Davey

Nice little shunter. The use of the Power Functions elements is great in a smaller train like this. Nice work. - Davey -

If you look at the Ghost Train, it really is a great "parts pack" for steam trains. What you might not realize (unless you look at the parts inventory on Bricklink) is that not only do you get the 4 Flanged Drivers, you also get 2 Blind Drivers as well. So, you end up with enough wheels to build a 4-6-0 steam engine. Additionally, you get some really nice black macaroni and other "boiler bits". As I mentioned before, the Ghost Train (like the Hogwarts Express) has a different market than the Emerald Night. However, if you look at the components, it really is a fantastic parts pack...especially at its $79.99 price point. - Davey -

I wouldn't necessarily say that Train fans "look down on" the Hogwarts Express sets...at least I don't. Personally, I think they are a great set when taken for what they are. They aren't designed to be a D2C direct representation of the Olton Hall engine. What they are, as others have stated, is a nice little set that captures the feel of the Hogwarts Express while still using pieces and building techniques that fit in with the age group (8-14) they are targeting with the set. An 8 year old isn't (generally) going to be able to build something to the level of the Emerald Night. Additionally, they have a price point to hit and these sets do that. What I love about all of the Hogwarts Express sets is that they give you a starting point to work from. If you look at the version I built, I pretty much took one of the standard sets and set about modifying it to my liking. That's the beauty of LEGO. So, I don't (nor do I think we should) look down on the standard Hogwarts Express sets. They serve a valid purpose and, if anything, I hope they encourage the younger (8-14) builders to take a look at trains. - Davey -

The Russian Chapel was by Heath Flor of VirtuaLUG. He's a beast. I'ma let ya finish, but the Smolney Cathedral was one of his best builds of all time...all time!!! - Davey -

First, welcome! Next, love the build. The detail in the wheelset is fantastic. And of course, love the color. Great work and look forward to seeing more from you. - Davey -

When the face is a Prune...the action goes... BOOM!!!! Welcome to our messed up corner of the world. - Davey -

Bring the Otter...it will be loved by all (especially me).

Looking good! I love the roof design. I might have to steal some of that and re-deaux my GP-9. Nice use of the RC base as others have mentioned. It can be tough to incorporate nicely, but you managed it. -- Davey --

I haven't used mine on my layout yet, but as I make the switch to using more PF trains, I suspect I will find myself using it more to get unique track geometry. I just haven't had the time to give it an honest go. -- Davey --

For the LEGO bits, we use a paintbrush, compressed air, and a hand-held Dyson on occasion. For the 9V track, I recommend using something like this little gem. It has a light abrasive and seems to work very well on 9V rails. -- Davey --

Love it! So many good things to do with the new "Friends" line. -- Davey --

I think for me it was the 9V Train sets such as the Train Engine Shed, BNSF Locomotive, TTX Double-Stack Cars, and Santa Fe Super Chief. Those sets really got my creative juices flowing followed shortly by the Cafe Corner. From there, it's just grown and grown. -Davey

This is freakin' brilliant!!! I've been staring at my Green Grocer lately and wondering what exactly it is that I don't like about it. You've nailed it for me...it's too wide. I love the look of the 16-wide buildings. I think it's the forced perspective that makes them actually look taller since they are narrower. My wife and I have been planning to convert our town to a Victorian-era London theme and the 16-wide buildings are going to definitely be the way to go. And you have really shown just how much detail you can pack into a 16-wide. Again, this is simply brilliant and I will be snatching this idea. Well played!!!! :thumbup: -Davey

Great idea and a really nice build! I love the modern look of the store and the guitar sign is just really classy. I also like the technique for building the album racks. That was pretty tricky. The interior is really nice and captures the look of your "neighborhood record store" quite well. The crowning glory for this would be to use waterslide decals to make actual albums from real bands. My lovely wife, Stacy did this for her LEGO record store. Pictures below. Great work on this one! -Davey

Great work by the whole EB team. Seeing this up close was amazing and the pictures (although awesome) don't do it justice. It really was a masterpiece. -Davey

Your best bet is to go to Bricklink and see what they are going for there. Looking at the price guide information available there would help. http://www.bricklink.com/catalogPG.asp?S=487-1 It looks like it's averaging $90USD these days, but could go as low at $50USD depending on condition. And as always...it's only worth what someone will pay for it. -Davey

Happy Birthday Iz! May all your LEGO (and non-LEGO) dreams come true! -Davey

For those going to Target, have them check the DPCI number for you. It's 204000463. Chances are that they have the figures in the stockroom and have just not put them out yet. "Shelf Date" for them is April 24th, but they are not what is called "Street Dated". This means that they won't put them on the shelves until April 24th...but since they are not "Street Dated" they can still sell them to you right out of the back room. The only downside here is you really can't ask to "feel the bags" for what you want. You just take what you get...or buy a complete case. ;-) -Davey

I use a file box with hanging files. Something like this: You can generally find them at your local "big box retailer" such as Target, Wal-Mart, etc. -Davey

I didn't even think to take one when I bought them the other day. The girl at Target brought out a box and said, "I can sell you all 120 in the display but I can't sell you the actual display." But I did some searching on Flickr and found a picture for you. Each display is 3 x 5 in terms of Minifigure packets, holds 120 figgys, and looks like this. Hope that helps. -Davey

I found it interesting that they got special packaging. They come in packed racks of 120 Minifigures and the rack is designed to be put on an endcap. The distribution also seems to differ from the standard boxes but I haven't opened all of my figs to see what the actual distribution is. I can say that in the Target rack, there appear to be 10 HazMat Guys for every 120 count box. -Davey

That is an 8-wide masterpiece! I love the classic shape and the way you made the trucks and front bumpers is gorgeous. They really look very authentic. I'm not totally sold on the antennae for the handrails on the corners, but I'm also not sure what I would have used there. Maybe a 1x1 round with the hole in the center and a small piece of flexible LEGO tubing? Seriously great work. Color is beautiful and you captured the BR114 perfectly. Bravo! -Davey

Happy Birthday Mr. Fang! Hope your day is awesome and you get to spend it having fun doing something LEGO-related! -Davey

According to Brickset, I'm sitting at 3,555. With some recent CMF additions, I think it's more around 3,900. -Davey