Bricklink Designer Program 2021 Discussion Thread

[Maple]

I really like the dinner and the train station. However that station is going to be like $450.

[RichardGoring]

1 hour ago, Maple said:

I really like the dinner and the train station. However that station is going to be like $450.

If they can keep the same price per piece average as the other sets, it will 'only' be about $330.

[Lord Insanity]

I find it fascinating that the "Modular Lego Store" was the first to sell out.  I think a lot of people are going to have buyers remorse on that one when they realize, contrary to its name, it is not in fact mini-fig compatible scale.  I mean the doors on that thing look more suitable to technic figs than mini-figs.  Each "door" is 6 studs wide and 10 bricks high!  I am constantly amazed by how terrible most people are at gauging size and scale from pictures.  I just assumed most Lego fans would be very good at mentally scaling pictures to "real world size",  but apparently not.

I am not surprised the Quest Builder was dead last.  The real appeal of that project would have been new fig prints and recolored accessories.  Neither of which was possible through the Bricklink program.

I am happy that the two projects I wanted most from this wave I was able to order and they are going to be made, the Mountain Windmill and the Bowling Alley.

[RichardGoring]

2 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

I find it fascinating that the "Modular Lego Store" was the first to sell out.  I think a lot of people are going to have buyers remorse on that one when they realize, contrary to its name, it is not in fact mini-fig compatible scale.  I mean the doors on that thing look more suitable to technic figs than mini-figs.  Each "door" is 6 studs wide and 10 bricks high!  I am constantly amazed by how terrible most people are at gauging size and scale from pictures.  I just assumed most Lego fans would be very good at mentally scaling pictures to "real world size",  but apparently not.

I am happy that the two projects I wanted most from this wave I was able to order and they are going to be made, the Mountain Windmill and the Bowling Alley.

You find it fascinating that something with 'modular' in the name sold out quickly? That's second only to 'castle', isn't it? I agree though. Is it an old train station converted into an Apple store, and then rebadged as LEGO? The video is useful to see more of the detail, but the fact that an essentially single story building (with an attic?) is the same height as the standard three story modulars does feel strange. But modding it to add a middle floor, or making this a two story tall building will be fun and make it fit better. To be fair, the video does clearly state that it was designed to be standalone though. And it does look good standalone.

Mountain Windmill should look great next to the Blacksmith. And the bowling alley will be superb next to the Downtown Diner. LegoArtisan on Rebrickable has a great MOC of Downtown Diner to turn it into a bowling alley that I was very tempted by, but so great to be able to get a dedicated one.

 

Edited November 16, 2021 by RichardGoring

[MAB]

LEGO or Bricklink could have asked for the name to be changed if they had wanted to, to avoid confusion with their modular range. What surprises me more is that LEGO had not realised that LEGO fans wanted a large 18+ version of a LEGO Store. Given the speed it sold out, something like that could be a steady seller over many years, like a Death Star or Tower Bridge. Who knows, maybe they will do their own one in a few years.

[Lyichir]

11 hours ago, MAB said:

LEGO or Bricklink could have asked for the name to be changed if they had wanted to, to avoid confusion with their modular range. What surprises me more is that LEGO had not realised that LEGO fans wanted a large 18+ version of a LEGO Store. Given the speed it sold out, something like that could be a steady seller over many years, like a Death Star or Tower Bridge. Who knows, maybe they will do their own one in a few years.

The question is, does that demand scale? 10,000 is an exceptionally small number of sets compared to an actual Lego set (heck, it's the minimum number of supporters for an Ideas project to even be considered). And the fact that the kinds of hardcore fans who would even know the Bricklink designer program exists would quickly buy such a thing is far from a guarantee that mass audiences would do the same, especially given that many parts of the world where Lego does business don't even HAVE Lego brand retail stores.

I would certainly be interested in a large-scale Lego store set if one were to be released—but this particular model, with the constraints it's under, doesn't quite meet my standards.

[MAB]

12 hours ago, Lyichir said:

The question is, does that demand scale? 10,000 is an exceptionally small number of sets compared to an actual Lego set (heck, it's the minimum number of supporters for an Ideas project to even be considered). And the fact that the kinds of hardcore fans who would even know the Bricklink designer program exists would quickly buy such a thing is far from a guarantee that mass audiences would do the same, especially given that many parts of the world where Lego does business don't even HAVE Lego brand retail stores.

I would certainly be interested in a large-scale Lego store set if one were to be released—but this particular model, with the constraints it's under, doesn't quite meet my standards.

Does it scale? I think yes. Official modulars continue to sell very well year after year. So if LEGO do a LEGO themed modular, I imagine it would do better than regular modulars as people are less likely to skip it due to the subject. Once you have a row, they are more easy to skip if the subject matter doesn't interest you and you don't have the must have them all mentality. I believe a LEGO themed one would be harder to skip.

I also don't like this one. I don't think it fits at all well with other modulars (as I am sure many buyers will find when they build it) given the odd proportions and significantly different ceiling / floor heights compared to real modulars. I think some people will even be disappointed by it when they find that out by building it, realising it is not really part of the modular line despite the set name that LEGO/BL used when selling it.

 

[Lord Insanity]

On 11/15/2021 at 11:24 PM, RichardGoring said:

You find it fascinating that something with 'modular' in the name sold out quickly?

Yes I do find it fascinating that people quickly bought something simply because it had "modular" in the name without actually truly looking at the picture and realizing it is a different scale than actual modular buildings.  I stand by my statement that I believe many people are going to have buyers remorse once they actually build the thing and realize the scale is way off.

[RichardGoring]

28 minutes ago, Lord Insanity said:

Yes I do find it fascinating that people quickly bought something simply because it had "modular" in the name without actually truly looking at the picture and realizing it is a different scale than actual modular buildings.  I stand by my statement that I believe many people are going to have buyers remorse once they actually build the thing and realize the scale is way off.

Sorry, I agree. I was being somewhat facetious.

However, I think the fact that it had modular in the name has contributed to the speed of sales. Limited edition modular building? People are definitely going to buy before looking.

[MAB]

10 hours ago, Lord Insanity said:

Yes I do find it fascinating that people quickly bought something simply because it had "modular" in the name without actually truly looking at the picture and realizing it is a different scale than actual modular buildings.  I stand by my statement that I believe many people are going to have buyers remorse once they actually build the thing and realize the scale is way off.

I think for some people it may be that they think it is a Modular building as LEGO are marketing it as a Modular LEGO Store. When you look at it quickly, it is about the same size even if the scale is off. Still they can probably sell it for more than they paid for it, even once built.

[CopperTablet]

Your typical American r/lego Modular enthusiast is not going to notice the scale is off.  They're going to build it, upload a photo of their Modular street(which contains every official Lego modular from Parisian Restaurant to Police Station and absolutely no MOCs or any of the old Modulars) to the 'gram, and then go back to watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Netflix until a new Modular comes out.

Edited November 22, 2021 by CopperTablet

[Sansy]

24 minutes ago, CopperTablet said:

Your typical American r/lego Modular enthusiast is not going to notice the scale is off.  They're going to build it, upload a photo of their Modular street(which contains every official Lego modular from Parisian Restaurant to Police Station and absolutely no MOCs or any of the old Modulars) to the 'gram, and then go back to watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Netflix until a new Modular comes out.

That sounds like something my dad would do, considering he's got every Modular Building except Cafe Corner...

[Friscorays]

3 hours ago, CopperTablet said:

Your typical American r/lego Modular enthusiast is not going to notice the scale is off.  They're going to build it, upload a photo of their Modular street(which contains every official Lego modular from Parisian Restaurant to Police Station and absolutely no MOCs or any of the old Modulars) to the 'gram, and then go back to watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Netflix until a new Modular comes out.

So anybody that enjoys building, collecting and displaying Lego sets doesn't qualify as a true fan unless they have done so since the beginning of time (or are willing to shell out outlandish amounts of money for old sets to pretend that they did) and have both enough free time and creativity to build their own MOCs?  Got it.

[danth]

4 hours ago, CopperTablet said:

Your typical American r/lego Modular enthusiast is not going to notice the scale is off.  They're going to build it, upload a photo of their Modular street(which contains every official Lego modular from Parisian Restaurant to Police Station and absolutely no MOCs or any of the old Modulars) to the 'gram, and then go back to watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Netflix until a new Modular comes out.

🤣

Not sure Americans can be singled out tho. Seems like the whole world only cares about licensed stuff.

[CopperTablet]

21 hours ago, Friscorays said:

So anybody that enjoys building, collecting and displaying Lego sets doesn't qualify as a true fan unless they have done so since the beginning of time (or are willing to shell out outlandish amounts of money for old sets to pretend that they did) and have both enough free time and creativity to build their own MOCs?  Got it.

I didn't use the words "true" or "fan" in that post.   But, I do believe that Lego is a hobby that should have a creative, expressive component to it.

[karmajay]

On 11/22/2021 at 8:58 PM, danth said:

🤣

Not sure Americans can be singled out tho. Seems like the whole world only cares about licensed stuff.

I mean, maybe, but it is also true that even though their are plenty of great looking modular MOCs that you can buy the instructions for it is also true that they probably average 2x or more in cost to actual build through bricklink. Cost is always going to be a hindrance for this kind of stuff.

[MAB]

On 11/22/2021 at 9:55 PM, CopperTablet said:

Your typical American r/lego Modular enthusiast is not going to notice the scale is off.  They're going to build it, upload a photo of their Modular street(which contains every official Lego modular from Parisian Restaurant to Police Station and absolutely no MOCs or any of the old Modulars) to the 'gram, and then go back to watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe on Netflix until a new Modular comes out.

Don't forget the Daily Bugle and Avengers Tower are also Modulars and belong in that row ...!

PS, it is not just Americans.

 

[Terrasher]

Official images of the final sets from the first batch have popped up on the instructions app and are making the rounds on LEGO blogs. Wow, I can't get over how much official-LEGO-level pictures (or renders? They look too good to be renders ) make a world of difference when advertising a model. I was lukewarm on the Castle in the Forest when it first released but now looking at those pictures it looks delightful. Still happy about getting the fishing boat, though. I hope TLG makes the Bricklink designer program a yearly affair, though I doubt it.

[RichardGoring]

Just looking at the instructions in the app now. Really nice! Looking forward to them being sent out. Hopefully not too long to wait if they manage to stick with the January schedule.

[Friscorays]

Here is one of the possible links: https://www.brickfanatics.com/lego-bricklink-designer-program-first-boxes/

[Terrasher]

The instructions will be available to download as PDF on desktop computers when the sets ship, right? Because this is the first time I am checking the instructions app on my device and my god is the performance absolutely abysmal - slow animations, misrendered images - it's terrible. Is there any way to boost performance or just download instructions as image files?

[Friscorays]

5 hours ago, Terrasher said:

The instructions will be available to download as PDF on desktop computers when the sets ship, right?....

From the program FAQ:

"Will there be printed building instructions?

No, the building instructions will be available in a digital form.

Designer Program sets will feature digital building instructions provided by the LEGO® Building Instructions app. Digital instructions not only reduce cost, they help us fulfil our Planet Promise by using less paper and saving on shipping weight, which in turn reduces emissions while delivering your set to you.

The app lets you zoom, rotate and view your model in 3D and ghost view mode to see how far you’ve come and what part you’re in the process of building. The LEGO Building Instructions app is great at keeping track of complex builds and makes it easy to save your building steps online so you can recycle instruction books.

PDF building instructions will also be made publicly available when sets begin shipping."

[Prometheus87]

Just received an email stating they are ready to ship out the first batch of the orders of the First Wave. I'm excited! 

Also curious what we should do if our credit card info has changed since we originally ordered them? Thoughts?

[RichardGoring]

Same for me.

I suspect you'll have to call customer service to change the credit card details.

[Ajf350d]

Yeah, email says to check card is valid etc,  but no options to update if you need to!

Oddly, I ordered mine in the second wave of Round 1 yet still got the email today?!
Wasn’t expecting anything until June, so might be a nice New year present.