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Locutis

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Everything posted by Locutis

  1. Locutis
    In Canada, at least on my VIP account, you have to redeem points in $5, $20, $50, $100 increments only, and for a code that you enter online for a discount.
  2. Locutis
    My order just shipped this morning.
  3. Locutis
    Looks like it could be 20%. Would that be VAT?
  4. Locutis
    Awesome review, and an awesome set. What are the different shades of blue? I know there's dark and medium blue, but what's the other blue? Locutis
  5. Locutis
    I was debating ordering this set on the weekend, and on Monday Dec 15 I reloaded and it said "Call to check...". I phoned and spoke with a CSR and indeed they had "very few left". I mentioned that the day prior it was limited to 2 per customer, and asked whether I could still order 2 of them. She checked and said there were literally 2 left, and put the order through for me. As I was on the phone I hit "refresh" in my browser, and it changed to "SOLD OUT". Needless to say Toys R Us (.ca) still has (oops, had) some of these left at retail pricing. As of yesterday TRU.ca had 19 in stock, and checking this morning it's sold out. This set sold pretty fast when push came to shove. Locutis
  6. Locutis
    On the North American S@H site, Town Hall and Grand Emporium are listed as "SOLD OUT". Locutis
  7. Locutis
    A nice idea, but unnecessary. Simply use a 16x32 along a 32x32 and you have the required stud count. It's not difficult to tie two baseplates together. Locutis
  8. Locutis
    I have been contacted by members and co-ordinators of the LUG, and apparently I misunderstood. PF is welcome in the layout, just that 9V track is still required for the LUG layout loop. Locutis
  9. Locutis
    The question still would remain: is it worthwhile for me to spend $700 on electric rail track to use in a display? Or at some point will everyone be convinced to upgrade to PF and that investment would have been worthless? It's fine to modify PF trains to use 9V and to modify 9V trains to use PF, but unless I have track and power regulars that is sort of pointless. Is it a worthwhile investment to modify my PF trains to 9V? Locutis
  10. Locutis
    Our LUG is brand new, with less than 15 members. Membership is free. The LUG itself has zero assets. Locutis
  11. Locutis
    This would require a significant investment, as I have about 12 trains. I do like the idea of using EITHER on the same train, but others don't like the idea. I do agree, they are a bit unreasonable. It's 9V or get out. Sadly, we are a small group of only about 15 members, with about 10 show participants. 3 of the participants have trains, all of which are 9v (they were back into Lego much sooner that I was). I have the Emerald Night, Maersk, Constitution, one each of the City trains since 2004/5. I'm looking into the Horizon Express (x2 or more). I'd like to get the Holiday Train, but I don't know if I should use PF or 9V with that, and if I do, that affects my other trains. It's a poor situation all around. I even considered not displaying next year, but that negatively affects the group as a whole, and it was a fun experience. Being told I can't use my trains was disappointing (I used one of my PF trains as a prop in a railyard being "unloaded"). Locutis
  12. Locutis
    It was quite an awkward conversation to have. You have to explain that TLG no longer produces electrified tracks and trains, that they are all battery-operated now, but none of the trains on the tracks are battery, they are older or have been modified. Then you have to explain Bricklink and that's where you can only get the electric tracks, and people get soooo confused. Then they ask questions like "why did Lego do that" or "do you have any battery-powered ones on display" and so forth. I had thought about this, too. I can pickup a brand new 9v train and track for around $180 to start. However, my section of the display is 16 feet long, x 2, which means 32 feet of track. That would be approximately $700 worth of electric track, by my cost estimates... When I say I have a significant investment, that includes Li-Ion batteries that recharge (TLG-brand). I'm not spending anything additional to run my PF stuff, as I've already (invested?) spent that money. I would like the ability to make my own layout in advance, using my own plastic track where I want it, without having to buy 9v if I can avoid it. In addition, the flexibility of being able to use flex-track for difficult joins (like between sections at a corner, where the layout doesn't perfectly match up). I even suggested we look at converting the 9v trains to use a tender or car that has PF in it, and use a partial 9v section that would somehow recharge the Li-Ion battery pack for when it transfers onto the plastic track. Negative. I'm either stuck in the past, and need to invest in older trains, or I need to modify PF trains to use 9v motors that I currently don't have. Either way, it's a problem. Locutis
  13. Locutis
    I have a substantial (in my view) investment into Power Functions trains and track. I currently have about 12 modern PF trains, and about 100 feet of plastic PF track. I have many remotes, motors, etc. Our group, MBLug, just finished our second display show (my first), and I was very "envious" of many of the electric trains. In addition, I had to borrow track to go through my section as I do not own any 9v track. My section was 16' long, with 2 rail runs through it. My question is simple: Is it worth it to now go back and buy some 9v trains, track, and accessories even though I have this significant PF investment? I'm a purest to a point (I will bricklink build something that is difficult/impossible to get), and would consider getting pieces to build a Santa Fe or BNSF or Metroliner without making them 9V, or buying them and converting to PF. Should I convert my PF trains to 9v, and pickup some older 9v trains and track, or should I buy older 9v trains (without the track/etc.) and convert them to PF? The only problem is, by staying "modern", I'm kept out of the displays. My trains are all battery-operated, and the LUG show co-ordinators insist on 9v only, which means none of my fantastic trains can be put on display at a show here unless I convert to 9V (which I currently have no means to do). What's your opinion? How have you or your LUG handled the (no longer recent) transition from 9v to PF? Locutis
  14. Locutis
    Wow, this set is truly amazing! It very much reminds me of a mix between cafe corner and Green Grocer. There's a lot of Green Grocer-like design in there. It's interesting to note how they did the box art, with this set beside the corner set on the right, which they normally do not do. Also, note that Pet Shop, Fire Brigade, and Grand Emporium are all absent on the box art. I hope Lego keeps their CDN/USD pricing for other sets like this one. Maybe they have finally realized that their Canadian dollar pricing needs to be more in-line with the USD pricing, which on this set is much more realistic. I hope it isn't a mistake! Locutis
  15. Locutis
    I was also fortunate to grab some from TRU.ca! By chance I was looking today again (1 week later), and they are again back in stock and accepting orders. Not sure why this set which is supposed to be completely sold out, keeps appearing everywhere... Locutis
  16. Locutis
    The piece I analyzed was from the Calendar set. I purchased that set about 8 months ago. It has not been exposed to any smoke or contaminants (it's at work). Just for fun, I could open a brand new set, and analyze the pieces to determine if brand new from a bag would have the same result. Locutis
  17. Locutis
    Thanks for the insight, 'Faefrost'. I didn't have time, but I could analyze different colors and report the findings. Based on what you're saying, then theoretically the clear bricks should contain no heavy metals at all. Locutis
  18. Locutis
    We have an XRAY Spectrometer at work that analyzes elements in an item placed in front of it. For fun I decided to put a 2x2 white Lego brick to see what elements it is made of, and was surprised to find some concerning results! Of the brick that is not plastic, there are the following metals, in percentages disclosed: Fe (Iron) 3.00% Ni (Nickel) 1.01% Zr (Zirconium) 1.34% Ru (Ruthenium) 7.24% Rh (Rhodium) 12.67% Pb (Lead!!!) 18.10% Ag (Silver) 26.93% Cd (Cadmium!!) 29.69% It should be noted that the percentages are not of the entire makeup, but are percentages of the heavy metal elements of the item. If the plastic makes up 99%, and metals make up 1%, the percentages above are what percentage of that 1%. However, I do not know the exact overall makeup of plastic to heavy metal ratio in a Lego brick, only TLG could answer that question. What is alarming is the content of Lead, Cadmium, and other potentially toxic metals. Would someone care to comment about my findings? Locutis
  19. Locutis
    Nice building. It will look very nice once you brick-build it. I can't wait! Locutis
  20. Locutis
    I thank everyone for the feedback. Do you think there is overuse of the masonry [brick] bricks above the windows, for example? Should that just be plain lego? Or does this amount of [brick] brick look good? I do have a WHOLE bunch of [brick] bricks that I've bought that I want to use in a creative way, but I don't want to make it look overused. I'm thinking of redoing the building slightly, and using the [brick] bricks for the columns mainly. What is everyone's opinion? I'll build another for comparison side-by-side if I get 2 hours of freedom. Thanks for all of your input, it's really appreciated. This is one of the first buildings I've decided to [MOC] build since getting back into Lego. Locutis
  21. Locutis
    When you print stickers using those sheets, you just cut them out (carefully) using a scissor or knife. Locutis
  22. Locutis
    Hi everyone! Having a day of (literally) nothing needing to get done, I decided to take advantage of the time and build myself a new modular building. I've incorporated some design inspiration from the Fire Brigade set. As a matter of fact, this building is made exclusively of parts from the Fire Brigade (save for the masonry [brick] bricks). So far this is only one floor. I'm not sure how high I will make it, but this is what I have for the time being: There is no interior. I don't do interiors. Locutis
  23. Locutis
    I use Avery 15665. They are slightly opaque but when rubbed become transparent (like 3M tape). I bought letter size sheets (8.5" x 11"), and I print using a color laser printer. These sheets work on both laser and inkjet printers. Unfortunately there are issues with printing white, as obviously being clear sheets you won't get white. However if you work around that caveat you can still get good sticker results. You can't stick on black or dark green, for example, but you do get decent results on white, tan, grey, etc. Locutis
  24. Locutis
    Wow, a very nice scene. I really like the way you did the wooden walkway down to the ships. Locutis
  25. Locutis
    That is awesome! Your stickers might be common (replacements for people worried about glow-in-the-dark), or they may in fact be rare. At work we sell collectible money. A few years ago we carried collectible banknotes from the Bank of Canada. They came in a sealed plastic lens, and a booklet that was the COA. We got a call from a customer saying their COA didn't have a serial number. We told them to ship it back to us. When we got it back, we discovered it was their prototype, and the serial numbers on the bills were the ones that appeared in the photos of the set (and on the box)! We sold the set for 10x what they normally sold for. Lego may have made a run of regulars before they made glow-in-the-dark for the sets, and your sticker sheet may have accidentally gotten out (should have been destroyed). What would you think/do if only a few of these ever existed outside of TLG? Would be extremely rare! That being said, I wouldn't mind getting those stickers from them, either! It would have been nice to have had two options. I actually scanned and reprinted the stickers it came with because my experience is that Lego stickers tend to peel off a lot of times (reprinted ones don't). Locutis
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