Henchmen4Hire

Terraforming the Ice Planet

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Boredom has led me to updating old sets with newer elements. (My gaming laptop has been dead for a while :cry_sad: )

First up is the Snow Scooter.

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Oh my, yes, it's quite the unimpressive pile of rubble. So uninspiring and forgettable no one even bothered taking a clear picture of the box so all we get are blurry shots of the manual as proof that this was once on store shelves. :tongue:

Anyway, for the upgrade the only thing I kept in mind was that I wanted to use as many of the original pieces as possible. The result is a slightly larger jet-ski-mobile that skims along the snowy landscapes of Krysto.

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The new Snow Skimmer is used for scouting possible sites where they may set up camp and party down. (What was their mission again? :laugh: ) It's also used as a quick way to collect samples of interesting looking doodads in the area. The nose is hollow so it serves as extra storage space.

The new model has a more powerful propulsion system, fully encased to protect it against the freezing temperatures to improve its reliability.

Suicide doors are added just so the operator can reference them constantly to sound cool.

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And there you go! Feel free to post your own Ice Planet remakes :classic:

Edited by DrNightmare

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A relatively awesome remake of a promotional. Why do the promotional remakes always look the best?

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Thanks folks!

Here's another upgrade, this time of the Ice Tunnelator :)

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The Ice Tunnelator was a service vehicle haphazardly thrown together by Ice Planet explorers who were too lazy to clear the driveways of snow with a shovel. The silly scrap vehicle was given an equally silly name and become a favorite joyriding vehicle among the crew (if you can consider riding a lawnmower as joyriding). Every camp had a unique Tunnelator and was treated like a lovable pet. (Hey, it sure beats petting Ice Spiders!)

One day, some hotshot young engineer with one too many lunch breaks began building his own Ice Tunnelator to be the envy of all the others. He built it well enough that his design was used by Command to build a new line of official Ice Tunnelators. All charges of theft and improper use of company property against him were dropped in exchange.

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This model evolved into some kind of ATV, the old inefficient chainsaw was replaced with a laser system that can quickly melt or cut ice into neat chunks. A vacuum under the laser helps keep the path clear by sucking in accumulating water and slush and expelling it out the rear.

I wanted to use the treads like in some of the Arctic sets instead of wheels, but I don't know how to use them in LDD without getting a massive headache. Oh well!

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And here's a shot with the old wheels:

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Good upgrade to the vehicles here. I have a couple of both of them lying around somewhere. Did not photograph the box though!

I like the Tunnelator but think it looks more authentic with the original chunky white Ice Planet wheels. Otherwise it could be something used by CITY folk who live in a ski resort somewhere. The idea of having the laser is a good one and a bit more up to date I guess, glad to see you still have a place for the chainsaw as a back up incase that laser breaks down at some point.

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Seems I have a tendency to build large lol. Here's a medium/large set based on 6879.

Here's the original zippy little model, it's not bad, but could definitely use a remake. At least put some seatbelts in the thing!

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And now the new beast it evolved into.

Aside from the Deep Freeze Defender, Ice Planet cosmonauts have only one other bird in the sky, the Blizzard Baron. It's a multi-tasking workshorse used for communications, information sharing, orbital experimentation, transporting cargo quickly, satellite repairs, and testing rocket drives. This mid-sized ship has enough space to hold a small 2 or 3-person team and their equipment.

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Rear hatch and canopy can open, it's pretty roomy in there, there's even shelf space because of the hollow curves lol. I was going to build an arm to deploy the satellite as a separate piece, but I don't feel like struggling with LDD. There are Technic bricks on the inner walls, with some pins the walls can hold lots of gear, or you can anchor different arms to them, or computer screens, whatever the need may be. That's my version of the modular feature. :)

I would have liked some kind of double doors for the hatch, but again, too much of a hassle.

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The wings have internal heaters to keep them from freezing over.

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I changed the black engine bell to the original, looks cooler I think.

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The insides could probably use some optimization, but whatever, looks cool.

The whole thing uses less than 200 bricks. :)

Anyway, enjoy!

Edited by DrNightmare

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Great job with these remakes. :thumbup: The Ice Planet sets were good for their time, but look blocky, messily and haphazardly thrown together, and look horrible compared to the newer, sleeker design of today's sets. I guess LEGO hired better designers. :laugh:

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Great idea! I love that you're revisiting an older theme, and updating it with current part selections, yet staying true to the original color scheme. Brilliant concept.

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While I never really got into Ice Planet 2002, I did have at least one set (the Blizzard Baron). Your updated versions of the classic sets and minifigs really look great, and are spot-on for what Ice Planet 2002 would look like if LEGO were to re-launch the theme today.

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Got kinda carried away with this one haha...

This is the "Ice Sat V - Part 1", it's the command section of the 2-part vehicle. The rear will be attached via magnets and some cables. The second part carries the actual missile along with spare parts, storage space, and other miscellaneous goodies.

It's big and brutish and the nose could probably use a redesign, but I like it in its own ugly way. :)

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Fake magnet on bumper

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Bricks inside can be rearranged however you like. Add more clips/studs to the walls for equipment, smooth them completely for more storage space, or turn it into a portable lab.

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I got too fancy with the rear hatch haha, but it serves as a ramp when unfolded.

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Edited by DrNightmare

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I'm liking your remakes :thumbup: The newest one looks great, especially the cockpit. I'm anticipating seeing the back section hooked to it :classic:

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