Non Lego sets worth AFOL and collector attention

[Faefrost]

I figured I would drop this in here, partly because I noticed that Target and Target.com are running a Mega Bloks BOGO50 this week, so if ever you wanted to investigate, now is the time to do it cheaply.

Anyway, my main question is what if any non Lego brand building sets have you all found that while not perfectly up to Lego standards are good enough to offer a deep and rewarding AFOL experience with good value, minimal hassles and result in something distinct and different?

Recently I have been messing a bit with one of the unmentionable brands. Mega Bloks, and honestly some (not all) of their 2014 sets are amazing. They use good quality tooling and new ABS plastic. Complex builds with few specialized parts. Just not what we are used to from this brand. The AFOL targeted highlight is clearly the Call of Duty line, which stands head and shoulders above any other Canadian block product. These would be my top picks for AFOL must haves from them.

1. Mega Bloks Call of Duty Signature Series 6859 Hovercraft. MB's equivalent to the Lego UCS line. This beast is amazing. A US Military style LCAC. Almost 2 feet long and 14" wide. And all of it brick built. Wonderfully teeny tiny brick built. They recommend ages 16+. They are not joking. One of the longer yet more satisfying brick builds I have yet encountered. Well worth a look from any AFOL.

2. Mega Bloks Call of Duty set 6822 Heavy Armor Firebase. More commonly thought of as the Abrahm's Tank. A wonderful build. A fantastic display model. And your Hovercraft needs something to chain down on the cargo deck.

3. Mego Bloks Call of Duty set 6858 Ghosts Tactical Helicopter. Also known as the Black Hawk. I and I am sure many AFOLs dismiss this one initially as typical classic MB with what at first glance looks to be too many specialized parts. I would encourage you to take a second look. Outside of the windshield everything is pure standard MB construction elements. Mated to some quite impressive complex curve and SNOT techniques. The finished product is a true monster in size, easily being worthy of public display. ( just as well since it can be a little frail in places as a play set.) plus it has a doggie!

4. Mega Bloks Halo Signature Series 97117 Forward Unto Dawn. A slightly older vintage than the CoD stuff, so part quality is not as good. But shear awesome factor makes up for a lot. The MB equivalent to a Lego UCS capital ship like the ISD or SSD. Just a super detailed fully greeblied display piece.

So those are my take on the best offerings of the honorable competition, what does everyone else have to recommend?

[WarSquirrel]

Thanks for this list, I have been collecting Halo mega bloks since the first sets but haven't looked into the Call Of Duty sets yet but I think I might give it a go. Next up Assassins Creed mega bloks

[Faefrost]

Thanks for this list, I have been collecting Halo mega bloks since the first sets but haven't looked into the Call Of Duty sets yet but I think I might give it a go. Next up Assassins Creed mega bloks

Sadly my experiences with the Asscreed sets have been less Call of Duty and more World of Warcraft. As in they are mostly dumping the leftover WoW styrene parts. The Pirate Ship while not the worst MB set I have ever built, certainly was an exercise in frustration and frailty. The AssCreed figures are decent (although like all MB figures slightly out of scale to all other lines. So AssCreed is a different scale from CoD and from Halo and from WoW.) in short I would consider the Assassins Creed sets to be less an AFOL must have and more a niche gamer collectable. The only exception is the not yet released French Revolution Battlepack, which i k,now a number of historical Modelers that are drooling over the figures from. You just don't get a lot of colonial French Troop figs.

[DD840]

I like Nanoblocks. I bought a Neuschwannstein Castle for my boyfriend and have a Big Ben at home. Only wish I could get my hands on a Hogwarts that was available in Japan (for a decent price).

[Peppermint_M]

UK AFOLs might want to look into the Wilco baseplate. They are as long as a BGBP but half as wide and a matching shade of green, great clutch and good quality plastic. I would say they are a grey area, as they are simply baseplates to build off and that is that. They are priced up pretty well too in comparison to LEGO baseplates.

[artcon]

Always thought these alt-Lego brands weren't supposed to be any good, but good to hear the quality is decent now. Big COD fan and that helicopter looks awesome. So tempted...

[Faefrost]

Always thought these alt-Lego brands weren't supposed to be any good, but good to hear the quality is decent now. Big COD fan and that helicopter looks awesome. So tempted...

Both the big and small CoD Helicopters are surprisingly good quality and really creative builds. Megabloks has never really slouched in the set design standpoint. They have always had product and plastic quality issues. Which as of the 2014 releases they finally seem to be getting under control. The big Blackhawk has some amazing snot usage and is one of the most fun builds I have sat down to all year. It still is not Lego with the weak point remaining occasionally missing pieces from the box and instructions that are just too dark to differentiate the part colors in black, dark grey and dark green sets (in other words in Halo and CoD sets). Pulling up the online instructions helps a bit with this I have found. About the only other compaint is some of their design is closer to a complex MOC than a well engineered Lego build, so often it is more geared towards the advanced builder. I would not give one of the CoD sets to an 8 year old to build without (a lot) help. Just a lot of finicky part determination and orientation, and a great deal of frailty while building and getting it all together. It can be more frustrating. I would say that CoD Blackhawk is roughly the equivalent of a small inexpensive Lego UCS set in terms of difficulty. I think I got three nights of building out of it. But one of those was mostly sorting. (MegBloks does not do numbered bags. Well they do, but they don't actually mean anything to us.)

In my experience (and your mileage may vary) Kre-O seems to have near Lego part quality, but set designs seem to be stuck somewhere around Lego early to mid 80's.

[MAB]

I like Nanoblocks. I bought a Neuschwannstein Castle for my boyfriend and have a Big Ben at home. Only wish I could get my hands on a Hogwarts that was available in Japan (for a decent price).

The other good thing about nanobloks is that there is no cross-contamination with lego. Being a different size means you don't accidently mix them up, or if you do they are easy to spot.

[JanetVanD]

Sorry, but I don't think I could ever use a non-Lego part. All the Lego fans in my household are die-hard purists! A few months ago someone gave us a big box of mixed bricks, some genuine Lego, some not. We spent days separating out all the imitation stuff and donated it to the local school. There were some really cool retro pieces in the real Lego, though......

[kage28]

The Oxford Codename Cobra series seems to be very good for LEGO fans who are into modern military stuff, specifically desert warfare.

Also, they have a new minifig design (same height with Lego minifigs) which has knee articulation, plus body armor and new helmets with the ability to incoporate accessories. It must be said that the new body armor isn't compatible with LEGO minifigs though

Edited December 22, 2014 by kage28

[fred67]

I bought a zombie set because... well... zombies. I do not like to "cross contaminate" pieces, but I don't mind using MB. One of the first sets out of my dark ages was a mech before TLG made one (someone correct me if I'm wrong about Exoforce being the first LEGO Group mechs).

Nanoblocks look neat; I am tempted when I see them at Target, but if I think LEGO is expensive (and, on the whole, I do) then Nanoblocks are just right out.

[Jetrax99]

I bought a zombie set because... well... zombies. I do not like to "cross contaminate" pieces, but I don't mind using MB. One of the first sets out of my dark ages was a mech before TLG made one (someone correct me if I'm wrong about Exoforce being the first LEGO Group mechs).

Nanoblocks look neat; I am tempted when I see them at Target, but if I think LEGO is expensive (and, on the whole, I do) then Nanoblocks are just right out.

You're correct. Exo Force was LEGO's first mech oriented line. Before them, MB had their Warrior Future Force and Blok Bots lines, and K'nex of all companies had the Mechwarrior licence.

[Brickus]

I recently just bought the Ghosts Tactical Helicopter, and was so impressed with it, I ended up buying the Tank, Humvee, small Chopper, WWII Landing Craft, Halftrack, Anti Aircraft Turret, and the Massive Hovercraft. The Hovercraft was an absolute joy to build one of the most fun builds I've done in a while. Whilst I'm not a complete convert, my first and only love is LEGO, I am glad MB has stepped up their quality.

[Stelario]

I can recommend every one who is non purist a Cobi sets with trees and grass (ex. Wild Story) the nature pieces are in my opinion even better then Lego's equivalent. The minifigures are a bit odd but their equipment is really nice.

You can check my MOC here made of 8 sets :P :

I think TLG should really conceder production of something new rather then 20 year old shapes in different colors.

[legonerd54321]

I like Enlighten Bricks for my train stuff. Yes, it may be made out of cheap plastic, but it does have really good models at a low price (20-30$ USD)

[Captain Pirate Man]

I am also an enlighten fan, when I'm on a budget they do a great job scratching my lego itch, even better than mb imo.

[Heppeng]

It would seem that Enlighten is copying lego rather closely - they seem to be dropping the sale of individual cars and going for selling sets. No more 'My own train' style hopper cars/tank cars/Frisco Fe/Union Pacific Diesel etc, and introducing Maersk copies and 7939 copies. The quality of their stuff was quite reasonable, and I can see the value of the discontinued sets rising...

[Kelso]

I have a bunch of K'nex, it used to be pretty populair when I grew up and people made some really cool things like rollercoasters.

But I've always prefered Lego, Especialy Lego Star Wars.

[crossmr]

The Oxford Codename Cobra series seems to be very good for LEGO fans who are into modern military stuff, specifically desert warfare.

Also, they have a new minifig design (same height with Lego minifigs) which has knee articulation, plus body armor and new helmets with the ability to incoporate accessories. It must be said that the new body armor isn't compatible with LEGO minifigs though

To expand on that..

The current Codename Cobra isn't bad, but I'm not a big fan of the minifigure change. I hope it isn't permanent. As for good sets from Oxford that AFOL should check out, I'll link to some pages.

Their last round of military stuff was brilliant. Basically every set there was a winner.

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=97

Several of their other sets are good value and worth checking out. Their town stuff would mix in well with Lego.

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=99

We have the house, the car repair garage, and bucket truck. All solid. Really looking for the camping set, but hard to find.

If you are into boats, any of the Oxford Coastguard or police series boats are nice.

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=185

We have the small set, looking for a good price on the larger one.

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=14471&p_code=10

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=12801&p_code=10

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=12811&p_code=10

Also any of the Oxford Korean historical sets are great too:

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=172

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=111

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=52

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=51

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=13501&p_code=10

I like their change sets

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=12601&p_code=10

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=11291&p_code=10

and their police riot bus

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/detailox.asp?m_code=11381&p_code=10

and if you want pink and purple bricks without the stupid figures, their Sweet line is great

http://oxfordtoy.co.kr/pro/oxford.asp?p_code=10&g_code=120

[Krikkit]

I really enjoyed the usnc mech from megablocks. Good to fight my hulkbuster!

[dirk]

I'm also an Enlighten bricks fan. For 2015, Enlighten appears to be making a foray into the town buildings, with it's Sunshine Hotel set. It's nicely detailed for the price.

I've got pics and review here.

http://bricksandfigs.blogspot.ca/2015/03/enlighten-1127-sunshine-hotel.html

[Vorkosigan]

Thanks crossmr, Oxford has some great stuff out.

This is pretty incredible, 5944 pieces! And for under $300 USD. "Sold out" though.

This is also quite cool:

Bicycles with movable steering!

Last one, note the 1x1 masonry bricks:

[Peppermint_M]

Wow, those saya are lovely (Is there a Korean equivalent word?) and the swords have lovely tsuba, much more interesting than the LEGO katana have. I love Oxford for their minifig accessories. Looks like I will be making a go at getting some more town and historic sets.

I nipped in to mention that Cobi and Bestlock have got some nice motorcycles out there. While LEGO have been doing well with more fairings these manufacturers have some bikes that look pretty nice as vintage cycles (Think Norton, Triumph and BSA).

[omegabob]

Glad to find some other fans of Mega Bloks Call of Duty Collector Series. When I first saw these mini action figures it felt like 1982 all over again. And they combine two of my favorite toys from my childhood, G.I. Joe and Lego, with the best that both lines had to offer back then (and in a way Hasbro has never been able to produce despite their attempts at it). Not much I can say except to confirm the positive comments about the sets made above and confirm that these are not the Mega Bloks sets from years ago. The improved quality is not just limited to their Collector's Series (targeted more to adults) but is also in some of their more "kid oriented" sets (at least the Toys R Us exclusive True Heroes sets that I got for extra bricks). Mega Bloks also has some unique bricks that Lego doesn't make such as the inverted cheese wedge, a 2 x 2 plate with studs on both sides and my favorites the bricks with rounded top and side corners (those look great when mixed in with regular sharp corner bricks). Mega Bloks also uses colors that Lego doesn't in their Marbleized bricks (in classic, metal, jungle and dessert patterns). The only thing I haven't been as impressed with is the coloration of some of the gun parts in the Call of Duty line. While most are black/very dark gray or appropriate to the environment of the set (dessert/arctic) some other could use some work (or paint).

While I do enjoy building these newer Mega Bloks sets as much as I enjoy building Lego sets I don't mix the blocks...although it would be funny to just to see expressions my Lego purist friends would make. Now if Mega Bloks would just make some boxes of blocks, plates and tiles (with the same quality as their sets of course) I could start making some modular buildings for my CoD guys to fight off the zombie hordes in.

[Jetrax99]

I too would like to see Mega release packs of random bricks. That way I wouldn't have to buy multiples of sets just to build a base for my UNSC and Covenant forces.