Joe H

If it was me, I'd probably just keep the ship, unless I spent an exorbitant amount of money on it. If that's the case, I'd file the problem and use the compensation for another one... even though that means a destroyed ship . Tough decision - it sounds like the Australian postal service is in the wrong by incinerating it, even if they have a legal reason. It's certainly morally wrong though, in my opinion!

Love the look of the docks made of doors and the ladder. The water coming out of the barrel is also a perfect look! Very nice as usual .

Very cool MOC - my favorite part is the microscope - nice job!

I've actually done the same thing and sometimes it works better than detergents. However, a note of caution when using toothpaste - make sure you clean all the paste off, else there will be residue left on the piece, which is quite unattractive. If need be, I usually follow up with some form of detergent after toothpaste for pieces deemed worthy for the extra effort . Generally, though, I've found regular dish detergent (i.e. dawn, etc.) along with a toothbrush for general cleaning purposes to be the most efficient method, for me. For those interested in trying out techniques for removing the yellowing off pieces (i.e. old gray, white, blue pieces), I've found this website to be a good resource. I've had some success with liquid whitening techniques, but have yet to make/try the pastes/gels out.

Ebay is quite safe, if you pay using PayPal, since if you don't receive the item (either at all, or as it's described) you're able to file a claim and reclaim your money. On the other hand, if a Bricklink seller doesn't send you the items, the most you can do is file a claim and have it count against the seller (if the seller doesn't resolve the issue) - you still won't get your money back. In my experience, I've resolved all my Ebay problems, but not the one Bricklink problem I've had, which has resulted in lost money unfortunately.

When I was younger, I didn't think twice about opening sets, throwing boxes away, etc. However, now I always get the nagging feeling that I should save MISB sets - because I remember that if I had done that ~10-15 years ago, I'd be really happy now, not for re-selling purposes but because of nostalgia. Now when I purchase sets I still open them. But... for my favorite themes (Castle/Pirates), I'll try to get an extra set or so when/if they go on clearance and hold on to it, MISB. I'd find it extremely difficult to only have 1 of some set and not open it.

It's quite ridiculous... Almost every set was probably sold out or in extremely low quantity when placed on the clearance items page. Seems to be a big gimmick this year, with little to no chance for real deals. I've been checking every now and again and even regular items are barely stocked.

Another thing I didn't see in this line were chest armor pieces or the helmets with pointed visors. These are some of my favorite castle-themed pieces, so I hope they'll show up in the sets down the line - though the new helmet looks really nice, the chest piece is a must!

Personally, I think I was a bit harsh before actually seeing the sets - they don't resemble the 2007/2008 sets at all (other than names). The castle design looks great - I specifically like the red tower and gate. Also, the knights set looks interesting, in the sense that it's probably going to be a good way to get some good figures and accessories at a decent price. The only thing I would've liked to see more is a different color scheme - I'm not a big fan of the dark brown/black/green or the red/white themes. Nevertheless, I'm excited!!

Well, in my opinion, the Castle theme has been around for the past 2 years, even if there's various factions. So, it's not really like they're starting out with "Kingdoms", though it's probably a new faction. There is a lot you can do with new themes, however. As people have mentioned - village style medieval sets, port-like sets, mills, and the list is quite endless . That's the beauty of Lego!

fonz - 7 Love the ship and rock design. Awesome!!

Amazon has 5974 Space Police Galactic Enforcer on sale for $80.77, FSSS. ~20% off, so not bad if you're looking to get this set at some point. Link

Honesty, the set list of names seems disappointing to me since, as I mentioned before, they're apparently the same "idea" as the 2007-2008 sets from the Castle theme. Guess we'll just have to wait and see what they actually look like though. The name "Kingdoms" is too close to Knight's Kingdom, which makes me slightly afraid of what's to come. The first wasn't that bad, though I would say that almost every Castle theme before the first Knight's Kingdom theme was, in my opinion, extremely better - set wise, piece wise, and faction wise. I'd love to see some set names akin to "Sea Serpent", "Guarded Inn", "Blacksmith Shop", etc... for some reason I feel that those sets were more oriented towards combining the sets to come up with a village or some kind of territory for a faction. The newer sets, especially the names given to the Kingdom sets, seem to be named/designed as essentially random things happening in the Kingdom world. Just my opinion though.

Well, I know that's not the case with the Tower Raid , which is still a big rip-off, hah.

Might I ask where you got this information from? Seems almost like a re-hash of similar sets, if you can judge a set by it's name... Kings Castle... Kings Castle Siege Prison Tower Rescue... Skeleton Tower Outpost Attack... Tower Raid Prison Carriage Rescue... Skeletons Prison Carriage Knights Showdown... The Final Joust It seems unlikely they'd be this similar in name, even if they contained vastly different factions, etc. Could these have been potential names for the sets I likened them to?

So, how can this person even think they're going to get this price for such a common and readily available set? Castle Tower Raid

Might be due to production timelines, or something along those lines. People will definitely buy the set even if it's after Christmas (I know I will ) - but people will still need to ask for/give something for Christmas, for the most part, so in the end TLG may end up selling more than if they were to just offer it to before Christmas, if my logic makes sense to you. Not to mention, such a set will probably be bought mostly by enthusiasts and pirate-lovers - parents of kids looking for just Lego as a toy in and of itself (as opposed to those looking for them for a Lego-lover) for Christmas probably won't spend $179 on one set, when they can get some other cheaper sets that will make their children just as happy. Again, the people most interested in this set will buy it regardless of when it arrives .

I've come across this ad, and while it has the slightest potential to be genuine, the following is a list of reasons why I'd never attempt to do business with them: 1) Shear amount of typos/poor grammar usage... "LegoToy.net sell brand new"... "authentiic"... "construct such objects as vehicles", and the list goes on. 2) "All products are sent out from lego warehouse directly." I find that hard to believe, since this site has no apparent affiliation with TLG. 3) No disclaimers indicating that "LegoToy.net" is not affiliated with TLG, and that "LEGO" is trademarked by TLG. 4) No real contact information (i.e. e-mail, phone number), other than a form to be filled out and submitted to an unknown entity, that probably won't respond. 5) The prices they are asking are all below MSRP, and they offer free shipping, which, if you check their "tracking numbers" from FedEx, are over-nighted. So, in order to make any profit, they'd have to be essentially stealing them. Now, I don't know how (or at what price) TLG sells to it's distributors like ToysRUs, etc, but I'd find it hard to believe this business is profitable selling at the prices on their site, and not charging for shipping. 6) Multiple errors on the site, including links that point to the wrong theme, errors in piece counts (MMV), etc. 7) Their home page has links like "toys" linking people to Wikipedia... 8) Apparently they don't charge sales tax for people purchasing in the state they sell out of (TN if the FedEx tracking can be trusted)? If not, since they don't mention this, then they're either taking another loss when they send taxes in, or they're not claiming them - something a business wouldn't do if they don't want to be investigated. A lot of reasons, I know... but it makes me upset to see scams like this targeting people who are trying to get a good deal on some Lego for themselves or others. Coincidence that this site pops up close to Christmas time, with the appeal of sets below MSRP? I doubt it... In my opinion, don't purchase anything from this website unless you don't mind the possibility of lost cash.

Personally, I prefer the old ones because for some reason I have some innate love for the older sets. It's hard to describe, but I'm sure if you feel the same way you know what I'm talking about . I think if the new flags weren't plastic, but cloth... they would be on par with the older plastic/cloth flags. Cloth is probably the best all the way around, since they can be straightened to look like new (if there's no serious stains), but with the plastic if they're bent I don't think there's much you can do. Also, I think the older patterns, like many have said, are better.

Ah, I see, not too familiar with Target's sales, just thought I'd make a note of it .

Saw the Target Ad for the upcoming week (12/6 to 12/12) and the following Lego sets will be on sale: Star Wars - 8036 Separatist Shuttle - $19 Power Miners - 8960 Thunder Drill - $19 Space Police - 5972 Space Truck Getaway - $19 All about $30 typically, so not a bad deal if you want/need them . The ad also ambiguously states "Other selected LEGO Star Wars, Power Miners and Space Police sets also on sale". So, who knows what the other sales will be... may be worthwhile to check it out. Link to a pdf downloadable version of the original ad.

My personal favorites are: Jkool - 2 lorenzen - 2 Jansued - 2 lego warlord 8 - 1

Hey, I'm not sure if this is appropriate or not, since the following items are listed on EBay, but I just wanted to post this for anyone interested in the complete line of Bohrok Va Bionicle sets from 2002. I'm selling these along with the display stand that they were sold in, which I think would be rather hard to come by today. All the sets are in mint condition, and sealed. Thanks for checking this out! Link for Bionicle Bohrok Va EBay Listing

Also, just to note, I believe this sale will extend to December 5th and now isn't an in-store only coupon. I checked and it worked online as well!

I've revised the image in question, and the design of the spilled wine. The lighting is still probably not the absolute best it could be to visualize some areas (i.e. behind the bed), but I think the new perspective and lighting is an improvement. Let me know if you have any further comments, thanks!