Why the Rainbow MOCs and did you do it?

[Hrw-Amen]

I have been wondering this for a while now. When we look at models made by youngsters sometimes into the teens even we see things that have no color ethic and are just cobbled together with all different colors as though they cannot see what they are doing. Now it does not really bother me in any way at all, other than a curiosity as to why this happens?

When I was introduced to LEGO at a very early age my father used to build with me. I learnt my numbers, as well as the basics of building strong structures from him. He was in the building trade so knew how houses went together. We always made things out of cohesive colors, usually white or red as we had most of those. But even when yellows and blues and blacks came along we still kept to color cohesion. Certainly we did not always have enough of one color, but we would put a stripe of another color not just randomly mix them all up.

That was just the way I learn't to build, I never had a phase of rainbow creations.

So what did other people do? If you used to build like that as a child then why and what made you stop? I am just curious as to what motivates children to build something that has no color cohesion and is just a random assortment of colors as opposed to having an overall color scheme and then what makes them stop, why and at what age does / did this happen to you?

[Sebeus I]

Functionality, you can build much more and faster if you ignore the different colors, not everyone has a sorted collection, it takes time to look for the part in the right color (there's also the uncertainty of wether you still have a part in that color or not).

As for kids, they have a lot of imagination, they can see what we don't and when you don't have a lot of lego you don't have much choice but to use a rainbow colorscheme.

I don't post 'rainbow' creations but I do build them, usually prototypes (purely functional), also for economical purpose, if I intend to build something large which would require a Bricklink order I want to know in advance which specific parts I'll need.

Interesting question by the way, I'm interested in what other people think as well.

Edited May 12, 2013 by Sebeus I

[AndyC]

Definitely did it and mostly because I never had enough parts in any one colour to build consistently (not even in a way that could represent stripes etc). As a result, trying to get the 'right' colours was something not worth worrying about and I just ended up aiming for the shape of whatever it was I attempted to create. It's liberating in a way not to have to consider the colours.

Of course I have a much richer selection of parts now and an adults appreciation of what looks good, so I'm more likely to focus on colours too, at the expense of some freedom alas.

[Brickbuilder0937]

As far back as I can remember I've always tried to coordinate colors. Whenever I built something large, like a tower, I would start with a common color and build until I ran out, then I would start with another color and so on until I finished. At very least I would try to build with the colors symmetrical.

[Roger_Smith]

Sure did it as a kid.

Back then, I had a huge city layout (mostly small houses and very, very few official sets). A couple of the older buildings I had in there were color cohesive. But the more buildings I had, the more difficult it became to build one in just one color, so then I started doing as many rows of bricks in one color as was possible, which resuilted in striped buildings. And when even that got difficult, I just built with whatever was left.

And to be honest, it never bothered me at all. Sure I would've liked to have buildings in just one color (and have way bigger buildings, too), but that just wasn't possible, so I made do with what I had. I often demolished one or several buildings to build something new, so even some of the one-color houses got broken up over time. On the other hand, I remember breaking down several mostly red/white houses to get bricks to build a giant three storey abomimansion with a red ground floor and white upper floors. And the remaining bricks ended up in smaller rainbow houses...

I guess this stuiff doesn't really matter much to kids. I remember that I also built some houses that had car windowshield pieces in lieu of actual windows...

Nowadays I wouldn't build MOCs that way at all, though I also do resort to the prototyping technique where I use random bricks to get an estimate on what bricks I need to order for my MOC if I don'e have enough bricks in the intended color.

Edited May 12, 2013 by Roger_Smith

[naf]

When building MOCs as a kid, I always paid attention to details like colors as I wanted to make sure my models looked realistic. I was lucky enough to have a ton of bricks growing up, so I rarely ran out of a color I needed. I was like this with all aspects of my building. If I were putting jet engines or other parts on a sci fi spaceship, I needed to have a story in my head as to what function it served. I guess it was a bit of OCD coming out, and I still build that way 20 years later

When I watch my 5 yr old stepson building, he builds the complete opposite way. His models have random colors and parts on them, but he always has a story about what it is. Everyone's imagination is different, and I love watching him build those "rainbow MOCs."

[BeKindRewind]

As far back as I can remember I always coordinated colors, though I think it was just because of the type of Lego I had and not because of some innate need to look good. My collection was mostly space and castle. Most spaceships can have multiple colors and still look good and most castle sets of that era were all grey so I owned a lot of grey.

As others have said before me, I rainbow-build more now then I ever did as a kid when I'm in the WIP stage.

[Hrw-Amen]

Strange to read people's experiences. I think that my father helping me with MOCs or more to the point building them and I was just passing him the relevant bricks meant most of our creations were coordinated. Also I had not that many actual buildings as sets, we had a ton of white and red at least to start with. Most of the sets we had were blue 4.5V railway ones, so we had a few buildings that were made and left made right into my teenage years when classic space appeared. There were a few houses and a couple of office blocks. These were taken out to play with as a whole and then put away again whole and never taken apart. There was a big cardboard box in which they were kept apart from the other LEGO. Oddly I do not recall a station but there must have been one?

Later when I had gained control of the LEGO myself to build with I assumed I was just in the habit of doing it that way. Right into my twenties when M-Tron, Blacktron and Space Police were around I would still only build with the colors I wanted and would not compromise. Many times I used to ride up to Bristol to the LEGO shop (That used to be there.) to buy a box of just black or just roof or whatever tiles, or would buy a complete small set just to get a hinge or whatever. It could be frustrating but to me I had to have it right or just not have it.

I think it is the same now. I read that people use rainbow colors to try things out. I cannot say that it ever occurred to me to do that. If I need a brick or part I would just order it on Bricklink or from TLG's own website rather than compromise and the build would simply stop until it arrived. When considering a MOC I don't tend to build it in other bits first. I imagine it how it will be and get a load of parts in that color(S) first before starting and see how it comes on. True enough that if I have a bunch of parts in a certain color i may imagine a MOC in those colors from the outset, but I would not make anything using the wrong color parts, it is just the way it is. For example I seem to have somehow over the last year or so to have accumulated a lot of yellow bricks and red window parts, it is likely I will imagine my next big building MOC using those colors as then I can get on with it. No idea what yet though, it maybe just a block of flats as like most of us, my City is lacking in accommodation space but we will see.

Odd really how different people's minds work isn't it?

[Jargo]

As a boy (1970's/early 1980's) I would build in solid colours. all red or all black etc. If I didn't have enough bricks to build what i wanted to I made something else that needed fewer bricks. Or I'd modify the design and build solid colour around a core of rainbow colours. I've always disliked random creations. But then my older brother was a huge influence on my building technique. His creations were always perfectly colour co-ordinated He introduced me to the concept of sorting bricks before building. And if parts were lacking only building parts of a creation to test techniques and stability. I also used to build in microscale a lot. Things that were huge and I knew I would never be able to build otherwise, I'd just create with a few plates and small parts like levers and round 1x1's or whatever.

These days I only ever use odd colours on the inside of builds where it won't be seen. Support structures mostly. I would never build an exterior with rainbow colours even as a prototype build. I think it makes me more creative if i have to constantly modify and rethink a design based on a limited brick palette. It also makes it far easier to see the shapes and lines of a build if there aren't multiple colours throwing it off.

That's not to say I don't think rainbow coloured builds are valid. Whatever works for the individual building the model is fine. Everyone views the world differently. I just happen to like a very tight control over my world and order to everything.

[CP5670]

I mixed and matched colors randomly as well, and it was always due to a lack of enough parts in a single color. I liked to build large models that used up a substantial part of my whole collection, so it was hard to have enough of any one color. I kept the colors symmetric when possible (e.g. both wings on a plane would be the same color), but otherwise used anything I had available.

I don't post 'rainbow' creations but I do build them, usually prototypes (purely functional), also for economical purpose, if I intend to build something large which would require a Bricklink order I want to know in advance which specific parts I'll need.

I do this too, but usually in black. Black is my "default" color that works reasonably well for most purposes, and I make sure to have stockpiles of everything in black. For the final model, I get the colors I intended from Bricklink.

[Peppermint_M]

I didn't have enough bricks. I didn't even have enough official LEGO! When I had an Idea on something I wanted to build, I had to build it. The colour didn't matter on the larger builds, the most important part was realising my vision. I think my worst offenders are lurking in my bricklink file and even on the forum somewhere after I put forward my most terrible MOCs.

With small thigns, like planes and racing cars, I made sure the colours were perfect.

[Alternator]

As a kid I did the rainbow thing too. Where possible I would build with the colours I wanted... But the reality was that I had eclectic sets from various themes and didn't really have enough of any given colour to achieve the finished model in pure colouring - that combined with my focus on building with functional elements left my focus on containing the functionality into a clean design, so colour really only featured as an after thought.

I haven't gotten back into MOC's but I hope to, I think at such a point colour will be a lot more important, although as others have mentioned as well, I would definitely eschew it in order to get a design right and then worry about sourcing the correct colour later (some of my MOC interest will be in technics - though I probably have enough yellow elements now anyway... )

[soccerkid6]

As a kid I always color-coordinated my builds, meant searching for the right pieces, but that just added to the fun. Usually built with my older brother and two younger brothers, me and my older brother did most of the building while my younger siblings looked for the pieces, in return we would build them a model

[Faefrost]

I believe color perceptions develop and evolve through up to around 10 or 11. Color coordinating can be taught and learned before that, but if left to their own devices younger kids will just go hog wild. This isn't limited to Lego. Watch what happens when you let a 5 year old dress themselves.

[Chills]

Most all of my MOCs as a kid were rainbow; though I had a decent number pieces I didn't have enough to build color-coordinated sets, at least not on the scale which I enjoyed building. I also didn't have my pieces stored according to color, they were kept in the big denim bag with the red rope around the edge. (BTW, I still have that!)

Now that I'm just out of my dark ages I'm starting to MOC again, and this time I'm in a position where I can afford to do color-coordinated creations.

It is interesting to read many of the responses.

[BrickG]

I couldn't do it as a kid. I always wondered about the uggo rainbows even then. If I couldn't pull something off with the correct colors I'd give up. Better than a rainbow random mess. :P

[Sebeus I]

I just remembered an old creation, I wanted to build a castle but I didn't have enough grey bricks so I combined grey with yellow and then I took black-and-white pictures , worked great actually.

Edited May 13, 2013 by Sebeus I

[LEGO Guy Bri]

I tried as much as possible to keep colors uniform. It was very important to me. That left me building more vehicles than anything. If I couldn't do it in a solid color, I would try to use a color combo that still looked good. There were a few trucks that I intentionally made in a few colors, to give it a beater look, like damaged panels where replaced, but never painted to match. Even stuck a differential in the back of one!

[Rook]

Never did it as kid. I'd use several colors like black, grey, and brown walls of castle but never more than that. Or gray, white, black & accent color for star ships. City: same color for all walls of building. My buildings' sizes were based on the amount of color I had in that Lego.

[CMP]

I tried to make builds in sensible colors, but never had enough to pull it off...when that was the case, though, I always tried to stick to just two or three colors.

[Legomaster34]

I used to, just simply due to a lack of parts in the right colors. I would try in the beginning of builds, but eventually that color would run low, and looking through this huge tub of bricks I had for a piece that might possibly not be there (although I will say, somehow the piece I needed was (is) always in there in one color or another ) would become a pain, so I would start using different colors, as long as it was the piece I needed. Nowadays though I tend to build more with coherent color schemes.

[xboxtravis7992]

I mixed and matched, however it was rarely a problem because most of my bricks were from grey/bley Star Wars sets. Even now though I will do small color cheats if it gets the build done. So I guess that still makes me an amateur MOC maker!

[TheLegoDr]

I didn't build rainbow MOCs as a kid or adult, but I am like a lot of others. I will substitute another color if it is the right piece, just to see how it would fit and look. I guess I have enough imagination that I can picture the entire build from just a few pieces, even if they are in the wrong color. I show it to someone else and they may have no idea what I'm looking at, but it works for me. Usually I try to work with what I have originally and not change colors, but if I absolutely have to, then I will substitute at first and see. Sometimes I end up changing everything I wanted to accommodate the new piece color because I don't want to order. I have rarely made any online orders and just use what I have. It is surprising what you can come up with when you limit yourself. I'm not acting like my MOCs are amazing, but I think they turned out pretty decent for my limited piece choices at times.

[Smartiepants]

never have given it a moments thought & always tried to colour co ordinate until i came across this the other day, I think it looks great & cheaper I guess as you can mix & match your stock rather than buy project specific parts

[Capt.JohnPaul]

To be honest, I don't think kids really care. They just like to build and have fun, even when on low amounts of pieces. But we MOCers like to keep everything the same for realism and so it looks good. That way it is more "professional" in a lack of better terms.