Peppermint_M

Sorry friend, this thread was created in 2008, I just moved it here as this section is the new home of the alternative brands. I am not sure the user is still active or not.

But a Radlers is delicious. As for the IP discussion. I am still uncertain if we as a fan community might face problems when licensing ends. Just look at the digital stores taking films off people's accounts once an agreement ends. While a physical out of production set can't be taken from you, who is to say official TLG platforms won't end the sale of inactive licensed sets and parts? Or they end hosting of IP based creations. Anyway... Off track or what?

Hi all. I am moving historic threads from community. The Index is an old one and will probably be linked as an addendum to any new modern index we create. I am moving the reviews, but not the discussions as those are quite old and probably has a lot of members who are long gone.

Here it is, the long ago. The original rebels. A window to the past. I will be moving the reviews across from Community if the photos are still deeplinked and also checking external links are still live and safe. Then I will update the links in the index. Anything with lost photos I will add a note beside and leave in Community if anyone wishes to read the text. As I noted in the first post, this is a little bit "Look, we did this back then." and a little bit of historical archiving.

Zuru MAX is also a pleasing quality and variety, if it doesn't exactly fit in to the original LEGO ideals 100%.

I have a list from my thread that I plan to move over once I have formalised it. Apologies, it is a heatwave where I am (With wildfires too) so I am not exactly up for administrative work outside of the office!

The era they were made in had a few more variations than we are used to today. Mechanical tolerances meant bricks could shift a little as there wasn't the finesse needed to safely hold the brick in place without damage. Having checked all the listed options on Brick Link, the typeface is a good match.

Working off what Jesse found out, It looks like a scratch build, built off or an attempt at "repairing" the set using available parts. The printed brick came in a very vintage fire station and also a pack of Sign Bricks from the 50s and the bulk of the rest of the set is as Jessie pointed out. Alas, there is not a great deal of information on a lot of Ideas books and pamphlets.

Thanks for that LUG based information/perspective.

I see you that and raise you: Tatco.

Heh heh heh. Another staff member who appreciates a good build over a brand mark! Thanks for sharing your experience, it is good to get a lot of viewpoints for things.

That would come down to the brands we will allow to be discussed. A sub-forum is probably the best move for everyone as it is easy for members not to enter who don't want to read it. (I am not a Star Wars fanatic, so I rarely enter, even as a Moderator!) Don't like don't read, as we used to say on Fanfiction.net! There can be a list of acceptable Legitimate brands and discussion on fringe cases. I made a list in my own thread An Opinion Piece on Alternative Brands of what I have had experience with and researched. There are gaps, but other members can fill those.

I am sure I can convince you yet over a 12 pack! (Being too hot here in the UK, I am actually cracking in to a nice cold Pils while I catch up on this thread

Thanks for that update. A certain type of "Cheap" Shop in the UK has slowly been lost to time was the main stockist of the Sluban I previously purchased so I have not kept up to date. @Feuer Zug Thanks for that, I wanted to make a measured post taking in to account my experience and also prevailing opinions. Yes, baseplates cost so much! I can get 32x32 plates for £1.99 in my local Home Bargain shop, in so many colours. Smyths Toys has a packet for £4.99. I liked Kreons from KreO, but they are defunct. Some MEGA x Hotwheels sets have micro Action Figures, those are excellent but I have not seen them in a while. Zuru figures are a decent alternative to LEGO, but to be fair to TLG, the Minifig is too iconic to ignore. The brewery keeps on calling to me, Maybe when I have organised some space for it (I am still waiting to build my Legend of Zelda Deku Tree, a large imported from Japan Mecha model kit and at least two Gundam kits once I have a shelf space....) . I think that is why Zuru has been getting my attention, they have small builds of retro-tech that cost less than £10 and don't take much space.

Hello. I am Peppermint_M and I was known for quite a while as Queen of the Clone brands. I sort of spearheaded the adjustment in forum language and the initial rule changes to address Lepin and other controversial bootleg bricks and the difference between those and the Compatible Brands. There is a thread and poll collecting opinions on the future of Eurobricks, of the forum perhaps moving forward and allowing more non-LEGO content. I was making this as a reply as a whole in the thread, but it ha exceeded three pages on my word processor so a topic on its own seems pertinent. First a little background for you: I have had a long time interest in compatible brands, from the truly horrendous efforts of TATCO to the interesting builds from Zuru and COBI. This is rooted in growing up with Mega Bloks supplying the bulk of my bricks; One expensive LEGO set for a single ramp and Skateboard, or a set for the same price with four skateboards and a full skate park from Mega? That is where I put my saved pocket money! Later, when I was just entering the AFOL stage of my brick building career, it was me being a bit of an anarchist and a bit of a Brat, reviewing sets and posting comparisons of products for giggles and "one in the eye" for the snobs and stick-in-the-muds (You may grumble now, but the Fabuland Renaissance started in a similar way). I have also spent some time building MOCs with only compatible bricks. Mostly when I have been displaying at local comic cons. I brought my “monkey box” of not-LEGO bricks as something for kids to play with to protect my display MOCs from grabby little fingers. Of course, an eight hour day supervising my precious builds has quiet times and I would build with the parts for playing with, or demonstrate techniques to people with the most LEGO like parts. This has given me a lot of insight and experience with the parts and the brands. So for my part, here is a "white list" of true competitor or companion brands. Healthy competition, legitimate alternatives. Think Marvel vs DC or Mattel vs Hasbro, you could collect Majorette die-cast vehicles or maybe you like Corgi. These brands are: Best-Lock - Started with different dimensions to LEGO bricks, now they are a match, they also always had their own figure design. Mega Bloks/Mega Brands - Compatible bricks and unique figures from the start, now owned by Mattel and seem to be distinct from the new Brick Shop offering. There have even been a few Hot Wheels combining the brick and stud system with a diecast car base and wheels. Mattel Brick Shop - Looks to be prestige sets for the collector. Their Hot Wheels sets are pretty cool and inclusion on the forum might bring in further users. Especially if we can get some quality reviews. COBI - A Polish brand making LEGO scale parts actually won in the court of law against TLG. Their historic and military offerings are excellent and popular. Also have an official set of Sabaton figures. Which is really cool. Zuru – A big toy company with many toys under their brand umbrella. These also won against TLG for their brick offerings. Zuru MAX has unique figures and excellent quality bricks. They are available as a cheaper alternative to LEGO and in plenty of retailers, in fact you are more likely to see Zuru than MEGA these days in the UK. Block Tech/Catch all Brand "X" Bricks - You have probably seen them, they are sets branded for the retailer you're in. There are a number of brands and names to be found "Bricks in Bloom" have been in ALDI with an ALDI logo, in Morrisons with a Morrisons logo. I saw them in Walmart last time I was in the States. Block Tech seems to turn up in both Home Bargains and B&M bargains in the UK, possibly in more locations. They are decent enough quality but are at a good price point for accessibility. Oxford - Lovely Korean brick brand, compatible with LEGO with some interesting designs and less Western Centric styles. Can be found in the UK in Smyths Toys. Airfix Quick Build - Very special moulded parts with some LEGO compatibility, it feels more like a bridge from brick building to Model Kits for to introduce children to airfix than a competitor. Miniso – Cute things from a cute shop. I have a few Peanuts/Snoopy sets, brick quality is OK and the figures are highly stylised to match their comic strip counterparts. Brands I can't comment on. I've not had the pleasure of building a set, or it is not a system I build in (Like Technic) BlueBrixx - German and highly compatible, plenty of fans and catches a lot of ire from TLG, you all know them. CaDa - Technic, very popular. I have not had a great deal of experience but many of you have sung their praises. Pantasy - Look great, lots of cool themes that TLG aren't touching. I have not taken the plunge yet There are a few other specialised types I have not covered as I do not feel in a position to comment. I've not researched enough, or like CaDa, I do not build with it so I can't say I have anything to add to the dialogue already out there. Grey Area bricks Enlighten - Started as a bootleg brand but today they have unique designs and themes alongside the "traditional" rip off sets. Sluban - Chinese copies of Oxford products seems to be. On one hand it is not ripping off LEGO but on the other, they are ripping off someone. Tackling the issue: Why allow Alternative Brands? Right off the bat, I have already summed up my feelings: One Sub-Forum for all alternative brands, with those already established in other sub-forums remaining in place with more open access discussion and less of it feeling a bit “Speakeasy” or secret. Technic and Train have had niches filled by other suppliers and it would be a shame to pull it all out. Creating a space to discuss alternative brands opens up the forum for fans to share other sets that they have discovered of themes and Licenses that LEGO does not cover. It can let builders share mods they have tried or even review sets as a resource for those interested in picking up a set. It will add to the forum and not take away. Of course, I am not endorsing a full integration. I saw a lot of users fearing that and I understand why. Other Pros I can see are: Accessibility will certainly increase. In some corners I have come across discussion that the fan community demand for exclusively LEGO builds means those without the money to spend cannot access the hobby. With all the associated issues regarding demographics and the spectrum of society able to participate. If there is a space for someone to share a creation from "cheap shop" (Dollar Tree, Poundland etc) bricks that they are proud of and want to discuss, that will go a long way to opening the community to all. Potentially appealing to more brick fans and increasing site traffic: Mattel Brick Shop is currently a fancy brand of buildable model cars. If we create a space for discussion of these sets, somewhere for reviews to be shared and modifications to be shown off, we could attract more people here who might also overlap as Technic and Speed Champion/LEGO F1 fans who could find a forum a more restful and community minded place over Discord and Reddit or the constant stream of Instagram and Tik Tok. Next, a few things I want to touch on, all purely my opinion (still) and may touch on points I spotted in the main discussion thread. If option 1 was enforced, does that mean people want all past mention of alt-brands purged from the forum? I have shared plenty of reviews of weird compaitble brands in the past. Train fans are so starved of decent product that they embrace the useful alternatives. CaDa has a foothold in Technic. Custom accessories for minifigures and more accurate prints are a cottage industry that is not endorsed from TLG and was indeed purged from Bricklink after the takeover. If the sub-forum idea is taken on, how much would people want moved? I mentioned previously that things could remain where they are already discussed. Do you want all the CaDa discussion excised from Technic, or would it be acceptable to simply open the sub forum up to better split accessible discussion points and MOCs using CaDa and B Model designs for their sets? Would it be fair to pull that already accepted discussion from the forum? Would introduction of a new section exclusively for military builds or even an expansion of the Great Brick War to integrate the other brands right away be acceptable. TLG would never make something 100% modern or recent historic military, but a lot of the compatible brands make all kinds of hardware and accessories. I wouldn't want to disadvantage them by a demand for all Non-LEGO to go into one Alt Brands forum. Baseplates: Now the dialogue is open, I haven't kept it a secret, but the demand for only official baseplates is in a word Expensive. I started using non-LEGO baseplates years ago, a baseplate is essentially the table and I don't need a LEGO brand official table to build from. I always declare the baseplate used and it is not like I plan to display at The LEGO House. Is this going to remain acceptable in the correct theme forum for the MOC? In support of Tagging. AO3 manages to have an excellent, albeit user-driven and applied, tagging system. As a user who both reads and publishes, I make use of tags so that my work gets to the audience who will enjoy it. I also make use of tags to know right away if something is what I want to read or not. It also lets me filter out the things I really don't want and find the things I am interested in. Finally, about the language around compatible brands. Clone Brand started off as an OK Term. Then it became a dismissive designation often used in place of rip-off and sometimes conflated with a bootleg. It started to suggest a sub or lesser product and when it got mixed up with the actual law breaking products it became a problem. It took a lot of persuading to change some of that language to be Compatible or Alternative. I suppose that it is a personal bug-bear and no great shakes, but it did create a lot of headaches and work for me and other staff when dealing with Lepin and the other absolutely shameless copies. Yup, I had a lot to say. I can ramble and have plenty of opinions!

After a while I realised my reply had become something between an essay and a dissertation. As such I am going to tidy it up and post it in its own thread. In summary: I personally favour a Sub Forum for all alternative brands that do not already have a significant following in an existing sub forum (Train and Technic for example). This would include discussion, reviews and MOCs/Mods made from primarily non-Lego parts. Individual forum would split the base too much and no separation but full integration in the forum would rustle too many bustles.

The thread was merged here as the OP didn't present the build as a MOC and without any photos, it was simply an IDEA link promotion. Strangely, they did post a image of the MOC in this thread with a link also and then created the separate topic missing all the key components. The rules on the forum for an Ideas project are to showcase a MOC first and foremost, with a project link for those who may want to support it after/at the end. Thread titles requesting Ideas Project Support, or calling for votes fall foul of the rules. It was instated when Ideas launched, to prevent the forum just being a giant advert for Idea projects without the community interaction/engagement, just another stop on the socials tour. With the thread merged, I leave a link from the original location so people and the OP can find it again.

I don't say Sheeps, so I don't say Legos. So is it all internet drama for clicks? Engagement pays the bills for all of the YouTube posse.

17 years later and uh... Oh man. Oh man oh man... I'm still here Gosh. So I still love Astro Boy and Robotech/Macross. I have a backlog of anime to watch and recently watched all 10 episodes of Haunted Hotel on Netflix. (It was funny, I liked it). I have been watching the Ranma 1/2 remake episodes and enjoying those. I liked Owl House, RWBY, Bee and Puppycat. Plenty of series have been and gone but I am glad EB is still here. So anyway: It is fun to see a thread I made so long ago still gets posts.

How free are we talking about here lads? Testing the waters and checking out what people think is important to the future of the forum.

Oh indeed. I will second Cloney.

At least my age is below average! I was born in 1988, just too late for Fabuland (Mum was well miffed that there was none to get me when I was a tot) but I had Duplo from age 0! I personally think it is worse that I was moderating conversations on Power Miners and Series 1 CMF and now legit AFOLs are old enough to call that childhood LEGO!

At least one of his Star Wars replica blasters has a LEGO lightsaber blade in the sight, I managed to source a lot of similar transparent flagpole/rod parts from my clone brand collection for him to use as spares. What is really handy is he has stock of a type of glue that is technically illegal now, if I ever need it

LEGO is an emotive subject for people, "Innocence of Childhood" is represented by the toy and "Corruption of a wholesome subject" create all sorts of psychological reactions. Not to mention the guy was trying to get funding for Cancer treatment! (I mean, US Healthcare... You really have been chained to a Master: Capitalism. and my heart goes out to you.) The whole thing is very known now, so it is going to taint B and M, plus there is the risk as the story goes global and more commentators and influencers start to chime in, that LEGO will see it as a reputational damage to their brand. Say what you will about TLG, but they really do protect their image. I hope those wronged are helped, or at the very least the attention means the family involved can get the funds they need for healthcare.

I had a lot of clone brick to play about with and use in other projects so I have done a lot of ABS mods over the years. Plus a minor obsession with Gunpla and Zoids. So I collected a lot of tips My sister and brother in law are pretty serious costumers too, so we trade "hacks".