We can’t let a weekend slip by without something for our valued Train-heads, the progenitors of our shared hobby. To that end, Poland’s Maciej Drwięga would like to share his latest effort with you the very orange “PKP WM15A heavy rail truck“, a staple of the Polish rail system. Not only is the design pleasing to the eye, it has some nice play features as well like moving crane and a tilting bed. The builder credits Mrzumbi’s 2006 version for inspiring this build.
Grab your little striped blue and white conductor hat, it’s Train-Time! Today’s offering comes from fan-favorite Peter Norman (swoofty), who’s screen-name sounds like that flatulent noise Space-builders make when they run around with their ships. The real title of this beauty is “SNIM SD70ACS #CC 122” for all you Train-heads who speak in code, but no matter what you call it, you can’t deny the striking color scheme and diverse textures.
This model was actually posted on Labor Day here in the States with some insightful accompanying text on the topic of SNIM (Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière), the national railway of Mauritania. I asked our own Brother Tim if he would help me with some insightful tidbit about this engine, but his speech was slurred and I couldn’t quite make it out…something about my mother. My mother is really more of a fan of the big-rigs so I’m not sure what he’s talking about. Enjoy the train!
Ever seen a 6-wide train naked? No? Well now’s your chance thanks to TBB rookie Alexander (narrow_gauge) who brings some fresh blood to the genre. Alexander quietly goes about his business with calm precision so common to his tribe of builders:
“Power comes from two PF large motors each mounted in a carriage. In between them another carriage carries a battery and IR receiver. With the motors geared down, top speed is a little slow, but reasonable for narrow gauge. There are two designs: one has the motor on its side which reduces the amount of room each side but leaves room to put a 12V train weight above the motor. Tow ball couplings are used between the motor cars – with a simple pivot coupling they tended to derail.
Alexander isn’t averse to showing off his work to the great unwashed masses either, as evidenced by this gorgeous photo from the recent Caulfield Train Show 2013 in Australia. There is some decent video from the event here, although only a small portion of it is LEGO related.
*Edit: Although I’m a fan of the genre, you could fill a teacup with my actual knowledge of Train related action. The stock is actually 6-wide, so my initial posting didn’t make much sense.
Mike Pianta (scruffulous) posted this timber wagon while I was away for work, so that’s my excuse for posting it three weeks late. As with any flatbed wagon it’s essentially a long, flat surface with wheels and details. The lack of interesting shapes actually makes it harder to render well in LEGO as the devil truly is in the details. Mike shows why he’s one of the leading train builders by packing it full of details. See eg. the backside of the bracket and the robot arms on the bogies.
Adrian Marciniak CyberPacket makes his first appearance on the brothership with this outstanding train layout that just about everything a viewer could ask for, from the curving mountain to the steep hill to the chicken-joint down on the dock. When I look at the photos my eye is constantly drawn towards the leaning houses; they are such a refreshing break from the boilerplate Cafe-Corner style buildings that usually inhabit train-centric dioramas. I think it is a safe bet to expect great things from Mr. Marciniak down the road. If you’re a fan of little vignettes that make a diorama of this scale really work, be sure and check out the full set on Flickr that features some fine photography.
In the last four weeks I’ve been travelling through the US. During my trip I attended Brickfair Virginia and now that I am back home, I’m slowly going through my photographs to pick some highlights to share with you. Joshua Brooks (JBIronWorks), whose father built the ‘Defense of Little Round Top’ diorama I blogged a while ago won the best train award at the event with his General Haupt locomotive.
Like his father’s diorama, this also has a US civil war theme. The locomotive was named after General Herman Haupt, who was the Union General in charge of the United States Military Railroad, which was used to supply the Union Army and to transport casualties to hospitals safely away from the front lines. To me it doesn’t look as though it is a super-complicated model, but I like the overall look and the history.
The Western train by monstrophonic wasn’t at Brickfair, although I wouldn’t have minded having a closer look at this diorama with my own two eyes.
The train itself is nicely done. Like most good dioramas this one seems to tell a story. Was the derailment an accident or was it caused by train robbers?
It’s time to ride the rails with Ted Andes aboard the mighty land-yacht called Intrepid, an Art Deco style train built with the Steampunk genre in mind. I was drawn in by the brutality of the cow-catcher, but I stayed for the smoothed out lines and clever photography. According to the builder this model was constructed for an upcoming book by TBB regular V&A Steamworks.
I need to get in on this publishing frenzy, all the cool kids these days are either writing books about LEGO or being featured in them. I thought print was supposed to be dead? Good luck with the book, Guy and crew, if this photo is any indication of the overall quality I’m sure you’ll do quite well.
I don’t have much information yet on the Korean fan-event recently hosted in Seoul, but there are some stunning photos available on Flickr from Brickmaster_Kor. We will begin our brief sampling with “The Mini SEOUL Project“, the model that first caught my eye with its micro-river, unique focus and lack of non-LEGO clutter in the background.
Then we move on to Seoul Station, proving that Korea’s KORAIL-inspired Train-heads are in the game.
And finally a shot of the magnificent statues that mark the entrance to Kyungbok-gung palace.
It is also worth noting that there were a great many Stormtroopers and Imperial Guard present as well. It looks like the exhibition was a great event, be sure and click through the entire set to soak in all the details of this extensive layout. Congratulations to everyone involved!
The Olive-Conspiracy continues here at TBB with this classy widescreen diorama from pinioncorp called “Airborne Gaelic“. The hint of greenery is very effective, the minifig selection is perfect and according to a few notable train-heads like Brother Tim, there is some clever use of parts going on in addition to the Olive color.
I can’t let a Saturday slip by without something for the train-heads out there, the venerable grandfathers of the organized hobby we enjoy today. Tonight’s serving of fresh ballast comes courtesy of Serge Las (inquisitor88) who would like to share his latest build, the Norfolk Southern Loco. When it comes to this particular genre, I like to include a photo of the real-deal for comparison with the model whenever possible. In this case, I’d say Mr. inquisitor88 nailed it.
The king o’ the rails, Peter Norman (swoofty) claims his latest train is “really just a green Lego Super Chief“, but I’m not buying that self-effacing rhetoric and neither should you. I wish I could ramble on about all the realistic details that make the Southern FP7 #6133 great, but the sum total of my train related knowledge wouldn’t fill a shot glass. I do know that it bears a striking resemblance to the source material.
Welcome back fight fans, to Sin City Nevada for another blood-drenched edition of Friday Night Fights! Tonight’s bout seeks to answer the eternal question, what happens when a harness bull takes on a yard dick? Let’s go to the tale of the tape:
Fighting out of the red corner, from the wrong side of the tracks…The Brisbane Brawler Nik J Dort (Red Five89) and his Scandia Railbus.
And fighting out of the blue corner, from R’lyeh where he lies dead and dreaming…Karf Oohlu and his Micro monkey train.
As usual, constant reader, you are tasked with deciding the outcome of this pugilistic endeavor by way of comment. On the last edition of Friday Night Fights BeLgIuM ww2 bUiLdeR won his bout by the narrow margin of 6-5. Tune in next week for more action!
