LEGO 6940 - Alien Moon Stalker

[Tom_Brick]

I've recently picked up my old childhood Legos from my parents attic and am now one by one restoring my old sets...cleaning the bricks, ordering replacements for lost pieces and then putting them back together. The last one was the Alien Moon Stalker:

 

However, there was one thing that kind of puzzled me. Why am I using this printed tile in this place?

Looks like you're supposed to take off the rear bit, but why and what for? Where would I put it? I guess I could plug it into the pin in the rear that's used to connect the glider with the walker, but I don't see the point. Does anybody have any ideas why Lego did it this way?

[1974]

To connect the grabber with the cockpit

[Tom_Brick]

3 minutes ago, 1974 said:

To connect the grabber with the cockpit

Yeah, now that you mention it, that makes sense...thanks

[1974]

You're welcome. It's an awesome set and yours looks in very good condition to boot

TLG really liked the split function in those years, several Space sets around '85-'86 have that option

I like to MOC alternative cockpits and cargo sections (6891, 6931 and the missing section from 6872). Haven't done anything with the Stalker but I guess it's about time

Cheers,

Ole

[CP5670]

I just opened one of these for the first time. I got it misb many years ago and never got around to building it before. It's like an AT-AT before they had the SW license. The front and rear sections can be joined using the top attachment of the rear section.

[1974]

You heretic!

[danth]

This is one of the best Lego sets of all time. But I'm biased -- it's one of the few largish space sets I had as a kid.

8 hours ago, CP5670 said:

I just opened one of these for the first time. I got it misb many years ago and never got around to building it before.

Nice, Congrats! I have one MIB too and I'm not above opening it. Although I might try to get one mint and loose to build instead.

8 hours ago, CP5670 said:

It's like an AT-AT before they had the SW license.

I always thought of the AT-AT as a cat, and the Moonstalker as a dinosaur. IMO the Moonstalker is way cooler. The AT-AT didn't have rockets, or emerald green canopies, or a grapple arm, or a head that could shoot off as a space ship!

[Tom_Brick]

8 minutes ago, danth said:

This is one of the best Lego sets of all time. But I'm biased -- it's one of the few largish space sets I had as a kid.

[...]

I always thought of the AT-AT as a cat, and the Moonstalker as a dinosaur. IMO the Moonstalker is way cooler. The AT-AT didn't have rockets, or emerald green canopies, or a grapple arm, or a head that could shoot off as a space ship!

The thing about the old space sets in general was that playability was key. They all had nifty features, though the Moon Stalker probably was the best in that regard. All those gimmicks are awesome. Plus: Only the Moon Stalker has containers in its legs...check mate AT-AT.

I think that's the downside of the current Lego strategy of only selling licensed products. You do get the name recognition which is great of course, but you're also very limited in what you can do. You can't add a grapple arm or detachable gliders to an AT-AT because that's simply not how an AT-AT looks or works.

Another example is something I came across when going through my old Legos. I found an official book with alternate instructions for tons of old sets. The purpose was to encourage kids to come up with their own builds. An early MOC tutorial if you will. There was some really wild stuff in there and I couldn't see Lego doing anything of the sort today, let alone with sets based on licenses. Here are some examples:

[1974]

The IDEA Books and alt box images are my primary sources of inspiration (besides my little grey cells). Maybe I'm not going to keep my bricks forever but the books will go with me to the grave ..

It was actually that book (6000) that drew me back into LEGO. I've had an recurring dream about some missing pages somewhere around those shown above, Searching the net led me to Peeron many years ago, but alas those pages are all but a dream

Yeah, modern LEGO is just build and forget. Kids want to be reminded of their favourite IP character, not that they're playing with LEGO. Adults MOC, kids not so much ..

Cheers,

Ole

[CP5670]

20 hours ago, 1974 said:

You heretic!

Guilty as charged. I still have a bunch of sets I got in the early-mid 2000s on ebay that I never had time to open and build. That idea book is great, especially the aliens. This was another, later idea book that has some nice alternate models for this set as well as the Solar Power Transporter:

 

Edited April 8, 2021 by CP5670

[1974]

Yeah 6000, 200 & 250 is where it's at  260 not so much and 697 is just boring

They can all be downloaded from Brickset :

https://brickset.com/library/ideasbooks

[Lord Insanity]

6940 was the first "large" space set I received for Christmas.  (The first "large" non-Basic set at all really) This set was instrumental in my love of Lego Space.  I mean who doesn't want a space walker equivalent of a nuclear missile submarine.  I never really saw this as an AT-AT equivalent probably because I had many adventures with the set long before I ever saw Star Wars.

I do have a bit of an oddity with it though.  I grew up with the old product guide books that used to come in sets.  The 1987 product guide used what I would later learn as the European names to the sets.  So growing up I never thought of 6940 as the Alien Mood Stalker it was the Thunderfoot Launcher.

Similarly 6972 wasn't the Polaris I Space Lab it was the Star Gate Departure Centre [sic]  6972 was one of those sets I always thought looked awesome in the guide book.  I was slightly disappointed when I finally picked it up in the late 90s and found it did not in fact have a star gate but a rocket.  But of course being Lego I uh... fixed that.

When people say: "Classic Space"  I think of the page spreads from the '87 guide, that is my Classic Space. 

[Tom_Brick]

24 minutes ago, Lord Insanity said:

6940 was the first "large" space set I received for Christmas.  (The first "large" non-Basic set at all really) This set was instrumental in my love of Lego Space.  I mean who doesn't want a space walker equivalent of a nuclear missile submarine.  I never really saw this as an AT-AT equivalent probably because I had many adventures with the set long before I ever saw Star Wars.

I do have a bit of an oddity with it though.  I grew up with the old product guide books that used to come in sets.  The 1987 product guide used what I would later learn as the European names to the sets.  So growing up I never thought of 6940 as the Alien Mood Stalker it was the Thunderfoot Launcher.

Similarly 6972 wasn't the Polaris I Space Lab it was the Star Gate Departure Centre [sic]  6972 was one of those sets I always thought looked awesome in the guide book.  I was slightly disappointed when I finally picked it up in the late 90s and found it did not in fact have a star gate but a rocket.  But of course being Lego I uh... fixed that.

 When people say: "Classic Space"  I think of the page spreads from the '87 guide, that is my Classic Space. 

Funny that you mention the Polaris I Lab, as I just restored that yesterday. I still need to order some minor parts, but I could already set it up. I still need to find a good place for it. 

 

My first Legos (apart from Duplo when I was really small) was a collection of used Space sets my parents picked up from a neighbour who's son grew out of Lego. Among them was the Galaxy Explorer and the Alien Moon Stalker. However, it came without instructions and partially disassembled, so I never had them in the way Lego intended them but as I imagined they should be. Obviously there was no internet in the 1980s where I could get the instructions. Now is the first time I have them built according to the official instructions. 

The Polaris I Lab was the first boxed set my parents got me from the store, so I had the instructions. I loved it, including the rocket. I definitely played the heck out of it. 

Once I'm through with all the sets I am aware of, it'll be fun to try and piece together which other sets remain hidden in my old trove. Most of the pieces my parents got from the neighbour back in the day were loose, so I never knew what I had exactly. I already found one piece that only came in one particular set in the late 1960s, some sort of delivery truck, though I doubt I can piece that one back together as it had several quite unique parts. So the neighbour must also have bought a bunch of used bricks.

[1974]

7 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

 Alien Mood Stalker

Lol!

Speaking of interesting names, I just found out that 6825, 6872 & 6882 all have "Xenon" in their names in the 1985 UK catalogue. Yes,they do indeed look like they could part of the same faction/group

7 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

6972 was one of those sets I always thought looked awesome in the guide book.  I was slightly disappointed when I finally picked it up

I think it's a very nice looking model with some interesting building details. There's nothing quite like it

I don't like the monorail extensions though. They're not in system, would have been much better to use two 8x16 baseplates

Much better looking than the similar Futuron base. In fact, I think this should have been a Futuron set and the Futuron base should have been scrapped. It's really poor compared to this one and the Blacktron base

MFG,

Ole

Edited April 9, 2021 by 1974

[CP5670]

The final wave of classic space like 6972 and the light and sound sets was basically Futuron, just with different minifigs. If you're referring to 6953, it does feel like a cut down 6987, but I like it anyway as an addon to the monorail.

As for the Alien Moon Stalker, 6952 and 6891 are good companions to the set and feel like they are part of the same faction. I think classic space had 4 or 5 distinct subthemes with their own colors. I have been building mocs lately based on other classic-like color schemes that would have fit into the lineup, like the Seatron colors.

[Lord Insanity]

 

On 4/8/2021 at 7:42 PM, Lord Insanity said:

Alien Mood Stalker

18 hours ago, 1974 said:

Lol!

Oh that is the most ridiculous typo.  I can't believe I missed that. 

Regarding 6972, my slight disappointment was specifically about the European name Star Gate Departure Centre (yes the book had that typo printed in it) that appeared in the guide book. Having only seen the set in the form of a tiny picture for several years, I imagined that the trans red parts on what I would later learn is a rocket, were part of a "star gate".  I imagined that as being some sort of dimensional doorway to the unknown.  Keep in mind this was 7 years before the actual movie Stargate came out.  When I first saw the movie Stargate I laughed at the fact that everyone knows "star gates" are trans-red and the movie screwed up.

When I finally got the set a few years later I was a bit let down by the mere rocket.  I do however think the set overall is still the second best non-monorail space base Lego has made to date.  (Only 6987 Message Intercept Base tops it)  The overall appearance and shaping of 6972 Polaris I Space Lab just has that wow factor that still captivates me today.

 

9 hours ago, CP5670 said:

The final wave of classic space like 6972 and the light and sound sets was basically Futuron, just with different minifigs.

The "white and black with trans-blue windows" classic space sets did have one major difference (besides the figs) to Futuron.  The classic space sets made use of trans-green and trans-yellow in addition to trans-red as accent color parts.  Futuron used trans-blue in addition to trans-red as accent color parts.  It is a subtle but important difference.

[Tom_Brick]

4 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

 

Regarding 6972, my slight disappointment was specifically about the European name Star Gate Departure Centre (yes the book had that typo printed in it) that appeared in the guide book.

It's not a typo. "Centre" is the proper British English spelling. Americans switched up the "-re". Other examples are "theatre", "metre", "litre" and "fibre".

 

[1974]

5 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

The "white and black with trans-blue windows" classic space sets did have one major difference (besides the figs) to Futuron.  The classic space sets made use of trans-green and trans-yellow in addition to trans-red as accent color parts.  Futuron used trans-blue in addition to trans-red as accent color parts.  It is a subtle but important difference.

Yes, I always thought it odd that those the lines clashed (CS and Futuron). They should have picked another colour combo for the last CS wave, like white/trans-green (used in the proto M-tron sets) or white/trans-yellow (never used 'cept the little spacecraft in 6971)

There was a tiny speck of trans-green in the Futuron 6893 set. TLG never seem to stay 100% to their colour schemes, there's also a bit of light grey in Blacktron besides the Technic parts, turntables and baseplates

15 hours ago, CP5670 said:

The final wave of classic space like 6972 and the light and sound sets was basically Futuron, just with different minifigs. If you're referring to 6953, it does feel like a cut down 6987, but I like it anyway as an addon to the monorail.

As for the Alien Moon Stalker, 6952 and 6891 are good companions to the set and feel like they are part of the same faction. I think classic space had 4 or 5 distinct subthemes with their own colors. I have been building mocs lately based on other classic-like color schemes that would have fit into the lineup, like the Seatron colors.

6953 is pathetic. That flying microwave owen is uncool and the vehicle is just way too basic

6952 fits very well with the Stalker (should have used the same windows and dropped the multitude of combinations, none of them are cool) but the 6891 is a different ballgame. It's one of my favourties, the black parts and the trans-yellow fits so well with light grey and trans-green Too bad the cargo area is so minuscule

6847 and '48 fits nicely with 6940 and 6952

The 6952 (Saturn Ranger) has a really interesting description in the UK catalogue : "Turns into an amphibian vehicle, 2 space ships, a space center, a snake vehicle - you name it!"

Water and snakes confirmed on Saturn

Seatron is interesting with it's two distinct colour schemes in one set. I really like the white/trans-red style

[CP5670]

6 hours ago, 1974 said:

6952 fits very well with the Stalker (should have used the same windows and dropped the multitude of combinations, none of them are cool) but the 6891 is a different ballgame. It's one of my favourties, the black parts and the trans-yellow fits so well with light grey and trans-green Too bad the cargo area is so minuscule

6847 and '48 fits nicely with 6940 and 6952

The 6952 (Saturn Ranger) has a really interesting description in the UK catalogue : "Turns into an amphibian vehicle, 2 space ships, a space center, a snake vehicle - you name it!"

Water and snakes confirmed on Saturn

Seatron is interesting with it's two distinct colour schemes in one set. I really like the white/trans-red style 

Sometimes it feels like TLG themselves had no idea what these sets were supposed to be. I added the windows to my 6952 and make it more airtight. I wish we had a modern version of these windows and the corner panels. There is this window but it looks really ugly and there are hardly any trans colored windows for it.

The white/black/trans-red and white/black/trans-green from the prototype images go together very well. I've been building mocs off those colors with some red/trans-orange and green/trans-neon green accents added on. The second, yellow/black/trans-blue color scheme from Seatron basically became Aquanauts.

[1974]

No need for modern parts when we have the proper old ones

I also very muchlike the Grey-tron colour scheme

Cheers,

Ole

[Toastie]

7 hours ago, 1974 said:

That flying microwave owen is uncool

I can see that  

Best
Thorsten

[1974]

Only redeeming feature is that oh so rare window, the cool cool Futuron panel (only time we see the logo) and the trans-blue wedge plates

Edit : I got that wrong, thought this was the only set with the ridgeless window in trans-blue

Edited April 10, 2021 by 1974

[EamonnMR]

 

On 4/8/2021 at 1:44 PM, CP5670 said:

Guilty as charged. I still have a bunch of sets I got in the early-mid 2000s on ebay that I never had time to open and build. That idea book is great, especially the aliens. This was another, later idea book that has some nice alternate models for this set as well as the Solar Power Transporter:

That looks a lot like 6835. I wonder how many alternate builds ended up getting released as proper sets later.