greg3

Thanks for the comments... the post office is actually just set 6689 (Post Station from 1985) rebuilt in yellow/red (after discovering old instructions online I'm planning to use more old designs in my village) I'm still debating what to do with the pizza shop... I might convert it into a grocers/farm produce shop instead. Signs, lights etc are still to come so watch this space!!! Cheers

Layout Hi After a bit of a lull, I've finally got back into serious building and what better to start with than to build a town/village. Due to space restrictions I've set myself a number of limits... 1. To use official sets as far as possible. 2. To make the village as realistic/plausible as possible. 3. To use the classic open backed building style. 4. To fit everything onto 3x2 roadplates!! Here's the result of a few hours of work... really I was just experimenting with the layout/roads and finding space for buildings before I clear a permanent space for it. I've based it on elements of the villages around where I live in the Isle of Man (including the Victorian era tram stops). The name Ballabreek roughly translates as Place (homestead/farm) of the Brick!! Aerial View Main road through the village. The pizza shop needs a bit of roof signage. Tram stop, village post office and park. Soon to be residential area w/parking bay. (this road will be one-way) Watch this space for more updates. Any comments are always welcome...

Sad news indeed... without Bricklink I think many of us would find building MOC's so much harder, so in a way I guess each and every MOC made with bricks from BL (and the fun and enjoyment they bring) should act as a tribute to Dan. My condolences to his family and friends. Greg

Brilliant stuff!! Love all the little details (especially the ceiling fan!!) As for the lack of beds, it doesn't bother me. Where I live there are quite a few pubs with "hotel" in their name but don't have any accommodation. (A situation that still causes confusion when foreign visitors see the word Hotel and expect it to provide lodging!!) A quick google shows that is is pretty common... either the original pub/inn did provide lodging and the name stuck, or it was an attempt to make the pub sound as though it had a bit of history to it or it was done to get around licensing laws (for example, up until the 1970's in Scotland, only hotels could serve alcohol on Sundays ) Anyway looking forward to seeing what you come up with next!!!

Well I'm no expert, but they look great to me!! Love the Kebab shop in the first building (I don't think I'd mess with the staff!!) Nice work!

NIce work... this would look great as part of a larger scene... beautiful work!!

Very nice!! I really like all the architectural details.. wish I could build something half as good!!

A clever idea to use the minifigs and brilliantly executed!! I really like the building - the details are perfect both inside and out... nice work!

Great idea for a competition, and here's my attempt... Lowly Worm's Apple Car (Inspired by the Richard Scarry books I loved as a kid.) Cheers Greg

Brilliant!! The big tree design looks great but it's all the little details and activities going on that really bring it to life... excellent work!! (I love the name too!!)

Fantastic!! I absolutely love this.... it's just what a Lego hospital should be like!! (if only it was an official set... I'd buy it in a flash!!)

What a great idea and an awesome looking display!! I love it!

A rodeo clown (or Bullfighter) has the dangerous but important job of protecting rodeo riders once they've been thrown. To do this they attract the attention of the bull (hence their often brightly coloured and baggy clothing) and draw it away from the downed man. Often they use padded barrels as protection. They also entertain the crowd during intervals with more traditional clowning routines. Unfortunately I don't have a Lego bull so you'll have to use your imagination!! Another of my Series 1.5 minifigs - inspired by an episode of America's Most Dangerous Jobs (and googling the word clown!!) The barrel was a bit of a challenge but I think it came out looking ok (it probably should be a brighter colour but Lego only make black tires!!) Oh, and he has to take his legs off to fit inside!! Thanks for looking Cheers Greg

This looks great.... so good that it's convinced me to order the toy shop!! (I think they'll look great together!!)

Another in my own series of collectible minifigs... The Morris Man!! A traditional English folk dancer commonly seen operating in groups at summer fetes villages all over the country entertaining crowds with dances involving sticks and handkerchiefs. As with all my Series 1.5 minifigs my Lego version uses standard Lego parts (although I cheated slightly by using Blue tack to attach the flower...) The torso's not perfect but is the best I had and the waistcoat is similar to those I've seen in online pics. Thanks for looking... comments always welcome... Cheers Greg

Great looking scene - I especially like the guy kneeling (I've not seen that technique used before... think I'll be using it myself!!) Nice work!

Not sure if this is the right section to post this, so apologies if it's not!! Here's the next of my quick collectible minifig MOCs... (just something to tide me over until Series 2 arrives!!) This time it's based on the Incredible Crash Test Dummies a rather odd cartoon/action figure range from the early '90's... this one is based on the main characters, "Slick". (and was really just a way to use up one of the 8 Crash Test Dummy figs I've ended up with!) Comments always welcome... Cheers Greg

Another 5 min minifig MOC. This time it's another "Merry Man", Will Scarlet. In many versions of the Robin Hood legend, Will is described as the outlaws' best swordsman often fighting with 2 blades at the same time. Not sure about the head, I was originally going to use the Series 1 forestman head (or even the magician) but I decided to go for something a bit more rough and outlaw-ish!! Comments always welcome... Cheers Greg

Thanks... the arms are actually the tan ones that come with the "Forestman" they just look yellowish under the light (I'll try and take more decent pics tomorrow) Cheers Greg

Cool ideas!! I think my favourite is the White Lady...

Another mix and match minifig MOC... this time an early Frontier Scout from the US west. Based loosely on a picture of Kit Carson. Thanks for looking... comments always welcome (I've got a few more ideas for "Series 1.5")

As I'm getting impatient for the 2nd series of collectible minifigures, I thought I'd see what I could make by simply mixing and matching bits from the first series (and a few more spares) Here's my first "creation" (a friend for the "Forestman") Apologies for the quality of the pics... had to take them inside (it's supposed to be summer but there's a distinct lack of sun!!) EDIT Here's a better pic Cheers Greg

A great improvement over the Town Plan version... love the chandelier!!

Looking good so far!! I especially like the stock on the shelf... nice work!

Hi Here's my entry in the LDD and Real Bricks Category... CABLE TRAM This came about because I wanted something to fill the gap on my shelf left by the 2 modular buildings I own. I thought of doing a street scene and hit on the idea of having a tram of some sort. A quick Google led to an old film clip of cable trams used in Melbourne from 1885 to 1940. I really loved the design of them and thought I'd give it a go. As with most of my MOC's nowadays I used LDD quite a bit to try out techniques and colours as I went along. The tram is an open dummy car (in real life it was this tram that gripped the cable moving under the road, it would then pull a closed tramcar behind it) and I built a short section of track. The white stripe on the roadway is to instruct the driver (or gripman) to release the cable so the tram can coast over the pedestrian crossing point before picking up the cable on the other side. The white pillar type thing is an emergency call box to allow the tram crew to signal the winding house should the cable need to be stopped (for example if a tram was derailed, the cable damaged or the track obstructed). The real brick version... with added passengers, custom stickers and a few minor changes that I couldn't do on LDD (namely attaching the 1x1 brick to the fence piece on the front for the headlight and the call box design) LDD FILE I'll post more pics and information after the comp closes. Thanks for looking and good luck to all who enter... Cheers Greg