TJJohn12

AC, You can toss my name on that list. It'll be great to meet you; always admired your work. -John

Kris, Thank you for sharing Adam's response. We have to take him at his word. However, the resemblance was and is, frankly, extremely uncanny between the NILTC model and the production set. It was not simply the color but the design techniques that led me down this path, and the assumption of some connection was not unfounded in the least until more evidence came to light. Now that Adam has responded, we know the rest of the story. Adam - we'd love to see the sketch model. I don't think anyone will be disappointed as much as impressed. -John

Just to clarify, the NILTC Haunted House is not my creation. I'm still working on tracking down the original artist. In fact, credit needs to go to Gianluca Morelli who brought up the original connection between the two models. I'm just the indignant voice crying in the wilderness for respect of intellectual property; I am not the artist themselves. -John

That's precisely why I think it could happen. I work in a big entity. The larger the organization, the more failure points and the easier things slip through the cracks. -John

I think there's a fundamental difference between a fan copying a production set and tweaking it or a fan copying a fan and placing the model on their shelf, and anyone, be they fan or company, copying a whole design for sale. If I MOC a Cafe Corner style building and put it on my shelf, that's one thing. I have a cherished little model of a TARDIS from Doctor Who that I reverse engineered from Mark Stafford's designs and I put out at public displays. But every time someone compliments me on it, I point out it was Mark's concepts on Brickshelf that inspired it. And I've never tried to make money off of Mark's design by selling it (I did give a copy gratis to a friend as a graduation gift once). Just a little while ago, there was outrage on EB over the prospect of EBay sellers copying MOCs and selling either full kits or full instructions they themselves did not design. In the case of this set, if this is indeed what happened, I'd hope to see a similar reaction. We need to respect each others' designs. Imitation may be the highest form of flattery, but when you imitate you should at very least hat-tip. I'm not arguing that techniques are sacrosanct and not copyable. That's how we grow as a community, by seeing how others did things and adding onto those ideas. But this isn't a stolen window design used in a different context. This is a large mass of stolen design elements used in the same exact context and same configuration, haunted house begat haunted house. I'm not trying to be a troublemaker here. But I care about the designs of the community and our fantastically talented builders getting their due credit. That's all. I'd hope the rest of the community cares about that shared ethic as well. -John

Respectfully, Legocrazy, I must deeply disagree. And it has no relation to BadSneaker's work or any kind of "research"... Did BadSneaker make the NILTC building I linked to from 2004? The two models bear a striking resemblance to one another, and the name of that resemblance is 'identity.' The design of the windows (1x1 frames around 2 stacked 1x2x2 frames), the cornice work above the windows (1x1 round plates flanking a 1x2 roof slope apex), the corners constructed of round columns, the cornice work (1x2 modified plate w/ bar), the design of the pediments above the porch supports (including the forward facing studs). The differences revolve more around a shift in parts palate than a shift in design. The 1x1 brick modified with stud and the new clip-held shutters did not exist in 2004. I'm not arguing that both artists were basing their designs off of the archetype of a haunted house. That gothic/late-victorian/early-edwardian archetype is well worn (and the modern cultural conception has more to do with Alfred Hitchcock than it does with Mary Shelly or even Bella Lugosi). Tell a modern western human being to draw a haunted house and they'll draw you a symmetrical building with three bays, a centered tower with mansard roof and widow's walk. But the small details, like the design of windows, the way you frame the corners, the type of cornice you decide the building needs all will change person to person. Even one artist like BadSneaker can come up with multiple concepts for their models which follow the cultural rules of "haunted house" but come out fundamentally different from one another. But here we have, for all intents and purposes, the exact same model carbon copied. Again, I'm hoping that the model was designed by an AFOL turned designer. If it is, bravo! It means we're making headway at getting stellar design concepts inside the gates of the company. The model is superb, has been a dream set from my point of view since I was a young member of the AFOL community and is on my list of "must buys" as long as it's not the ripoff. If it is, I'm not sure how clean I'll feel dropping $200 on it. -John

Using MOCs for inspiration is a fine endeavour. Fans reverse engineering designs for their own display, in my book, is cool as well. But without seeing the video, this looks more akin to downright plagiarism of a fan design for a production set. That is unless the designer was a member of NILTC in 2004-2006. As was pointed out above, a nearly identical model graced that club's layout more than 5 years ago: I'm praying we find out that the dude in the Munsters shirt in the video is an AFOL who went on to join LEGO's design team and revived a MOC into a production model. Otherwise, there's something seriously wrong here. But since the video went private, we're flying blind for the moment. -John

No.

This model has been long in progress. From a sketch to the finished piece, it's been a few years in the making. The Pacific Electric Railway operated in the streets of Los Angeles between 1901 and 1961. The Hollywood Cars first hit the rails in the 1920s. The largest stock in the fleet, Pacific Electric operated 160 of the Hollywood Cars at the height of their service. A real Hollywood Car in operation (photo from Metro Transportation Library and Archive) More images of the model, as well as LDD screenshots and photos of the original sketch model can be found on Flickr. EDIT: The link doesn't seem to have worked. The Flickr set is at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjjohn12/sets/72157605964329366/ I have submitted the model to LEGO Cuusoo. If you like the model, you can vote for it at: http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/40 -John

Another option would be a magnetic drive system underneath the streets, similar to this: It's been a dream of mine, but right now I don't have the space to create it. A chain drive with magnets attached at increments, along with a matched pair magnet under each vehicle should do the trick. Just another option, far more mechanical than programming based. -John

That hairdo looks for all the world like a well coiffed mullet. Is that minifig a spitting image of MacGyver or what? -John

Murdoch, Ask and ye shall receive: http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/TJJohn12/LDD-Creations/PE-Red-Car/perr.lxf This is an older LDD version of the model and differs a slight bit from the built model. It still should give you a fair idea as to how the car is held together. Your mileage may vary, build at your own risk, etc., etc. -John

Thanks for the kind words, Captain! I've edited the post to include the link to the set on Flickr. The link seems not to have formatted well the first time. -John

Found some at my local (US) Walmart... which is weird because our Walmart has a piddly LEGO selection. The results were surprising. The distribution of the endcap boxes is very different than the counter boxes. I cherry-picked what I think was every beefeater in the display. I ended up with 7 rather than my expected 5... There appear to be significantly different distributions in the endcap boxes. If you're aiming to army build a bit, keep your eyes out for the endcaps. AND if anyone is looking to drop serious coin, why not buy up one of those endcap displays and let us know what the distribution shakes out to? I'll keep cherry-picking my shako'd army. ;-)

Pretty simple question here. I ordered my first custom model from shop.lego on the 12th of the month (shipping to US). It is still listed as "in process" today, the 27th, a full 15 days later. The site's FAQ says that typically it takes 11 days for processing and packing of custom orders. I'll give them that my model is more than likely not typical, but I'm starting to get antsy. So, the question is this - If you've ever ordered either a custom model or online PAB, how long did it take for your order to ship out? Will I be waiting around for an excruciatingly long time? -John

I figured I would update on this, just so if someone comes across this message in the future, the resolution is here. I wrote a note of feedback to the Lego site on 4 May. It said: On 5 May I received the following: I still am a bit miffed it took nearly a week past the stated FAQ time to pack the order. I really think S@H should revise their estimates in the online documentation to reflect a longer processing period. Better to say that something will take longer than it actually does than to say it will take shorter. All that said, with online PaB or Design By Me let the buyer beware. Next time, I think I'll go through the painful process of finding the parts in 5-6 Bricklink shops... -John

At Minifig Scale, a phoropter would be relatively indistinct. I'd suggest using a Modified 1 x 2 Plate with Handle on Side in White mounted by a clip from above, and a couple of the new Round 1 x 1 Plate with Open Stud placed on the front to represent the adjustable lenses. -John

Yes, they do, but I'd suggest not purchasing them at that time. The store event will be run differently this year, as I understand. Each person can only buy one set at a time, then head to the back of the line. I'd wager you don't want to waste your "one set" on a 20% discount you can get all weekend. Regardless, the store event is at Potomac Mills, whereas the closest store to Dulles is Tyson Corner. Different store, different stock, better opportunity to snag a haul.

With an expected October release, I'd wager this will be previewed on the weekend of August 5th-8th at Brickfair. Not a guarantee, but that timeline fits the bill for many of the other LDM releases.

A quick look at Peeron doesn't list any widely available sources for instructions. This being a basic set, I'd assume the instructions weren't that much to look at in the first place... Regardless, 4 copies are available on Bricklink for relatively cheap: http://www.bricklink.com/search.asp?itemID=15189 The Bricklink catalogue has an entry, with what appears to be a full inventory and a few images: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?S=577-1 BTW, to a mod... does this belong in Town? The set has a few town themes, but appear more to be a "Basic" set... Anyways, hope those links helped. -John

Visually, the lightsaber blades for the columns were an extremely poor choice. Those columns on the original building are beefy and an extremely important visual element. Here they've lost the dominance they have over the profile of the original structure. At this scale, the columns would have been a much more powerful choice to scale with 1x1 rounds rather than spindly lightsabers. I'm not even going to get started on the windows (entirely too large and poor representations of the real structure). Like all of the other offerings in this series (save the outrageously overpriced Falling Water) this is a distinct disappointment when it comes to design. Again, like all of the other offerings, money spent on this model is a waste, both in terms of design and parts selection. It's too bad, too, because this series could be SO much. -John

How this idle speculation and quarreling is somehow more valuable than the interesting debate a few pages back I'll never understand. -John

That piece has been interspersed throughout the 2010 sets (Ex. Buzz Lighyear's Arms). Kinda exciting! -John

Frankly, you're better off with Green Grocer. I own CC and it sits in a few pieces in a box gathering dust and being slowly cannibalized for parts. It just is TOO colorful and too hectic. GG has a much more realistic and much better unified color scheme than CC. The chief drawback with Green Grocer, as well as all of the more recent CC-standard buildings are the interiors driving up the price. Interiors aren't really necessary on these models, but I digress. -John

Beg to differ, there... http://shop.lego.com/ByTheme/Product.aspx?...cn=52&d=100 It's there and "Available Now" in US. Although you are right about the Grand Emporium. Check out those zoomable pics! -John