Unpopular Opinions about LEGO

[danth]

On 12/17/2022 at 12:54 AM, Lira_Bricks said:

If they bring back a space-theme with spaceships, I really hope it is not again a "humans=good;aliens=bad". And especially not like Mars Mission, where they invade a planet and take the aliens hostage in those weird tubes.

Yeah, total reversal from Life on Mars, with the friendly aliens. Since then, Lego seems to really like their xenophobia. Aliens are also bad in Space Police, Alien Conquest, and Galaxy Squad.

Maybe as penance Lego should finally launch SeaTron. Those alien prototypes looked pretty friendly.

[Lira_Bricks]

3 hours ago, danth said:

Yeah, total reversal from Life on Mars, with the friendly aliens. Since then, Lego seems to really like their xenophobia. Aliens are also bad in Space Police, Alien Conquest, and Galaxy Squad.

Maybe as penance Lego should finally launch SeaTron. Those alien prototypes looked pretty friendly.

Oh, they look very cute indeed!

Wonder if those studs on the side are ears and those bubbles are eyes, or if the studs are eyes and the bubbles are nostrils... Or maybe they are neither because this is an alien that might have a body that differs completely from that of a human :D

[LegendaryArticuno]

Big figs are absolutely terrible. They're always stuck in a hunched over pose, they never mesh well with the sets that they're in while jacking up the price, and they don't have much use for modding, i.e. try adding a big fig to the Daily Bugle. 

[danth]

20 hours ago, Lira_Bricks said:

Wonder if those studs on the side are ears and those bubbles are eyes, or if the studs are eyes and the bubbles are nostrils...

I have always wondered that myself!

19 hours ago, LegendaryArticuno said:

Big figs are absolutely terrible.

Agree. But for me it's because they look and feel completely out of place next to normal Lego. They look more Duplo or maybe Fisher Price than Lego to me. Also not a fan of large dinosaurs. Past a certain size, things should be brick built.

[Killian]

On 12/18/2022 at 10:07 PM, LegendaryArticuno said:

Big figs are absolutely terrible. They're always stuck in a hunched over pose, they never mesh well with the sets that they're in while jacking up the price, and they don't have much use for modding, i.e. try adding a big fig to the Daily Bugle. 

THIS!

[Yperio_Bricks]

On 12/18/2022 at 5:28 PM, Johnny1360 said:

The pictures on the box of LEGO sets, are just ideas/suggestions of what you can build with the bricks inside. It's funny but when I look at a LEGO set, considering purchase, I always look to see what parts are in the set first, are they elements I would like to have or even use, then I check out the build. I very much enjoy both but the contents are more important than the the models, color, build technique, size, function, looks, realism or accuracy.

Same here!

Edited December 20, 2022 by Yperio_Bricks

[Ondra]

Im done with sets that lies heavily on stickers, all my technic sets have crumbling stickers. Some are only six years old. 

Whats wrong with them? Do I have bad conditions, definitely no, because I have playmobil sets that also have stickers and no problems.

These sets cost a lot and sticker sheet for few cent completely ruins it.

Definitely Im on way to abandon lego, I love building, but paying premium price for sets when they are cutting all corners possible is not my kind of fun.

 

Lego gets 1+1 together, please!

[Toastie]

What's wrong with the stickers? It's stickers, to be applied by consumers.

Playmobil does apply them during production in a probably very clean environment, and maybe using adhesives, you don't want to see in the open market (kids peeling off the back and licking the adhesive, swallowing the sticker, eating the entire sticker sheet plus a few bricks). Plus grease from your hands, a little dust here and there - if you have a clean room at hand, go there and apply the stickers - they'll probably live a couple of years longer (in the dark).

Well, I never apply any stickers - for that very reason (I don't have a clean room, and it is bright and warm up here, in my attic. Prints never crumble though.

Would they have been printed - the whole "never can use this piece for other builds" discussion will explode.

Solutions: Don't apply them. Should the set look crappy because of missing stickers: Crappy set.

Best,
Thorsten 

[danth]

2 hours ago, Toastie said:

What's wrong with the stickers? It's stickers, to be applied by consumers.

This almost triggered me. But I think you're saying: the fact that they're stickers is what's wrong. I.e. stickers suck always.

[Toastie]

1 minute ago, danth said:

But I think you're saying: the fact that they're stickers is what's wrong.

Yes, that is what I tried to say. They suck sh*t.

Best,
Thorsten

[lifeinplastic]

Yep, stickers are the absolute worst although I think that’s quite a popular opinion.

[The Island Chronicles]

1 hour ago, lifeinplastic said:

Yep, stickers are the absolute worst although I think that’s quite a popular opinion.

I don't mind the stickers truthfully speaking. But I would like to see what a big set would look with all printed pieces instead of stickers. 

[Ondra]

1 hour ago, Poodabricks said:

I don't mind the stickers truthfully speaking. But I would like to see what a big set would look with all printed pieces instead of stickers. 

Look at cobi, cobi is abandoning stickers. I just building 1:12 Škoda Octavia and no stickers. No mention its solid piece of plastic, not typical lego hollow structure. Im very suprised with this set... So far into building I not missing lego by any means.

[Toastie]

1 hour ago, Poodabricks said:

But I would like to see what a big set would look with all printed pieces instead of stickers.

It would look better

I don't want to see what that big set looks like with some or all stickers peeling off or crumbling, because it was not stored in an appropriate location

Best,
Thorsten 

[The Island Chronicles]

@Ondra @Toastie But.....wouldn't having all printed pieces make the sets expensive?

Edited December 22, 2022 by Poodabricks

[lifeinplastic]

It would probably make them a bit more expensive but it can't cost that much to print basic tiles and bricks. I hate the fact stickers even come in expensive sets - if I have to pay that much I shouldn't be having to apply stickers to make a set look better. The passenger train before the current one is a good example - it looks like it should be a great set but when the stickers are not applied it doesn't look as good, meaning the stickers form an essential part, rather than optional. the Boba Fett throne room and the Dark Troopers sets also are spoiled by relying on stickers and the Harry Potter moments sets too.

[Yperio_Bricks]

I love Lego bricks and pieces and minifigures, but c'mon, it's 2022 and producing and printing plastic toys is not rocket science. As i have said earlier in this thread, the Lego company pushed itself into a corner and can not get out anymore. Their "premium" products have premium prices, but prints are too expensive...

On the other hand we can be lucky that there are so many stickers because set prices would be even more insane when there were only prints and no stickers.

It so sad.

[Toastie]

27 minutes ago, Yperio_Bricks said:

because set prices would be even more insane

Because TLG chooses to do so - and because there are many, many believers - regarding that narrative. And of course the molds - still believed by many to be of insane value, in 2022. They are expensive, for sure, but they are absolutely not "that" expensive.

All you said is what I am thinking. The thing is, how on Earth is it possible that some competitors still exist? In a truly market-oriented, capitalism environment? That does not make any sense, does it? When molds and prints are so insanely expensive, well then something is completely off here.

Best,
Thorsten

[Yperio_Bricks]

14 minutes ago, Toastie said:

Because TLG chooses to do so - and because there are many, many believers - regarding that narrative. And of course the molds - still believed by many to be of insane value, in 2022. They are expensive, for sure, but they are absolutely not "that" expensive.

All you said is what I am thinking. The thing is, how on Earth is it possible that some competitors still exist? In a truly market-oriented, capitalism environment? That does not make any sense, does it? When molds and prints are so insanely expensive, well then something is completely off here.

Best,
Thorsten

I agree! It's like Lego takes a 0.5 cent plastic piece and applies a 0.5 cent print and creates a 50 cent piece. It's kind of magic!

For themes like Vidiyo they can create many new molds and a truckload of printed tiles whereas for other sets it is not possible. It's because they choose to do so for reasons we don't now and not because for the Vidiyo theme it is cheap and for an other theme it is expensive.

From a customer point of view it looks completely illogical but of course these are economical decisions. As i have said, i love the bricks but the company...

[Lyichir]

1 hour ago, Yperio_Bricks said:

I agree! It's like Lego takes a 0.5 cent plastic piece and applies a 0.5 cent print and creates a 50 cent piece. It's kind of magic!

For themes like Vidiyo they can create many new molds and a truckload of printed tiles whereas for other sets it is not possible. It's because they choose to do so for reasons we don't now and not because for the Vidiyo theme it is cheap and for an other theme it is expensive.

From a customer point of view it looks completely illogical but of course these are economical decisions. As i have said, i love the bricks but the company...

Vidiyo might not be the best example to make your case, as a theme with an incredibly high price-per-piece compared to many others. Printing was not necessarily cheaper for Vidiyo than it would be for any other theme—those costs were passed on to the consumer and could have been a contributing factor into why that theme flopped so dramatically.

The cost of a printed piece often has more to do with inventory management than actual manufacturing cost alone. All manufactured parts need to be produced and stored separately, including distinct prints. Sticker sheets are cheap and easy to store and a single sheet can easily add patterns to 30 or so different parts, compared to having to print and maintain inventory for all of those. On some sets that can have as many distinct stickers as the number of new recolors/prints they introduce, printing instead of stickering could easily double or even triple the logistical costs involved for that individual set.

[dr_spock]

You could get a small UV inkjet printer and color scanner for around $10,000. Scan sticker sheets and print your own bricks.  It is not quite pad printing quality but good enough. UV inks have shelf life of about 1 year depending on environmental condititions.  Something to keep in mind as the inks are not cheap.

[Peppermint_M]

Printing reduces re-use potential in parts. 

Not a big problem now I can purchase parts however I want, but as a kid it meant being stuck to finish a build because the last part I needed I didn't have unprinted. 

Flags and minifigures should be the focus of printing.

[danth]

14 hours ago, Lyichir said:

Vidiyo might not be the best example to make your case, as a theme with an incredibly high price-per-piece compared to many others. Printing was not necessarily cheaper for Vidiyo than it would be for any other theme—those costs were passed on to the consumer and could have been a contributing factor into why that theme flopped so dramatically.

Which Vidiyo sets had high price to part count? You're not talking about the single minifigures with the huge plastic boxes are you? Those are expensive because of those boxes.

The sets like the Robo Hip Hop Car or The Boombox had really good prices per piece.

Even if prints add a bit to the end price, well, so what? I'm skipping many sets these days for the single reason that they're plastered with stickers. I'd be gladly buying far more sets every year if they were printed instead, even if a little more expensive.

14 hours ago, Lyichir said:

The cost of a printed piece often has more to do with inventory management than actual manufacturing cost alone. All manufactured parts need to be produced and stored separately, including distinct prints. Sticker sheets are cheap and easy to store and a single sheet can easily add patterns to 30 or so different parts, compared to having to print and maintain inventory for all of those. On some sets that can have as many distinct stickers as the number of new recolors/prints they introduce, printing instead of stickering could easily double or even triple the logistical costs involved for that individual set.

Does being able to share this trivia about their manufacturing cost, to you, make it okay that you're getting stickers instead of prints? I mean is it a transactional thing? Like "Here, we won't give you prints, but we'll give you this little secret about our manufacturing process and how we store and track unique pieces, and you can share that online and feel like a real insider...and soon you'll forget you have to deal with all the lint, air bubbles, and gummy residue you're forced to deal with when playing with Lego!"

I mean seriously. I'm not really interested in their logistical issues. They need to figure those out.

Also a major issue is over-reliance on stickers. I don't think any set really needs more than a few prints anyway. If a set has a huge sticker sheet, that's not a "prints are too expensive problem", it's a "this is a freaking Lego set, why does it need all these graphics anyway" problem.

Especially for non-licensed sets. If we're talking about in-house designs, just design it so it only needs a few prints.

[Yoggington]

I think the unpopular opinion is that stickers are perfectly fine, and I don't get what people's complaints are?

Feels cheaper? Well yes, but it's generally is cheaper, so money saved for more lego. Crooked sticker placement? Git gud.

In fact I think it's even a pro to get stickers rather than a con. You can leave the sticker un-applied and now you have a more flexible brick for mocs, plus a sticker you can place anywhere you like.

[danth]

55 minutes ago, Yoggington said:

I think the unpopular opinion is that stickers are perfectly fine, and I don't get what people's complaints are?

Air bubbles, ugly edges with lint and dust stuck to them, background color mismatch, the cracking and peeling, the already-bent-in-the-package sticker sheet creases.

The fact that you are fixing something semi-permanently to your pristine Lego pieces with Kragel. Yes, the adhesive on the back of a sticker is glue. A sticky, tacky crud.

Each stickered piece is essentially a custom modification, with the builder's own particular crooked placement and dead skin particles stuck to the edges. You can buy old sets with pristine prints but never pristine stickered parts.

55 minutes ago, Yoggington said:

Feels cheaper? Well yes, but it's generally is cheaper, so money saved for more lego

The pennies saved are not worth it.

55 minutes ago, Yoggington said:

In fact I think it's even a pro to get stickers rather than a con. You can leave the sticker un-applied and now you have a more flexible brick for mocs, plus a sticker you can place anywhere you like.

There are very few pieces with prints that aren't available otherwise. Why not just buy that part for your MOC on Bricklink instead of a whole set?

Edited December 23, 2022 by danth