notaromantic

I would call that, 120 orders without such incident, considering what I've experienced in the orders I've placed since the LEGO movie hit, obscenely good luck, on your part. Half of the WalMart aisle is no longer LEGO, but represent many of the companies already mentioned. From asking several of these sellers how this happened, many of them have indicated that they purchased large, random lots off of the bay in order to fill a store inventory as quickly as possible - as sellers do; especially new sellers - and they admitted that they really did not pay much attention to what was mixed in with what. It was entered without much discretion right into the BL inventory. ... Because, you know, people have busy lives to live, right? ...and a BL store is just a "past time", and not a full-time concern. Thats the point: I'm not sure. Not anymore. I'm not sure of what I'm getting when shopping around for a rare color or rare part. There's not much to distinguish, an many of these seller's minds, the difference between "rare" Lego and non-Lego. It's just not in the database, so it is listed as an unknown color, or special part, or possible prototype, etc.... For some collectors, finding rare LEGO is a true passion; and obviously, you know exactly what I speak of, here. Everything there, in many BL inventories, that once were listed as HTF, or RARE, is now suspect. And let's don't even start on custom molders and custom printers - BL is a market. LEGO is a market. What's to keep things like this out of such a successful market. - Really, nothing more than personal discretion and honesty when it comes to someone listing items, because there are so many ways to bypass the official database of items. But, this personal discretion and honesty, in a successful market, and moreso in a booming market, seem to be the first things to go. BL is no different. LEGO is no different. And neither are the motives that lay behind many of these companies. "Jump on the bandwagon. But there's no room for ethical thinking in this cart. Leave that behind." Its human nature. Always has been that way. Find honey, become insects. Yea. I think many of us are of aware of the LEGO history, and of the controversies therein. But truth be told, LEGO stuck it out, and put the work into it, even when it was economically insensible to do so. And LEGO is the product that made it to my doorstep and then entered the machinery of my imagination; so many of us share in that same story. But I don't have to "sell" LEGO to any of you; we wouldn't be here if we were not aware of what LEGO is. And I respect your point of view, but I can't help but think it is also heavily influenced by your own interest in what these "other" companies offer. Which is fine. You want to keep them alive. You now have an affinity for what they offer. And you should be able to engage that, where and when you wish to. It's called freedom. However, personally, I'm not, and therefore I don't. And my gripe is settled in the fact that, even if I don't want to, I'm now having to... Its nothing that resembles bad luck. It just is what it is. In many instances, those instances increasing, we are not aware of what we are purchasing anymore. And if that is not someone's concern, to be aware of what they are purchasing, then no problem for them - consumerism often is steered by demand, rather than reason - but for those who do care what they purchase, and we have our reasons, many of us do, it just is unsettling. It is.

How are the house's siding tiles secured at that kind of an angle? They almost look like slopes, slopes attached with modified bricks studded on one side, but slopes aren't made in that length, that I've seen - right? Were the gardens your design, or were they included in the .pdf...? Trees - that's where I'm at now, I've always been intimidated by good tree builders, and now that I too am working on a Victorian project, it's building trees that are my current bane. Building organic forms with LEGO, with brick, must be one of the most difficult challenges of this medium. But I think I've gotten close to what I imagine. This build must've inspired you to try something more, of your own, to go a little further... Thanks for sharing it.

A LEGO morality, huh? We each have the lines we draw and do not cross. I, personally would never paint LEGO, which always looks hideous to me, although I do cut LEGO. And I would never be one of those builders who use 1x1 round plates, strewn about to create a texture without being secured at all, as if they were just poured there for the sake of the picture; and I would never glue, but I have drilled into LEGO. Do whatever you're comfortable doing. You have to live with it, I don't. It's your own LEGO conscience that you must consult, and its your build that must withstand whatever it is you, or circumstances, or nature itself, subjects it to. But I do agree with what was mentioned above - its precisely those limitations, of the materials, that make using those materials challenging. If you want to sculpt, or paint, or mold, then by all means, go out and freaking get yourself some wood, or a canvas, or some clay, a material that will allow for those certain dynamics that LEGO is not particularly made for - because if it doesn't appear artistic, then it will come off as cheeky, like "Hey, look what I did with LEGO that's not supposed to be done. I'm so avant-garde..." Not really, because cheeky is, well, cheeky, unless there is some ingenuity somewhere within it or behind it or beneath it. But then again, I've always been more of a Van Gogh kind'a guy, versus a Warhol kind of guy... But that's another debate.

Yea, I have a color collection going, also. The downside of it all is that, while trying to amass this collection, I can not tell you now exactly how many times I've seen an odd or unknown color listed, believing it to be a special color that made it out of the factory, as some do - only to find, after placing an order, and often an order placed purposely to obtain this rare color of brick, and then filled out with random parts in order to meet a minimum BL buy - that the brick I received is not LEGO at all. I don't mind them being out there, but I, I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in mixing my LEGO with clone-LEGO, and the fact that these parts are now making their way into BrickLink store inventories and being sold, whether purposely or not, as rare LEGO colors - well, that does bother me. If I pay for LEGO, I expect LEGO. There's such an influx of new BL stores, because of the popularity of LEGO, yet it does seem that many of these new sellers do not care to attend to the details that operating a LEGO business requires. Being familiar with LEGO colors and LEGO parts is not a difficult thing to do, but it does take time - this should be prerequisite to operating a BL-type of store. I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt, and I do know that trying to obtain that first 20 or so good-feedback replies may be difficult for new sellers, because many people are hesitant to purchase from someone with low feedback. But I do, with the thought that, with my purchase, it'll help this new seller get on their feet - but lately, it has happened so often to me that I've received misidentified colors and clone parts, my gears are grinding, and its turning my BrickLink-ing experience, which is usually my time of contentment and escape, into a real headache. My "order" page is literally covered with "Cancelled" transactions, and my message page inundated with rants and apologies. Its never looked that way before. Do these 'other' brands mold a logo into their parts at at all? The ones I've received by mistake have no markings on them... I say melt 'em all down. They are an invasive species, as far as I'm concerned. And my LEGO ecosystem is beginning to feel the effects of their encroachment - which can only get worse.

Well - I didn't want to announce this here, but its true, ...that I am a multi-billionaire. I will not, however go into any detail regarding the specifics, except only to say that recent strenuous matters of a personal nature have caused me to rethink my prerogatives. Anyway - I've just purchased DisneyTMTMTMTMTM Enterprises for roughly 200 and something-something-odd billion dollars, and I'll be changing the name of the site back to Eurobricks by tomorrow, or perhaps a few days later give or take some paperwork. I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, but priority is priority when one's sanity is put at stake. That's all. Thank you, have a fretless goodnight, and do not make a big deal of this in the future, nor have it change the way in which you might respond to my future posts or to my MOC's. Carry on.

I'm not a Star Wars guy myself, but when I was younger, I had a very dear friend who was a serious Star Wars guy. So myself, I wouldn't have a Star Wars "room", ever, that I can imagine, of my own; yet, I feel very comfortable within them. What better place to burrow... Anyway, I've seen more than a few BL'd 10179's by now, and I just wanted to mention to you that yours is my favorite. The textures that odd and discolored bricks create, while subtle, do add a plethora of depth and detail to a build. I've been playing around with adding Greys to Bleys, as well, which the Castle guys do real well, also. It looks really great here. Wonderful job. What's next on your building palette? After this monster, I can't imagine being the same builder anymore. I know big projects like this have always "altered" me in terms of what I wanted to, and thought I could, tackle as a project next...

Ha. Ha. No, I don't know, LEGO outside just feels "naked" somehow. Like you just can't wait to get it back inside, or to cover it up before the elements take to it. And I suppose the gray skies in the background just make it all the more a hurry to do so. I don't know how long you had it outside for pictures, but didn't you feel that way with it while it was out there? Does anyone leave their LEGO outside - for too long, or at all? (Beside those people taking photos for Craigslist, of course...Don't tell me you were taking photos for Craigslist and decided to slip in the MOC while you were there; lol.) And I like the brown furniture by the way.

I like everything about this, except for the outside photography. It just seems so out of its element. I don't know that I'd ever be admiring anything LEGO outside. It just doesn't allow me to get cozy with or within it. (And yes, I did consider LEGOLAND as being an example of something Lego that I would be admiring outdoors. But, ya'll know what I mean.) The lime and Dark Bley roof is cool. And the log bricks turned sideways used as a masonry effect is really impressing me. I generally cannot stand to use those log bricks, and thus give them away to the young LEGO-er's that I know. But the way you've used them here gives me new promise for them.

Watch out, Q-Bert!

My own simple advice would be to know what you are going to build in advance, and then find/ order the parts you need to see your vision through. Its just the way my own brain works, I suppose. To have a lot of random parts has never really done me much good, while on the other hand, to have planned a project using references from other places, and to have drafted an idea then of what I'd need, that provided me much more benefit. And it kept my focus on the building, rather than on the buying. Parts, in general, are not cheap these days - unless it is a huge lot of random pieces being sold - but chances are, those are the parts nobody uses much of, and hence, they are trying to unload them. Parts that used regularly now, because of modular building, demand a premium; sellers know what they're worth, and the secondary market is more of a competition and industry than is the primary market, I'd say. To amass a usuable set of pieces for whenever inspiration struck would be a grander headache than actually using those pieces. The planning process is where its at - that'll at least key you into what exactly it is you are looking for. And that is invaluable - to know the direction you wish to take. That'll at least keep you objective when searching for, assessing, and purchasing large lots of parts. My own $0.02. Because there are only so many taps, or so many log bricks, or steering wheels, or bricks with clips on them, or 2x2 dishes, or plates with bars on them, or axes - that I can actually deal with. Whereas, 1x1 and 1x2 tiles, 1x2 bricks, modified rail plates, masonry bricks, 2x3 windows, etc.. - these are becoming difficult to find in quantity without having to visit several sellers or ordering overseas. This isn't even considering different colors. The planning process clued me into all of that.

Alright. Someone needs to post a contest now - for 40154 mods. I'm in. You know, this is a great 'gateway' set, a gift for those people who recall thier childhood still, very fondly, and yet still seem raise their nose at adult Lego-ers. It seems it would be a kind of novelty thing, a pencil-holder, but it would get their feet wet again - into building, and realizing how much fun Lego once was, and still is. I especially like the primary color motif.

That's a very good argument. However, now that I think of it, it's all the more reason to have knees on your mechs - because you don't have them yourself. If the mech represents the ideal of our physical form, our body wish-list realized with technology if you will, then it really is all the more reason to give them knees. If I was a Lego-person, and was constantly annoyed at my own lack of knees, my mech is surely going to have knees! What, knee upgrade will cost me how much!?... Sorry honey, we were unable to afford the air-conditioning this time around. Maybe next mech. I'd be out in the garage, polishing the knees again. Take care of your knees, people.

... or a band, fusion - kind of a post-rock, experimental jazz, ambient hybrid. I'm calling it. But I agree, although it's not my particular area of interest, that a mech without knees is quite a pitiful. To be a mech without knees would be just awful. Are there even any action figures still made without leg articulation? I remember, when I was kid, ordering one of those amazing sets of army men that were advertised in the back pages of the comic books - for like $1.00 or something. I sent off my money order, and then I waited - so long that I eventually forgot that I had ordered them. Some outrageous amount of time later, unexpectedly, this small package arrived for me, and lo and behold... It was my army men. Army men, and tanks, and planes, etc..., that, from the front or back, looked great, but from the side - they were completely flat. Molded flat. I was so disappointed. So I don't buy the 'playability' argument ^. What kid wants a mech without knees, a misfit toy for sure? There's just no good excuse.

Tell the Lady Cyclops that she shouldn't be wearing lipstick. Go on, I dare you.

How about the Beverly Hills Hotel: Its an Art-Deco pink monstrosity. By golly, it'll satisfy us all. Actually, I thought about building it once, and even searched for parts before getting caught up in something else. Nonetheless, its a great building that really couldn't be in any other color scheme than the one its in. Someone should do it in Lego... There are some nice mint-greens in there too, that you can't really discern in this photograph.

They look like this part to me: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=3063a BL# 3063a Brick, Round Corner 2 x 2 Macaroni without Stud Notch Year Released: 1955-1956 Check out the photo and pay attention to the old-style LEGO logo.

So, what is your Lego ritual? Lego-ing is such a personal process, I'm curious to know what others do to "be in the Lego mood". When do you Lego? Where do you Lego? How do you Lego? Or even, why do you Lego? Etc... What is your own modus operandi when it comes to Lego? And, if it is a pastime you enjoyed as a child, has that ritual changed at all? What are the non-building particulars of your building time?

Yea, but when you're three, it makes complete sense. Lego and juice. Mmmm. If you think about, though, that is pretty much our own ritual as well; isn't it? Who doesn't pour themselves some beverage or another while Lego-ing. I'll venture to say just about everyone here carries a glass or cup of something with them to enjoy while building. And then the only break you take, is to refill it. Got me curious, now. I think I'll start a thread about it....

http://www.bricklink...Item.asp?P=4773 Here is the BrickLink Catalog Reference page for Part# 4773. If you look over to the right, under "Known Colors", there does not appear to be any listed, however there are, under "Lots For Sale", at least (5) Sellers who have them available. This usually indicates that it was a specialty part, made specifically by request for one reason or another, yet, unavailable in any known set. Take a stroll through this thread and pay attention to the conversation regarding such parts. You'll find your answers up there somewhere. ^ Oh, and don't be afraid to order from international sellers. Beware of anything coming out of Hong Kong, just because, and be cautious of anything shipping from the UK, because for some reason it is very expensive, and anything shipping from Canada, because it is way crazy expensive, considering... Sellers from Germany, and especially the Netherlands have always been great to deal with. Good luck.

Something can't die twice. Duh. Seriously though, even if LEGO should die, Lego-ing never will. There's probably more money and material being exchanged in the secondary market than within the corporation of LEGO itself, I would venture to say. And for many, many people, already, its not even the current production that sustains them, nor even interests them much. Unless the sun melts it all, or we do, for whatever reason, one could expect that because LEGO is plastic, it will still be a commodity far into our future. It's be a cool promo/ short film. Post-apocalypse, a survivor that has obviously been scavenging for some time, digs up a bagful of Lego. I know, aside from finding something viable to eat or drink, and a safe place to sleep, coming across a stash of Lego would most definitely be a score for me. I'd allocate a place within my shopping cart for a bagful or two...

Yea, that's an integral part of the process for me as well. Sometimes, I purposely make things more difficult by dreaming up uses for parts I know will be difficult to find and purchase. My current tantalus is the Cypress Tree (BL: 3778), for a Haunted House mod I'm working on. Finding 3 of them for a reasonable cost is going to be chore/ rush... And just when I do, it'll be re-released in a set and drop down to pennies for what I payed for them. Small scale stock-brokering, small-scale building, etc... LEGO allows me to be a Rockefeller or a J.P. Morgan without getting the actual world too involved in the roller-coaster of my whimsy.

Very nice. Appears that you are a natural builder. Nothing is more inspiring than to see people rediscover lost passions, and thus unlock those parts of themselves they once thought lost or dormant. I think we were each perfect as children, and all of answers are still there waiting for us to unbound them. So, congratulations on opening a new/ old door back to who you once were. That's gotta feel real good... Coming off the sides and around toward the back, adding another small layer to both the rock-work and the tower walls, would really make this look imposing. YOu know what I mean? Like a small corner addition to each side that runs the height of it, as if this here was just the front-most...

Disregard this information if you are already aware, but compare what you have against the BrickLink Inventories: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemInv.asp?S=10218-1 http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemInv.asp?S=71006-1 And then a store, or stores, that have what you're missing, or the majority of what your missing, at a cost, plus shipping, that is reasonable to you, and then order, and start building. It just wasn't clear from your posts...

That is absolutely wonderful. I'm going through a Victorian phase myself, so I am really appreciating the build. Your landscaping is as impressive. And I know those brown windows are HTF... Thank you for the photos, they'll keep me busy for a while appreciating them. Who doesn't love a garden? It must've been hard to keep this under wraps until you were done. What was the process like? And I'm curious about the dimensions, not wanting to sit here and count them out....

I had an entire minifig knight silver-chromed a while back. But to be able to buy from a random select of chrome parts wouldn't interest me as much as having a service available whereat one could send their own build or set of parts to be chromed. That would be cool. Seems one could make more money that way as well - offering chroming as a service, rather than to open a shop chock full of chrome parts - because who really knows what people want in chrome? You may be sitting on a pile of unprofitable chrome parts at the end of the day. Sometimes chrome can be really offensive on the eyes. "Too much chrome" is a very real thing. That should be a PSA. The chrome C3PO, though - he was in no way offensive.