Accessing building interiors

[BrickCommander9]

When building a moc with an interior, one of the most difficult decisions a builder can make is how to access or display that he/she worked so hard to build.

 

Every time I build something, I wrestle with this question, and have a hard time coming to a decision.

 

The way I see it, there are 3 main options to access the interior of a building:

 

1. "Modular" style - floors sit on tiles and can be separated, like the lego modular buildings.

 

2.Hinges - A building hinges open, either a single wall or through the middle of the building

 

3. Open back- The model is built without a rear wall, allowing exterior viewing from the front and interior views from behind.

 

Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages, making it hard to decide what works for any particular moc.

 

I will share my musings about each method going forward, but I would love to hear how you guys do it!

[BrickCommander9]

Thoughts:

 

Modular style:

 

Advantages 

-full 360 degree exterior

- "deeper" floor plans than the other methods

- can be easily modified and transported in sections

 

Disadvantages

-More difficult to display, interior details are not easily seen by a passerby

-part and tile heavy

-Rooms can only be viewed from above, not minifigure perspective

 

 

2. Hinges

Advantages

-full 360 degree exterior

-Saves on tiles vs modular style buildings

- allows for architectural details to span multiple floors

-Can easily be displayed either as an exterior or an interior

-Can be viewed from minifig perspective

 

Disadvantages

 

-"shallow" floor plan

-engineering the hinged sections can be a challenge

-parts intensive

-interiors can be dark

 

 

3. Open back

Advantages

- Saves parts

-easily displays both interior and exterior

-can be viewed from minifig perspective

 

Disadvantages

- does not include 360 degree exterior

- "shallow" floor plan

- interiors can be dark

 

 

 

What do you guys think? what do you do about interiors?

 

[MAB]

Another way is to give the impression of multiple rooms without actually using interior walls, which can be combined with any of the above. Just use different floor colours, or wall colours, and maybe furniture to break up a much larger space into separate rooms, much like splitting up an open plan room.

[neonic]

Don't have experience with it because I never been further than the snackbar, policestation and stuff from the '80's (or something ) 
But maybe a sort of hinges. made of Technic lego is an idea. I mean that you can open up the building but als that you can easy remove the whole part.

[ExeSandbox]

I think it does depend on the kind of building you're building. Modular Buildings (with separable floors) are usually all about the exterior details and interior details are only supplementary, so for displaying I wouldn't sweat it with the visibility of the interior, but for accessibility, proper floor planning right from the start is essential instead of trying to shoehorn an interior after the exterior is done. (A crime which I always find myself doing. )

Open back/Hinged buildings are usually present in dollhouses which have more emphasis on the interior in relation to the exterior. The shallow floor plan and poor lighting can be overcome by good planning and design (window placement, colors and height can all play a big part.) Not having 360 exterior isn't that big a deal depending on the type of building. Modular style buildings are obligated to have full 360 exterior to feel like a modular building. But in other cases, interiors usually have greater detail and is generally more interesting than the back wall of a house or building, so it's an easy compromise to make. 

[JintaiZ]

I think open back is a great idea, since you don't really have to move anything to see the interiors. Even though it may not appeal to some people, I don't mind open backs at all.

[John Cromwell]

In my opinion, hinges are the best way to reveal the interior of a castle, since the outside typically does not have very many details, especially classic-style castles.

Like here, for example, @Uter uses hinges to allow the inside of his keep to be seen. Since the keep isn't very big, the rooms aren't terribly dark and the walls are 'smooth' all the way across, allowing easy use of the hinges without any crazy stuff to engineer around.

Here's the other side of the same model

and here as well you can see the hinges, he doesn't have a picture of the interior.

but for building a village structure, I think modular building is the best since if is usually grouped with a bunch of other structures and doesn't have much space around it.

[zoth33]

I like using hinges or using tiles with the occasional stud on each level so it can be removed.  Interiors are fun to build.   Obviously you can't use hinges sometimes if you can't open the building far enough.  I like using more open concepts for elvish architecture.  

[BrickCommander9]

18 hours ago, MAB said:

Another way is to give the impression of multiple rooms without actually using interior walls, which can be combined with any of the above. Just use different floor colours, or wall colours, and maybe furniture to break up a much larger space into separate rooms, much like splitting up an open plan room.

Interesting! I have never thought about that. Do you have any pictures where we can see that in action?

 

14 hours ago, ExeSandbox said:

I think it does depend on the kind of building you're building. Modular Buildings (with separable floors) are usually all about the exterior details and interior details are only supplementary, so for displaying I wouldn't sweat it with the visibility of the interior, but for accessibility, proper floor planning right from the start is essential instead of trying to shoehorn an interior after the exterior is done. (A crime which I always find myself doing. )

Open back/Hinged buildings are usually present in dollhouses which have more emphasis on the interior in relation to the exterior. The shallow floor plan and poor lighting can be overcome by good planning and design (window placement, colors and height can all play a big part.) Not having 360 exterior isn't that big a deal depending on the type of building. Modular style buildings are obligated to have full 360 exterior to feel like a modular building. But in other cases, interiors usually have greater detail and is generally more interesting than the back wall of a house or building, so it's an easy compromise to make. 

That sounds about right (I am guilty of the same sins concerning planning the floor plan ahead of time!)

 

For me the issue is if I am going to spend a lot of parts (especially precious tiles) and energy making a nice interior, I want to be able to display it- even if the main attraction is the exterior.

12 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

I think open back is a great idea, since you don't really have to move anything to see the interiors. Even though it may not appeal to some people, I don't mind open backs at all.

I think that is the direction I am going ultimately in my current moc! Let's hope it turns out well.

 

12 hours ago, John Cromwell said:

In my opinion, hinges are the best way to reveal the interior of a castle, since the outside typically does not have very many details, especially classic-style castles.

Like here, for example, @Uter uses hinges to allow the inside of his keep to be seen. Since the keep isn't very big, the rooms aren't terribly dark and the walls are 'smooth' all the way across, allowing easy use of the hinges without any crazy stuff to engineer around.

Here's the other side of the same model

and here as well you can see the hinges, he doesn't have a picture of the interior.

but for building a village structure, I think modular building is the best since if is usually grouped with a bunch of other structures and doesn't have much space around it.

That works great for a smoother castle more in the classic style, like the fantastic moc you shared. The issue comes when you have more of a textured wall, a larger castle, or lots of towers/turrets/extensions.

 

My current project, for example, has walls 5!!!! studs thick. They are heavy, so putting them on hinges becomes quite the engineering task- not to mention getting it to open and close smoothly.

 

9 hours ago, zoth33 said:

I like using hinges or using tiles with the occasional stud on each level so it can be removed.  Interiors are fun to build.   Obviously you can't use hinges sometimes if you can't open the building far enough.  I like using more open concepts for elvish architecture.  

exactly. Each option has its place, and in some cases one is more appropriate for a specific project.

 

 

 

I also want to add, a great advantage of open back/hinges is that you can add details to the ceiling- for example a hanging chandelier. Even simple details, like rafters, make an interior feel more complete.p

[John Cromwell]

10 hours ago, BrickCommander9 said:

That works great for a smoother castle more in the classic style, like the fantastic moc you shared. The issue comes when you have more of a textured wall, a larger castle, or lots of towers/turrets/extensions.

 

My current project, for example, has walls 5!!!! studs thick. They are heavy, so putting them on hinges becomes quite the engineering task- not to mention getting it to open and close smoothly.

Yeah, the more detailed the outside of the moc is, the harder the it is to show off the inside. Wow!, that is impressive! Points for realism, since castle walls were very thick in real life. Best of luck finding a solution! 

Actually, you depending on what part of your moc you are wanting to open, you could have a wall that is tiled on the bottom and has a removable section, kind of like this:

and here is the wall part:

Sorta kinda?

[BrickCommander9]

57 minutes ago, John Cromwell said:

Yeah, the more detailed the outside of the moc is, the harder the it is to show off the inside. Wow!, that is impressive! Points for realism, since castle walls were very thick in real life. Best of luck finding a solution! 

Actually, you depending on what part of your moc you are wanting to open, you could have a wall that is tiled on the bottom and has a removable section, kind of like this:

and here is the wall part:

Sorta kinda?

Interesting! I never thought to try like that.

 

 I have actually thought about making walls removable vertically- where the back wall slides into slots built into the side walls, but I didn't move forward with it.

 

On my current project, I ultimately decided to go open backed- mostly to save on bricks.

 

My walls are 5 studs thick both for realism purposes, but also for detailing purposes- The thicker your walls, the more you can play with depth and add more rich detail. It also allows to have a similar level of detail on the interior if so desired :-)

 

[John Cromwell]

2 hours ago, BrickCommander9 said:

I have actually thought about making walls removable vertically- where the back wall slides into slots built into the side walls, but I didn't move forward with it.

That's a cool idea! I might have to use that sometime.

 

2 hours ago, BrickCommander9 said:

My walls are 5 studs thick both for realism purposes, but also for detailing purposes- The thicker your walls, the more you can play with depth and add more rich detail. It also allows to have a similar level of detail on the interior if so desired :-)

Sweet! Show us when you are done!

[BrickCommander9]

15 minutes ago, John Cromwell said:

That's a cool idea! I might have to use that sometime.

 

Sweet! Show us when you are done!

My wip is in another thread!

 

 

[Sarophas]

@John Cromwell You beat me to it I really love this technique, it reminds me of the castle sets from my childhood. Last year I tried to include this technique in a build and it worked surprisingly well! (Of course I didn't take pictures).

Especially if you are going for a damaged/rustic looking wall, the "removable section" can just look like a patch in the wall.

I wish I had pictures to explain better, but I hope it still makes a little sense

[John Cromwell]

1 hour ago, Sarophas said:

I really love this technique, it reminds me of the castle sets from my childhood. Last year I tried to include this technique in a build and it worked surprisingly well!

The hinge technique, or the removable wall section?

1 hour ago, Sarophas said:

it reminds me of the castle sets from my childhood

I was born in the early 2000s and sadly never had the chance to grow up with those gems. Yet I have a certain disdain to the modern Lego sets because most of them are licensed from Marvel, or Harry Potter, or DC, etc. Nothing is original anymore.

I enjoy the olden days when pirates fought dudes in blue and red coats, tic-tac colored astronauts built space bases and castles were sieged by other castle dudes, not the obviously evil wizard and his minions attacking the obviously good king and his castle. Ah, to have lived in that era. Oh well.

[Sarophas]

@John Cromwell The removable wall section

[John Cromwell]

Just now, Sarophas said:

The removable wall section 

Ah... Thanks for clarifying!