MacK Posted February 16, 2009 Bursting out of Star Wars Episode I the fearsome AAT is one of my personal favorites. When I first saw it on the shelves of Zellers I knew I had to have it. After saving up for it I finally brought it home to terrorize my Jedi. To date Lego has made two versions of this tank. Although the newer one is bigger and perhaps more detailed, the first rendering is still a force to be reckoned with. Name: Trade Federation AAT Theme: Star Wars Episode I Set Number: 7155 Pieces: 158 Year released: 2000 Minifigures: 2 Price: USD $20.00 (when released) Helpful links: Brickset My Brickshelf Peeron Box As Usual first up is a picture of the box. It has some nice CGI effects including the lasers and explosions, which are very similar to today's box art. I love the little icon in the top right corner. I wish Lego would start adding them to the box art again. As I no longer have the original box here's peeron's: Minifigs Minifig wise, we only get two standard battle droids. One to act as a pilot, the other as the gunner. I think that a set like this should have at least one more minifig, either a Naboo guard or another battle droid would fit the bill nicely. Accessories The battle droids come armed with two megaphone blasters. I always thought that these two blasters were more powerful then other blasters, because the usual one by one plate has been replaced with a bigger cone. The gunner also gets a pair of binoculars... to bad he can't use them. Models There is only one main model in the set, which is also built in one part (no numbered bags here). AAT overview Wow looking at this thing from the front you can see how deadly this thing is. I count thirteen guns including the printed designs on the large round pieces. For a 9 year old set it's also pretty detailed. Back View Alas the back view of the set isn't nearly as spectacular as the front end, mainly because there's plenty of out of place blue bricks. Honestly would it have been that hard to swap them for some tan or brown pieces? Top View Here's a top view of the tank, and yes the hatch and the big round pieces are printed. A little bit of tiling wouldn't hurt in my eyes. Engines/Gun Rack I always loved the use of the circular pieces in this set they just seem to fit so well as engines. Here you can also see a little gun rack that Lego included for the droids. Due to their location they look a lot like booster engines. Cockpit The printed hatch piece is made to be easily removable to allow you to put the battle droid in and out. Besides having no controls inside ( I suppose the pilot just plugs's into the AAT) there are also some large cracks on the side. Turret exterior The turret is built on a turntable so it can rotate, but only a little since it gets jammed against some other blocks. I like the choice of piece for the hatch. The gun barrel is good as well being very detailed. Turret Movement The main gun is also built on hinges so it can move up and down. This picture shows how far the turret can rotate in one direction and how high the gun can go. Turret Interior I sure hope that the Trade Federation's health care plan includes chiropractor visits, the gunner is going to need it. The top hatch is connected via hinge bricks to allow it to move up and down. Behind the gunner is a pair of binoculars. The joystick being used as an antenna is also a nice touch. Finished set and Comparison Lastly here’s the finished set, and a photo of the 2009 AAT from Brickset, to compare with: 8018 Armoured Assault Tank Rating Time! Price 8/10 The finished model is pretty big, the price seems fair. Playability 7/10 The tank is nice and swooshable, but you need to have some other Star Wars sets to destroy with the tank. Minifigures 5/10 Two standard battle droids, again another minifigure should have been included (even Jar jar would have been nice). Also the battle droids should have blue markings on them they are pilots after all. Design 6/10 From the front the AAT looks really nice but the backside is very lacking since there are random bits of blue throughout. Total 6.5/10 Overview As one of Lego’s first Star Wars sets 7155 is a decent set, with plenty of nice tan pieces. Although not one of the best sets out there it’s still faithful to it’s movie counterpart, and holds a place in many of my childhood memories. If you can find this set for a good price on E-Bay or Bricklink I recommend picking it up if not maybe you should instead buy the newer version. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KimT Posted February 16, 2009 In my opinion this is one of the best designs LEGO made for that period of time when it was made. It stands as a classic set to me. The prints (no stickers) and overall design is awesome, the only downside is the rear, but that can easily be MOD'ed into something great. An above average rating from me. (Anyone going lower will get banned instantly ) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Crazy One Posted February 16, 2009 (edited) I rate the set 1/10 * Looks around for KimT * No, i would rate that a 9/10 set. Oh yeh, great review. Edited February 16, 2009 by The crazy one Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mania3 Posted February 16, 2009 I bought the newer version the other day and really enjoyed it. As I was building it I wondered if they had made a version from TPM, so it was nice to read this review. Thanks to reviews like this, it's almost as if my dark ages never happened. Almost. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
legopiotre Posted February 16, 2009 I really liked this set. I was still a kid when I get it (I was 11), and I played a lot with it. The design is good and the color scheme is excellent (except the blue bricks, but it seems that LEGO loves blue bricks because many of them are included whereas there is any blue part in the ship. The main problem in that set, like Mack said in his great review, was the lack of droids. It was really difficult to build a big droid army until the 2007 battle droid because we had only two of them per set. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iH Master 13uilder17 Posted February 16, 2009 great review! this and the battle droid carriers were the best of the ep. 1 for me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheBrickHitHouse Posted February 16, 2009 The best of the early (i.e terrible) Star Wars sets Lego clearly rushed the designs and did not use their standard master builders - I'm not sure who they did use..... Its a rubbish set - but untill we got the new AAT you just had to accept it I owned 5 of these sets and every day dreamed about a GOOD AAT being released ...and its happened Compare this to the new AAT and further words arent required Its the difference between a set i'd make and a set a master builder would make.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MacK Posted February 16, 2009 (edited) Thanks for all the comments guy's, this was my third review so it is hopefully my best (so far). I think that this set was just barely an above average set, but this was part of Lego’s first wave of SW sets so I guess it was the best they could do with so little experience. If anyone else has comments please post 'm . In my opinion this is one of the best designs LEGO made for that period of time when it was made.It stands as a classic set to me. The prints (no stickers) and overall design is awesome, the only downside is the rear, but that can easily be MOD'ed into something great. An above average rating from me. (Anyone going lower will get banned instantly ) Yeah this set was also one of my favorites when I was a kid. I think you're right about it being excellently designed for the time period. I mean we hold everything to today's standards which are much higher than they were several years ago. Heck when I was a kid I don't think I was ever bothered by the blue on the back off the AAT because back then it was cool enough to have an AAT from the movies. I bought the newer version the other day and really enjoyed it. As I was building it I wondered if they had made a version from TPM, so it was nice to read this review. Thanks to reviews like this, it's almost as if my dark ages never happened. Almost. Thanks for the comment, I too like to see reviews of older sets, it' nice to see how Lego has changed over the years. Since I'e recently rebuilt this set I' probably not going to buy the new AAT, I'l instead buy some droids or clones to go with this one. I really liked this set.I was still a kid when I get it (I was 11), and I played a lot with it. The design is good and the color scheme is excellent (except the blue bricks, but it seems that LEGO loves blue bricks because many of them are included whereas there is any blue part in the ship. The main problem in that set, like Mack said in his great review, was the lack of droids. It was really difficult to build a big droid army until the 2007 battle droid because we had only two of them per set. I also noticed that Lego added random colours to sets back then, I still don’t understand why. Maybe it was to save money or maybe it was to make it easier to build, who knows. The minig=figs were another problem in this set as you mentioned, but I would have preferred Naboo guards or republic forces over battle droids because then there would be something for the AAT to shoot, but I guess that' why we buy other Lego sets. The best of the early (i.e terrible) Star Wars setsLego clearly rushed the designs and did not use their standard master builders - I'm not sure who they did use..... Its a rubbish set - but untill we got the new AAT you just had to accept it I owned 5 of these sets and every day dreamed about a GOOD AAT being released ...and its happened Compare this to the new AAT and further words arent required Its the difference between a set i'd make and a set a master builder would make.... Shhh if jolly ol'St. Kim hears you dissin'his ride you won' be getting any of the new SW sets this year. Edited February 16, 2009 by MacK Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vulture droid Posted February 16, 2009 The printed pieces are nice, but the way the side guns are attached leaves something to be desired. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CommanderCody77 Posted February 18, 2009 I just got this set and I overall have about the same opinion as you, anyways good review I voted great Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pldeutelephonz Posted January 11, 2014 An awesome model and a very cool design Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
