CP5670

That set looks pretty unimpressive even if you ignore the fact that it's a copy of 8284. Not much functionality for a $100 set. The one thing I do like is that it includes some 1x2 tiles with red stripes, which I think are printed. When was the last time we got printed pieces in Technic sets? Still, 8265 looks like a far better buy and actually costs less.

Yeah, the US S@H availability for this set was very poor, only around 7 months from October 2007 to April 2008. I'm surprised it's still available in other countries. This is my favorite Technic set in the last several years. Although not as mechanically sophisticated as 8421 or 8258, the design is just about flawless and it gives you a lot for the money. The PF elements are worth around $80 alone.

I'm not sure what set or piece you are referring to, but changes from filled to hollow studs have occurred on many types of pieces before and it may happen that a given set contains both types of pieces. I usually wouldn't call it a defect as there is not necessarily anything wrong with either type of piece, although it should not be noticeable on the model.

I moved my entire collection (about 85000 pieces/300 sets at the time) two years ago with no problems. Sealed plastic containers work well. As others have said, remove anything that is likely to come off (stuff like antennas), but you shouldn't need to do any major disassembly of models. If your new location is only a hour's drive away, it's a good idea to move everything yourself and do it in multiple trips if necessary. I use the Stack-on drawers discussed in the pinned thread, and this was the one part of the move that took some thinking. I took out the individual drawers and packed them tightly into the same plastic boxes I used for models. I then placed thick towels over them to keep the parts in place, followed by some books to hold the towels down. This worked surprisingly well and there were hardly any cases of any pieces spilling out of their drawers.

I don't really see the point of this. It would only be useful to a very limited group of people and the benefit over existing systems like PAB and Bricklink is questionable, with the heavy price and timing restrictions they have in place. I noticed the 3 month delay for orders, although it sort of fits in with their 2 orders per year rule. EB actually fits all their requirements for a LUG except for the one about holding two display shows a year. I'm not sure even how many "physical" LUGs do that. It probably cannot be. Such a rule would violate laws on reselling rights in many countries. They can only request people not to do it.

I added some more observations on the oxygen-sensitive bricks. I've found that smoky air accelerates (maybe causes) this effect, and it may be present in MISB sets that were stored in such conditions. I had seen this in a 6395 set a few months ago, and now see it again in a 6989 set. I paid far less than the typical MISB prices on these sets so I'm happy with them, but this is something to keep in mind for people who buy old sets off ebay and BL like me. If the box is unopened but looks grimy and discolored, bagged pieces in the set may have this problem, although the ones stored in sealed "featured parts" trays will be unaffected. It should be possible to reverse the effect using H2O2 as described here, although I haven't tried this myself yet.

I think just about any theme that contains crystals basically had guys looking for them. They at least had a decent explanation in the original 1995 Aquazone line, where the sides fought over the hydrolator crystals because they were the only source of oxygen and were needed for survival.

It's hard to say much from that one picture, but that set just looks like Power Miners in new colors. It would be great to see a return of 1990s style Aquazone, but I doubt that's what this theme will be.

This is why you need to have some Technic around.

If the model isn't too heavy, the trans-clear X-Pod containers might be an option. They clip on to each other and you can make towers out of them. I was thinking of doing that here, but I wasn't sure if they would be strong enough and long-term stability was obviously important, so I instead settled with a somewhat ugly but reliable Technic-reinforced stand.

There was a new update on the Brickfair site today. It says that the Potomac Mills store will have discounts for registrants, but that seems to be a fair distance away and I'm not really familiar with that location. Does anyone know if the Tysons Corner store will have the same discounts?

Thanks for the comments. The setup as a whole is a WIP that I will keep adding to, although the bases and other stuff I posted are more or less complete. This is sort of a Space equivalent of the town layouts people post in the City/Train forum. That's a good idea, if you are referring to the studded plates on the roof (in front of the moving platform). In general, I like to keep studs visible and maintain a balance between studded and studless construction, but in that spot tiles would fit in better with the smooth look of the dome as you say.

I just meant they could use the existing M motor, which isn't that large. You are right that designing a new, smaller motor would drive up cost somewhat more.

I'm a little more willing to overlook the manual functions on the crane arm, as those would be somewhat harder to motorize. The outriggers, on the other hand, could have been made fully automatic if a little more thought had been put into them. But all of these things are examples of where this model falls a little short. I think it's still worth getting, and certainly miles better than last year's flagship. If the new construction style makes the model easier to modify and more like a studded model, that will be even better. In the 1990s it was actually not unusual for the flagship Technic sets to be only available through S@H and Lego brand stores. I know 8479 for example was like that. I haven't seen it since then though. An M motor could probably be made to work if it's in the base of the turntable, and those are $7.50. I think if someone is buying a $150 set in the first place, they wouldn't mind spending $10-15 more to get a perfect model.

That was the only one with the grayscale box art, but there was also 10159 (re-release of 6597 Century Skyway) and 10156 (of 2148 Lego Truck). 10159 is the best example of this, as the original is a highly regarded classic that routinely goes for $250+ MISB on ebay, but in late 2006 it was still in the catalogs at marked down prices, so they were evidently having trouble selling it. You can also see big differences in the ebay and Bricklink prices of this set and something like 10001, released in the old gray period.

The slideshow was my favorite part of the review too. The gearbox is the highlight of the set for me, and I especially like how the gears are laid out in all three dimensions and rotate around different axes. It also uses two independent geartrains on a turntable, using the freely spinning dark gray gears. MOCers have been using this kind of mechanism for 15 years now, but this is the first time we have seen it in an official Technic set. I was initially not fond of the various H beams on the 2009 sets, but from what I'm seeing in the instructions they actually help make the build less tedious and closer to a studded build. They might also make it easier to modify the model. I agree with your 4/5 (or 8/10 ) rating though. I think this could have potentially been a legendary model, but they have cut some obvious corners with it and it ends up being "merely" very good. The manual stabilizers are probably the biggest issue, and I would also add the lack of dual differentials in the back. This is a small thing, but they did it on 8265 this year and I think things like this are the difference between a good set and a truly great one. That must be TLG's entire Technic design team. Uwe Wabra is this set's designer, which is where the "UW Lifting Service" comes from.

The last Legends came out in 2004 and the line was dropped after that, seemingly due to poor sales. The Legends were a casualty of the gray color change that year, as the new colors made the sets much less attractive to their main target market. This is probably why the 2004 Legends were selling at discounts in the Lego catalogs a few years later, and you still see big price differences between the 2001-2003 Legends and the 2004 Legends on ebay and BL.

A joint venture from several classic space factions to form a unified monorail layout, consisting of a mix of official sets, modified official sets and custom creations. Entire layout: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157679091445758 Transfer Center: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157703788898952 Uranium Processing Plant: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157679091626448 Monorail service complex: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157714844908156 Monorail Power Station: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157705706365181 Artifact Research Hub: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141514326@N04/albums/72157703788848162

Yeah, I've never found the minimum order limit to be an issue. You usually want to buy at least $10 worth of stuff anyway to make the shipping cost worthwhile. Lot limits, on the other hand, can be more annoying.

I agree with this. I like studless models, but the majority of MOCs you see are like that these days. I get the impression that some builders almost see the studs as a defect and something that must be covered up at all costs, which makes you wonder why they choose to build with Lego at all instead of some other medium. I use tiles as accents all the time on my MOCs, but I try to maintain that blocky Lego look. I actually use Brasso just to polish used pieces and remove fine scratches, especially on transparent parts. Ironically, low gripping strength has been one of the quality problems with Lego in recent years, although it's less of an issue today.

This would be a good reference. I'll certainly check out some of them. The only model I had before was the 8459 one that comes with LDView. I use MLCad for the same thing. It's pretty easy to learn. I think people are more turned off by it due to its outdated software renderer, as opposed to LDD. We have a nice replacement now in the form of SR3D though. I need to spend some time with it to get used to it though.

Nice pre-build setup. I do the same thing with my builds, although not as neatly and thoroughly as you.

It looks to me like the Battrax rammed that guy, and the Blacktron with the gun/megaphone is telling the others they better surrender or they will meet the same fate. These guys really do deserve to get thrown into the space lockups.

Not really. In the North American catalogs, they apparently became terrorists when the Space Police showed up, as can be seen here and here. Good catch. It might have been a preliminary image. The initial Blacktron line came out in 1987 in some parts of Europe, so they did coexist for a year there. Thanks for the translations.

Awesome stuff. Are those from the standard catalogs included with sets? I have many catalogs after 1987 from various countries, but most of those dioramas are new to me. I like the one where the Blacktrons fell into a ditch. This one is weird. I can't tell whether they're shaking hands or punching each other. One funny thing about Blacktron is that they weren't necessarily portrayed as bad guys at first, but only became bad in 1989 when the Space Police came out.