First Set You Couldn't Buy

[Dharkan]

I was watching some old Lego Star Wars set reviews and it made me nostalgic about how I first saw Lego Star Wars sets when I was 8 or 9 years old. I've had Lego at that point, but my parents couldn't afford licensed sets since they were new and expensive. It was Naboo Starfighter, the set I wanted for months and couldn't get. I still remember how my mother told me that I will grow up, start working and get all those for myself. I'm 26 years old now and it happened just like she said. You might laugh but this made me kinda emotional as well. It is wonderful (and scary) how time flies by.

Just felt like sharing my story, some of you might find it unrelatable but I hope some felt like I do. :) Have a great day.

 

(Please move the topic if I created it on wrong forum, I wasn't sure where to put it)

Edited January 3, 2017 by Dharkan

[makoy]

I always wanted to get a big Castle set that I could only look at the catalogs back in early 90's.  My LEGO sets were mostly sent from the US as gifts since we have relatives there. Back home my parents would only get me small to medium-size sets, sparingly, and most of the times they were City (Town). Until today I haven't had a chance to own a big castle set because when I returned from my dark ages, the last proper castle had already been cleared from all the stores around me -- and I am not willing to pay for scalper price. Nevertheless I'm fine with what I have today because as the old adage says, good things come to those who wait. 

Edited January 3, 2017 by makoy

[Terrasher]

I remember years ago when the UCS Millenium Falcon was available through S@H. I was crazy about it but there was absolutely no way I could afford it. I remember telling myself that, once I'd have a job, I'd have enough money to buy it. But now, more than 8 years later, it's still too big an investment for me to even think about buying the set.

A man can dream though. A man can dream.

[MaasEffekt]

Probably for me this was the 6086 Black Knight's Castle, or the 6286 Skull's Eye Schooner. Well, i still don't have any of those unfortunately. Maybe one day! Also a few years back i really wanted the 10228 Haunted House! I was already an adult, but i found it very expensive compared to my earnings (like half month's salary), so i missed that one too.

Edited January 3, 2017 by Lazer

[Tariq j]

4 hours ago, Terrasher said:

I remember years ago when the UCS Millenium Falcon was available through S@H. I was crazy about it but there was absolutely no way I could afford it. I remember telling myself that, once I'd have a job, I'd have enough money to buy it. But now, more than 8 years later, it's still too big an investment for me to even think about buying the set.

A man can dream though. A man can dream.

Coincidence you should mention that, over in the Star Wars forum a couple of hours ago it was leaked a new UCS Millenium Falcon would be coming out this year - dreams do come true! 

For me it would be the UCS Death Star II, like others, I just didn't have the money to buy it at the time.

 

[ReplicaOfLife]

Easily the 6399 Airport Shuttle...Not so much to use as an Airport Shuttle, just as a means of transport around the twon I had as a kid. I tried to build something similar using pieces from the Futuron Monorail that I had, but never gota satisfying result.

But I also would've loved to have one of the big Airport sets from the early 90ies.

[Esvald Forceswoop]

I'm surprised to say but... none really.

I mean of course I wanted a Death Star like every Lego Star Wars kid wanted, but I understand it's far out of my reach. What was in my reach I got everything. Republic Gunship, AT-TE, Turbo Tank etc... my biggest "set of my dream" was 10195 - Republic Dropship with AT-OT Walker, and thanks to an auction I got that one too.

I didn't even see I was such a spoiled child back then. If I could go back in time I'd slap myself for not being grateful for what I had.

[Aaryana]

Back in the 90s, there was this big space set with these cool tube things. It looked like the minifigs could slide out of the main part through them. I wanted that set ridiculously bad but my parents wouldn't spend $80 on a "boy toy". Back then they were pretty strict on stuff like that. I don't even know what the series was called to try to look it up but man I'd like to find that set some day if I ever get the chance. 

[DangAndBlast]

On 1/12/2017 at 2:05 AM, Aaryana said:

Back in the 90s, there was this big space set with these cool tube things. It looked like the minifigs could slide out of the main part through them. I wanted that set ridiculously bad but my parents wouldn't spend $80 on a "boy toy". Back then they were pretty strict on stuff like that. I don't even know what the series was called to try to look it up but man I'd like to find that set some day if I ever get the chance. 

I spent hours and hours going through every set from 1989 back on brickset and then Peeron in order to figure out what that one set was we had when kids.  Finally found it (on Peeron only).  It's such a thrill of delight when you find it!  I need to go get the directions and build it again myself - turns out it was one of those creator or classic-style build fifteen things sets (507? Not at a good searching computer now), and I remembered only the house, but it's just regular system bricks, so I'm pretty sure I could still build it :)

As to OP's question: probably a big castle, though I remember wanting a big house before I switched over to Meccano around 1993 - but I haven't found evidence of any big house set in the 1980s or early 1990s, so it may well have been a MOC I saw somewhere! Either that or it was a castle my memory's turned into a house.  My sister and I had that one big standard set (and, going through the bin recently, several aquanauts sets people must have given my kid brother), and just built houses over and over with it -- and now my house is full of Lego and I just build houses over and over with it :)

[jimmysbricks]

I believe mine was 7965 Millennium Falcon. I saw it on clearance for $110 but it was way out of my price range. I had just started getting interested in LEGO too.

[LEGOshibainu]

On 12/01/2017 at 8:05 AM, Aaryana said:

Back in the 90s, there was this big space set with these cool tube things. It looked like the minifigs could slide out of the main part through them. I wanted that set ridiculously bad but my parents wouldn't spend $80 on a "boy toy". Back then they were pretty strict on stuff like that. I don't even know what the series was called to try to look it up but man I'd like to find that set some day if I ever get the chance. 

That is Life on Mars with the tubes 

Edited February 3, 2017 by LEGOshibainu
fixing emoji

[Fuppylodders]

I think there were 2 sets that I could apply this to, but one I'm OK with not uaving and the other, I ended up bricklink g as soon as I found out about bricklink!

The first one was one of the original airport sets with the yellow chinook-like helicopter. I even think I remember my parents finally offering to buy it as a joint birthday/Christmas present but I turned it down knowing (back then) it's a lot of money for them. At that moment I came to peace with not having it. 

The next one was the larger spyrius robot. I got the smaller one and absolutely loved it, literally took it everywhere I could! Always loved the ufo saucer and the larger robot too but never got them. Got  my first better than minimum wage paying job, found out about bricklink after getting out of my dark ages and splurged on the saucer and the almighty larger robot. Had the biggest grin-on a (at the time) 20 year old ?

 

[RetroInferno]

I gotta say I looked, and looked and LOOKED at 7163 Republic Gunship from one of my catalog when I was 9 or 10. You could seat 6 mini-figs in it, and carry a bunch more inside. As a kid this was the real deal.

I don't remember asking my parents for it, in fact I never asked them for gifts for christmas and for birthdays, they were dealing with some extremly serious stuff for years with some of my siblings and always empatized for them and I would have felt bad.

I bought the 2013 iteration in 2015 when copies were hard to find in stores and fullfilled some kind of childhood fantasy. 

[Rad]

As a kid i was massively into LEGO City and Trains. Always wanted the 4558 set (pictured down in the bottom corner) but it was always an expensive set and Mum could only afford so much, ended up with the 4563 set (pictured in the top left corner).

 

 

[Lyichir]

It's hard for me to answer this question because in general I feel like Lego sets have gotten more accessible to me, not less. When I was first starting out as a KFOL there were any number of large, impressive sets that were out of my reach—Enchanted Island, Monorail Transport Base, Royal Knight's Castle... the list goes on and on. As I grew older and better at building my parents became more willing to get me more expensive sets, while at the same time I became much more selective about which sets I wanted—looking past just "which set was the biggest" and deciding whether I really needed a set as part of my collection or would be satisfied with something else. So I don't think I can narrow it down to any single first set that was "the one that got away".

[BrickG]

The first set I couldn't buy was every single set because my parents couldn't afford any level of Lego. This question is so odd to me. It makes me feel like you grew up Lego-privileged! Check yo privilege!   

[bonox]

 

and therein began the dark ages. Thankfully as a middle aged chap, income gets to the point where often you can just go and buy these kinds of things without thinking about it excessively, but at the time there was a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth :)

[DarkShark6679]

It would have been something like one of the giant Space sets in the '80s, maybe a big ship that clipped together? No way were parents going to shell out for that *and* the original Kenner Star Wars toys ;) I remember back then, only really kids who lived in big detached houses had the Train stuff. I was lucky to have a lot of LEGO given to me back then by an older cousin. It wasn't like today where you can buy complete sets second hand online much cheaper than retail. You could maybe swap some at school, but there'd always be bits missing.

By the '90s I had my own money, and picked up some bigger sets like the big red Tecnic helicopter, and the yellow plane. Then... I didn't think much about LEGO for 20 years:( But nowadays with some younger people in the family, I'm looking at remarkably detailed sets like the Detective Agency... wow, wish I had the spare cash for that right now!

[22kane]

I had a bunch of the little sets from the Pirate series in the late 80's/ early 90's but always wanted the bigger ones like any of the large ships, Eldorado Fortress & Rock Island Refuge. They were very pricey even back then. Even after all this time I still remember them very well.

[Hrw-Amen]

It was the big blue space ship back in the 70s I think? I cannot remember the number (Maybe 497 Galaxy Explorer I think.) but I know even now they go for silly money online. They did three sets and I think they were the original mini-figure sized spaceships.

My parents bought me the smallest of the three but could not afford the others and as a kid neither could I. Still cannot!

[Only Sinner]

As a kid I wanted King's Mountain Fortress, Imperial Trading Post, and Eldorado Fortress. Those were crazy expensive even then. Needless to say, I have never had any of those. When I returned from the DA, I discovered I had missed some really good sets like the UCS Star Destroyer and the First few modulars. No chance of affording those now. At least not genuine LEGO ones. 

[Lego Otaku]

The infamous yellow castle set.  My brother and I wanted it. We saw and drooled over that in the catalog. We also saw it in a local Sears (when they still had great toy section) but we could never save enough to get one, we kept blowing our allowances on smaller LEGO sets and candy.

[Kellelely]

The first set I distinctly remember REALLY wanting, yet knowing I would never have, was 10185 - Green Grocer. I was in grad school at the time, and visited the newly opened Lego store in my mall, and just couldn't believe how awesome Lego had gotten since my childhood. It was at a point in my life where it was a choice between buying the set or buying groceries for the next month, so... sadly I passed and it retired before I ever had income to even consider getting it. I've been slowly Bricklinking it, though, so one day my dream will come to fruition, even if slightly modified. 

As as a kid, I think my parents must have hidden the catalogs from us, because I don't remember ever wanting specific sets. But between the three of us (all KFOLs turned AFOLs now in our 30s), we always got most of a wave between birthdays and Christmas, and my mom was big into auctions (before people knew Lego was valuable) and regularly supplemented our stash with cheap buys of bulk loose pieces. So yes, I was Lego previliged as a child. 

[thomassio]

5988 Faraos Forbidden Ruins

Ultimate dream set. I have it twice now. The second time I bought it just because the beautiful box was included.

The exact same story goes for 5986 Amazone Ancient Ruins.

[astroknight]

For me it was 5978-1: Sphinx Secret Surprise. Saw it in a toy store in Concord when I was a small and immediately fell for the blocky, colorful statues and the variety of figures, not to mention that awesome cloth tent and raised baseplate! Getting my parents to buy it for me was a no-go that day, and it was discontinued shortly afterwards iirc.

Come to think, this will probably be one of the next classic sets I pick up from BL.