fyrmedhatt

We still have plenty of oil, so it's not something we need to worry about too much yet. The use of oil to create plastics is even less worrisome, as oil can get a lot more expensive before we are going to see big increases in price in plastics, remember that most of the price Lego is not from the raw material, but rather all the processing of the plastic, then the molding process, design and distribution. Another thing to consider is that synthetic oil can be created, it is obviously not economical from an energy perspective as you will spend more energy to create the synthetic oil than the amount of energy gained from the oil. For creating plastics, the energy economics are not a consideration, so synthetic oil could still be a viable alternative to petroleum.

Awesome review! A few (ahem) 'questionable' details, but very entertaining. I love this set, it will join the rest of my winter village for sure, I think the vehicle looks great, and that it's an awesome addition to the rest of the set. The post office follows in the footsteps of the toy store and the bakery in having great details, I like how the designers are keeping a very good common thread through all the designs.

According to some people on this board, Kingdoms is done for and there are no summer sets in the store catalog, but personally I need a heck of a lot more confirmation before I'll actually believe them. From what little I have seen when in stores, Kingdoms does seem relatively popular, I see kids buying the sets. I really think this is a great theme that deserves to survive, I mean they have taken the essence of the old nineties and eighties castle themes and implemented that in the set designs, which are quite excellent. On top of that, the minifigures are awesome, using really nice colors, especially with the Dragon Knights. The theme still has a lot of potential for new sets and for the coflict to be developed further. If Lego cancels the line, I think it will be a confirmation of them trying for a "Ninjago-effect" in all their themes, where they expect every theme to be runaway successes like Ninjago, Star Wars and Bionicle, and everything with a moderate level of sales will be cancelled. I really hope that is not the case, that they keep their core product intact and don't try to focus too much on gimmicky "playability" again. That was what happened last time, and they almost didn't make it through.

It will be interesting to see what happens with 10215 when it is gone, as you said it does have rare parts and so it will probably increase in value on the second hand market. The ship itself appears to be a decent design, but I haven't bought it for the single reason that is why should I buy this set when there are so many other great sets at the $100 price point that seem more interesting to me. I have a feeling that with the release of one or two more PT UCS sets, this set will appreciate in value significantly. It's a funny thing about collectors (and I have noticed this about myself mind you), that things are more interesting when they are in a series. Just look at the explosion of popularity for the modulars, collectible minifigs and of course the UCS Star Wars sets, they are not truly legendary sets until they can be collected as part of a larger group. Now it's too easy to write off 10215, because you can rationalize that it doesn't really fit with the other UCS sets, but with a few more PT sets that will change. That of course is a moot point if Lego never releases another PT UCS set, but if another one is released in three years, then that one will be more popular, and the popularity of this one will explode, just as happened with the christmas train that was just ok whe released, but given a few more sets in the holidays line it not goes for price 3-4 times MSRP because of completionist collectors. I do agree with others that the set isn't selling that well yet, it has an inflated parts per piece ratio and no minifigures, and it always appears as a sale item when Lego has a sale.

I've been trying to not have any substitutions, but then it comes to tiny details I'm not that picky. For example I used the new type 2x3 white panels in my Cafe Corner as the old ones are quite pricy and hard to find nowadays. Also for market street I wouldn't have minded to use white tabless hoses if they were a lot easier to find in good condition, but it seems they are also quite expensive and they have a significant yellowing problem. For the 1x4 dark blue bricks I plan on buying from the Lego replacement parts service, the pieces are currently in production, so I think they will let me buy the necessary number for me to finish the building. It's not that cheap either, but I will get new parts directly from Lego. If they will not let me buy them there then I might just use different sized dark blue bricks i really do not mind as long as it won't change the aesthetics of the building.

Those of you who think lego will suddenly start producing all sorts of military themed sets need to start taking into consideration what Scandinavian culture is like. There is sensitivity towards modern conflicts and its victims, Lego will not make tanks and modern soldiers as they do not want to further traumatize kids that have been through such conflict, and they do not want kids thinking of war as a game. American attitudes towards violence and military games have served America well, I remember how many kids in my high school who enlisted simply because they thought it would be cool to be a sniper or infantryman, it's how this country replenishes its troops. Scandinavian countries also have military forces, but they do not glorify them to desensitize kids at a young age. That's why Lego will produce various themes including weapons where the central component is that kids cannot relate to the violence as much, aka Lego is fine with kids playing out medieval or futuristic "battle", but not the Afghanistan war. Just because the Chinese clone brands make something doesn't mean lego will, last time i checked lego is incredibly successful by following their company philosophy, and the Clone Brands are trying every cheap trick in the book to rob them of market share. I really hop Lego wins this battle, if they lose every clone brand will produce minifig clones, and I predict we will see near identical but inferior quality minifigs produced, that in the worst case scenario will make it harder to buy authentic Lego minifigures second hand. Pricewise, why would current prices change, lego has far superior quality despite what some of the negative members here are writing. The market recognizes this, and people are buying Lego because they know they will get a good product, it seems that when people have less money to spend they make sure the money they do spend is spent well. That is not, and probably won't be in the foreseeable future the case with various Chinese clone brands.

I just finished buying most of the parts for this set on Bricklink, which was quite painful for the wallet. The dark blue arches cost a fortune, so do the white hoses and the grey doors, and today I will order the various blue bricks from Lego. Honestly, the designer kind of whe out of his way to use the rarest parts on the pallet here, which was great when the set was for sale, but certainly not great now that we are buying up all the parts for the aftermarket. Chances are that if Lego releases the white hose and the dark blue arches again, the prices will be lowered quite bit. I'm not patient enough to wait, so I guess I will pay for that privilege. In all honesty what made me do it was the announcement of the mini modulars, while I ordered the gray doors with plans to build the set a while ago, I had gotten quite content with this set not being on my modular street. Now I feel my street should match the minis, so thats the reason for this expensive adventure. I've always known the process of ordering for a project to be fun though, it certainly was for the cafe corner.

I know this comes up with regular intervals, but I feel this is worthy of a response anyways. Given enough time, a re-release isn't too far-fetched, Lego has done this recently, with the 10155 re-release of the 10152 Maersk Ship, so Lego could do so again with other sets they find it reasonable to do it with. You are right that some parts are no longer in production, but for the most part, Lego does take so-called retired molds and use them again. I know there are a few changes that has happened since Lego released 10190 and 10182, most notably the change from 5 stud tall doors to six stud doors, as well as a change in the 2x3 panels and the use of single-pane windows in 10182. Apart from the change in doors where one would need to use the older molds or otherwise change the design of the buildings significantly it's not a big deal, Lego makes such replacements regularly with their sets, 10182 have alternately colored 2x3x1 inverted slopes for example, minifig heads have changed in the 10188 Death Star. Re-releasing these 3 year old sets would not be the same as with the Legends line, where Lego had to salvage thirty year old molds for many of the pieces, adding massively to the expense of the sets. I really don't think Lego has such high concern for the set investors, they are not interested in making collectibles other than the minifigs. The main reason for the limited amounts of re-releases seen is that Lego executives are only allowing a limited amount of exclusives each year, which makes sense as they need to use their manufacturing and design capacity for the market where they make the most money, namely regular sets that parents buy for their kids in the $10-$50 range. Using these coveted Lego exclusive release spots for older sets doesn't make sense when they can release new sets instead and have a larger potential customer base. Mind you, if Lego ever did re-release Market Street, Cafe Corner or the Green Grocer it would be like printing money for them, all the new members of the AFOL community would buy them (Eurobricks has doubled the amount of members in the last year or so). and many of these set investors that you predict would cry foul and riot when the sets are released again could just as easily use it as an excuse of buying more sets for the future when they are discontinued again. Just look at what has happened to most of the legends sets in the last 10 years, where many of the sets are worth 300% of what they were when they were in sale, take a look at the Guarded Inn, the Metroliner, the Pizza Shop or especially the Metroliner Club Car, and mind you people picked these sets up in droves for future resale when they were on sale for less than 50% of MSRP, as was the case for the Metroliner. The parts themselves for these sets are worth plenty of money so significant depreciation is highly unlikely, maybe not the 1000% increase seen on 10190 Market Street in the last 2 years, but several 100% at least. I dabble in set investment myself without being too concerned for loss of value from re-release of sets. Whether re-releases happen we will see, there is certainly potential for it, but Lego might not choose to do so yet, in a few years when people are paying $2000+++ for sealed Cafe Corners they might change their mind, as there will likely be far more people happy with those sets on the market again than there would be people unhappy with such a move.

I have a few MISB sets that I have stashed away as a rainy day fund. The way I see it, keeping them around is a win-win situation, if for some reason they do not increase in value (highly unlikely for the sets I choose to buy for resale), then I get to open new copies of these sets with all the enjoyment that brings. Mind you, these sets are mainly duplicates of sets that I already have built and enjoyed, such as the fire brigade, MMV, Emerald Night, I don't think I could just let them sit there and not build them, as the building process is what I really love. I really do see why new set collecting is satisfying, I love to look at my shelf of boxes, and I'm sure I will do so far more in the future when these have not been on store shelves for a few years. I very much appreciate MISB collectors for the service they provide to our community, without them I could not live in the hope of being able to open the sets I dreamed of through my childhood, and that I hope I will be able to buy at some time in the future when I have more financial security.

The five vehicles that are going to be sold separately all look fantastic, and I'm so excited to collect them all. The car and caravan set will go great with the RV from 2009, and the dirt bike set with the horse transport, while the ambulance will be my first ambulance ever. I have to say with the first released rumors and photos I was horribly disappointed with the city sets, but those five vehicles are great, and I might even get some of the police and fire sets. I'd really like a bear. As a geologist, I have to say these sets are really cool, test drilling is a must-buy, the mine could be good, let's see what the will all be like. I'm hoping to get a geologist/mining engineer minifig, it would have to be a must buy. Also, I have kind of written off my most hoped for theme due to being politically incorrect: an oil rig theme. Mining is equally politically incorrect, so now I actually dare to hope, an oil theme would be fantastic, with supply boats, platforms, helicopters and tankers it's exactly what young (and older ;)) boys like.

The Maersk box actually appears to be the sealed set, not just the box, it's just in the wrong category. The translation of the text is something like: "It has never been out of the box". At 1700 dollars its still a doozy, but in line with other sealed copies of the set. Anyways I have fun finding these kind of things myself, so many of them are completely unreasonable. What about these: Complete Bionicle for $18000!!! - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lego-Bionicles-Collection-215-Sets-2001-2007-More-/320723215034?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aac97e2ba The worlds most expensive Duplo set: http://www.ebay.com/itm/LEGO-DUPLO-AIRPORT-HELICOPTER-RESCUE-TOY-LOT-VEHICL-SET-/230669692755?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b4fc2f53#ht_500wt_1180 Star Wars minifigs: http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIGGEST-LOT-LEGO-STAR-WARS-166-MINIFIG-MINIFIGURES-PEOPLE-RARE-/170695510101?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27be3ec855#ht_645wt_1398

Lego has a service phone number where you can make these orders, and you can order larger number of parts if you need, of course you will have to pay for them. This is an excellent source for those parts Lego is still producing, but are very expensive on Bricklink due to high demand and low supply. The only limitation is that they do not sell licensed parts, so no MF radar dishes, stickers or manuals.

Lego did include a full page on Mindstorms NXT in the American Summer 2011 catalog, so I don't think it has been forgotten about. I'm curious about what a new Mindstorms set would include, I'm guessing a new generation brick could shrink significantly in size with all the advances in compact computing in the past five years, and the computer hardware related costs are always decreasing, so a slight drop in the price wouldn't be unexpected. Anyways, I doubt lego would cancel the line, as it is a very successful line with a lot of fans, and it has opened a whole new educational market for them where they are the only player. Proper integration with power functions makes a lot of sense, Lego seems to be trying hard to accomplish that with the rest of their products.

I think the collectibility of the C3PO is so much greater, as this is the minifigure that most accurately represents the character of C3PO in the movies; just compare to the pearl gold versions. Also, the other promo figures aren't well known, the White Mandalorian and shadow ARF are expanded universe figures, stormtroopers are white, not chrome metallic. Darth Vader is the most interesting of the promo figures, but even he is a little too shiny compared to his movie alter ego. Now the one they really should make is a chrome domed R2D2 with a third wheel, I think it could almost be as popular as the chrome C3PO. Nice review by the way, I'm a little impressed that you could actually write that much about a single minifigure...

There are a few things limiting Lego from simply re-releasing this beast of a set, the primary of those reasons is simply that Lego does not want to use one of its spots in the release schedule on a set that was discontinued 1.5 years ago, and also that some molds might be retired or used for different color parts. What I see realistically happening is that we will wait a few years more, probably until after the current 7965 Millennium Falcon is discontinued before doing some kind of a re-release. There are only so many ships that will sell well in UCS form, so soon enough I predict that we start seeing new takes on a few ships, the first one probably being a UCS X-Wing, as the original was released 11 years ago, and the Millennium Falcon is on the same shortlist. Lego does realize the value of the UCS Falcon, that's why they made such a big deal about giving out one during this years May the Fourth sales, and they realize that they could probably sell another one in a few years. One thing that has happened since the Falcon went out of production is an explosion in the number of AFOLs out there, a year ago Eurobricks had 10000 members, now it has 20000, and many of those new members would love to own a falcon too. The fact that new UCS MFs now go for almost $2000 is probably not lost on Lego either, it's very indicative of there being an extreme demand for the set. I certainly don't think Lego cares whether a set loses some of its value in the aftermarket, they do not see any of those money anyways. Collectors and investors wouldn't get so pissed off they'd stop buying either, I think most of them would rather buy more Falcons in the hope that the re-release would increase in value as much as the first one did. Lego has never done an outright re-release of a UCS set, but they have done releases of similar sets before, as in the release of the 10019 RBR and the 10198 Tantive IV as well as the two Death Star sets, where both sets are massive exclusives but with a slightly different focus. Why could it not be the case for the Falcon to get another set with slightly more interior, as appears to be the new standard when comparing it to the new Super Star Destroyer. Lego did do an almost brick for brick re-release with the 10152 and 10155, not Star Wars for sure, but it goes to show they do re-release their exclusives, even their licensed ones. All in all I'm constantly pondering whether I should take the leap and either save up for an aftermarket Falcon or build one from parts, but I think I have settled myself down with the idea that there will be some sort of a re-release at some point over the rainbow, and the $1000-$2000 an MF would cost me is much better spent on buying all the lovely new sets lego comes out with.

All great deals are certainly not stolen goods or the result of fraud, as we all know, Target had some fantastic clearances earlier this year, which probably lowered aftermarket value of many sets. If you bought a set at 50% off and wanted to make money off it as soon as possible, then listing it at 25% off MSRP might be a good idea to make sure it sells quickly. The problem in this particular situation with the Unimogs is that it's a new set so it probably haven't been on sale (maybe now with the $40 off at TRU), and more importantly the way it is sold where the buyer buys the set on Ebay, while it is shipped from Lego direct at full price. The ebay seller buys the set on Lego once he gets an order on ebay using a stolen credit card and he has Lego ship it to the ebay customer. The ebay seller spends none of his own money, and the ebay customer is left with the blame when Lego discovers that the purchase is made with a stolen credit card. So if the product is shipped directly from Lego, while you bought it on ebay or anywhere else, it is a clear indication of this scam being used. Lego does not sell products from their warehouses through anyone but themselves.

Check this old thread out: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=45621 And also this thread from fbtb: http://www.fbtb.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4874 (I hope it's ok I post links from other message boards as it is very relevant to the thread.) Looks like the exact thing happened last year as well, probably by some of the same culprits, as the items sold are technic flagship models. I think the right thing to do would be to notify paypal and Lego, most likely you will get your money back and Lego should be able to get their set back as well, I would imagine they will give you free shipping back to them. The last thing you want is to be blacklisted as a scammer, which it now appears that you are to Lego since Lego shipped the set paid for with a stolen credit card to your home. Is it just me, or is ebay full of scams these days? The Death Star/Millennium Falcon scam is still ongoing as well, we really need to be careful out there it seems. Edit: added links

Use their phone number, they have really helpful people there, and yes they will charge you for the pieces normally. They are completely fine with people ordering higher numbers of pieces, they realize they are also providing a service for MOC'ers and people recreating sets, the guy I spoke literally said that whether you order from him or PaB it doesn't matter, the replacement service is slightly more expensive per piece, but they have flat rate shipping and better selection. I wouldn't want to speculate on it and buy hundreds of dark red slope pieces to sell on Bricklink at inflated pieces, as that probably could deplete their supply, and cause them to restrict their service, thus ruining it for everyone else. Funny thing is though, sometimes even if you do say you want to pay, they will just give you the pieces for free, that's awesome customer service!

I wonder though if the fact that the model is confirmed to be all old grey would trump that the seals are broken as long as all bags are sealed, as those pieces are getting to be quite rare in new condition, and that is the way the set was "intended" to be. Most of the sets produced should be the bluish gray variety based on the production time (2004-2008 versus 2002-2004), so the old gray variety would be rarer. I guess the mixture of old and new gray is the rarest of them, but it's probably less aesthetically pleasing, so my guess is that it's worth the least. If anyone has access to sealed boxes of both the old gray and bluish gray ISD'd they might be able to find a weight difference from the different type of manual in the sets as well as miniscule difference in the weight of bricks from using a different ABS mixture, which would be magnified by the fact that there are 3000 bricks in this set.

Anyone else find that the leak of the rumored Town Hall is extremely early? If i remember correctly, the rumored pet shop was kept under wraps for a good while longer, same for last years and this years exclusive Star Wars sets. It almost seems funny that Lego sent out a nearly complete list of 10000 series sets over year away from their actual release, when they have been so good about keeping these a secret. These sets are the ones least necessary for retailers to know anyways, as they are generally low volume sets, and when I've seen leaks from supplier catalogs these often don't seem to be included. Could it be these rumors are simply controlled slips where they are planting false rumors to keep people on their toes, it's not like companies haven't done so before. People from Lego read these boards and I'm sure they are painfully aware that requests to pull down set information is seen to be a confirmation of a rumor's validity, so by "confirming" this list posted by one Dutch website they have basically given us a diversion that they can use to give us shockingly great reveals next year, starting in a few months with the present the January 2012 exclusive. If the new modular actually is a Town Hall, I'd love it, it will be a great addition to my growing modular street, and if it closely resembles the one previously done Jamie Berard then even better. I wonder if they are going to make a big deal about this being the 5th year anniversary of the line, with special bricks, or a bigger building? They kind of did for the 10 years of Star Wars, and other than Star Wars UCS sets this is the most successful exclusive line, so I wouldn't be too surprised if they tried to celebrate it in some way.

Funny you should ask this question, read this thread on the Bricklink Forums: http://www.bricklink.com/message.asp?ID=570686 It appears Lego does not only know about Bricklink, but in certain situations, they will even make purchases from bricklink. It doesn't surprise me though, Bricklink provides a service Lego never will, or can afford to provide, by having thousands of individual sellers that together has the most complete Lego marketplace, with many parts that haven't been seen in Billund in years or even decades. It's a symbiotic relationship, Lego reaps the benefit of people being able to buy their older products and building their brand reputation, while not having to pay for production of those parts and sets.

I do understand your apprehension of paying so much more for Lego than you did five years ago or even last year, but Lego's rising prices is a sign of economic health, they would not raise prices if their product didn't sell. In fact, in case of Lego, its worst years and the years they were recovering were also when Lego was cheapest because the product didn't move and later because they needed to get back into the market. The time period we are in now is really a new golden age for Lego, their products are great and they are selling, so they reap their rewards, just as they did in the eighties and early nineties when prices were even higher than today. I've even read that Lego's prices, or at least their no compromise philosophy is an advantage in today's weak economy. People have less money to spend on their children's toys so they want to make sure they get their money's worth, which they can be sure of when buying Lego, not so much with other products that cut corners. Lego's production costs money, they spend a lot of money researching new products, they spend lots of money on marketing etc., and in the end they are not a charity, so they will make a profit. The low prices in the US has been a gamble on getting a larger market share in the world's largest toy market, and I don't think Lego ever intended to keep the low prices. The fact that they are rising prices in the US more than in Europe comes to show that they have been successful, which should excite us as fans as more customers will result in more exciting products for us in the future. That is not to say I'm not critical of some of the economic decisions made by Lego, especially when it comes to value in the form of printed pieces. Why should Lego increase prices, then make pieces that are used in lots of sets made of stickers rather than printed pieces when they've been printed pieces until this year. Generally an increase in price should come with an increase in value. In the end, it was an interesting article that hopefully made a few people understand the expenses involved in making a quality toy such as Lego.

Both the Death Star for $212 and the Millennium Falcon for ~$300 is up again, listed by a Chinese seller. Ebay needs to do something, as I'm guessing it's not necessarily people in our community who are painfully aware of actual prices of these items who are buying them, but rather parents looking for their kids christmas presents and see great deals. Honestly though, it's kind of tricky to see how anyone would want to sell the MF for $300 when it would be flying off the shelves at $1000 unless they are scammers, but many people do not ever question the legitimacy of an ebay listing because in their minds ebay is a legitimate website. I've certainly done my job in reporting it, hopefully lots of others do the same so that ebay gets to deal with this quickly.

I would say it is a great set, and since you already like Star Wars I would really have to say I recommend it. It's a pretty fun set to build, and you can use it as a pretty cool display piece, as it comes with pretty much all the important minifigs to recreate every Death Star scene in the Trilogy. I know it's really expensive, but it was worth it to me, and I'm certain it will skyrocket in price when it's discontinued, which could happen soon. I'd read a few of the reviews on this site to see if you like the details of it, I know it's a pretty big decision. Also, with the new Tie Fighter, we will get new Death Star Troopers that I'm really excited to add to my Death Star, that's another slight plus for the set.

I'm really loving all the detail you have packed in this little package, because this really looks like a tiny British sportscar or an early Porsche. It could really work in a classic town setting or as a kids battery powered car in City scale. I absolutely love the use of what I assume to be the binocular piece as the exhaust pipes, and your car really makes me wonder what else can be achieved by using the Cars pieces on 4-wide minifig vihecles.