REVIEW: 1747 Pirates Treasure Surprise

[Lord Of Pies]

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Hello chaps,

According to my title, I am the official pirate set reviewer around here! However, I think the last time I reviewed a pirate set was almost 4 years ago! Anyway, I thought I would make a comeback because I was looking through the review index and I noticed that no one has reviewed this little set and it is one that I happen to have in my collection.

Name: 1747 Pirates Treasure Surprise

Theme: LEGO System / Pirates

Year: 1996

Pieces: 21

Minifigs: 1

Price: USD 2

Resources: Lugnet / Peeron

Notes: This set was also released as a bagged version under the name 1802 Tidy Treasure, for the same price.

This set was released in 1996, which wasn't really a vintage year for pirate sets in my opinion. Does this tiny set buck the trend? You're about to find out.

Here is the original packaging. It has a certain charm about it with a similar style to the earlier pirate releases:

In classic 90s style, the back of the box shows some alternative builds. The pirate map background is a nice touch:

The side contains another little 'action' shot:

This set came with just one minifig, the ubiquitous 'Black Jack Hawkins'. I bought this set MISB and when I opened it the yellow on the torso was already slightly faded, which was disappointing. On a more positive note, there are plenty of accessories for such a small set. Jack gets a pistol, a sword, some gold and a goblet. What more can a pirate want in life? The set advertised 4 pieces of gold and that is what came in the set, so no complaints there. The gold is the classic colour too, no problems like some have reported in more modern sets.

It would have been nice to have gotten a unique figure in this set, because our dear friend Black Jack also appears in:

• 6204 Buccaneers
  
• 6296 Shipwreck Island
  
• 6289 Red Beard Runner
  
• 6248 Volcano Island (The poor bugger has lost a leg by this point and has a peg leg!)
  
• 6281 Pirates Perilous Pitfall
  
• and Lego Racers!
  

This means that an avid collecter of lego pirate sets probably has a few duplicates of this minifig, so it makes this set less desirable.

Anyway, as you can see from the instructions it is a very simple build:

Here is the set in all it's glory. The plate is a standard 4 x 4 yellow piece, just like all the other pirate sets of the period. There are no unique pieces included. If you have even a small number of pirate sets you will have seen all these pieces before. The design isn't too bad, the big leaf adds some much needed colour to the set and breaks up the greyness.

The set has some functionality: The treasure can be hidden away, and there's just about room for the goblet too. The little door can close completely, it doesn't have to be slightly open like the picture below shows.

The back of the set is completely plain, nothing at all to report on.

The natives want their treasure back:

Summary review:

Playability: 4/10 - For such a small set there is a good amount of accessories, but there is only so much you can do with 21 pieces.

Design: 3/10 - This set is nothing to write home about, the folding door works well, but it is not a revolutionary design. The design is definitely let down by the inclusion of such a common minifig.

Price: 5/10 - $2 (which would be about $3 nowadays) back in 1996 was a good price for this set. Nowadays a single minifigure on the Lego site is around $7. However, if you wanted to buy this set now it seems to be quite rare, so I think it would be hard to get this for under £5 (inc. shipping)

Overall: 4/10 - Only buy this set if you want to complete your pirate collection.

Edit: Added poll + picture to intro.

[Capt. Redblade]

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[Lord Of Pies]

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Oooh a blog, very fancy :)

I have to say the classic-pirates.com site and forum are looking very nice, I like the design.

[Captain Fortune]

Well, I have this set and I know it. And honestly, I must disagree with the review.

You should keep in mind that we are talking about an impulse set. And what is it? It's like a teaser or a trailer for the movies, or the introduction of a book. The impulse sets appear before the whole wave. As I said before, they are like an "introduction". You cannot compare this kind of set with a normal set. That is unfair.

21 pieces, and you complain. Well, what did you expect?

[jodawill]

I got the polybag set when I was little. It wasn't my favorite, but I was glad that it included the goblet and the coins. My favorite small pirates set was Skeleton Crew. Does anyone remember the alternate instructions on the back? It included a little castle/fort type wall thing that I always thought was awesome.

[jodawill]

Heh, I just found a photo of the day I got this set for my birthday. (I couldn't even remember where it came from, apparently because I was more excited about Rocky Reef.) See it in front of the Toy Story can?

Edited December 31, 2013 by jodawill