22kane

I just bought this set from Target for $30. I'm not a big Cars fan but for 50% off it seemed like a worthwhile purchase. I really like the variety of wheels that the set comes with which may be very useful later down the road. Overall it's a cool little set even if you're not that into the films.

I missed out on the last Batman release so I'm exited to get a chance to collect this new series. I'm certainly not going to pay the ridiculous cost on eBay for the last Batman run. This is very cool news!

I saw this set on clearance the other day but couldn't bring myself to purchase it. I like the jeep but that's about it. You made a rather boring set into an interesting review so thanks for that. I'll still pass for now unless it goes down to $5.

I went into the picture album and noticed the RS-2, very impressive. I was just thinking today how I would go about building one. Your loco's are quite impressive and I was wondering how possible it would be to power the RS-2? I'm guessing it would need re-designed and may not look right as it may end up over-sized. Looking forward to more of your designs, excellent work!

Since I've joined this site I have seen some of the most amazing designs I have ever seen in my life. Lego should hire several if not many of you to design and build some of their products. Outstanding work!!

I bought this as part of a TRU buy one get one 50% off. I'm not really sure why because the only thing that appeals to me is the passenger car. I've never even seen a Harry Potter movie. The locomotive design is weak and it can't be powered unless you do some major re-working so I'll just use most of the parts to create more rolling stock. Good review though.

Personally I thought this was one of the biggest downfalls about the band however, you did an amazing job! I would think any major U2 fan would love to own something like this. Well done!

Keep in mind the Emerald Night is a very heavy locomotive. The PF XL motors have more low torch than high which make them powerful but not super fast. You could re-gear the EN to make it go fast ( put in larger gears) but it may prove to be difficult. Because of the overall size of the EN I can't imagine you would want it to go much faster as it will most likely de-rail on the tight curves.

Rod Stewart has a huge HO scale train layout and builds models while touring on the road. His set up is actually very impressive. I've heard his fans throw train cars and other model railroading items on stage during his shows. It's not Lego but still pretty cool.

Sometimes it's all about who you know. Networking is one of the best ways to obtain a job. The above comment happens quite often in many working environments where many high school graduates are surrounded by colleagues with degrees. Again, it's all about who you know.

Exactly! Another perfect example!

I'm in the "customer service" business and I don't understand what the problem is? You say they care more about money than customers yet they gave you items that usually cost money. The point to this is they want you to know that they are willing to do whatever is necessary to keep your business. Lego has some of the best customer service around and ever time I have had an issue it has been resolved immediately. I would suggest you start shopping at Walmart, they don't give a shit about anyone.

Don't get me wrong, I agree with that statement. I'm more upset with the ridiculous pricing on the newer stuff.

TRU has always been a few dollars more than most retailers so their profit margin is slightly higher. Generally when a retailer puts items on sale they are receiving some type of rebate from the manufacturer. It can also greatly depend on how many units a retailer actually purchases from the manufacturer. For example- Target may agree to purchase 8000 units of a certain set and Lego may reduce the original purchase price plus give them credit for a certain number of returned sets. It really varies by retailer. Companies like Walmart will generally put toys down to cost around the holiday season as to attract additional business but thats Walmart for you. It's because of them that you don't see many TRU's any more for that reason alone. By the time a retailer has put a set to clearance they have usually made their money back and much more. But to really answer the original question, it's very difficult because each retailer will make specific deals with Lego. On an average though sets are generally purchased from Lego anywhere from 25% to 35% cheaper than what you are charged. Lego is also very strict about their pricing and all stores must conform to a specific price range. Hope that helps?

I remember the days when eBay was a place where if you had something you didn't need or wanted to make a little extra cash you put up an auction and would just see what happened. This is no longer the case especially with the addition of the "buy it now" feature that was added some time ago. Many people actually quit their day jobs and opened eBay stores to start making a living. So what's wrong with that? Nothing really until the prices started becoming outrageous. Lego is one of the most overpriced items found on eBay today. I am a Lego train collector as well as an N scale modeler. I frequent eBay to find both but lately I am amazed at the buy it now prices on many Lego sets. For instance, try searching Lego Emerald Night and see how many auctions come up compared to buy it now sales. Many of the buy it now sales are twice the retail value. You'll find in about 25 listings there are only around 5 actual (fair) auctions. And yes, I know you can filter this on the site but my point is... Well, my point is it just sucks! I have bought and sold many Lego items on eBay but I have never sold under the buy it now option. I prefer to give people a chance as I would like. Now, I'm certainly not condemning the entire use of buy it now but have you seen the amount of abuse on this? Sets being listed at 10x their value! And it's a free world, people can charge what they want but it's just junked up the entire site. I mean really, when you search an item specifically and out of about 50 items maybe a few are attainable for a fair price. eBay was always a good way to get the actuall value on something as opposed to a price guide. You can actually see what the general public is willing to pay for an item. In many ways eBay really changed the way we put a value on certain items and I respect that but for the sellers that take up space charging 10x the value, give it a rest. Like I said, I really don't mean to condemn the buy it now sellers, it's just annoying to comb through all of the impossible buys and it teases me like when I see that one set I've always wanted going for $1000 and I know it cost about $50 new. Anyway, I will continue to use the site because it's a great way to complete or add extra parts to any set - eg. An extra emerald night passenger car? I'm just curious if anyone else out there shares my frustrations? I'm sure I'm not alone on this.

You're probably really good at Tetris. A high score champion no doubt.

Back when I was a kid (1980's - early 90's) Legos were expensive period. Even with inflation there isn't that much of a difference in price plus look at the level of detail in today's pieces compared to 20 years ago. Minifigures have facial detailing as well as their bodies, brick colors have expanded drastically as well as hundreds of more complex pieces compared to the basic bricks that once ruled many sets. I actually just got done talking about this same thing a moment ago on a Pirate forum. Would I love to see lower prices? Absolutely, but then again there are other ways around paying retail price. I have purchased many sets on eBay well below retail cost and taken advantage of clearance sales and what not. The minifigure thing wasn't exactly a fault of Lego. Smaller chains were and still are selling them at $2 a pack. Larger chain stores have the option of selling them at $3 or more. The fact that the whole minifigure thing is huge in the states alone, many retailers know they can get top dollar for them. Anyway, I still believe that today's legos are fairly priced for what you get, better than 20 years ago at least.

As I said it does vary by store. One Target had almost half of their inventory on sale at really good prices and then the next store only had a few sets on sale but not as low as the previous store. Depending on what area you live in you may have 10 Targets within 50 miles or maybe 1 within the same distance. The best thing to do is check them all out weekly. I almost thought about getting a part time job at one just to take advantage of future sales plus employees usually receive an additional discount. Just a thought for now.

I'm not much of a pirate fan if you can't tell, however, I do like the POTC sets and I own most of them. I've seen a lot of negative comments on this set and I guess I would understand more if I was deeply immersed into the pirate Lego world. I think the set is great especially since the ship is black (I've only ever seen the Lego ships in brown) and I certainly plan on buying it upon release. I collected the pirate themed sets when I was a kid ( late 80's and early 90's) and the newer stuff like POTC blows them out of the water. Any newer set is quite superior to the sets from 20 years ago no matter how you look at it. Just look at this years train sets alone, absolutely stunning!

I'm hoping we will get a chance to purchase the Zombie and Robot again ( I voted for the Zombie). I actually had a case of series 1 and broke it down into sets and sold them on eBay. I used the profits to purchase the newer train sets. I just couldn't bring myself to open the packages. I am curious how much we will be charged for this limited edition set. I wouldn't doubt seeing a price tag of about $30 or more.

Hopefully I'm not posting this in the wrong place... Target is starting to clear out their Lego sets but it varies store to store. The other day I drove to three Target locations and was surprised at the discounts. Many sets were clearanced at 50% off! The themes involved were City, Castle, Harry Potter, Cars 2, Creator and Prince of Persia. Like I said it varies at each location but the discounts at some are huge.

Lego has never been a prototypical design company when it comes to their trains. Most of their engines are based on actual designs but fall short on some serious details. Don't get me wrong, I love Lego trains and they just get better and better as the years roll by. It can be difficult to get certain details with legos but the newer designs are quite astonishing. The Santa Fe loco is based on an EMD FT. The BNSF is based on an EMD GP-38 and the Maersk is based on an EMD SD40 perhaps a -2 series but it's missing two axles. Comparatively the Maesrk blows the others away with overall detail and scale size. I wasn't too happy about the road name at first but it grew on me. I plan on getting a fleet together of the Maersk loco's and maybe changing the road names on a couple. If Lego were to revisit the Santa Fe and reconstruct it plus make it larger I would definitely change my mind. Hopefully with the growing popularity of the Lego trains we may just see that happen. I appreciate the sets but the loco's are generally based on European models. American railroading has many more options and in my opinion better designs. I'd really like to see Lego push out 2 to 3 American based loco's each year. Let's keep our fingers crossed. Maybe try a GE model next?

Ok, here goes... Matn's Tia Dalmas shack gets 4 points. Outstanding work Lego Lover's My vessel is magnificent... Gets 1 point. Why not? I would just like to say excellent work to all of the other entries but these are the two that stood out the most for me.

If I were to enter this contest this is about how detailed I would get. I see that you have a decent sense of humor, you made me laugh anyway. I fully support this entry.

Very cool! This definitely gets my vote! Great job!