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Personally I get models in both varieties and have a limited number of UCS and standard star wars sets. In terms of building the UCS will of course win due to higher complexity longer build time - but in terms of playability that would have to be the standard sets and perhaps also the Death Star... The UCS sets aren't necessarily the sturdiest of builds and in some cases are notably heavy and can be quite large indeed. Of the UCS sets I have (R2D2, MF, Darths Tie Fighter, with X-Wing still to arrive) R2D2 is really the only one I'd pick up, play with and move around (though I love admiring the Falcon).

As a kid I did the rainbow thing too. Where possible I would build with the colours I wanted... But the reality was that I had eclectic sets from various themes and didn't really have enough of any given colour to achieve the finished model in pure colouring - that combined with my focus on building with functional elements left my focus on containing the functionality into a clean design, so colour really only featured as an after thought. I haven't gotten back into MOC's but I hope to, I think at such a point colour will be a lot more important, although as others have mentioned as well, I would definitely eschew it in order to get a design right and then worry about sourcing the correct colour later (some of my MOC interest will be in technics - though I probably have enough yellow elements now anyway... )

I bought a copy just after it became unavailable in 2010 - I think it is very hard to predict if Lego would do another version, really we can only speculate on possible considerations they would make. (My speculation) Firstly, I wouldn't expect them to re-release 10179 ever. Instead I think IF they went there it would be a new design as was done with the X-Wing. Secondly, they would be asking how many people they could sell to, as I understand the Falcon only became unavailable in 2010, so there will be a lot of AFOL's who picked one up then... without significant improvements it would probably be hard to sell to that segment at the kind of price they would need to sell at, but by the same token if there is an expanding market particularly because of new movies and given the Falcon's popularity it may still have a better market than other sets of that size? (I can't help but wonder if even now a Falcon UCS vs the SSD which would sell better)... But then I have no idea how well it sold during it's run?!? Another thing to consider is that Lego would probably only put one new model out at that size every few years, so are there other models they'd sooner do?! I would anticipate a Venerator as the next, there seem to be some incredible MOC's of that already, I'm sure Lego would want to get out their version while a lot of interest is in that ship... And then with the upcoming movies (if they're popular) will new designs show up that become crowd favorites. Of course if the movies bomb (unlikely but possible) would Star Wars remain a line for them?! Plus there is the relative newness of the UCS Falcon, as said before it was available till early 2010... would one within 5yrs of it's run be too early? Regarding your second question, I would say depending how you look at it there are flaws in the 10179... But this is probably a price point thing, and also there is a certain benefit and poetry in the model not being perfect leaving it up to people to customise their set (much like the actual Falcon was much modified in the Star Wars universe). To be more specific, the model does not really have an interior to speak of (something that would make the set magnitudes better given it is supposedly truly minifig scale set (you can see some moc's of this and they're incredible!) The armor plating on the top of the model is not really properly attached, it just kind of slots on, but can be bumped around and lifted off A few small stickers for the cockpit hmmm, that's all I can think of... Yeah I love this set Well I hope that they do release it again so you can get it... Of course for me I'd hope they released other older UCS sets since I already have that, I would love to get my hands on a Star Destroyer, or something like the original Blockade Runner (I got the Tantive IV), or the Hoth Speeder, the design on those cannons looks great p.s. I agree the after market prices are outrageous, although that by itself I don't think is something Lego would be too concerned about and perhaps is quietly happy about as it indicates people really value their product. Although I do hope LEgo is mindful of that aftermarket getting out of control (crazy markups do seem to be a sign as it encourages lots of people to get in on the bandwagon). But Sadly the way to avoid those prices is to get the sets when they're in production if possible, personally I'm trying to avoid any aftermarket purchases as I've come to realise that Lego will more than have my needs covered with current and new sets anyway to the extent that even now I can't afford them all.

Mmm, I guess I find it a bit tricky, generally I take anything with the 10k numbering as being considered UCS level but that may not be entirely accurate. Still I was thinking that sandcrawler is the answer to a cut down UCS level sandcrawler. I was lucky to pick up a copy of the Tantive IV 10198, I like it but certainly if you put it next to the 10019 Rebel Blockade Runner as I have seen in an online review it doesn't feel very UCS despite them both having the 10k numbering... I only emerged from my Dark Ages in 2010, and had no idea Lego had been releasing such awesome sets over the past decade.

They have actually done precisely this: 10178 Motorized Walking AT-AT I really regret not getting this particular model, but oh well. While that is amazing, there's just no way we get something at that level, the cost would be too great. I bet we'll get one eventually, just not nearly as good. That would be this? 10144 Sandcrawler

I just joked in another thread about the possibility of some people having half century dark ages For me it was about 15 years... I dropped it mid teens, itI wasn't so much I wanted to, but my parents weren't buying it for me anymore and I'd only buy technic sets myself (despite liking the other ranges) - and I couldn't track down the proper technic sets and thought those new Bionicle things (which had technic printed on the boxes ) were what was going to be technic from there on... I needed to save money for a computer anyway. I got back into it around 2010 when my partner discovered I used to be right into Lego, she thinks it's pretty good too and encouraged me to take it back up as a hobby - I've been quite enjoying it since.

In NZ it was even more punishing at 383 usd... that is almost quadruple the discounted price. Since our price does include tax though it is actually $333USD with it excluded, so actually it was only over 3 times that sale price Now a few subtle things: The X-Wing is $400NZD, and the B-Wing is $450NZD But in USA the undiscounted prices of both those sets is the same... This discrepancy could be due to packaging size, maybe, but I suspect they were going to try and see what our market would bear - I'm glad they tried it with that set! (the price of bigger sets here do seem to get hit with a multiplier of x2+ though). At the end of the day I'm pretty happy that I can get Lego here though, and there are obviously economics involved with all of this (we genuinely are a small market far away from everywhere). My very simple response to the price of the B-Wing was to not purchase it at that ridiculous price - hopefully other people over here avoided that set as well otherwise we will continue to see those kinds of prices; given the X-Wing is a bit cheaper here one would suspect that is what happened, but they still seem to have the inflated $450 price point on the B-Wing?!? This whole fiasco over this pricing has prompted me to consider if there really are must have sets or if I should more closely inspect the price and pass on more, I had actually been soaking up many of the 10k level sets. unrelated I've also got a failed motor which probably is not old enough to be understandable (a year or two, but then it hasn't been used heaps) if their customer service takes care of me as I believe it will then perhaps that will be a reminder what we're getting in the higher cost deal with them servicing our region. To the OP, I do think it was a sucky move on their part and obviously the pricing has frustrated me too, but if you can organise the address, and lego will honor the discounted price, do it. If not then remember while you do not have the power to control what price Lego sets, you do have the power to reject the offer and walk away (It's much worse for Lego for those sets not to sell than it is for you if you don't buy them; trust me). Not sure about the different rules around the world, but if you tried that over here you would be classed as a business since you're doing it to make a profit, and so you'd be expected to pay tax on your profits... In fact isn't this effectively what "investors" in Lego are doing (except some of them have crazy markups).

Thanks for posting this - I hadn't seen pics of Lego sets of that age before... Imagine some of the kids that got those those sets, getting back into collecting now; dark ages for half a century!

I'm of mixed feelings about it. Firstly I think it is good for Lego and their Enthusiasts for them to make attempts to take a little of the wind out of the investor market, not to kill it, but just to deflate possible bubbles (although I don't consider this an attempt to do so). That's just my opinion, I do have reasoning but I suspect that is a hotly debated topic with many views for/against so will leave it at that. I live in New Zealand and over here we pay $450 NZD for the B-Wing, that works out at a hefty $383 USD - or in other words almost 4 times the price it was offered in the US market that weekend... even without our sales tax that is built in it works out at $333 USD. I realise that there are market realities etc to contend with; but at the same time I'm not a market analyst, I'm a Lego enthusiast and so it does sting a bit... Basically I'm a loyal customer at heart, but if I feel abused then yeah I can change on that... So I will be prepared to buy sets that interest me most at full price even if in future there is a discount, but at the same time I'd like to see some decent discounts offered over here as well - the way Lego charges us shipping one can only surmise that they're actually importing our orders anyway - so why not give us access to some of these discounts as well?

Anio might have been refering to my post in another thread regarding the new X-Wing, in that case I was making the observation that the X-Wing had not come with a pilot minifig, there was some following discussion and valid reasons why it didn't come with one.

Heh, that would be lucky - I actually had a faulty LA in the 8258 Crane Truck ; it had a sticking point, as I found it before the build I got lego to replace that one - they were pretty good about it I still have the faulty one but can't see a way of fixing it without wrecking the housing, I even broke a Large Pulley trying to loosen it

Very nice job

Yeah I was thinking something like that as it is more display than play; but by the same token I'd say that it's 50/50 with some of the recent UCS level Star Wars sets as the Falcon, Shuttle, and even the Super Star Destroyer come with mini figs (although not the B-Wing which looks like it could have accomodated one nicely)... Fortunately the 9493 X-Wing which I have came with an extra pilot so now one of those little guys wont have to stay out in the cold. gah! I wonder whether a pro stickerer will make a video of applying those?? (I'm dreading doing them when mine finally arrives)

I kept finding myself coming back here for set reviews and found that I really like the vibe on the forums. I'm a 30 something AFOL, I was lucky as a kid to get given some great sets ( Galaxy Explorer , 8851 Excavator were a couple of my first). My dark ages started in the 90s when it seemed like Lego had replaced the technic line with those hero factory type models... I'm not sure if that is what actually happened, but New Zealand didn't have great availability and most stores wouldn't stock technic sadly (in fact even now there is only one retail chain that seems to bother with technic or the bigger collector type sets). Anyway computers were expensive and so that is where I directed my limited money. Funnily enough I got back into it because of my partner - when we moved in she discovered I had a tonne of lego from my childhood and suggested I could take it up as a hobby... I'm not sure she was ready for what came next, as we now have a lot of Lego and not enough space, I use a little discretetion but perhaps not as much as I should . I'm really impressed by how well Lego is catering to the adult base and also the Technic fans, I do miss some of the classic styles they did such as the original space models but I guess it's a different generation now. Other than that I'm right into computers, gym, gaming, and work in the IT field. So Hi guys and girls

If it is the kind of thing where you will be in the position to get the other later on and you would like to do so, then I too would recommend the shuttle now, as later on it will probably become too expensive in the after market... The X-Wing on the other hand should be available for quite some time yet so the price will stay good and sales will probably crop up for it sooner or later even (personally I tend not to wait for those on my must have sets, although I probably should). I didn't get the shuttle myself and have pangs of regret about it - but then I remind myself that I can't afford to get every set as I already buy perhaps too many every year; So if you think it really will be one or the other then it's a little harder; that was the case for me so the X-Wing won out (I like the rawer looking ships with greebling) - Also to consider in this is that there is a fairly good chance at this stage there will be new UCS level Star Wars sets next year to consider as well - whether or not it will be one you'd consider is another matter... Summary: If you really are only going to get one of those two, my personal opinion is to get the X-Wing If you see yourself in a position that you will want both sooner or later, then get the shuttle now as that is only going to get more costly to acquire later on P.S. At this stage I have not had or seen either set built in the flesh. P.P.S It may be worth noting that not many minifigs with the X-Wing whereas the Shuttle has quite a good selection imo if minifigs

I just spotted something - it is a bit of an aside... But the only figure this set comes with is an R2D2? I mean it doesn't even come with Luke the pilot or the ghost voice of Obi Wan?

I placed several orders during last years sale at the same time as I thought I needed to keep the costs of individual shipments down due to customs (turns out I don't need to do this) - anyway I ended up getting the promotion minifig and tiny tie-fighter in each shipment... That was last year though and in NZ - no idea if it's still like that (this year I made just one big shipment).

That reminds me, Lego has a video of that technique on it's creator product pages; quite handy

After umming and ahhing, I took the plunge and ordered the UCS X-Wing 10240. It's quite pricey where I live at $400 nzd (works out to $341 USD), but I'm quite looking forward to this model. Sadly no discount on the B Wing which has an even more punishing price here at $450 NZD ($384 USD); I really couldn't fathom paying almost 4 times the price from Lego itself (I guess that is market forces/realities in effect though )

Thanks, I'll give that a try - and see what they say (if they don't want the broken one back I'm still interested to try and fix it of course )

Hi, I've just tried demonstrating my 8043 excavator to a friend and found that one of the m-motors has failed (it was the centre motor in the model that powered one of the tracks and also the two synced la's). I pulled it out of the model and attached it straight to a power source and found it wouldn't go... But playing around a bit I found that if I have an axel attached and spin it around fast with my fingers for a bit that then the motor will go when I switch it on, but when switched off and back on it doesn't work again (I have to spin the axel again some more). So it appears the cable is fine and that it is something in the motor. I'm just about to place a Lego order so will get a new m-motor... But I'm wondering if anyone else has had experience with this? should I be trying to get lego to replace the motor (it's a couple of years old now)? is it something I could perhaps fix myself? (bearing in mind that while I do have a soldering iron I don't use it very often at all )

Well I'm sold, thanks for a great in depth review. Regarding that extra sticker sheet, do you suppose that is intentional in case we screw up on the first application - I mean that could really have a negative impact on the whole model and it looks like an absolute PiTA to apply precisely.

Same in NZ, if we saw a decent discount on the B Wing I think I would reconsider getting that as it really was just price holding me back from it ($450 NZD), so fingers crossed (although if the SSD came to a price point I could manage that would make me even happier )

I'll be lining up to get this one - it is a bit more pricey than I would like at $400 NZD but I think it will be worth it. It'll be interesting to see it's scale next to the 9493 X Wing Just on a personal note if I had to pick one of the UCS sets for a re-release/update though it would be the 10030 Star Destroyer But then I would probably also go for the hoth speeder (I have fond memories of that toy when I was child), and also the Tantive IV (I was fortunate enough to grab a Falcon before the after market price hike kicked in).

The R2D2 set would be my recommendation also; it's form factor means that it could happily sit on a coffee table or computer desk (where mine is) without taking up too much space, it also has some playability built in with the retractable leg, spinning head, and various compartments on the front - so basically you get something that can be easily placed for viewing, and also reasonably easily played with that people will recognise (the leg can be a little fiddly but it's quite a smart little design to make the whole thing stable in both modes). I think the ships you listed are cool too; for displaying purposes I think the B wing would be more eye grabbing, but on a personal level I think that the X Wing will stand the test of time better. (I'll be adding the UCS X Wing to my collection but sadly I can't really justify spending for both it and the B Wing... and all the other sets I want e.g. 10221 , 10188 etc)