Minifigure scale Y-Wing instructions

[TheBear]

I've been looking for a Y-Wing model to go with my Psiaki X-Wing and RenegadeClone B-Wing. I looked at several versions but when I came across this one by Brickwright I knew it was the one I wanted to build.

So I asked him for a few breakaway shots of the model and instead he went and made full instructions and a parts list! They are available to download here.

I will be ordering the parts I need soon and will see how it goes.

Update: Brightwright has released a new version of his instructions as of September 2015, which can be downloaded here

Edited October 17, 2015 by TheBear

[Darth Dino]

Hi

you have a good taste. I like the idea having a minifig scaled ship but more details than the retail sets.

I like the Y-Wing most. more than X and B. The only reason that is do not have one is that the UCS is "too big and expensive" and the playset "with too less details".

Maybe i shpuld try this one.

I am just surfing with an iPad, is this manual available in PDF?

Dino

[deanorth]

thanks for sharing that with us, the model is really nice, and having it minifig size is a plus:)

[Bob De Quatre]

There seems to be some errors in the instructions, but it's still buildable... And it's an amazing model

[TheBear]

I am just surfing with an iPad, is this manual available in PDF?

Yes, if you are using a computer there is a download button where you can get a PDF version.

[TheBear]

I like the idea having a minifig scaled ship but more details than the retail sets.

I want ships that my son can play with (and me if I'm honest), but I like the accuracy and detail on these MOCs a lot more than the official sets. It takes much more effort to source all the parts but having only come back to Lego recently I am learning a lot from building these. The downside is that they are quite a bit more fragile than the official playsets which are obviously designed to be sturdy, but they look so cool that I hope my son will forgive me.

[Chills]

That's a really nice looking Y-Wing. I especially like the look of the cockpit, it's low and lean like the real one. The front end of the fuselage looks a bit wide to me, but that's minor. Overall this is a well-detailed MOC.

[Darth Nader]

Wow, if lego released something like this and not that ok Y-WIng last year, I would have definitely purchased it. I like the instruction manual too with the rebel symbol on the steps, lego should do that with their rebel sets too.

[Brickwright]

Hi everyone. Thanks for your interest in the model and the instructions. I had never used Lpub, and had only used MLcad a little bit almost ten years ago before revisiting it last Friday for this project, so I'm pretty fresh at figuring out how they work. The process allowed me to go back through the model and make some refinements which make it a little sturdier and more practical in a few places. Plus, I finally got a piece count, which is something I've never had on anything I've built before. It comes out to 1,262, which is almost three times the parts counts of the '07 and '12 Y-wings. It's dense!

I've been looking for a Y-Wing model to go with my Psiaki X-Wing and RenegadeClone B-Wing. I looked at several versions but when I came across this one by Brickwright I knew it was the one I wanted to build.

So I asked him for a few breakaway shots of the model and instead he went and made full instructions and a parts list! They are available to download here.

I will be ordering the parts I need soon and will see how it goes.

Thanks for starting this thread, I'm really glad you like the instructions. If you are interested in a TIE fighter, I would highly recommend Jerac's TIE. The instructions are well done, and the parts requirements are fairly undemanding. It only took one Bricklink order to finish the one I'm building. He also has an A-wing, which is also my favorite of its type (and possibly the most accurate of any SW ship I've seen), but I don't think there are instructions for that one. I'd love to see your Y-wing when you are done with it.

That's a really nice looking Y-Wing. I especially like the look of the cockpit, it's low and lean like the real one. The front end of the fuselage looks a bit wide to me, but that's minor. Overall this is a well-detailed MOC.

Thanks. I've thought the same thing about that part. One thing that can helps is skipping the copper tubes that run into the back of the cockpit. It reduces the width of the top corners, making it a little slimmer, even though the horizontal width stays the same. I liked them too much to keep them out, in the end.

Edited July 18, 2013 by Brickwright

[TheBear]

Hi Brickwright, thanks again for taking the time to make the instructions, I will definitely post a picture of my build once it is complete.

If you are interested in a TIE fighter, I would highly recommend Jerac's TIE. The instructions are well done, and the parts requirements are fairly undemanding. It only took one Bricklink order to finish the one I'm building. He also has an A-wing, which is also my favorite of its type (and possibly the most accurate of any SW ship I've seen), but I don't think there are instructions for that one.

I've had my eye on Jerac's A-Wing but there are no instructions and it looks like a fairly complicated build. The only thing I've found of the interior is this shot which seems to be from a prototype. The TIE looks great and very accurate but it's a shame that there is no room for a pilot, but with Lego it seems you can never have everything!

[krispy]

That's a cool Y-Wing! I might have to add that to my todo list (after my updated A-Wing).

[TheBear]

I might have to add that to my todo list (after my updated A-Wing).

I would love to see how your A-Wing is done once it is complete.

[krispy]

I would love to see how your A-Wing is done once it is complete.

Like this, but in bricks

Jerac/Scott A-wing - v1.2 by Krispy's brick stuff, on Flickr

[TheBear]

Like this, but in bricks

That is great stuff, would it be possible to get the LDD file? I prefer the thinner back fins of Jerac's model but it is a real shame that he has to use those 2x2 rounded bottom studs (part 2654)

[krispy]

I've started a new topic so that others can find it too. Happy building!

[TheBear]

Coming back to the Y-Wing I have been building up a wanted list in Bricklink. Most of it is easy to source with only a couple of bits being rare, namely:

75c08 Copper Hose, Rigid 3mm D. 8L / 6.4cm

30083 White Windscreen 6 x 6 x 3 Canopy Half Sphere with Hinge

This is the first time I've bought something on Bricklink where I don't actually care if it is faded or discoloured, in fact it would be a bonus.

[krispy]

This is the first time I've bought something on Bricklink where I don't actually care if it is faded or discoloured, in fact it would be a bonus.

I know what you mean. I've gotta go through the list myself, but I have a ton of old gray space Lego, so I'm very excited to be using it on the Y-Wing.

[Brickwright]

I've had my eye on Jerac's A-Wing but there are no instructions and it looks like a fairly complicated build. The only thing I've found of the interior is this shot which seems to be from a prototype. The TIE looks great and very accurate but it's a shame that there is no room for a pilot, but with Lego it seems you can never have everything!

It didn't occur to me, but I can understand that the minifig thing can be a dealbreaker. I don't think that there is a method right now that is that accurate and practical that can also accomodate an interior and a minifig, as you said.

As far as the Bricklink stuff goes, it's odd that the 8L's are so much more expensive and rarer than the 6L's, when they both exclusively come from the UCS Y-wing. There's even more 8L's than 6L's in that set to begin with.

Like you guys, when building my Y-wing and Psiaki X-wing, I specifically sought out faded bricks for variety. Instead of using tan or light gray to add variation on the X-wing, the "white" parts of the ship actually are all white, but uses yellowed pieces here and there for more subtle differences. Making them monochromatic lets the dimension and detail more immediate when the color isn't in play as much.

Edited July 22, 2013 by Brickwright

[Darth Dino]

Hi

are the white domes the same as in the UCS and are they exclusive to that set? I have never seen such domes in other sets.

Any ideas what that beauty costs, if fully purchased via BL?

Dino

[Brickwright]

Hi

are the white domes the same as in the UCS and are they exclusive to that set? I have never seen such domes in other sets.

Any ideas what that beauty costs, if fully purchased via BL?

Dino

Yes, those are the same domes from the UCS Y-wing. Strangely, it was the second set to use them. They appeared in The Scorpion Palace a year prior to the UCS's release in 2004.

The Bear and Krispy will have more relevant information than me in regard to pricing. I built most of it from my existing parts, with only a small portion being bought online. Most of the ship is built from pretty common, familiar parts, so that should keep the cost down. The rarer parts are only needed in small amounts, typically just pairs.

Edited July 22, 2013 by Brickwright

[Darth Dino]

Hi

cool, this part is mich cheaper than expected!

Dino

[krispy]

Hi

are the white domes the same as in the UCS and are they exclusive to that set? I have never seen such domes in other sets.

Any ideas what that beauty costs, if fully purchased via BL?

Dino

Not sure, but I can do a guesstimate. I usually split up my components in rares and commons.

For the Y-Wing the major crux is this:

As far as the Bricklink stuff goes, it's odd that the 8L's are so much more expensive and rarer than the 6L's, when they both exclusively come from the UCS Y-wing. There's even more 8L's than 6L's in that set to begin with.

I've found a shop in Germany that literally has hundreds of them, but you can only buy them in sets of 10. As they cost about $1.5 each, that's $15 for just those copper hoses (I'll probably end up buying them, but right now the A-Wing has taken up this months lego budget)!

So that basicly takes care of the rare parts; for the Y-Wing I'd say about $20.

To get a rough estimate the cost (in euro's mind you) of the common parts I usually just multiply the number of parts by 12 euro cents. That's 10 cents for the part and 2 cents overhead (shipping, paypal costs, small order markup etc.). In my experience the initial estimate may seem high, but (unfortunately) it has always been close to the mark for me. The shipping costs are always higher than you expect as you'll have many orders for a model this size. This way you're not fooling yourself.

In dollars I'd multiply the number of parts by $0.15.

The Y-Wing has around 1250 parts (I believe the exact number is 1257 including the rare parts), so that would mean the common parts will cost you about $190 (or 150 euros).

That means the total cost is about $210 or 165 euros if you Bricklink the entire model.

Bear in mind that this is a pessimistic estimate and that the actual cost may be lower as a big portion of the parts are very common (like the gray headlights); provided you find them at a good price of course. But expect to pay this much: my B-Wing model has about 1000 parts and it ran me about $160 as I didn't have many parts to start with and had to Bricklink a lot of them.

[TheBear]

Taking into consideration that this has around 3 times the parts of the 2010 lego version it is not cheap if you have to buy the whole thing.

Out of interest I found a store in the EU with 85% of the parts in it and the total came to 144 euros, so I think your estimate of 165 euros is pretty much spot on.

But I think it can be done for quite a bit cheaper if you are careful. I found 400 of the parts in my supplies and then sourced another 560 parts for only 30 euros. There is also the possibility to save money by buying the internal parts in cheaper colours, for example at least 26 of the headlights are internal. You can also swap out some of the more expensive plates like the 6x10 and 4x12 for much cheaper combinations of smaller parts.

I happen to have a 20L copper hose. Is it considered bad form to cut 2x 8L out of it? If not, that is a cheaper and easier way of getting those.

Edited July 23, 2013 by TheBear

[Brickwright]

Taking into consideration that this has around 3 times the parts of the 2010 lego version it is not cheap if you have to buy the whole thing.

Out of interest I found a store in the EU with 85% of the parts in it and the total came to 144 euros, so I think your estimate of 165 euros is pretty much spot on.

But I think it can be done for quite a bit cheaper if you are careful. I found 400 of the parts in my supplies and then sourced another 560 parts for only 30 euros. There is also the possibility to save money by buying the internal parts in cheaper colours, for example at least 26 of the headlights are internal. You can also swap out some of the more expensive plates like the 6x10 and 4x12 for much cheaper combinations of smaller parts.

I happen to have a 20L copper hose. Is it considered bad form to cut 2x 8L out of it? If not, that is a cheaper and easier way of getting those.

It's funny that you bring up the headlights. I was going to mention those for the same reason. The fuselage uses the same colors as the real one (except for the old/new grey thing), but the engines have some differences. On mine, the sub-assemblies on pages 74, 75, and 79 are all in different, primary colors. You can almost get away with using these being in different colors, but the color is still slightly visible through a gap if seen from the direct top or sides.

When I mentioned the "refinements" on the model, one of the biggest was actually that 6x10 plate. The real one actually uses a combination of a 1x6, 2x6, 4x6, and three 2x3s from front to back. The 6x10 adds some reinforcement, but that's the sturdiest part, so it's not totally necessary. For the cockpit, the real one also uses these with one of these instead of a just these as the instructions show. I prefer the way the instructions do this, but if you wanted to change those, it's possible, but more fragile. The 4x12's are actually what I used on the real one, but you should be able to swap those too. The only place I would advise against substitution would be on page 46. It would be easier to just use 1x4 plates or a single 1x4 brick, but that separation down the center is needed to lean the cockpit roof forward a little so that it meets the wedge at the front the right way.

As far as the 20L goes, I don't cut stuff personally, but that's really up to you. There's a lot of people that do, and the 3mm tubes are the most common parts to modify.

[TheBear]

I've been looking at what little information I can find about the studio models in the original film and it seems that Gold Leaders Y-Wing doesn't have much copper tubing if any, and Gold 5 has a lot. I am personally not bothered about these kinds of details in a Lego model and will be using the copper tubing because it looks cool, but it is certainly an option to use grey tubes if the copper are hard or too expensive to source.