How to start building up pieces?

[TheLunabrick]

So how do you start building up pieces effectively for your LEGO collection? A part of me is torn between keeping my sets together or putting the parts seperate from one another. Whats the best way to start building up a collection of parts effectively?

[Andy D]

Buy two sets that you like. Put one together, part out the other.

Andy D

[gamejutzu]

Well keep the sets if you like them too much, and scrap the set you feel you bought in the first place because of parts you wanted. Also, scrap what you can bring yourself to do.

[Andrzej777]

Buy lots of pab cups

[MaasEffekt]

An example: http://www.eurobrick...00#entry1956396

(not sure if this is what you mean "building up" pieces...)

Edited August 17, 2016 by Lazer

[fred67]

1. PAB. There's no easier way to get a lot of brand new bricks as cheaply as possible.

2. Bricklink... when I'm buying parts for a project, I'll bulk up my orders with interesting pieces to capitalize on the shipping. I have want lists of interesting pieces to make it easier.

3. Extra sets.... some sets seem to have a lot of interesting parts in them, sometimes a good way to bulk up on parts that might otherwise be hard to find.... so I don't like doing this in general, I like keeping sets together, but if you really do like the actual set (as opposed to just the parts), then buying multiple copies will help you get over it.

[zux]

1. There are sets I like the way they are. These are either kept assembled or each one is kept separately if disassembled.

2. Then there are other sets which are bought for parts, so they end up sorted and used for MOCs.

3. Other means of extra parts are from Bricklink mostly. This counts for about 1/5 of my parts.

If you have just started and lack basic bricks then good way would be just to buy sets (new or used). Except you know exactly what you need - then hit Bricklink or Brinkowl.

[dr_spock]

As above.

Join a RLUG.

Participate in parts drafts.

Buy sets that are good parts pack when they are on sale.

[Peppermint_M]

Teardown sets and MOCs! All they'll do is gather dust when kept together. Okay, so keep the ones you really love (For me it is the Agents Mobile Command Centre), but if you really want to MOC you have to be brutal.

Also, I'm not sure if they sell like this in your locality, but some supermarkets sell "damaged box" (IE, someone pinched something) pretty cheaply and you can grab parts.

But yeah, PaB is good too.

[Rotundus]

When I need to secure additional stock, I go to a handy retailer of used (and new) LEGO in a nearby town. -> WARNING!! Shameless plug for a friend to follow <- Bricks & Minifigs in Canby ,OR. USA. -> End of shameless plug <- I consider myself very fortunate to have one not too far away from my house. His prices are quite fair, although I do have to pick through a tremendous amount of bricks to get what I want. It is not unusual to find that I have spent most of a day looking for those "just right" parts. (Fortunately I am retired. ) My usual tactic is go for the parts that I know I will need first as I gather up 1x & 2x plates and 1x bricks in my chosen "color of the day". (Lately foliage has also been finding its way into my bags.) Somewhere in there I'll find a few "odd" bits that I have no idea what I'll use then for, but just got to have... And then I'll finish it off by filling the remainder of the cup (or bag) with more small (1x1 & 1x2) items. Using this method, I've always felt that I have received my monies worth. A less satisfactory but less expensive route, has been the discovery of a "bin full of LEGO" at a yard/garage sale. Alas, every time I have used this method I have found that most of the bricks are in such bad condition that I wind up donating the vast majority of them to Good Will or another organization.

[HawkLord]

My vote is PaB or those classics sets with just bricks. Alternatively, buy sets with bricks you like and sell off the minifigures to offset your costs.

[Darkdragon]

When I first started, I had very little bricks - only what was left from my previous use 25 years ago. I wanted to build up a collection of parts quickly so that I could try some MOCing, so I bought some large eBay unsorted lots (fast). I'd also watch Craigslist and buy up larger collections of parts/sets (slow). I think that's a decent way to start if you want to build up a large selection quickly.

Once you start buying a lot of sets, it makes sense to break them down so that you can use those parts. You can always rebuild the set later, quickly if you keep your parts well sorted.

PAB I use now, but when I started out there was no LEGO Brand Store within a few hundred miles. Bricklink and Bricks & Pieces I usually use for specific project parts, not for bulking up my collection.

[rodiziorobs]

When I first started, I had very little bricks - only what was left from my previous use 25 years ago. I wanted to build up a collection of parts quickly so that I could try some MOCing, so I bought some large eBay unsorted lots (fast). I'd also watch Craigslist and buy up larger collections of parts/sets (slow). I think that's a decent way to start if you want to build up a large selection quickly.

Once you start buying a lot of sets, it makes sense to break them down so that you can use those parts. You can always rebuild the set later, quickly if you keep your parts well sorted.

PAB I use now, but when I started out there was no LEGO Brand Store within a few hundred miles. Bricklink and Bricks & Pieces I usually use for specific project parts, not for bulking up my collection.

This is exactly my experience, as well. eBay can be wonderful if you are patient enough to wait for a good deal, but savvy enough to jump on it when you have the chance. If you're a bit too trigger happy you may end up spending more than is worth it.

Buying random lots is also a good way to encounter strange (and useful!) pieces that you might not have ever discovered otherwise.