Walter Kovacs

I love my wife. She understands and accepts my obsession with little plastic bricks. Aside from that, she is very good at bargain hunting. She checks LEGO.com daily, looking for clearance sales. Which is where she found this set, 10144 - Sandcrawler. Stats: Name: Sandcrawler Number: 10144 Theme: Star Wars Year: 2005 Parts: 1669 Minifigs: 11 Original MSRP: $140 USD Links: Bricklink, Peeron, Brickset The Box The box was rather large, and was about 3/4s full. Front The front of the box has that wonderful Original Trilogy border around it. I miss those days. Back The back of the box is devoted entirely to showing the play features of this set. You can see the removal of the workshop, the opening of the front ramp, the cockpit and even lowering R2-D2 into the top hatch. Box Side 1 The side of the box shows the 11 minifigs. Don't they look pretty? Box Side 2 The opposite side of the box shows two Jawas tormenting lifting the Gonk droid with the crane. It also shows that turning the gear in back turns the treads. Instructions Front The front shows the same image as the front of the box, minus the number of parts. Back The back page of the instructions shows the final step, illustrating how to use the crane and showing all of the minifigs. There is no part callout in the instructions. Random Page The beginning of one of the wall sections. Aside from the base of the crawler, the walls are almost entirely modular. Bits and Pieces This is a large set. It would be difficult for any reviewer to pile all of the parts onto his studio and have them all fit. So instead I’ll show a series of pictures of the parts in the bags, just as I found them. There were 22 bags in all, plus one large black brick (which forms the base of the workshop) and two additional bags of smaller parts inside two of the bags. Bags, Part 1 This first set of bags is used almost entirely in making the treads of the Sandcrawler. In fact, there are three full bags of the tread pieces. Bags, Part 2 And the cavalcade of brown pieces begins. You can see the sprue with the hand tools in the upper left, and one of the bag within a bag in the lower right. Bags, Part 3 More brown. You can make out two R2 legs in the bag on the right, as well as a box that held either the Jawa capes or the thread for the crane. Bags, Part 4 The last of the bag pictures. The gray technic bricks are used for building the tread assemblies. The Dreaded Sticker Sheet Yes, this set came with a DSS, although it is a small one. Three stickers for the windscreen, and two to add some detail to the workshop. There are no printed parts included in this set, aside from the minifig torsos. For the price of this set, you think LEGO could have added a printed part or two. I apologize for the fact that the picture is a little blurry. But the stickers have been applied already, so this is the only picture I have. Leftover Pieces You’ll find a lot of parts that you’d expect as extras in this set. Except for that brown 1 x 8 plate. I went through the instructions three times looking for a step where I missed a 1 x 8 plate. Finally I checked Bricklink, which confirmed that the plate is an extra. Minifigs The minifigs are one of the highlights of this set (some will say THE highlight). There are 11 of them, including four that are exclusive to this set. (Three of the droids are technically exclusive as well, but they can easily be brick built from parts that aren’t exclusive to this set.) Minifigs Here are all the minifigs, along with a hastily built wall to get all of them in the same shot . The Main Characters From left to right, you can see R5-D4 (who really could have used a printed dome), R2-D2, C-3PO and Owen Lars. Apparently the C-3PO came with two different colored hands: either Light Pearl Gold or Dark Pearl Gold. I was happy to find that mine was the dark version, which matches 3PO’s body. Owen Lars is one of those exclusive minifigs I mentioned. Despite only getting about five minutes of screen time in A New Hope, Owen Lars rated enough to get his own torso printing and a unique minifig face. The torso looks like any Tattoine outfit, with the brown undershirt, and the tan robe over the top. Owen's face has gray eyebrows and a hint of gray stubble. For a minor character, LEGO captured his likeness well. The Main Characters‘ Backs Alas, only C-3PO has back printing. The Jawas Until 2005, there was a void in a lot of Original Trilogy minifig collections. The Jawas filled that void, and rather nicely, I might add. Equipped with an ion blaster, they also come with cloth capes and a minifig hood. The torsos show the crossed bandoliers many of us are familiar with. The Jawas‘ Backs The Jawas have no printing on their backs. I suppose LEGO assumed the capes would always cover their backs. The Droids The rest of the minifigs are droids which help round out the menagerie of the Sandcrawler. After all, what would the Jawas be without droids to scavenge and sell. From left to right we see a Gonk Droid, R1-G4, a Treadwell Droid (my favorite of the droids in this set) and an ASP Droid. The Gonk Droid is semi-unique, appearing for the first time in dark bluish gray. The Droids‘ Backs There’s nothing really exciting about the backs of these droids. Seeing how they’re brick built, there wasn’t much hope that they would have any back printing. The Build For a set with almost 1700 parts, the build is very straight-forward. There is very little SNOT used and most steps involved placing bricks on top of bricks. This set could really have used a numbered bag system. I tried to minimize the number of pieces out at any given time, but by step 7, all of the 22 bags except 4 were open. Three of those bags were the tread pieces. The sand crawler starts out very simple. A layer of plates, with a few 2 x 10 plates to hold them all together. Then a few layers of brick around the edges. The most interesting part of this picture is the steering mechanism for the rear treads. It is a simple rack and pinion steering mechanism. You can see the white 2 x 16 plate that forms the rack. Here is the Sandcrawler after the four side walls and back wall have been added. The construction of the walls is very easy, with a lot of texture and small splashes of color thrown in (mostly dark gray, tan and dark orange). The arches and technic bricks keep the walls very sturdy, despite having been made as separate modules. You can clearly see the area that has been left open for the workshop. The doors at the front are open. It almost seems that the bricks with handles were there to hold doors onto the model, but were taken off before production (there are corresponding bricks on the opening on the sides of the workshop). A view of the bottom of the Sandcrawler. All four tread assemblies have been attached. You can see how each assembly has two sets of treads on it. The bricks at the corners of the base, while simple, really add a lot to the finished model. You can see the black beveled gear on the back that controls the steering mechanism. The front of the crawler is nearly complete. The roof of the back section is also done, but I’ll show the greebling of that part later in the finished pics. The light gray bricks at the top form the cockpit for the sand crawler. Despite the size of the vehicle, there is only room for one pilot in the cockpit. Even with the angles needed to capture the look of the Sandcrawler’s front end, the build is still a very simple stack of bricks, attached by a few locking hinge bricks. The Crane The crane is one of the play features for this set. It is used to pick up droids on the outside and drop them through a hatch that sits behind the cockpit. There aren’t a lot of details on the crane. There is a simple control system (consisting of a single lever) and the crane itself. The crane sits atop a 2 x 2 turntable so the crane can access both sides of the Sandcrawler. The locking hinge bricks allow the crane to extend out over the sides, then retract to the hatch on the top. The Workshop The removable workshop is one of the big play features of the set. It’s removal allows access to the interior of the Sand crawler (not that LEGO put any detail into all of that empty space). Three-Quarter View The workshop is very open. The details are very non-specific, yet technical looking. There is a full set of minifig tools spread throughout the workshop. The center of the roof is removable, allowing the crane to be placed on top of the workshop to raise and lower droids into the belly of the beast. Front View The front of the workshop shows the three rather non-descript workstations. There is no apparent use for any of these stations, except to look like they belong. I think they serve that purpose well. Back View From the back, you can see that the center console looks like a forge. That would make sense for a droid workshop. Top From the top you can see the opening where the removable roof goes. It also gives a good look at the forge. The Finished Product The finished product does show a few flaws. I consider them minor. In A New Hope, the Sandcrawler looked tall, relatively thin, with a sharp angle in front. This version looks more squat, wide and the front angle is set at 45 degrees. Still, I think a little creative license is allowed, and the shape, while not perfect, is still pretty accurate. Three-Quarter View Here is the finished Sandcrawler. The LEGO designers did a good job of mottling the model by mixing in dark orange, tan, dark gray and even black in with the brown. It looks far better than a solid brown model would look, but at times I think they overdid it a bit. The designers also did an excellent job in changing the texture of the model. Using the back side of 1 x 4 x 3 panels, 1 x 1 round bricks, 1 x 1 headlight bricks and even turning around those headlight bricks so that the back side is visible (you can see a row of them to the right of the door, about four bricks up). This helps to break up the side of the Sandcrawler, and makes a much better model than a flat wall of brown would have been. Size Matters Just to give you an idea of how massive this set is, here's good ol' Owen standing next to it. His head barely reaches the top of the treads. Front View You can clearly see three of the five stickers used in this set., to give the illusion of a window. The shape of the nose of the Sandcrawler is fairly complex, but LEGO did a good job of bringing it out without using difficult techniques. One thing that should be very clear from this photo is that the final model has some significant gaps in it. There is about a ¼” gap (or more) all the way around the ramp at the front of the model. On a model that is so angular, I never expect a perfect fit, so I don’t see this as a major flaw. Here's another view of the Sandcrawler's front end, this time with the ramp down. It's pretty dark in there, but you can get a sense of just how empty the model interior really is. To illustrate this point further: A photo looking through the space where the workshop sits toward the front end. There's a full 12 studs by 18 studs just standing empty. Of course, when the crane sits in there it takes some of the space, but a cutout can easily be added to accommodate it. This picture is looking through the workshop cutout toward the back end. You can see the steering mechanism hasn't changed during the build, it's just more shadowed. There's quite a bit of space back here, too. About 10 studs by 18 studs, if my eyes don't deceive me. Enterprising MODers can easily use that space without disturbing the exterior at all. Side View The side view shows some of the SNOT used in the model. If you look at the tread assemblies, you can see some 2 x 2 dishes and some 1 x 1 round plates used as greebles. I told you there wasn’t much. You can also see another significant gap, this time where the main wall meets with the angled front. Again, not a big detraction, but some might complain. Back View I get the feeling that the designers really wanted to let their inner greeb out after doing mostly straight walls on the sides of the model. The back wall is so overly detailed, full of lots of texture and curves, and minimizing all colors except for brown and dark gray. The result is speaks for itself. I don’t recall if the back of the Sandcrawler is ever seen on screen, so the designers probably had a blank slate to work with. If you look closely at the roof over the cockpit, you can see another gap. The angles formed when the front section is formed don’t allow the studs to line up. So to form the roof, the designers had to use plates and tiles stacked on top of each other to cover this section. This leaves a few gaps. The Roof While not as detailed as the back of the model, the roof does have a lot of details with a minimum of parts. The very back uses dishes to good effect. The covers for the roof of the workshop and the forward hatch are not as detailed, but they do look good. My only beef with the roof is that the sides have almost no details. It looks a bit incongruous. Ramp Extended The ramp on the front section extends to allow access to the center of the machine. This front section holds the crane when it is not in use. The Mandoors These are presumably there as the main access to the vehicle when the main ramp is up. It's too bad LEGO didn't give us a ramp for the minifigs to actually use these nice doors. With no interior, you can see all the way through to the door on the other side. The Cockpit This is the best photo I could get of the cockpit. There is only room for one Jawa. The controls are sparse, with only two levers to control the entire Sandcrawler. A printed tile, or maybe a slope would have really helped. There are two trans yellow 1 x 2 bricks where the windscreen should be. I can only imagine the designers thought this would represent the actual windscreen. Unfortunately, these bricks are backed by a solid brown 1 x 6 brick, so the effect is lost. Steerage As I mentioned before, the steering system works well. Just don't expect to turn on a dime. Turning the black gear on the back (shown by the red arrow) causes the rear sets of treads to turn. There are stops inside the Sandcrawler that prevent you from over-steering. Opening the Hatch Besides lifting droids, the crane can be used to open the forward hatch on the Sandcrawler’s roof. One of the Jawas is preparing the hatch for its next victim. Bye Bye, Artoo R2-D2 should have been more careful. The Jawas have captured him, and are lowering him into the Sandcrawler to meet his fate. Or is it destiny? Scores Build: 8/10 There isn't a lot of repetition, the build is straight-forward and relatively easy, even with 1660 pieces. There's very little SNOT to make the build more interesting. Playability: 9/10 The Sandcrawler moves exactly how you expect it to move: slowly. The steering mechanism works, but the turning radius is terrible. The crane is fun to play around with, and the workshop adds that little extra bit. I wish there was more to the interior, though. I think a little (a lot??) of MODing is in order. Minifigures: 10/10 How could it be any less. Three Jawas and Owen Lars that are unique to the set, yet another R2-D2 and C-3PO, and five other droids. Anyone that complains about the Sandcrawler’s minifigs is crazy. Pieces: 8/10 A lot of reddish brown. And a smattering of dark orange, dark gray and black. Almost all of the pieces are bricks, so if you want plates, don’t come looking here. Price: 10/10 Having a parts to price ratio around $.10/part is great, especially for a licensed set. This set is under 8.4 cents per part. And if you need reddish brown bricks, this set will give you all you’ll ever need. Design: 9/10 The design is a bit gappy, especially in the front end. It’s a little too short, a bit too wide, and the front angle isn’t quite right. But I don’t think LEGO could have gotten it any more accurate. Total- 54/60 A very good set for any Star Wars fan. The play features work well, the minifig selection is excellent and the price was right (too bad you’ll have to pay collector’s prices nowadays.) If you like Original Trilogy sets, this is a must have for your collection. Full gallery for more pictures, when moderated.

Even though I'm not playing, I'm looking forward to following along with this game. I haven't followed or played in a mafia game before. This should be fun to watch.

I'll adjudicate for Legonator and sok117, if you guys want. Just PM me.

If you want, I'll adjudicate. Just send me your DS. Edit: DS received from Minxter. Just waiting for you, TheMaster.

Nice review, def. This set is the reason I never bought 4500 (well, that and I was heading into a dark age). The design difference between this set and the re-design wasn't different enough for me to justify shelling out extra cash for a model I already had. And the Atgar cannon in 7130 looks better, in my opinion. Not great, mind you, but better. It's interesting to note that the hoth trooper in set 4500 used the same head piece.

Yep, that noise is all from the motor. The fiber optic wires are very durable. They'll get bent into curves over time, but they will always light up. The luminescense(sp?) has nothing to do with the wire itself, but with the angles of reflection vs refraction at the wire's wall. It's a phenomenon called total internal reflectance. And that is as much explanation is you're going to get out of me. Physics classes were FAR too long ago to remember anything more.

Wonderful MOCs you have there, gotoAndLego. The LAAT/i looks just about perfect. That was my first question when I saw the LAAT/c.

I think we're allowed to have differing opinions. The Starship is a good set. My biggest problem with it is the front end is VERY fragile, and tends to fall apart when you look at it wrong. That's why I consider this st to be a little better. I'm planning on doing a review of the Explorien Starship soon. Just after my 9th RA review gets passed, in fact

Almost all of the LEGO space themes have some sort of base. The Exploriens theme had two: 6899 - Nebula Outpost (see my review of that set here) and 6958 - Android Base. It shouldn't be hard to figure out which I like better. Stats: Name: Android Base Number: 6958 Theme: Exploriens Year: 1996 Parts: 267 Minifigs: 3 Original MSRP: $40 USD Links: Bricklink, Peeron, Brickset Catalogs I found some old catalogs from 1996 or early 1997 that show the Exploriens line. I thought you'd enjoy seeing them. This is the earlier catalog. It's interesting to note that two of the sets pictured aren't even in the Exploriens theme. The set in the upper right hand corner is the Unitron monorail ( ), and the minifig pack is listed on Bricklink as a generic space set. This catalog is a little newer, showing both the Exploriens and the "new" UFO theme. UFO came out in summer of 1997, so this catalog was probably from winter 1997. From what I can see, there were no changes between the catalog and final versions of this set. Instructions Front The front shows the same image as the front of the box. Back There are some alternate models that can be made. I've attempted the spaceship looking one on the bottom, but it has structural issues (i.e. it likes to fall to pieces, literally). Random Page This page shows the assembly of one of the massive doors to the base. Bits and Pieces The Big Pile Lots and lots of black and white for your building pleasure. The 16 x 32 baseplate is a welcome addition to almost anyone's collection. The huge panels aren't too useful, though, unless you like making lots of bases. Stickered Parts The stickers in this set include all of the reflective parts, the magnetic Exploriens fossil tiles and the big Exploriens symbol on one of the massive panels. I excluded the large panel for clarity's sake. Printed Parts Everyone longs for the days when LEGO used printed parts. The arrows show the builder how to operate the features of the base. Did LEGO think we were idiots or something? The control panel tiles are nice. Interesting Parts With the size of those panels, how could anyone not find them interesting. The double inverted 3 x 1 slope is unique, at least in my collection. Minifigs Minifigs The humans are standard Exploriens spacemen. I like the torso with all the details; the one with the logo, not so much. But that android is the cream of the crop. Printed legs and hips, a clear head with that great gold printing. Minifig Face The human faces are very nice. I still like that android head. Minifig Back The back of the minifigs. There is no back printing, even on the android. One can't get everything one wants. The Shuttle The shuttle is a small, one man ship, probably intended only for atmospheric flight. It is very swooshable, and is pretty well designed for its size. The Build The shuttle build is pretty straight-forward. Here is a picture of it about 2/3s of the way through, showing some of the SNOT technique used to attach the wings. The Finished Shuttle Three-Quarter View Although not flashy, the shuttle is very swooshable. Having that hose can get a little irritating, though, as it tends to want to turn the instrument on back to the right. Bottom The bottom of the shuttle shows the best view of the four rocket thrusters. Top This is the best view of the shuttle you're going to get. Unless you have one in your hand, that is. The Buggy The buggy, while not the best ground vehicle ever, is very functional. It has a nice 2 x 2 dish for a headlight, and has room for two spacemen. Too bad there aren't enough humans to man both spots and the shuttle at the same time. The Build The buggy is even more straight-forward. This picture shows the buggy driver's seat. The slopes really help add some detail to the seat. It's a shame I've never seen another set with the same technique. The Finished Buggy Three-Quarter View The buggy has many more features than the shuttle. The rear section rotates, and the sensor module moves up and down. It's nice that there is a place to store the hand instrument. Two things that bother me about this set, and both relate to the buggy. First, I really wish there was one more human minifig to put in the seat controlling the sensor. It just doesn't feel right to have the android take that seat and leave the base undefended. Second, why are they still using a standard steering wheel in the future? Of all the Exploriens vehicles, this is the only one using the steering wheel. These complaints are minor in the grand scheme of things. Side This picture of the side of the buggy shows the sensor array in a raised position. You can clearly see some of the greebling added, in the form of the 2 x 2 dish and minifig torch on the side of the array. Top A gratuitous shot of the buggy from above. This picture gives you a good sense of how large it is. The Base Finally to the key part of this set, the Android Base itself. The Build This picture shows the base just before the deck is put on. That are on the left side is a storage bin for the fossil tiles. The base after the first door has been attached. Did you recognize it from the random instruction page? Here is the radar dish assembly. I think it looks pretty good. The Completed Base Three-Quarter View Thanks to all those large panels, the base is very tall. It takes up almost all of the 16 x 32 baseplate it sits upon. The radar dish on top rotates 360 degrees, and moves up and down almost 180 degrees. Side On the side you can see the huge Exploriens logo plastered on the panel. Unfortunately, that isn't a printed piece, but a sticker. It's held up well for being 14 years old. Back The back of the base shows that it is completely open. While it would have been nice to have it enclosed, it makes more sense from a playability standpoint to leave it open. That, and it would take a lot of bricks and slopes to enclose it. Besides, that's what MOCers are around for. The Doors [singing]C'mon, baby. Light my fire...[/singing] Ahem, yes. Well. The way the doors open is kind of neat. At least I think so. The assembly that the radar dish sits on slides forward and back along two 1 x 8 plates with door rails. The assembly is connected to two technic linkages, which in turn are attached to the top of the doors. When the assembly is pushed toward the back of the base, the doors close in unison. When the assembly is pulled forward, the doors open. The Door Assembly This picture shows a closer look of the upper assembly, including the printed arrow tile showing you how to close the doors. Like I needed the help. Fossil Storage I mentioned before that there was a fossil storage area. Here is a close-up of the bin, with some fossils in it. When I first assembled the base, I thought it was very nice. It had a lot of open space for the android and his human masters to work in (unlike the Nebula Outpost. Grrr.) But I was a bit irritated that there was a huge open space right in the center. Then I found out what it was for. All Together Now... Buggy Parking Only The buggy fits perfectly into the open space in the middle of the base. The odd thing is, this feature is never shown in the instructions or on the box (at least from what I can remember. It sure would be nice to check the box pics right about now.) Doors Closed You can see that the buggy fits perfectly in the space, even with the doors closed. There is no place for the shuttle to park. The Complete Set Here is the Android Base with all of its components. I find it funny that, while the humans get nice, printed microphones on their heads, the android is forced to carry an old fashioned walkie-talkie. Surely an advanced android has some sort of transmitter embedded in his body somewhere. Then again, they are still using a steering wheel, so... Scores Build: 8/10 There isn't a lot of repetition, the build is straight-forward and relatively easy. There's even a little SNOT thrown in. Playability: 7/10 For a space base, there's a lot to do. The two vehicles help a lot. Minifigures: 8.5/10 The android fig is fantastic, and one of the humans is very good. I still don't like the Exploriens logo torso. The set could really have used one more human. Pieces: 8/10 There are quite a few very large pieces that aren't all that useful. Outside of those, the parts selection is good for any MOCer's collection. Price: 6/10 Price to parts ratio is poor, even back in 1996. This is mostly due to the very large panels. Design: 9/10 I really like the base, even with those huge pieces. Everything goes together very well. Total- 46.5/60 The best Exploriens set out there, at least in my opinion. The little shuttle is well designed and very swooshable, the buggy is fun to play with and the base itself has plenty of room inside (Nebula Outpost - I'm looking at you). Full gallery for more pictures, when moderated. Reason for Edit: Added Poll

Great duel, sok. It was a pleasure. And thanks for adjudicating, legonator. I'm already busy making a fool of myself in the Chosen One tournament. I'm going up against a Sith Master in the first round, so complete foolishness isn't out of the question

Did you get my PM pedro? I sent it on Saturday.

Yeah, I grew up with Classic Space, too. But Exploriens brought me out of my first dark age and started me down the dark path to an AFOL. It will always have a special place in my heart for that (or maybe I'll curse that decision forever. The jury's still out )

It was fixed in the Reviewers Academy. It's fixed here, now. Yeah, that hologram sticker is one of the few stickers in all of my sets that has actually come off. I usually don't have too much trouble with LEGO stickers, and I've applied MANY. The reflective sitckers inside of the deltoid clips that are very common in Exploriens and UFO like to try and come off, as well. Might it be because of the reflective surface? The review for 6958 is coming soon. I just posted it in the RA.

The Nebula Outpost was one of the last Exploriens sets I collected. In the catalog images, it looked like a giant robot, and so I wasn't very interested. Then I saw it in the clearance aisle, and realized it was a base. Or something along those lines, at least. Stats: Name: Nebula Outpost Number: 6899 Theme: Exploriens Year: 1996 Parts: 156 Minifigs: 2 Original MSRP: $15 USD Links: Bricklink, Peeron, Brickset The Box I discarded my packaging many moons ago, so this one is provided thanks to Peeron. Instructions Front The front of the instructions shows the same picture as the front of the box, minus the Exploriens logo in the upper right hand corner. Back The back shows some alternative models. I've tried building that spaceship before, but with the limited parts palette, it was very fragile and not conducive to swooshing Random Page This page shows the beginning steps of the second level. Bits and Pieces The "Big" Pile You would think that 156 pieces would have plenty of useful parts. You would be surprised. Many of them are very large, and not terribly useful in MOCs, at least to me. There are a lot of smaller black and white plates, if that is what you need. Stickered Parts There weren't very many stickers to this set. Two of the Exploriens fossil tiles (which are attracted to magnets; kind of a neat feature) and the metallic stickers. The large 4 x 4 tile is actually borrowed from another set. Ths is one of the few stickers that I've ever had come off. Printed Parts Only four printed parts, and they are all the same. They tell the builder exactly how to open the panels. My question is, did we really need a printed piece to tell us this? (Aside from Exploriens, those arrow pieces are also used extensively in UFO sets.) Interesting Parts Some of the more interesting parts out of this set. Notice how they are all large pieces that are fairly specialized. At least the stanchion can be used as, well, a stanchion for MOCs. Minifigs Minifig The two rather nice minifigs. I've always sent the one with the elaborate helmet out on expeditions, while the one with the plain helmet stayed at the base. Minifig Face Both minifigs share the same face, which is unfortunate. But Exploriens only used two different heads, so I can't complain too much. Minifig Back The back of the minifigs, showing the familiar air tanks. There is no back printing. The Build The build is very straightforward, and only takes about 20 minutes. The base is pretty well complete. That lever you see there looks like it was just thrown on. Like a lot of things in ths set (more on that later). The bottom section is nearly complete. The stanchion piece forms the central support for the Outpost. The bottom section is complete. You can see that two of the panel pieces open up, while the other two are fixed in place. While it does allow access to the "interior", the design is open enough that the access isn't really necessary. The start of the upper section. The radar dish can be removed and used as an instrument by one of our spacemen. For me, this is the highlight of the set. This instrument (or is it an energy weapon?) is pretty simple, but all of the round bricks really make it look special. I was used to the blockiness from the classic space sets of the early '80s. The upper section is nearly complete. Once again, half of the windscreens are secured in place, while the others rotate on hinges. The Model Normally I would show front, back and side views of the finished set. But the Nebula Outpost really doesn't have a true front. So you get to see it from all four sides. Side 1 Side 2 Side 3 Side 4 After looking at all four sides of our base, one thing is apparent: there is very little space inside for the spacemen to do anything. And there is no easy way to reach the upper section from the ground. I guess the spacement have to hope for low gravity planets. Bottom The bottom is where one of my biggest problems with this set lies. The 4 x 4 dishes like to fall off. Easily. And since the entire outpost needs to sit on those dishes, it makes the model somewhat unstable. The Accessories Here are our spacemen using some of the instruments to hunt for fossils. Some of the brick built instruments you might have noticed along the base of the outpost. The red and blue panels are used for finding those fossil tiles. A neat effect, but the instrument is so unwieldy. The magnet can be used to pick those fossils up, but again it is so large that it's hard to imagine the spacemen actually using it. Conclusion I've alluded to it before, but I'll just come right out and say it now. The problem with this space base is that it doesn't function very well as one. LEGO spent a lot of time designing a set that had some interesting architecture, and lost sight of how one was supposed to actually play with the set. Having some of the pieces fall off easily even with careful handling doesn't help matters. Scores Build: 5/10 The build, though straight-foreward, is actually satisfying. It's fun to see things come together in this set. Playability: 4/10 This set really suffers on the playability end. The panels open and close, the upper section rotates, and there are absolutely oversized instruments. Whooppee. Minifigures: 7.5/10 While not as good as classic spacemen, these minifigs are a good addition to any space collection. Pieces: 5/10 Even though there are 156 pieces, a lot of the parts are large and harder to integrate into a MOC. A good set for black and white plates, but overall the parts selection is mediocre. The set did have a good parts to price ratio, back in 1996. Price: 6/10 The parts to price ratio was good back in 1996. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't pay Bricklink prices for this set. Design: 1/10 This is where the set fails. It's all show and no substance. Even that wonderfully designed sensor array can't save this one. Having pieces fall off is unforgivable. Total- 28.5/60 This set completely misses the mark. It's a decorative showpiece disguised as a space base. I'm afraid I can't recommend this set for anyone but the die-hard Exploriens fan. Full gallery for more pictures, when moderated. Reason for Edit: fixed Pieces reasoning.

I'd like to duel anyone. I'll adjudicate anybody's duel as long as I get to duel someone in return.

Ber'gin'yon Torg'h will take on any challengers. I'd like to be on the reserve list, if possible.

Fantastic job. They do look much better than their monochrome counterparts. I love that Ewok cart. The only one that might have been better in a single color was Vader's kart. I'l have to go back and compare them. The rest are definite improvements with the new color scheme, especially Yoda's

I'm pretty sure it's the 6212 - X-Wing Fighter. TRU still has them stocked on their shelves.

Sure sok, I'll duel you. All we need is someone to adjudicate.

Yes, very nice duel, Legonator. We'll have to have a rematch sometime (but not today, I need to rest ). The Master is only an Initiate, so if you and The Master want to duel, I'd be willing to try my hand at adjudication. Just send me your Round 1 DS.

Hrm, the new AT-AT looks very similar to the original (non-motorized) version, especially in the legs. The legs are what I dislike most about this new verision. Those 4 x 4 dishes at the hip joints look far too small. I think they'd look much better as 6 x 6 dishes, like on the original. Right now, the AT-AT looks like it is low on my list. Despite my dislike for the PT, the Clone Wars era sets are my favorite. Go figure.

Nope, this tile is merely reflective. Only the square black 2 x 2 fossil tiles are magnetic. They look like this: Note: I didn't have a picture of just the fossil tiles. The silvered one is not magnetic.

I've always liked the LEGO impulse sets. Very reasonably priced, and usually an interesting finished model. When you find one in a theme you happen to be collecting, well, that's just the icing on the cake. Stats: Name: Hovertron Number: 6815 Theme: Exploriens Year: 1996 Parts: 28 Minifigs: 1 Original MSRP: $3 USD Links: Bricklink, Peeron, Brickset The Box I discarded my packaging many moons ago, so this one is provided thanks to Peeron. Catalogs I found some old catalogs from 1996 or early 1997 that show the Exploriens line. I thought you'd enjoy seeing them. This is the earlier catalog. It's interesting to note that two of the sets pictured aren't even in the Exploriens theme. The set in the upper right hand corner is the Unitron monorail ( ), and the minifig pack is listed on Bricklink as a generic space set. This catalog is a little newer, showing both the Exploriens and the "new" UFO theme. UFO came out in summer of 1997, so this catalog was probably from winter 1997. From what I can see, there were no changes between the catalog and final versions of this set. Instructions Front The instructions are short, only two pages long. Once you look at these photos, you, too can assemble your very own Hovertron. Back There are some alternate models that can be made. They are pretty easy to build (of course with only 25 pieces, they should be). Bits and Pieces The "Big" Pile There aren't very many pieces, but what you do get are generally useful. Two plates without corners, two 1 x 2 plates with handle. Tile clips and hinge bricks are always handy to have when MOCing. Never discount a set because it has a small number of parts. Stickered Parts Even an impulse set succumbed to LEGO's insidious DSS. Of course, the reflective surface is the reason these parts are stickered and not printed, so some slack should be given. There are no printed parts, aside from the torso and minifig head. Minifig Minifig I like two out of the three Exploriens torsos. This is the one I dislike. The oversize Exploriens logo just doesn't do it for me; I'd much rather have hoses, zippers or other details on the front of the torso. The helmet is very nice, though. I imagine it started as a diver helmet. Minifig Face If the torso was a disappointment, the face makes up for it. A nice microphone, some bushy eyebrows and a smart moustache. The face fits the theme well. Minifig Back The back of the minifig. There is no back printing. The Build Seeing as this is an impulse set, there isn't much that can't be seen in the overall pictures that would be revealed by in-build photos. The build is also very straight-forward. That clip on the back feels very tacked on. I know it was used extensively in the Exploriens line, but it seems to serve no purpose here. You can clearly see the control panel for our intrepid spaceman to use. Here is the complete model, minus the minifig and his sensor tool. The Model The finished product looks rather dashing. 3/4 Here's our hero, zipping across the barren wastes, looking for those all important fossils. It's interesting to note that this is only one of two Exploriens sets missing those fossil tiles. Front The trans blue cone on the front makes a nice blaster. Or sensor. I'm sure LEGO meant us to take it as a sensor Side A look from the opposite side of the Hovertron. Back Our spaceman has plenty of room to stand in. Top You can see that the control panel is well within reach. Scores Build: 4/10 The build lasts 1 minute, maybe a minute and a half if you fumble with the pieces. Playability: 6/10 There's not a whole lot of playability here. The model is very swooshable though, which helps. Minifigures: 6/10 The torso is a disappointment, but the minifig head helps make up for this. Pieces: 5/10 With only 28 parts, there isn't much to work with here. You do get some hinge bricks and plates with a handle, which are useful in MOCs. Still a good parts/price ratio. Price: 8/10 Price to parts was good back in the day; almost all of the parts are useful for MOCs. Bricklink prices now are inflated, at least for MISB sets. Design: 8.5/10 While the build leaves a lot to be desired, the overall design is very good. Compact and swooshable, and some decent details despite the lack of parts. Total- 37.5/60 Overall a decent set that goes well in your space collection. Everyone needs some small, single person sets. This one fits that niche well. Full gallery for more pictures, when moderated.

Anyone want to duel?

Nice review, Rufus. This is one of the UCS sets I don't have, and now I want it. Bad. The greebling on this set is just amazing. So, if this set is the queen of greebles, which set is the king?