Bricksan Posted November 5, 2011 (edited) Introduction P1020830 I would like to present to you, the first ever LEGO Pirate set I owned: Buried Treasure. I was lucky enough to own this when it first came out way back in 1989. When I made the decision to get back into LEGO, this was one of my must have sets due to it's nostalgia. While this set is only a small one at 20 pieces, it was my introduction to LEGO Pirates. The set I now own was purchased from eBay for a bargain: £3.99 plus P&P. The set came with everything, including the box, which was a bit battered and tatty but still in one piece. The box is ok with the main photo featured on the front and a further 3 photos on the back, of different sets you could build from the pieces. The ability to create other sets out of the pieces is one of the things I like about LEGO. Product Details Set No: 6235 Set Name: Buried Treasure Theme: Pirates Released: 1989 Minifigures: 1 Pieces: 20 RRP: £1.99 Purchase Price: £3.99 Links: Brickset Boxing/Packaging My box has seen better days as you can tell from the images. I did not get any of the inner packaging with my box but the main thing is you can see the detail on the back of the box for the extra builds. Instructions P1020833[/url The instructions come as a folded, double-sided piece of paper. Once unfolded you are presented with the front, which features the same image that is on the front of the box. Followed by step one, two and three. On the reverse are steps four and five. P1020834 Like my previous review (Renegade's Raft), once you have built the set, there is no need for the instructions, as it is simple to construct. This was also the same when I had the set first time round. I also feel that LEGO drag out the stages more than necessary; for example, step 1 only shows the 4 by 6 plate and step 5 shows the completed set. Parts P1020839 The set comes with 20 pieces, although, if you take away the 8 pieces of gold, the monkey and mini figure, you are only left with 11 pieces to build with. However, what I do like from the parts in this set are the monkey and the treasure chest, with 8 pieces of gold. The fact you get 8 gold pieces instead of 4 is a good plus in my book. The other piece I like is the shovel which from my knowledge is only available in a handful of Pirate sets. Mini Figure P1020835 P1020836 The mini figure which comes with the set is one of the more common ones in the Pirate theme. The majority of the larger pirate sets all have at least one version of this mini figure. This one comes with a red bandana, a blue and white striped vest and white trousers. All in all it is an ok mini figure, although it is not one of my favorite ones and the only thing I do like about it, is the face due to the mustache and stubble. Plus you get a monkey in this set, while you don't need to put it together, it is a fantastic figure to have on such a small set. What I do not like about the monkey is, I feel it is too large and should have been smaller in size. Build P1020837 The build is pretty straight-forward; if you stick to the instructions it takes 5 stages to complete. Stages one, two and three consist of putting the smaller pieces on the yellow plate, with the yellow pieces acting as sand and the grey 1 by 4 brick acting as rock. Step 4 involves you putting together the treasure chest and adding the gold pieces. For the record, you are given 8 pieces of gold; they have either the numbers, 10, 20, 30 and 40 on one side and LEGO on the other.You also add the green leaf and flag pole during this stage. P1020838 Stage 5 sees you add the finishing touches to the build, such as adding the monkey, flag and mini figure; as well as adding weapons to both the monkey and mini figure. Final Thoughts P1020832 It's a nice, small set and a great introduction to the Pirates theme. My favorite parts are the treasure chest, monkey and the shovel. While I feel the monkey is too large, I still like it and it's a great addition to any set. If I was to change anything on the set; I would actually build up the base with yellow bricks to give the impression that the treasure was buried. P1020831 Design: 6/10 - Not the best designed set, if you are going to give a set the name "Buried treasure", then you should at least give the impression the treasure is buried. Parts: 5/10 - You only get 20, but as I said above, most of them are for the treasure or mini figure. The addition of the coins and shovel are good though. Minifigs: 5/10 - The figure is too common in the Pirates theme for my liking, while I like the colour scheme on the vest, there is nothing that stands out on it. Build: 4/10 - A very simple build, I was 7 when I first got this set and back then it was easy. The hardest part to the build is getting the lid on the treasure chest. Playability: 7/10 - While it is a small set, you can have lots of fun with it due to the monkey and treasure chest. The images below show there are plenty of different creations you can come up with. Price: 8/10 - This was only £1.99 and even back in 1989 that was cheap for a LEGO set and for me is value for money. I paid £3.99 and, besides the box, the whole set was in near-new condition, so well worth the extra couple of pounds. Extra Designs P1020841 The first of the 3 extra builds you can do from the back of the box. In this photo, the mini figure is inside the chest with the monkey behind him shooting the pistol. P1020842 Out of the 3, this is my least favorite as the layout seems rather forced and does not look as good as the others. Getting the mini figure to hold 2 coins was a bit tough, as it was a tight fit. P1020840 This is my favorite; the mini figure is taking a break from all the digging he has been doing and has trained the monkey to fan him with the leaf to keep him cool. Edited May 12, 2012 by RJH Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Voodoo Hand Posted November 5, 2011 My very first set! I never really bothered with keeping the orriginal set, i just mixed it in a ship (own design and pretty small for only 5 pirates). I do love the set though, it's a great starter set! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Big Cam Posted November 5, 2011 What a great review of a set I wish I'd bought 500 of back in the day. Real gold, a shovel, a chest, a pirate flag and a monkey for practically nothing. Your pictures are great, I can tell this came from the academy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Palathadric Posted November 5, 2011 Very nice set because of the monkey Very, very, very worth the cost, in my opinion. What the heck, I may even give this "outstanding" in the rating department...but maybe not. I really like the extra build of the monkey fanning the man! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
punkkid364 Posted November 6, 2011 I had this set at such a young age that I don't even remember getting it. I think it was my first set as well, or pretty close to it. Not very many pieces, but every piece is useful. Love it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Commodore Hornbricker Posted November 6, 2011 Great review! With all the PotC sets out it is heart warming to see a classic set reviewed in such a nice way. Unlike punkkid364, I missed almost all the classic pirates originally because I was too old. While I now only own one of these sets officially I could build a lot of the out of my collection. Big Cam is right on. I'd buy a bunch today for that original price. Nice job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lightningtiger Posted November 6, 2011 Cool review of a cool little set 'RJH', but I don't trust that monkey ! Brick On while drinking rum ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brinstar Posted November 6, 2011 This is a throwback to the days when you could pick up a a small set with just pocket money or spare change. Outwardly it might not look that impressive but in reality this was a great little set as it provided quite a few important pirate related element which could be used with other sets including a sailor, monkey and treasure chest at a bargain price. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SirSven7 Posted November 6, 2011 Great review, this is such a beautiful little set, one of my favorite from back in the day. Cheers Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dreamweb Posted November 10, 2011 I would like to present to you, the first ever LEGO Pirate set I owned: Buried Treasure. I was lucky enough to own this when it first came out way back in 1989. Same here! It was also my first Pirate set ever! Well, actually one of three, but I got all three of them on the same day as a gift from my parents in 1989 (the others were 6251 and 6257), so technically they're all my first Pirate sets. It's funny how one remembers such things after all these years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
