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Yeah, I'd say that's a fair assessment.  Like it or not, NASA space efforts are much more well-known and iconic in most of Lego's geographic markets than Russian, European, or Indian space efforts.  The big three NASA crewed space programs are Apollo, Shuttle, and Station.  Apollo is well represented by the Saturn V and the Lunar Module (although I would love to have a Command Module too), and Station has the Ideas kit.  There have been a bunch of minifig playscale Shuttles in the past few years, but it's been a decade since the last D2C shuttle.  In the meantime, two D2C class shuttles have made it to 10K on Ideas, and there are many AFOLs now who weren't on the scene back in 2011.  After all, the Saturn V is (correct me if I'm wrong) the best-selling Ideas kit ever, and it brought a ton of people into the hobby.  So between the Saturn V, the Lunar Module, and the ISS kits, a UCS style Space Shuttle is definitely missing; that is to say, it would complete the set.  Then there's the anniversary - the LM tied in to the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, and the ISS to the 20th anniversary of continuous habitation of the Station.  So with this year the 40th anniversary of the first flight of Columbia, the timing makes sense.  What I wonder is whether 10283, if the rumors pan out, will be:

  • a UCS Orbiter, like the UCS Space Shuttle Atlantis by Snelson42 on Ideas ($200 would be an appropriate price point for a large airplane-like model, as demonstrated by $200 UCS Star Wars sets and $200 UCS Batwing)
  • a 1:110 Shuttle stack, like the NASA Space Shuttle (Saturn V Scale) by KingsKnight on Ideas (the same physical size as the $100 10213/10231, but with 2200+ parts in its updated form on Rebrickable, thus sitting at the $200 price point)
  • In either case, will it be designed to be compatible with minifigs?  A true minifig scale UCS Orbiter would be more realistic at a $500 price point, maybe, and a 1:110 scale Shuttle stack scales better with nanofigures, but it's easy to imagine either scale being adapted for play with minifigures.  The approximate 1:110 scale already has been, with 10213/10231.
  • Whether or not it's compatible with minifigs, will it have play features?  For me, the ideal 1:110 Stack would simply be the Rebrickable version of the KingsKnight model, but I know that's not going to happen.  It doesn't have "play features" per se, but the Shuttle has a lot of moving parts and cabin volume that are all well represented.  A UCS Orbiter ought to have retractable landing gear, at least: that was my favorite part of the 7470 Space Shuttle Discovery, which is the largest System brick-built Orbiter released to date.

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4 hours ago, icm said:

 

  • a UCS Orbiter, like the UCS Space Shuttle Atlantis by Snelson42 on Ideas ($200 would be an appropriate price point for a large airplane-like model, as demonstrated by $200 UCS Star Wars sets and $200 UCS Batwing)
  • 1:110 Shuttle stack, like the NASA Space Shuttle (Saturn V Scale) by KingsKnight on Ideas (the same physical size as the $100 10213/10231, but with 2200+ parts in its updated form on Rebrickable, thus sitting at the $200 price point)
  • In either case, will it be designed to be compatible with minifigs?  A true minifig scale UCS Orbiter would be more realistic at a $500 price point, maybe, and a 1:110 scale Shuttle stack scales better with nanofigures, but it's easy to imagine either scale being adapted for play with minifigures.  The approximate 1:110 scale already has been, with 10213/10231.
  • Whether or not it's compatible with minifigs, will it have play features?  For me, the ideal 1:110 Stack would simply be the Rebrickable version of the KingsKnight model, but I know that's not going to happen.  It doesn't have "play features" per se, but the Shuttle has a lot of moving parts and cabin volume that are all well represented.  A UCS Orbiter ought to have retractable landing gear, at least: that was my favorite part of the 7470 Space Shuttle Discovery, which is the largest System brick-built Orbiter released to date.

I’d like to add to this list:

Space Shuttle Colombia, as well as being the first to be launched, was also one of those to explode.  It killed all 7 crew members.  With Old Trafford, we got a gift with purchase of the United Trinity.  Do you think we could get the 7 crew members who died immortalised either in the set or as a gift with purchase?  It’s a fitting tribute to the crew members in my opinion.

Edited by Vilhelm22

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You think that would be a fitting tribute to the crew; I think it would be in very poor taste.  Guess we'll see if there is a GWP or not, and if so, what it is.

Unrelated: Because of the anniversary it makes sense, hypothetically, for 10283 to represent Columbia as of STS-1, but I would much prefer 10283 to represent Discovery or Atlantis.  Columbia was visibly different than the other Orbiters in several respects, and Discovery and Atlantis are more representative of what one generically thinks of as the Space Shuttle.  Also, the white STS-1 External Tank is not representative of the iconic orange tank used for nearly every Shuttle flight thereafter.

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The fact that we're even talking about a potential UCS Space Shuttle is very exciting. STS-61 was one of the most important missions ever so gonna have to go with Endeavour. :excited:

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1 hour ago, icm said:

Also, the white STS-1 External Tank is not representative of the iconic orange tank used for nearly every Shuttle flight thereafter.

Also worth keeping in mind, Lego reintroduced 4x4 quarter cylinder shells in dark orange last year for just one Super Mario set. I can't believe those parts aren't going to pop up somewhere else, and a complete shuttle launch stack would be the perfect place.

I'm not sure what I'm hoping for more - a complete launch stack, or the orbiter only. As an orbiter, all the parts can go into detailing, though somehow the shuttle isn't quite so iconic without the launch stack (well, at least to me). But if it's going to be a complete launch stack, i's hard to see how they could make it significantly different from the old Shuttle Adventure/Expedition playset. Whatever happens, I will be watching this with great interest.

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Oof, idk. I'd love a Space Shuttle set, but Columbia of all things? Why not Enterprise or any of the other four?

I saw morons people argue that LEGO allows such brutal things as the Colosseum and (maybe) such tragic things as the Titanic, but it's only been 18 years. The Colosseum has been a sacred landmark for hundreds of years, and I'm pretty sure everyone who knew somebody who died on the Titanic is already dead. If LEGO made a Columbia set 80 years from now, that would be fine, but now just seems too soon.

Am I being stupid?

Edited by Alegrispa

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18 minutes ago, Alegrispa said:

Oof, idk. I'd love a Space Shuttle set, but Columbia of all things? Why not Enterprise or any of the other four?

I saw morons people argue that LEGO allows such brutal things as the Colosseum and (maybe) such tragic things as the Titanic, but it's only been 18 years. The Colosseum has been a sacred landmark for hundreds of years, and I'm pretty sure everyone who knew somebody who died on the Titanic is already dead. If LEGO made a Columbia set 80 years from now, that would be fine, but now just seems too soon.

Am I being stupid?

No, I absolutely, totally agree with you. Upon hearing of the Columbia I was absolutely appalled. This is just as bad as making a Challenger set in my opinion. Just because the Colombia disaster is less known doesn’t make it any better. Imagine knowing some of the people on that shuttle and seeing this set at the mall... There are so many other space shuttles to pick from, and I hope this rumour comes out false.

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1 hour ago, someguy827 said:

No, I absolutely, totally agree with you. Upon hearing of the Columbia I was absolutely appalled. This is just as bad as making a Challenger set in my opinion. Just because the Colombia disaster is less known doesn’t make it any better. Imagine knowing some of the people on that shuttle and seeing this set at the mall... There are so many other space shuttles to pick from, and I hope this rumour comes out false.

Honestly I'd be shocked is it was the Columbia as well.  This might end up being another cancelled set before it gets released depending on if this is true or not.  But in the event that it did come out...I'd more than likely be buying it due to my love of Space sets.

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3 hours ago, Alegrispa said:

Oof, idk. I'd love a Space Shuttle set, but Columbia of all things? Why not Enterprise or any of the other four?

I saw morons people argue that LEGO allows such brutal things as the Colosseum and (maybe) such tragic things as the Titanic, but it's only been 18 years. The Colosseum has been a sacred landmark for hundreds of years, and I'm pretty sure everyone who knew somebody who died on the Titanic is already dead. If LEGO made a Columbia set 80 years from now, that would be fine, but now just seems too soon.

Am I being stupid?

Yes, I think you are.  Selling a Columbia model with a GWP of the crew of STS-107 would be a crass effort to profit off of a tragedy.  Selling a Columbia model to coincide with the 40th anniversary of STS-1 would be an appropriate tribute to a magnificent technological achievement and to the 27 orbital missions that Columbia completed before the disaster.  There is so much more to OV-102 Columbia's place in history than the way it ended.

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40 minutes ago, icm said:

Yes, I think you are.  Selling a Columbia model with a GWP of the crew of STS-107 would be a crass effort to profit off of a tragedy.  Selling a Columbia model to coincide with the 40th anniversary of STS-1 would be an appropriate tribute to a magnificent technological achievement and to the 27 orbital missions that Columbia completed before the disaster.  There is so much more to OV-102 Columbia's place in history than the way it ended.

THIS! A Columbia set released in 2021 is a tribute to one of the most important moments in human spaceflight. If there's any GWP, it should relate to STS-1--something like a patch similar to the one they did with the Lunar Module. They should stay away from any physical tributes to STS-107. Assuming the instruction manual has a history of Columbia, then a simple note at the end of that history that it ended tragically would be sufficient and appropriate.

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I think its far more likely that we will get a larger shuttle rather then one in 1:110 scale with a full stack. Heres my reasoning: because its the shuttles anniversary and they have supposedly gone with the Columbia instead if any other orbiter, the only tasteful way to depict it in a lego set is to do the first mission. However there is a problem as the first two shuttles had a white external tank. The white ET tank is just not as recognizable as the classic orange that most people associate with the shuttle. This could put sales at risk because there is less of a draw form casual space fans. If they go with the classic orange, what point is there keeping the orbiter as Columbia in the set as it carries a lot of baggage from its unfortunate demise.

Of course another option for the set would be to just drop the tanks and SRBs entirely from the model and focus on the shuttle. At that price range I can see a big detailed model similar to the UCS A wing or Batwing, though I dont think it would be as large as minifigure scale becuse space craft  can get quite big.( Just look up how the lunar module compares to a shuttle  to get a good impression of the size)

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Hi all @Vilhelm22 directed me here. I’d love a shuttle to go with the Saturn and Apollo lander, I don’t have the ISS as it’s just not ticking any boxes for me. But the big issue I have is naming it Columbia. I think TLG would steer clear of naming it Columbia or Challenger because of the poor astronauts who lost their lives in those craft. I can just picture some tasteless images on Instagram etc where someone uses the set to create a meme around those poor people.

there were plenty of other shuttles each with their own piece of history to use.

I’d love a shuttle, in all its glory with the orange tank and boosters. If it was scaled to the same size as the Saturn even better.

 

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2 hours ago, Vilhelm22 said:

Looking at jjp's site, the release date on there has moved from July to April, and there are no question marks so it's almost certainly true.

April will correspond nicely with the anniversary of STS-1 (April 12-14, 1981).

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LEGO Ideas launched a new contest about space so I believe the set reveal should be coming soon...

The prize is nice, but I'm not going to enter because I have all but two of the sets. What really is surprising is the fact that there are no teaser for the new set...

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16 minutes ago, JintaiZ said:

LEGO Ideas launched a new contest about space so I believe the set reveal should be coming soon...

The prize is nice, but I'm not going to enter because I have all but two of the sets. What really is surprising is the fact that there are no teaser for the new set...

Ah interesting - just checked it out....

The prize of your model as a GWP is too late for it to be a GWP for this set - the contest that the Vintage Car came from was in late 2019, so it was just over a year between competition and release....

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17 minutes ago, Vilhelm22 said:

The prize of your model as a GWP is too late for it to be a GWP for this set - the contest that the Vintage Car came from was in late 2019, so it was just over a year between competition and release....

You are right, but I don't see a reason for LEGO Ideas to launch another space contest when there are so many more options...

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I've just now seen this news for the first time, and am very surprised about the Columbia choice. Could it be  a misunderstanding? I imagine the instructions for this set will have information about the actual shuttle, and it's impossible to talk about Columbia without addressing the disaster, so at least I hope they have contacted the families of the astronauts that died to let them know they are doing this. 

Perhaps Columbia is just a placeholder name and the final set will be a different shuttle? Or something different entirely, although I think that's unlikely, because at 200$ it has to be something very iconic, and the only other thing I feel could work at this price point is the ISS, which has already been available, and at a much lower price.

 

As for the Ideas contest it seems they are just doing it because the previous one was successful? The timing is indeed strange, having the contest either when the shuttle releases or with enough time to have the GWP available when it releases would have made more sense, I think.

Edited by dysnomia
Forgot to mention the Ideas contest

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59 minutes ago, dysnomia said:

As for the Ideas contest it seems they are just doing it because the previous one was successful?

The Vintage car is probably in more demand because it fits really well with the modular builds. It would make sense that LEGO Ideas is hosting a contest to celebrate the release of 10283 Space Shuttle though.

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Brickcatch isn't a scam site, but sometimes the information can be a bit outdated (For example, 75313 is still listed as Death Star although it should be an AT-AT instead). The listing be updated when there are more info.

Because of this, I don't know if it will necessarily be Space Shuttle Colombia, but I'll wait and see. :wink:

Edited by JintaiZ

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I realized the price just changed to $269.99 on promobricks. :sceptic: I'm not entirely sold on the idea, but it could mean we are getting a much more detailed Space Shuttle at a bigger scale. Still, what I hoped is something similar in scale with the Saturn V instead...

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Hmm ... prices keep going up, don't they? Size and detail goes up too, so that's good, but at the expense of affordability.  Having set myself the precedent of buying Barracuda Bay at $200 I decided that a $200 Space Shuttle was a must-buy, but I'm not so sure about one at $270.  When you first start buying Legos as a single adult with a job and a decent amount of disposable income, it's fantastic - you really had to pick and choose what sets you were going to buy when you were a kid, because you didn't have any money and you couldn't possibly afford them all, but now you can buy them all!  But then you start wanting so much more Lego than you ever wanted as a kid, and then you have to pick and choose again!

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6 hours ago, icm said:

Hmm ... prices keep going up, don't they? Size and detail goes up too, so that's good, but at the expense of affordability.  Having set myself the precedent of buying Barracuda Bay at $200 I decided that a $200 Space Shuttle was a must-buy, but I'm not so sure about one at $270.  When you first start buying Legos as a single adult with a job and a decent amount of disposable income, it's fantastic - you really had to pick and choose what sets you were going to buy when you were a kid, because you didn't have any money and you couldn't possibly afford them all, but now you can buy them all!  But then you start wanting so much more Lego than you ever wanted as a kid, and then you have to pick and choose again!

Not all prices for LEGO sets are going up. Some themes are generally getting more expensive as sets are getting bigger and better. Other themes (like Star Wars) are getting cheaper but the quality of the builds are still good.

But for this set... I'm sure $200 would have been the perfect Space Shuttle!! It would be hard to display a huge Space Shuttle next to the Saturn V and $270 is just expensive to spend on a toy.

After all, it may not even be a Space Shuttle, or any space-related set!! :cry_sad:

On the bright side, the set is still listed as Space Shuttle on JJP's site, but I suspect the information will also be updated soon...

Edited by JintaiZ
added info

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I for one am absolutely ecstatic about the $270 price point. Given the excellent PPP of recent creator expert sets, this could very well place the amount of pieces at around 3000, which is honestly a dream for someone like me who missed out on sets like 10213 Shuttle Adventure. I also expect the set to be revealed sooner than later, as the recent creator expert Porsche 911 was revealed on January 28th, with a release date of March 1st. If the set does release in early or mid April, then I expect more info coming soon and a reveal within a month. 

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