate that even a piece or two can make a difference in the final appearance of a model.

The spindly threads of humanity among the stars

Hard science fiction spaceships often conform to a few venerable aesthetics, key among them a predominance of NASA-like white. However, in LEGO builder halfbeak‘s timeline, a group of disgruntled astronauts have broken ties with NASA and formed their own space agency, so it makes sense they’ve inverted the usual colors. This marvelously gangly spacecraft is powered by antimatter, which it captures in huge nets.

Xylethrus AMV-1 Space Scene

It’s rare that a spaceship can rival a sailing ship for rigging, but the wiry electromagnetic nets surrounding the vessel are a truly fantastic bit of LEGO engineering, painstakingly pieced together with string and a variety of thin LEGO elements, such as fishing rods. The repetitious use of LEGO radar dishes throughout the craft brings a unifying motif, and they make for an especially interesting texture along the ribbed twin prongs on the front.

Xylethrus AMV-1 Detail Shots

Star Striker, for when the flying gets rough

LEGO fans are frequently inspired to give life to Star Wars-inspired builds, but even though builder Shawn Snyder may not have had Star Wars front of mind when building this slick ship, we’d like to think it could have happened in an alternate timeline. The robust, industrial design paired with the classic windscreen makes it look a bit like an Incom T-47 that’s been seriously souped up to give it a buffed up, mean and rugged look suited for spaceflight. Of course, it’s different some pretty significant ways, but the color theme certainly strikes a familiar chord with last years 75144 UCS Snowspeeder. There’s no sign of obvious canons but I’m pretty sure there’s some heavy weaponry hidden inside just waiting to take the next AT-AT down, or whatever their equivalent is in the universe where this ship exists.

Full_Front

If you like this, check out some true Star Wars-inspired ships that look like they could have been lifted off the pages of a galaxy far far away.

A true whale of a spaceship

Called the Celestial Barracuda, this marine-inspired vessel by LEGO designer Niek Van Slagmaat (most recently of 21311 Voltron fame) is one of the more uniquely designed spaceSHIPs of recent memory. Traversing the inky deeps of space and reality as an interdimensional transport ship, the ship takes the form of a sinuous fish. Niek expertly strikes a balance between placing tiles for a smooth exterior and strategically leaving studs exposed to create a textured, weathered hull. He’s also used a sprinkling of dark tan among the orange bricks, highlighting where the orange paint has peeled over eons of space travel.

Celestial Barracuda

The ship’s fish-like features aren’t just for show, though, as they serve a more utilitarian purpose in supporting the small fleet of nimble craft that surrounds it like pilot fish. Continue reading →

One Stellar LEGO SHIP

As the month of September draws closer to an end, so too, the month-long annual epic that is SHIPtember. The challenge of building a spacecraft that measures at least 100 studs in any direction (AKA a SHIP) in a single month is no easy accomplishment. One of the most critical aspects of a good SHIP is its structural frame, requiring careful crafting to keep the vessel from falling apart under its own weight without looking too bulky or boxy. This ship by Chris Perron is a great example of this balance, combining form with industrial function. Another hallmark of the SHIPtember shipyard comes from making use of parts not typically thought of as spaceship parts, like the trapezoidal orange dump truck ends so expertly used by Chris to form the hexagonal sections along the fuselage. Another great detail are the flat gold flanges in front formed by angled tiles.

Antigona Class Light Frigate

LEGO Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster and Starman prepared for launch

In February 2018, an impressive test launch of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket was conducted with Elon Musk’s personal Tesla Roadster as the payload. For SHIPtember each year, LEGO builders challenge each other to build a LEGO spaceship (in which “SHIP” means “Significantly Huge Investment in Parts”) at least one hundred studs long. Adrian Drake took up the challenge to construct an impressive LEGO model of Musk’s roadster and its dummy pilot “Starman.” Whether it counts as a spacecraft for SHIPtember is debatable (we believe it does count!), but it hits the 100-stud-long mark (about 31.5 inches) and is shaped and sculpted rather well at this scale.

roadster 03

The fully detailed cabin interior is worth a closer look.

roadster 15

See more photos of Adrian’s Tesla Roadster and Starman on Flickr.

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boldly Go Where No Princess Has Gone Before

Patty Rau has launched Cinderella into space aboard the FGP When You Wish Upon A Star. There’s a lot to love about this LEGO spaceship. The bulbous midsection is a great nod to the vehicle’s origin as a pumpkin. The ship also contains elements from all three minidoll-scale versions of Cinderella’s carriage: printed inverse slopes from Cinderella’s Carriage (2016), printed curved slopes from Cinderella’s Dream Carriage (2014), and gold filagrees from Cinderella’s Enchanted Evening.

FGP When You Wish Upon A Star

It seems like Patty is doing a series of Disney Princess spaceships, as she has also created one for Aurora from Sleeping Beauty. Apparently Sweet Mayhem isn’t the only minidoll with a spaceship.

FGS Once Upon A Dream

Wherever you are, no one can hear you scream if you are a giant fish

They say space is full of stuff of all sorts — Death Stars, teapots orbiting the Sun and even a red roadster. Sheo. explores some of the most distant corners of the outer space to find an interstellar… fish. Yes, he calls his latest LEGO creation a giant space fish, and it’s hard to argue since we have no idea what else can be floating up there! The real highlight of the creation is, of course, a gray sphere right in the middle of the body secured with some crazy amount of red tentacles. Does this creature look intimidating? Absolutely. But can a lonely traveller escape its attraction..?

Space Fish

LEGO Exodus Black from Destiny 2 stands nearly 3 feet tall

It’s that time of year again for SHIPtember — one month to build a spacecraft over one hundred LEGO studs in length (approximately 31.5 inches). I haven’t participated successfully since 2014, when I built UNSC Savannah from Halo: Reach. 2018’s build worked out much better, so I present my LEGO model of Exodus Black, a colony ship from Destiny 2.

Colony Ship "Exodus Black" - Destiny 2

See more photos of Nick’s Exodus Black after the jump

The Valzaleer spacecraft has a beautiful veneer

This incredible spaceship by AdNorrel features distinctive profile shapes and smartly integrated LEGO pieces. The lovely bits of filled-in details within the crevasses and armored surfaces of the starship are great examples of greebling done well. Not too out of place, not too overshadowed — there’s some real inspirational craftsmanship here.

The Valzaleer

I don’t want all of my articles to become running checklists of parts, but see if you can spot the messenger pouches, croissants, and frying pans. It’s a really fun scavenger hunt kind of model.

Click to see even more of the Valzaleer

Frigates of mass destruction never looked so good

As September looms nearer by the day, seems like builder noblebun is already flexing his muscles for the upcoming SHIPtember event where fans of LEGO battle to outdo one another creating huge ships. Sounds simple? The challenge rules just say the SHIP needs to be 100 studs or longer (also known as a Seriously Huge Investment in Parts). This digital build is outstanding for the seriously smooth texture that makes it feel like the lines are all actually part of a futuristic design and not the signs of LEGO elements pieced together. I seriously love how the microfigures were used as part of the centerline texture and greebling effects.

Munsin Class Escort Frigate