greg3

Thanks for your comments... I think it's pretty safe to assume that at some point a Batcave of some description may make an appearance!! Also, the War Memorial is safe - in fact I'm thinking of replacing the church with a small Military Museum (charting the effect of war on the citizens of the Ballabreek from the Napoleonic Era, through both World Wars and up to today) but that's all for the future... this week we're off to the harbour where a special visitor has arrived... The Coastguard's latest patrol vessel Adjutor... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The main reason for its visit was to see if it could safely dock in the newly deepened harbour... thanks to the vessels advanced computer controlled manoeuvring thrusters it can!! Although it's a tight fit and is an option that will be rarely used as the ship patrols a wide area around the Island. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr While it's here, the boat is hosting an open day so that the locals can go aboard and have a look around... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Ballabreek's permanent rescue craft (a small inshore rescue boat) is also open to the public... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr You can see more of the Adjutor in its own thread here The idea for this little set up came about as today saw the last slipway launch of our local lifeboat as both it and its boathouse are due to be replaced. Today is also the day that Sir William Hillary is commemorated - he founded the Royal National Lifeboat Institution while living in the Isle of Man and is buried in a local church. Anyway, thanks for looking... comments are always welcome.

Hi Here's the latest addition to my Coastguard fleet - The Adjutor (named after the patron saint of swimmers, boaters, and drowning victims!!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr As you can see, it's a MOD of the boat from set 60167. I really liked the design of the official version but the dinghy launching ramp behind the bridge just didn't seem quite right (more suited to the lifeboat of a large cargo vessel - although it was great fun to launch the dinghy and watch it slide across the table!!) so I replaced it with a crane so the dinghy can be launched/retrieved easily. While I wanted to make it a bit more realistic I also wanted it to still look like a Lego set and be able to deal with any maritime emergency - hopefully I've achieved that!! Here are a few pics of the ship undergoing sea trials... The powerful searchlight allows it to operate at night or in fog... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr A fully equipped medical room forward of the bridge allows the crew's trained doctor to give immediate medical assistance to casualties. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Inside the bridge/wheelhouse is the helmsman's position (thanks to advanced technology the boat can be controlled by 1 person but it's normal crew is 4 - captain, helmsman, 2 small boat crew who also act as engineer, rescue swimmer/medic.) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr On top of the bridge is a water cannon for firefighting duties (it's controlled from the bridge) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr At the rear is the boat deck where a small rescue craft is stored. A crane allows it to be quickly launched and retrieved. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The rear deck also houses a powerful winch to tow disabled vessels back to port. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr So there we have it - The Adjutor and its crew - keeping the blue baseplates seas safe for us all!! Thanks for looking - comments are always welcome!

Very nice... I've not watched an episode of the Simpsons for years but I recognize the buildings straight away!! I especially like the church. Excellent stuff!!

Very nice!! I love the ramshackle appearance you've created and that roof looks great!! Excellent work!!

HI Here's my take on the plane Steve Trevor flies in the Wonder Woman movie (and set 76075). I believe it's supposed to be a Fokker Eindecker so I gave the official version a bit of a tweak to make it more accurate. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The main change was the addition of the control cables. The original Eindecker used "wing warping" to control the plane left and right. Moving the joystick caused one wing to be pulled downward and the other to be pulled upwards causing the plane to bank. My version lacks a few cables but I think it still looks the part!! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr I also replaced the stud shooters with a single, more realistic looking machine gun. In the later half of 1915, the Eindeckers all but ruled the skies over the Western Front as they were the first plane to have the machine gun synchronised to the propellor - meaning it could fire forwards without hitting the blade. The French and British planes had to rely on a second gunner which added weight (or the pilot had to fire guns mounted on the top wing making aiming much harder). This period was known as the Fokker Scourge and lasted until the Allies could capture an intact synchronisation system to copy. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr I also tried to improve the tail - the actual aircraft should have an almost circular tail so my version's not perfect. I also wanted to add some insignia - I didn't have any German crosses but I did have a few RAF roundels from an old Adventurer's set so it became a British plane!! (The background to this is that it was captured by Trevor's intelligence unit and is now being used by them to investigate rumours of a new German weapon... project Ares!!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Finally a shot with Trevor himself... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr As a fan of military history (and superheroes!) I quite enjoyed putting this together and who knows, I may even add the rest of Trevor's unit and send them out on some missions!! Anyway thanks for looking... comments are always welcome.

Hi (and Happy New Year to you all!!) What better way to start 2018 than with a new topic for my LEGO layout - the small town of Ballabreek. For those new to Ballabreek which is located on a fictional island (that may or may not bear some resemblance to the Isle of Man (where I live)), the town's name means "Place of the Brick" in Manx. Over the years, the town has grown from a small village (previous yearly updates can be found here in the Town forum) and as far as possible is made up of official sets from a range of themes (albeit often MODed). I hope to keep this topic updated weekly with a mixture of stories and new builds which I hope you will enjoy!! But to begin with, a quick tour of the town... Our tour begins in the centre of the town; a small park, tram stop, bus stops, automated bank and shop selling basic groceries etc. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Across the road is the main shopping area. Current businesses include; a LEGO store, a newsstand, M's Gemstore (above it lives the mysterious Dr Stephen Strange!), a bike shop and barbers. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Behind the shops is a narrow one-way residential street. Houses are small but modern and well equipped. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Nearby is the town's small harbour area featuring an open air pool, a boardwalk area used for public events, a burger bar, dive shop and coastguard lookout tower. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Heading back towards the centre of town, we pass the small chapel and medical centre (this area is likely to undergo some major changes this year as I don't think these buildings fit in any more) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr On the edge of town are the police and fire stations (it wouldn't be a LEGO town without them!!) as well as a recycling area. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr And the town's major employers (a mix of the old and new) - a mine and a space technology centre. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Behind the mine is a footpath leading out into the countryside. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Within a few miles of the town (on nearby shelves!!) are a camping area and small airfield (used mainly for helicopters) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Finally an aerial view of the whole town Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr So what does 2018 have instore for Ballabreek? Well a few months ago, an incident involving toxic waste, criminal gangs and corrupt owners saw the mine closed down. See the story here This put the town's economic future in jeopardy but now hope has arrived in the form of Wayne Industries who have purchased the mine. Today sees the mine officially taken over and the head of Wayne Industries, Bruce Wayne himself, is visiting the site and being interviewed by local media. He explains that his aim is to re-employ many of the former workers and to invest in new equipment to increase productivity. He has also pledged to fund other local community and environmental projects. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr So will the mine and therefore the town prosper? Watch this space to find out!! As you can tell I like to incorporate other themes into my town so look out for future posts to be a mixture of the everyday and the more unusual but for now thanks for looking. Comments are always welcome!!

Hi Treated myself to the Last Jedi Heavy Walker for Christmas... a nice set but I thought the interior lacked a little something!! After looking in the Last Jedi Cross-section book I decided to add some detail. First off, a control station for the main canon (a modified turbolaser according to the book) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Not a lot of available space thanks to the technic structure and I wasn't going to take it all apart (!!) but I managed to get in a control panel and sighting/aiming viewfinder... might see if I can find some suitable stickers to break up all the black! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The operator has to stand (but in the reference book the 2 men operating the canon stand up so I'm not to worried about that!!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Although the walker is designed as a mobile artillery piece it can carry troops (12 according to the book). Here they are deploying during combat... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Leaping off the deployment platform, they rely on a repulsor belt to slow their descent (I made that bit up as a winch/drop cables were too complicated!!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Inside, more troops wait their turn... I really wanted to fit seating but there just was't room without a major redesign!! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr I'm not too bothered about 100% accuracy and have taken a few liberties!! I just wanted a set I can "play" with and I'm sure others will do a much better job at MODing this set but I'm pretty pleased with my version!! Thanks for looking and comments are always welcome...

Unfortunately no manatee for me this year (unlike last year) but congratulations to all the lucky winners and thanks to Copmike for organizing the raffle. Hope all have a great Christmas and Happy New Year!!

That's great!! I really like the uneven snow effect. Nice work and happy Christmas to you too!!

I do indeed live in Douglas (the island's capital)

Hi Today I noticed some Lego on sale in my local Dealz store (a discount store owned I think by Poundland) The had a few polybags (Ninjago Sky pirates, Nexo Knights and Friends ones) for £1.20 and last year's Creator Park Fountain set (40221) for £5. Might be worth checking out if you have a local Dealz or Poundland. I also found the Ideas Saturn V in my local Toymaster branch!!

Meanwhile, back at the harbour... Construction work is finished on the new harbour wall and coastguard station (my local workers work very quickly!!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The coastguard station itself is set to become fully operational in the new year when it will be used to help co-ordinate rescue operations along this stretch of coast. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr It will also be the base for a new inshore rescue craft, designed to perform rescues along the treacherous and rocky coastline around Ballabreek. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Today the crew are taking it out to conduct exercises and sea trials. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr From where I live, I can often see the local lifeboat heading out/returning from rescues or exercises so I wanted to find a way to get this year's Coastguard sets into my layout and I think this fits quite well (and of course it'll make the seas (or at least the blue baseplates!!) around Ballabreek that bit safer!!) Thanks for looking!!

Simply stunning!!! I could look at these pics all day and still keep seeing new details!! I think my favourite bit is the control/tracking room (nice to see Santa going hi-tec!!) and the dining table makes me feel hungry!! In fact the whole thing is nothing short of a work of art!!! Amazing work!!

That is really cool!! Love the oversize ammo belt (nice use of the ice skates!!) and the cyborg looks perfect!! Excellent stuff!!

Well, now it's December, the good folks of Ballabreek can begin getting ready for Christmas!! Unfortunately the construction work from the last update means that the area usually used for public entertainment is unavailable, leaving only the small park area but the citizens won't let that stop them from giving the kids a Christmas to remember!! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr There may not be much room but they've squeezed in the traditional tree... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr ... an ice rink... (as with last year, kindly sponsored by local businessman Oswald Cobblepot!) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr And new for this year, a kiddie train ride. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr A number of small stalls provide sweets and drinks. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr As you can see, I wanted to use this year's seasonal Christmas sets to bring some festive cheer to my minifigs (and wish all at Eurobricks a Happy Christmas!!) Thanks for looking...

Bit of a last minute rush for me... had much grander plans but unfortunately the bits I needed haven't arrived so it's on to plan B.... My ideal Christmas tree is quite literally "out of this world"... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr "One small tree for a man.... one giant tree for mankind!!" Thanks to Cop Mike for organising the raffle and Happy Christmas to you all!!

For this update it's back to the harbour area where work has begun to extend the quayside to allow more ships to moor up. image by g.nat, on Flickr A new harbour wall is being constructed on a base of crushed rock which is being dumped by a barge moored in the harbour. image by g.nat, on Flickr image by g.nat, on Flickr The fore(wo)man guides the bucket operator via radio... image by g.nat, on Flickr image by g.nat, on Flickr It's hoped that most of the work will be completed before winter storms arrive... image by g.nat, on Flickr This little scene is a result of my decision to extend the quayside in order to fit in a Coastguard station (and possibly another shop to go with the dive shop... perhaps a small version of Anton's Bait Shop?) The barge is a quick 20 min MOC based on a barge I spotted moored in my local harbour (with the addition of the cab/bucket from this year's official construction set) As always, thanks for looking and feel free to comment...

That looks great!! Excellent use of the Fabuland base (I like the old style horn too!!) Nice work!!

Personally I'm hoping for the Red Arrow set!! And I may be lucky as the school I work at recently got information about a kids competition being run by the RAF Association to design posters to mark the Centenary of the formation of the RAF next year. One of the prizes it mentions is.... A Lego Red Arrow set!!! (although a bit of googling has shown that there are (pretty crappy looking!) knock off/ clone brand sets already available but I really hope they don't mean them and the poster does say Lego on it!!) Anyway, fingers crossed!!!

That is really cool!! The barn is perfect - the shape, colour selection and textures all spot on and all the details (the crates, tools etc) really bring it to life. The car looks pretty good too (and I love the way the blue stands out in the scene) Excellent work!!

Thanks for the comments... good to hear people are enjoying my updates!! This weekend has seen the citizens of Ballabreek take time out of their busy lives to remember all those who have given their lives in war. As part of the Armistice Day commemorations there has been a wreath laying ceremony at the village war memorial... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The sounding of the last post began a 2 minute silence... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr As is Ballabreek's tradition, the wreath is placed by a local serving member of the armed forces... this year helped by the winner of a children's poem writing competition (making sure that the next generation recognise the sacrifices made long before they were born) The young lady needed a little encouragement but did a fine job. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr This year has also been the centenary of the death in action of Ballabreek's most decorated war hero: pilot Trevor Stephens (see what I did there?). His most notable exploit, was that after being shot down and captured, he not only escaped but managed to steal the German's latest fighter. The plane, which had been causing huge loses among the Allied air forces thanks to its synchronisation gear that allowed it to fire through the spinning propellor, was a valuable prize, allowing the Allies to change the balance of the air war. Once its secrets had been revealed, the pane was given back to Stephens who continued to use it as his personal fighter on a number of secret missions until he was finally shot down in November 1917. Now his great-grandson has built a replica of the aircraft and it's first flight was a flypast to salute the bravery of all those who have served. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Later the plane landed at the local airfield to give people the chance of a closer look.. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr It's owner related some of Stephens' many adventures as well as personal family memories of him.. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The highly prized "secret weapon" the forward firing machine gun (in real life, the synchronisation gear did give the Germans a huge advantage until the Allies were able to get an intact version from a downed aircraft) Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr As you can probably tell, the plane is a MODed version of the one from this years Wonder Woman set.... unfortunately I've mislaid the stickers so it became British (I had the roundels from an adventurers set!!) and then of course needed a "Greg3 backstory"!! I'm currently playing around with creating the plane in different colour schemes and tweaking the design so it'll probably get its own topic at a later date!! Anyway thanks for looking. Comments are always welcome.

I use this method all the time and it doesn't seem to have had any negative side effects on the stickers themselves. I apply quite a lot of the cleaner (I use a cheap supermarket own brand) to the surface so the sticker can be slid around into position (using tweezers) before pressing it down. Sometimes it can take a while to dry and stick "permanently" (for some reason the stickers on the new Star Destroyer took almost a day to finally stick completely!) but it works especially well on windscreen stickers ( no more fingerprints or air bubbles!!) and gives you a much better chance to get the sticker just where you want it!!

Despite what you see on telly, the land of Ninjago is more than just ninja, mechs and dragons. Among its rich heritage of customs and traditions is the ancient art of bird fishing. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr This traditional skill involves the use of trained birds to catch fish. The birds in question are fitted with a band around their neck that prevents them swallowing large fish, instead they are trained to deposit their catch on their handler's boat. The bird most often used is the rare "yellow footed snow cormorant" found only on the most Northern islands of Ninjago... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Here you can clearly see the bands around the bird's neck... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr In recent years, the practise has come under threat from more modern fishing methods but it still lives on in the more remote areas and steps are being taken to train the next generation of bird fishermen in order to keep this piece of history alive. Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr I had the idea for this after watching a program about real life bird fishing (mainly practised in China and Japan) and originally planned to use the boat from the Jelly Sub set but a bit of googling led to me this simple raft design. The bird design doesn't really match a real bird - hence the made up species (found only in Ninjago!!) Thanks for looking... comments are always welcome. By the way, what is the proper adjective for something/someone from Ninjago? Ninjagoese? Ninjagoean? Ninjagan?

The Isle of Man has a rich history of mythical and supernatural creatures... from the Mooinjer Veggey ("Little People" - mischievous fairy folk) to the Moddey Dhoo ("Black Dog" - the sight of which means death!!) but one of my favourites is the buggane. Described as giant ogre like creatures with black fur, bugganes were said to live in remote woods and hillsides using their sharp tusks and claws to deal with anyone who disturbed them. Their one weakness was an inability to enter consecrated ground so when a buggane living on Greeba Mountain saw a group of monks building a church in the valley below, he was furious!! Fearing that the sound of the bells would disturb his peace he vowed to stop the church being built. His plan was simple, each time the monks thought the church was finished, the buggane would sneak down under cover of darkness and tear off the roof!! After this happened several times, a local man - a tailor named Timothy, offered to guard the building the following night. In return for a purse of gold, he agreed to remain in the church for as long as it took him to sew a pair of trousers. Sure enough, that night the buggane appeared, bursting from the floor having tunnelled under the church but Timothy was able to confuse the creature by pretending he'd never heard of it. Eventually though, the buggane, lost his temper and drawing himself up to his full height he burst through the roof of the church just as Timothy finished his work and fled. Enraged by this, the Buggane chased Timothy for several miles until they reached the parish church of Marown and the tailor leaped over the churchyard wall to safety. By now the buggane was so angry, he tore off his own head and hurled it at Timothy. The head (still snarling and gnashing its teeth!!) struck the church wall and exploded in a flash of light. The rest of the buggane also vanished and the following morning Timothy collected his reward!! As for the church, legend says it was never rebuilt and still stands there minus its roof!! (it's sometimes called the "Broken Church") The church Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The Buggane Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Timothy's Terror!! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr RUN!!!!! Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr The church today... Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr Untitled by g.nat, on Flickr I quite enjoyed this little build - to be honest, the church should be a bit longer but I wanted it to fit in with my other locally themed 8x8 micro scale models. Originally I was just going to build it as it looks today but then decided on the removable roof. Not sure about the bell though (it should actually be inside the small tower) and I might switch the light grey cheese slopes for dark grey to match the rest of the roof . Anyway, thanks for looking... Comments always welcome!!

That looks really good - you've managed to integrate all the sets perfectly!! (I'd like to do something similar with my WV collection but lack the space!!) Nice work!!