Kivi

Black Seas Barracuda I desperately wanted this set when I was a child (together with the rest of pirates sets, of course) but it was out of the question getting it then, the main reason being the price. Then I spotted it in 2004 when it was a part of Legends series and despite an affordable price then (60 GBP or something) I left it slip away again. I now attribute this to the fact that I was in the darkest period of my dark ages at the time and neither would it be easy to carry it home from England. Luckily, when I came out of my dark ages my interest in pirates wore off and I now I don't regret it that much.

Very nice car. I prefer the black one - looks very gangster style of the 1930s. Well done!

It looks very genuine. The use of 'wrapping paper' is a very clever idea. Are you going to make also the dark one and milk one?

It's pure imagination and not based on anything real. I deliberately avoided the term 'light rail' as this also covers some faster transport systems with greater capacity that mostly run on tracks which are physically separated from other traffic areas. However, 'tram' would also be suitable. I agree that ball and socket joints are not the best solution. In this case, however, the train was meant to be a static display on a straight track and as it is not powered it worked just fine this way.

Very pretty little houses. The center building is particularly beautiful as its walls are built entirely of plates. It makes it look like being made of microscale bricks. Definitely less bricks in overall, but it still seems to take up quite an amount of certain bricks, if I look just at the dark tan plates in the middle house.

Very nice houses. I think you re-created the originals quite accurately. I also agree with you with the black and white house - maybe you should rework the windows and put in the ordinary ones. The use of bricks and plates is interesting but in my opinion is more suited for glass walls/decors that are not meant to be fully transparent. My favourite is the pergola on the top of the reddish brown house. Very lovely detail.

Thanks for comments. I doubt that I would build more though it would be interesting to have cars with different liveries. But it wouldn't be difficult to do it as all the red and white parts are only bricks, plates and a few slopes.

Very faithful reproduction of a very detailed set. Having presented it in a beautifully created scenery definitely gives this creation an 'added value'. I think it wouldn't look so great had it been presented as a stand-alone. Very nice work!

This is really an outstanding MOC. The combination of plates in different colours gives it very realistic 'bricky' appearance. Because of the green surrounding it reminded me of a St. Pancras Church, London, at first glance. Did you model it after any real church or is it completely a brainchild?

Very nice MOC for a start, considering the fact that you limited yourself to only one set. The costume shop is very interesting and the fortune teller is quite an appropriate shopkeeper. Don't worry about the lack of ideas, they usually spring up when you least expect. Haunted house is obviously very inspiring building.

I must repeat what almost everyone has already said - the colour combination is wonderful. All those LBG tiles representing corner stones give the building very nice finished look. The leveled roof is also great. I employed this technique myself a few times but haven't tried it with cheese slopes yet. Very well done!

One of my recent projects included a rail vehicle as a part of public transport system in the city center. The vehicle is made of two units. Every unit has its own drive and can operate independently. However, more units can be coupled together during peak hours. Side view The doors open on both sides. The roof is removed here to see what is inside, otherwise it is not detachable. The unit has driving controls on both sides of the car and seats for passengers, with some more room for standing passengers near the doors. Each car is 31 studs long, 6 studs wide and 6 2/3 bricks tall while the pantograph reaches the height of 9 2/3 bricks in working position. The vehichle is not very playable though, not being particularly sturdy due to its low height. The roof is actually the strongest element that keeps everything connected.

Ditto. Add two little kids and you get a whole new meaning of the word 'boredom'. If I was really desperately bored, I would put all my bricks in a huge pile, mix them very well and then start to sort them all over again. It would keep me busy for weeks, haha.

Peace, brother Very beautiful design. I like that you built all the round shapes of the balloon entirely of bricks. Though not smooth, it certainly gives it 1960's feeling when there were no curved bricks or panels around.

Well, I cannot add much to what the others have already said. A very nice thing in my opinion is the exterior - it wouldn't look so great if the facades on main building and garage building were completely identical. And my favourite is the gym - a very interesting detail. Thanks for sharing it with us!

A nice one to start with. The restraurant in particular has some some classic town feeling. Keep up the good work.

Very beautiful instrument. I like how you snoted the shape. A playable one would be an amazing thing too. I remember once seeing on the net a working Lego harpsicord that actually produced sound. Very quiet though, you could barely hear anything except clack-clack-clack of the mechanism, but it worked. So good luck if you undertake it.

What I spotted first is the higher floor in the passenger section and the stairs leading up to it behind the driver and at the rear door. Very nice and realistic detail. The way that the roof opens is also interesting and snoted windows look much better than ordinary ones. Well done!

Bargain or not, it's worth getting it anyway before it gets retired, whether to have it assembled or for part-out and mocing. In my opinion it is one of the best sets released in the last few years that serves both purposes perfectly.

The proportions look much better now. Anyway, very nice creation, especially the colour scheme on the sides.

Posting this is a bit tricky as every single database (Peeron, Bricklink, Brickset) lists this set under different theme. If it is not in the right forum, please move it to the appropriate one. Thanks. Basic info: Set number & name: Stena Line Ferry Year released: 1991 (until recently virtually all databases stated 1992 as year of release) Age group: from 6 years Number of pieces: 174 (Bricklink) Theme: Town/Promotional/Stena Line (Peeron), Universal Bulding Set/Ferries (Bricklink), Promotional (Brickset) Price: 48-108 EUR (used), 200 EUR (MISB). It actually cost about 120 SEK (about 14 EUR today) Box: Classic design Inscription on the box, showing the purpose of release. Contents: Bricks, instructions, sticker sheet and catalog. The back of the box shows some more things that can be built with bricks from the set. Interesting pieces: Bow plate and brick were new parts in 1991 as well as 2x2 boat stud. This set saw the last appearance of red plate 6x24 in any lego set and white 1x2 brick with black grille pattern, the latter one being discountinued altogether after 1991 in all colours. Printed brick and slope only appeared in few other promotional ferry sets before, with 1x8 brick briefly reappearing in 1996. Instructions: Four page fold-out, showing the center pages Catalog: A Scandinavian catalog from 1991. Interestingly, it does not feature Duplo and Basic themes, but begins with Pirates. A random page shows one of the most acclaimed novelties of the year - 9V trains. Sticker sheet: Compared to most other sets this sticker sheet has really loads of stickers, including spare ones, that allows plenty of chances to name the ship. According to information on Peeron and Bricklink an alternate version of stickers in blue print also existed. The build: The design is very simple and consequently building is easy as well. Starting on the base of plates, the hull is built with bricks all the way to the upper deck. This makes it completely hollow and thus allows space for vehicles inside. The completed ferry: 44 studs long, 6 studs (hull) and 8 studs (bridge) wide, 10 bricks tall at its tallest point. Though built in a miniscale it has many of instantly recognisable features such as bridge, lifeboats, radar mast and smokestack. The 'windows' contribute to realistic appearance as well, though they are actually printed bricks and slopes. I didn't apply the largest 'Stena Line' stickers as they cover two bricks (I cannot but hate stickers over assembly). Features: The ferry opens at the back to load a mini vehicle. The plates on the bottom ease sliding of the ferry on the surface, thus enhancing its playability. But it doesn't float though. Conclusion: Design: 9/10 Simple but interesting, a nice miniscale reproduction of a vessel. Parts: 9/10 Very basic, but a lot of white bricks, including printed ones. Build: 8/10 Very straightforward, without any snoting. Playability: 8/10 In my opinion not really designed to be played with in the first place, though opening door and sliding plates offer some playability. Overall: 8,5/10

I would start with FB or TH but definitely leave PS to be the last. That's just my experience as PS was the least interesting modular for me to build. However, if you still can't decide and you have enough space, let's build all four of them simultaneously.

I would suggest TH this year and PC next year or as soon as possible. They both look great though if I had to choose now I'd go for TH (I have both of them but PC is still waiting to be assembled). It is the biggest modular so far and somehow stands out, it really looks like the most prominent building in the city. Besides it has lots of useful bricks for MOCing if you ever decide to take it apart.

Every creation deteriorates with time and the houses in Lego city are no exemption. So there comes a time when some renewal is needed. The scaffolding was set up, protected by panels at street level and nets above. Close-up view of the renovation. As the sight is obscured by the nets... ...they shall be temporarily removed to see what is going on. The workers have already removed the old plaster. Men at work, obviously very busy. The worker at the top of the scaffolding has just taken a rest. The others will join soon... ...as the master is hurrying in with a new sixpack. The scaffolding, looking a bit massive for a 6-stud width. The technic axle-constructed frame is quite sturdy while the boards are somewhat less stable. Being constructed by combination of technic and normal plates, this allowed no more than only one stud of connection between them at some points. They could have been reinforced with another layer of plates though, but I left them as they were as the entire thing would appear even more massive then.

Classic town sets are truly 'toys of my childhood' and seeing so many of them in one place together with very authentic MOCs is something I have only dreamt about. And the castle bits fit in perfectly. Even most catalogs and ideas books of the era don't look that interesting as your layout does.