Canticleer blues

When I opened LDD today, I got a somewhat large update. The 'About' says it's LDD 4.3.6, Brick Version 1128...is there anything new now? New parts added maybe?

Wow, this ship's got a great look! It's very visually striking. I like the general 'odd' shape to it, especially with the ridge detailing on the front and the return of diagonally-angled antennas (as I said before they do much to make a spacecraft look dynamic, especially when displayed this prominently!). The greebling on the engine section adds detail while still staying contained to one area, which is great as that can sometimes be difficult to achieve. The way you've managed to skillfully integrate boat hull sections, castle tower pieces, and boat masts while still retaining a 'space-y' feel is good too. Excellent work Fabz!

Well we know The Lego Movie team is going to have a presence of some sort at SDCC. Read this tweet from director Chris Miller: (From here). I'd say 'perhaps this is what the countdown is for?' but the date on that is for the 18th, not the 20th. Guess we'll just have to wait and see eh? On another note, can anyone identify what shot in the trailer this still is from? It appears as the 'thumbnail' for the trailer on Lego's page, but I can't seem to match it up with anything in the trailer itself. The closest shot is of Lucy's (the girl with the striped hair) motorcycle, but there's no car in that segment.

Wow! This is an excellent building. The highlight of the house for me is the contrast of the olive green roof tiles against the beautiful dark red front- the colors work very well together! Dark gray is normally a very common color but used sparingly here as an 'accent' of sorts it complements the others perfectly. The plate 'arches' above the windows are an interesting idea, but I kinda wish there was a way to fill the gaps between them and the rest of the front (I think there's an arch that might help that, but I'm not sure it's available in dark red). The front stairs, while simple, work well too. On the whole every detail is spot-on to how you'd expect a town house to look. Great job alois!

Huh. The design is very 'Vic Viper' in basic form, but the proportions are what makes it unique. I like the thin front 'wings'; the fact that they widen in the back into fins helps to draw the eye across the craft, and I'm always a fan of angled antennaes- it adds to the dynamic look. It could do well with one less color as that is a bit of a distraction (maybe replace some of the white with more tan?), but other than that it's a really great model with some creative piece uses. Good work Fabz!

The MSLR Full set at Flickr This is the M.S.L.R. (stands for Mobile Science Laboratory Rover). I'd had the idea of building some kind of spacey rover for a long while, but was having trouble coming up with a design I was satisfied with. Only after looking at this wheel combination with red hubcap did I realize that it reminded me of the classic 886 Space Buggy, and with that in mind I decided to do a modern reinterpretation of that 1979 classic. The increase in scale allowed me to separate the rover's top area into three distinct parts and add a lot of new details to the model, including making the back a full science station and beefing up the undercarriage. This one evolved a lot from conception to finished work, and the result is distinctive in execution even in the areas where it pays homage to the past.

Ingenious! I've never seen a 3D sculptural version of any of Piet Mondrian's artwork before, and the way this cube incorporates several works from the artist (as well as some original compositions too) makes this amazing! Add to that the model holds its own as a three-dimensional piece, and I say you have a good chance of winning that contest. Good luck Veynom!

Well, whaddaya know? Looks like all of my theories were right on the mark. Analyzing the model closely it looks like they've actually modified the set from its prototype: some parts are a different color; the top machine bit (made with binoculars) now uses a 2x2 jumper instead of a 1x2; and the back 'vents/thrusters' of the DeLorean are no longer constructed with minifigure legs. Otherwise it retains its previous look, obviously. To be honest I do wish the hood was built differently, but TLG's team did fairly well considering they A. had to abide by the 'three variants' thing as proposed, B. were only allowed to use parts currently in-stock and C. had to get a smooth hood and the front windshield pylons on the same surface (which might've been the other biggest factor in the design team going with the stepped hood). Of course I'll be taking a crack at potential hood modifications/solutions once I get my hands on this. Making a smoother sloped hood that's still compatible with the set's parts seems like a fun challenge to me. Can't wait to get this set! And looking forward to that potential 'early review' someone talked about earlier...

Interesting model here. The legs are a bit spindly, and the 'bucket shovels as feet' is very reminiscent of the early 2006 Exo-Force set 'Striking Venom'. The little details- the silver tubing on the sides, the antennae on the back, some of the top greebling and of course the top cannons- are pretty nice though. Like Hikaro Takayama I wish there was more yellow in the model, as that would really reinforce the 'Blacktron' theme you're going for. But all things considered it's fairly decent.

I really like those beautifully-constructed, elaborate backgrounds on the Lego City pages! With the comic-style textboxes and speech bubbles it reminds me of the kinds of comics and display pages the Lego Mania Magazine had back in the 90's. I'm glad that that tradition is being kept alive in some form. Aside from that, the cover has an interesting 'one-point perspective' thing going on that makes it really eye-catching. I envy German catalog subscribers for receiving such well-designed pieces of art.

Yeah, it was a pretty fun day! Unfortunately I couldn't stay long but I did manage to build about twenty of those giant green bricks. The atmosphere there was very relaxed and slow-paced on Saturday, quite different from the hectic Jersey Gardens opening. The only thing that was similar was the long, long line to get into the newly-opened Lego store there! Didn't have the time to wait, but I did manage to peek in the windows and check the place out a bit! All in all it was pretty cool to just hang out and talk to ACPin and other people from the nearby LUGs. If another store opens nearby I'll be sure to attend!

Here's a small model I made testing some basic experimental techniques: Sonic Turret Set on Flickr The front of the turret was loosely inspired by the defense emplacements used by the humans in the classic 50's sci-fi movie Forbidden Planet (see this image). Designs like that emphasize the fact that guns in science fiction don't have to abide by the 'tube with firing chamber' design that reality's physics dictate; it's something I mean to keep in mind for the future. I'd also like to add that the 1x2 plate with pin hole and 1x4 top hinge plate were essential in getting the turret face to look exactly as planned. Next up'll be something a bit biggger with many more interesting details to look at. Until then, hope you enjoy this model!

Interesting look here. It doesn't have the same 'wow' factor as the city hall, to be honest, but that doesn't mean there aren't a few clever touches here. I applaud that integration of the dome, for instance- it's always difficult to use pieces with nonstandard connection points, but this dome looks natural in its tower perch. Arches are used tastefully (I like the 2x2 round plates used under the PoP arch), and the use of studded plates as an accent is refreshing in this era where studlessness is more common. All in all it's a great compliment to the town hall, and of course the DaVinviPunk! town as a whole.

Brilliant! The model is fairly clean and simplistic in its overall look, yet the abundance of details make it a pleasure to look at. The 'wheel fenders in arches' technique as well as the use of the 2x2 box for the column bases (and the simplicity of that ledge technique) stand out as particularly clever, and the stained glass is a nice touch. Excellent work Hinckley! I only wish I'd been there to witness the model and its spinny moving pistons in person.

There's no precedent for that. In every other Cuusoo video, the models shown include no extra pieces other than what Lego claims to be in the final model. No video has yet shown features that were not included in the final model. Remember that the model shown in the video is the prototype and not the final production model. It's entirely likely that the figure (provided it's included) will be flesh when the set reaches shelves. I agree, although the sleeves on the torso looked black and not blue so I opted for that variant. Either one would reflect a figure that could be reasonably construed to be a representation of the character of Marty McFly.

Ah, so this might be the final version of the Deorean Time Machine? It looks...pretty much exactly the same as the prototype build that's been touted about in the last few videos the Cuusoo teams's released. Which means the team decided to sacrifice the (admittedly good-looking, but illegal) 6x8 hood build for something more workable. Now, as someone who's actually been paying attention to all the released videos, I'd like to clear up a few misconceptions you guys seem to have about this set and perhaps propose a sensible theory or two of my own. A. There aren't any minifigures in this set! There definitely is at least one minifigure slated to be included in the set. Want proof? Watch the "Press release" above, and note the front area of the DeLorean when it first rolls in. This image clearly shows that there is a minifigure with a red torso and black sleeves in the DeLorean, which is a good match for Marty McFly in his BttF2 outfit. So why, you ask, isn't the minifigure included in the promo shot on the flier? Read on. B. The hood looks ugly! Why didn't they use the 6x8 slope piece as seen in the original proposal? Yes, the hood isn't as smooth as the real DeLorean in the films- but, there's a good reason for that. Recall that the original proposal includes several slightly alternate builds of the time machine, including this one here: ... and on that hood lies the problem, a blatantly illegal connection that wouldn't hold up to Lego's standards. Clearly the Cuusoo designers opted to redesign the front for a more legal build-friendly version that would allow the adding of a front box for this particular variation. "But Canti", you ask, "how do you know that Lego's actually going to include all the spare parts to make these variants? For all we know Lego is including nothing more than what's in the image and just leaving us with a terrible hood!" For that, I again remind you that Lego has left the model virtually unchanged from its prototype version, and refer you to these images of that very prototype: (Incidentally, the above image shows that the doors do indeed open, and in true 'gull-wing' style.) (Screencaps taken from the video located .)These images show the time machine constructed in two variantions: one with the front box connected to the hood (made possible by the 'stepped' technique) aka the BttF 3 variant, and one without the Mr. Fusion (white machine) affixed to the back, aka the BttF 1 variant. (The BttF 2 variant is shown on the flier- it has the Mr. Fusion attached that the BttF 1 variant doesn't have.) Note that there's never more than one DeLorean visible in the video, so it's very likely that the model shown there is the same prototype with different bits added at different times during the video's interview. This is fairly strong proof that Lego intends to include pieces not just for the machine itself, but also the variants- just like the proposal shows! If this theory is correct, then it also explains why the flier's picture doesn't show minifigures- it's not meant to be the main promo image for the set, but rather an image that just shows off the BttF 2 variant of the model, with Mr. Fusion added to the back and the wheels lifted to show the 'flying' feature. If that's true, then there's also a BttF 3 variant image that would have the hood box, and most importantly, a BttF 1 main variant that shows the basic model with figure(s)! So there's no need to panic guys! What most likely happened is that the designer behind the flier was given just the one image to use, which ended up being an image that doesn't represent the complete set well. Of course, only time will tell, but I'm willing to bet the final reveal of this model will lay everyone's fears to rest.

There was a rumor a few weeks ago that it would be revealed, if not outright released in August. At any rate it still holds its spot as Cuusoo model #004.

Congratulations to Perijove! I'll admit that I wasn't too keen on his model when the news first broke that it got 10,000 votes, but over time it's really grown on me. Model-wise it's just a great fit for the Cuusoo line; definitely worthy of its spot as the fifth passed project. It's a shame that MB_bricks' excellent UCS Sandcrawler won't be in the Cuusoo line, although to be fair it's understandable given the scale and licensed nature of the model. (My sympathies to the dude though- having two finely-made models turned down through no fault of his must be pretty disheartening.) As for Portal: it's a wait, but I'm sure Valve fans are accustomed to that, what with the company being infamous for its 'Valve Time'. Given the facts that A. Valve is usually cooperative with merchandise, and B. the project is still in review, I say there's a fair chance that Portal could achieve that #006 spot.

@fred67: I think you're overlooking a few things. First, you underestimate the intelligence of children. Maybe a child who's 5 or under would think s/he'd be getting 'wizard magic' with their box of Lego, but kids over the age of 7 can tell the difference between physical bricks/3D models and 2-D effects. Moreover, I'm not sure they'd be all that concerned, as the kids full well have the ability to imagine lights, explosions and all such things while playing anyway. It's not that concerning to the average parent either- most of them expect to just be buying a box of plastic parts. Anything else would be details to them, and the only detail they'd really be paying attention to would be price. Really, what it comes down to is: people of the modern decade understand that the picture on the box is meant to sell the product just as much as it is to depict what's inside. This isn't the 60's where you only had a simple photograph on the package to judge a product by; it becomes easily understood through early exposure to media and experience that what's on the front is a design and not the product itself. For a toy like a Lego set to be actually misleading, there would have to be significant differences in the makeup of the product as compared to what's depicted on the box. As a side note, thinking that the average consumer would believe there are tiny LEDs in the searchlights of the cinema set is ridiculous; as stated above, most only expect to get plastic bricks. As AFOLs, we're the ones who are constantly aware that LED Lego pieces exist, and so would be the ones who could jump to the conclusion that photoshopped light cones automatically means that those bricks would come in the set. The expectations of the average parent buyer are much more simple than the expectations of a dedicated fan.

I promised to show my newest creations, and I intend to do just that! Today, I am proud to present: LL-6899 Flickr- Set This ship holds a bit of significance to me. In the last year I'd drifted away from model making- my attention was strained across matters like school and work, which left me little time to think about my favorite hobby. Through that I never stopped following the AFOL community, always reading various blogs/forums and marveling at the creations others would make. At one point I stumbled upon a folder containing some of my old MOCs. Looking back at what I'd made I realized- I never quite finished all the models I'd wanted to make at the time. There were still a few ideas in my head that were just begging to become physical realities. It was in the planning stages of this model, coming up with ideas on how to tackle the shape and get all the features I wanted in, that my passion for making models was renewed. Anyway, there's more to come! This is only the first product of my newfound creative kick. I'll be sharing a few more things- creations of various sizes, neat little doodles, whatever I have- with all you guys when I can.

zenn, your parts useage and overall aesthetic quality is something I've always admired. Once again you've made a fine creation that looks great! I particularly like the 'solid', tough look of the body, as well as the part combination in the grill area and on the bottom for the hover nozzles. This is a model that really shows your talent!

The car museum is excellent ER0L! The sheer amount of windows, complete with the light shining through makes it look very attractive, a fine addition to the style inherently present in the Grand Emporium structure. My only thought is, with the somewhat large scale of cars as seen in your city, how many will you be able to fit in the museum? As for the road system, it looks interesting at the moment, but I feel it'd be better judged when the layout is more complete. Looking forward to seeing more from you later then!

Hmm, it's a bit far from where I am, but if I'm free on any of those days I might try and attend. It's always great to see the Master Builders in action after all.

Alright, here's the next set! Like many others here, I'm a fan of the classic space subthemes, in particular Blacktron and M-Tron. For these models I decided to use only parts that would've been available during the theme's run- so, for example, I wouldn't allow myself to use any bricks that debuted after 1990 for the Blacktron model and 1991 for the M-Tron model. It was an interesting exercise in creative piece useage, as you'll see below. Blacktron Insurrector Flickr- Set Of the three models I made, I feel this one turned out the best. It's a small selection of parts packed onto a SNOT body that resulted in a strikingly intimidating shape, as seen in the profile above. I really recommend you check out the Flickr set to see all the angles- this is one aerodynamic craft! M-Tron Mobile Sensor Array Flickr- Set A hovering M-Tron sensor platform, shown here parked in hangar. There are no special techniques used, but the craft's shapes and colorscheme give it a charming appeal. (And of course, it has a magnet on the back, as any decent M-Tron vehicle should!) Android Concept Figure Flickr- Set I'm quite fond of the robots that pop up now and again in the space theme, but one thing that's always bothered me is the fact there there've been no brick-built androids with articulation even close to a minifigure. This is my solution- the android figure resembles a minifig in shape and can hold and use as many accessories its partner. If you're not satisfied with the range of movement the classic robot arm can provide, I've also included a pic with modern arm attachments in the set as well. With the 2011 models now out of the way, I'll be posting my most recent creations to the board! See you then!

Hello everyone! After a brief hiatus from MOCcing brought on by classes, I've returned to the active AFOL community to share my creations and ideas! Before I start posting my newest MOCs, I'd like to re-introduce myself, and I figure the best way to do that would be to give you guys a look at some of my older works, except modified and reshot with my new camera. These two models in particular were originally made a while back (2008 and 2007, respectively!), so I felt it was high time to give 'em a few tweaks and roll 'em back out! First up is the Arikev Runner. Flickr- Set For the Arikev Runner, I was looking for ways to make unique "sci-fi"-style motorcycle designs (think Akira ) that used the motorcycle undercarriage but not the oft-paired body that usually went with it. The result was a bike with a raw, exposed look; the front twin guns give it a 'lethal' element, and the details on the side and back round the model out. Wastelands Scrap Buggy Flickr -Set The initial concept for this model was to make a vehicle with a unique suspension system. As I'd become a fan of the Post-Apocalyptic genre of building that'd been popular back then, I applied that style to the body of the model. I'm quite fond of the shaping of the rollcage, as well as the one-man turret out back. That's all I've got for today! I'll be posting more sets of updated creations at later dates, followed eventually by an all-new MOC. Until then!