Henchmen4Hire

Talk about vanishing, how do builds like this disappear off people's radar? Great looking vehicle and presentation, the base is just as cool as the car.

I just had a thought, do people ever build castles at microscale, as if minifigs were only like 2 or 3 plates high? This looks like a fantastic opportunity to build at a small scale and add tons of detail, like stairs connecting the floors, flags with 1x1 tiles, technic bricks with axle cut-out as archer's windows, etc.

Oldie but a goodie I stress out so much trying to fit just 2 minifgs in the front seats of my cars, and here you go and mash 3 in there, madness haha I love it, and I don't even like ScoobyDoo.

Attempted to make one of these a few years ago and it looked like butt, so it was time for an update. Batmobile (Batman Beyond) by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr There aren't any groundbreaking techniques, I simply went at it with dogged determination trying to get the silhouette just right. Looked at various artist's versions of this Batmobile to get ideas, then decided to add a bunch of wedges to the hull because slanty lines make things go faster. (Also, they help create a gradual rounded effect.) There are tons of places that can be tweaked to attach weapons and stuff by virtue of the straightforward construction. The Batmobile in the cartoons is deceptively big, Batman can sit in there behind the wrap-around console and swivel comfortably, there's even plenty of headroom for his long spiky ears. Being designed for a single passenger, the BB Batmobile has a cramped backseat, I think the rear end is supposed to be filled with the engines, reserve ammunition, etc. However, I ended up with lots of space in there, so Terry can even bring Ace or his mouthy friends along for a ride. •Windscreen flips open •Added 4 airbrakes the flip up •Moving the 2x2 wedge by the windscreen reveals a narrow viewport •The engine nacelles (I think we can call them that) are semi-hollow to add a flip-out cannon or whatever in there. •Adjustable control sticks •Rear hatch flips open Batmobile (Batman Beyond) by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr

rofl, you guys crack me up I kinda wanna give these things a try, just to build something different since no one seems to be into the usual stuff I make.

For some reason I never liked that Batmobile design, and you finally put your finger on it; no big honkin' jet exhaust! Felt like it lacked vroom. Anyway, that's as good as that car can get with its proportions, any more or less and it looks like a boat or a dinghy lol. Great shapes, NPU, fits a minifig, it's hard to see how anyone could improve it. Def looking forward to another one!

I think showing a picture of the real expo would impress people even more, to see how accurate the pain-staking details are :)

There's something funny about using robot arms on an old timey ship lol

I'm a sucker for stained glass, those dress-slopes as curtains are cool too, first time I've seen that done.

That entire store setup inside the house looks like it's only held in by the corners of the brown arch pieces, so it's easily removable so kids can play with it comfortably. It also makes the house feel bigger since they can spread out the set pieces and use the flipped-out wall as a backdrop. (I mean, not that any kid ever is going to buy a $300 set lol)

Recently found out about Speed Champions, so I downloaded Stud.io and overhauled my old Superbird with new parts, build techniques and improved proportions. Superbird by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr The pics show the major beats; doors and trunk open, there's space for a brickbuilt engine, adjustable steering wheel, door handle/keyhole/speakers detail, etc. And yes, a minfigure figure will fit, there's even room in the backseat for 1 more. I think I spent over half the time just working on the rear. Specifically, I wanted to recess the tail lights and add the little raised black section between them, as well as work in a 180 SNOT flip so I could attach exhaust pipes to the bottom. Damn, that thing was complicated, but I managed to get everything connected (and hopefully kept it sturdy). Building for real may be a test of patience and dexterity. lol Odd Connections •I saw those axle pieces and really liked them, but they don't mesh with the Speed Champions wheels. So, the wheels connect to the axles with a bar, you'll have to snip one to size. If you use rigid hoses instead, I think you would get a suspension and steering effect since the tires will have some "give". •I wanted to recreate the steering column from a Roadrunner/Satellite, which meant I had to work in the gear shifter and blinker lever. My usual brute force building habits weren't working so I had to get more creative! To create that assembly, you need a bar running through it all, snipped to size. •The rear is ridiculous, there are headlight bricks in all directions, 4-stud snot bricks, clip tiles with a bar for support, jumpers, inverted brackets, cripes! Working out the minute offsets was a nightmare. •Really happy with the nose, it's easily removable via pins so technically I could pull it off and build a standard Roadrunner nose/face. I managed to create natural attachment points for the black wedges, something I failed to do in the old model. Some headlight bricks and 1x1 light clip plates (thick version this time) get the job done, it was just a matter of getting all the pieces oriented properly. Questions, comments, hatemail welcome. Alright, that's enough, now more pics: Superbird 2 by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr Superbird 3 by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr

I'm going to echo trying a minifig scale version first. Not only is it fun working in all sorts of features for the minifigs to use, but large MOCs can very quickly get outrageously expensive. I remember making a handgun and it cost almost $200 after shipping. It was totally worth it, but, I mean, damn, 200 bucks lol

I worked for someone filling out Bricklink orders. We tried to burn through and ship as many orders as possible everyday, large orders usually got shipped by the next day. However, we would also regularly get giant boxes of LEGO parts which of course we had to sort, and that ate up a huge chunk of time, so sometimes orders got delayed by another day or two.

I was playing around with Stud.io and found a parts combo that maybe needs a tweak. (As in the LEGO part needs a real-world tweak, not the the Stud.io program lol) As you can see, shaving down the disc at the base of the axle, so it's flush with the section right behind it, would let that mudguard piece (and its variants) fit on top of it with just one plate needed between them. Well...I think it would work anyway lol. Just a suggestion.

I like the skeletal frame, I think the round shapes work well together too. Maybe thicken the thighs somehow? The articulation looks good enough, though I think you could work in a swivel plate at the waist, and simple hinge plates at the knees (or modify the wrist joints for the knees, they look cool). If the yellow windscreens ever need more stability, you could probably use the top of a hinge brick to bridge them together.

•Yeah, now I see as more of a side-grade than a upgrade . The only real benefit of the new cannons is that they're securely attached, the old ones would fall apart if I accidentally bumped them. •And making a minifig scale Batman Beyond batmobile is my ultimate goal, I've been looking up a bunch of building techniques so I can get it just right. I think making a UCS version would be easier because I could shape the curves better, but super expensive of course lol. I'll get to work on it after I finish up my Superbird remodel Preview:

Not sure how train pieces are built, but something like this maybe? It's just 3 [bricks with stud on side]

Thankssss, the next sleek model I make is going to be ground-based :] I imagine this ship is only used by the SP3 SWAT/Commandos, the ones with the big helmet and red visor, not the regular officers who don't need quad-turbos and twin coilguns lol. I went with a light bley body because it's a little less garish than solid white, plus I think the color goes well with the Star Trek-like nacelles. But yeah, now I see the Imperial/X-wing vibe lol

Is there any way you could replace all those slopes on the roof with these? Would look more accurate based on the pictures. Maybe put them at an angle with a hinge. It looks like you need to cover the wheels halfway too. Could you maybe use this and a long tile?

Crime spreads at breakneck speeds and law enforcement can't afford to be left behind. Beat cops get things like bikes and scooters, but Commandos get things like this! SP3 Commando Ship by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr FEATURES •Rear hatch flips down and serves as a ramp •Interior has a cockpit and a prisoner compartment, separated by a glass partition. •Rear side vents flip out to reveal ports that connect to the prisoner compartment. •Technically the 4 nacelles are adjustable (shifting the inverted wedges outward by 1 stud makes it easier to move them). ---------------------------------- This is another model that I overhauled with sturdier connections and new elements. •I did a quick search for ways to invert plates, and while there were lots of useful ideas, the connections weren't strong enough to hold the front sections. I could have gone with technic bricks or old hinge plates and flipped one side, but I wanted to try something new. Ended up using a [1x1 clip light plate with thin ring] with some plates and a tile. This lets the two big wedges clamp everything together. It also has the bonus of letting me add those 1x1 red/blue trans tiles on the sides. I improvised with all the modified bricks sandwiched between the wedges and managed to create a little flip-out section to expose a circuitry tile. •There are vents in the prisoner compartment, they connect to the outside grill with those Technic half pins. The idea is that if the prisoner gets too rowdy, the officer can just vent all the oxygen and knock them out lol. Alternately, they can avoid a lawsuit by using the ports to introduce a knockout gas to safely extract a prisoner. •For weapons, the binoculars on the sides are, uh, laser turrets! I was envisioning mass drivers sandwiched between the big wedges. The skates and vents are there to disperse heat, and for, uh, sci-fi reasons lol. The trans orange tiles represent sections that are glowing from the heat, or maybe I just like trans orange shut up! SP3 Commando Ship by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr SP3 Commando Ship by Henchmen4Hire, on Flickr

Looks very utilitarian with all the square corners and compartments, I like it. I never would have thought that the tracks had no traction on smooth floors until you brought it up, great to hear another problem being solved through the power of LEGO lol

Sweet, I def like your alt build more, thanks for sharing. Off-topic: I'm confused, is there a reason why a discussion on advertising, reviews and youtube came up? Like, is there a rash of people just dumping links and moving on? Nothing about the original post screams "Here, look at my sh*t and click the ads, later turkeys!" I appreciate that Qwik makes videos for people who are into quick video overviews. I've seen the sterile reviews that get posted around here. I remember posting a review a long time ago with photocomics, alt builds, etc., but I got the impression that people don't care about that, they just want to look at bunch of pictures and move on, not read stuff, no matter how interesting it may be. It's like there's a template for reviews that they expect and don't like it when you deviate. Based on that...I would think videos like this would be more popular lol

Definitely add a sign to point out the store more, maybe over the door (?) attached to that bley rod, or where the red trans thing is. To keep the sign a tasteful size, maybe give the store a short name, like "Ray's" and try to brick build it. I don't know if I like that block of red on the store front. It grabs attention but it feels too aggressive, like "Hey! Look at me! Throw a brick through my window!" lol The yellow "2" tile looks out of place, though I'm not sure if there are any less stark alternatives. I kind of want to put a poster there. Maybe it's just the grainy picture, but it's hard to tell where the door is. The black frame with the lime/red/blue is a vending machine right? Is the block of red next to it the door? If so, it's funny that there's a box full of comics on the sidewalk, out of view where anyone can snatch them lol Anyway, the crumbly walls and electrical box (and side door?) details make it look like a real place, did you use any reference pics? Is that supposed to be chainlink fence on the right? I can imagine a minifig trying to parkour, or straight up rock climb up the walls :p

Space + Racing is a great opportunity to create inspired ship designs. And as we can see from around the web, they don't even have to be that expensive, somewhere like $15 to $20 worth of parts for a really nice personal racer. However I'm afraid that the SNOTting and greebling needed to make awesome ships may make the builds too flimsy for little kids to play with, though I'm sure sturdy designs will pop up over enough iterations.

I like the proportions on these, I may rework all my old 8-wide cars to accommodate those new tires.