Unexpected extras

[Alexandrina]

Not sure if this topic already exists - I couldn't find one in a quick search - but I'm curious to know what unusual 'extra' pieces people have had in sets over the years, especially in cases where the part doesn't appear in the Bricklink inventory for the set.

The other day I finally got around to building 4730 The Chamber of Secrets (which I acquired last year, still sealed, in a job lot). It's clear that the set hadn't been opened and then resealed - and in any case, all the parts still have that 'shininess' that new bricks have, which fades away with a bit of playwear. When I finished Bag 2 and had a leftover 2x6 brick in old Light Grey, I was confused and went back through the instructions to see where I had missed such a big piece. Not finding it, I assumed it would come later on in the build, and when I'd completed the set still without using it, I was confused and took to Bricklink... only to find that there aren't any 2x6 bricks in set 4730, in Light Grey or any other colour.

I'm not really sure how a piece like that could find its way into the set, but I'm certainly not complaining! That said, is it a known thing for some copies to include this extra? And what other weird bricks have people found?

[Black Falcon]

So far I don´t remember that I ever had any strange pieces, though I heard from other people that they encountered wrong bricks in their sets. Would still guess that this is a quite rare thing to happen, but likely it was even more rare back in the time your set is from.

As for unexpected parts there is a quite fun one, where Lego made an error with several Sets from the 10000 Legends Guarded in, where they put the Western Indians Horse into the Set instead of the White one. The white one was sent in an extra bag with the order though. 

[Kit Figsto]

Some of the 2023 Indiana Jones sets came with an extra Indy hat piece.  There didn’t appear to be a rhyme or reason to it, it was just some sets had one, and others didn’t.

[Murdoch17]

Probably the 2x6 part in your case @Alexandrina was an accidental inclusion that went unnoticed... it wouldn't be the first time this has happened in sets over the years!

[Stereo]

So far my only oddities have been misprints, I have one manual that got bound in the wrong cover, and I think one where a page was way off-center in the print.  Though I did get at least a handful of parts that should have failed QC, not enough plastic in the mold.

Edited May 11, 2024 by Stereo

[Mylenium]

I once had a Dark Azure 4 x 2 L-shaped liftarm in a set that wasn't even supposed to have any Technic pieces. I'm pretty sure I also had a few other smaller surplus pieces like 1x1 and 1x2 plates that weren't meant to be left over beyond the usual extras. Other than that I had number of wrong parts that I had to replace like getting two left-handed wedges when there should be a matching left and right pair. It still happens and doesn't always make sense.

Mylenium