meyerc13

I've seen a similar part in Cobi sets, it think it was a 1x2 plate with studs on both sides. I'm actually surprised LEGO has never made a piece like this, but thanks to this thread I've learned a few ways to work around that gap.

I'll second the recommendation of bricklink. Last year my (at the time) 2 year old daughter destroyed my son's LEGO City. It was through inventory lists from Bricklink and the manuals that I was able to piece it all back together. Sometimes I would use the inventory and dig for parts until I had parts for a set assembled, checking off the parts on the inventory list as I went along. Other times I would pull certain colors that I knew went together (i.e. Orange was probably a tow truck or garbage truck... certain colors were clearly Atlantis or Space Police).

I thought about this set, but I don't think it would fit in with the rest of LEGO City. The tallest buildings I have are three stories, and I was afraid this would dwarf them. Not to mention I suspect my cats would have had fun knocking it over every day. It was tempting, but like the Combine and Bulldozer I just think it was too big to fit in with other City models.

Yes, definitely get MMV. Just got one and put it together this past week... I've never seen so many brown 1x2 inverted slopes in my life! You'll find it has lots of parts like that, and is a really enjoyable build. I learned a few tricks I'd never thought of while building this set.

That's a really good point. I live 300 miles from the closest store, and the inventory for that store is almost 2 years out of date. I only get there about 4 times per year, and I usually have a very limited time to fill my cup before the store closes for the night. If I had more time I'd inventory the wall on one of my trips. It would be useful to have a more up-to-date inventory of the wall so I can plan the parts I want to buy. I can't tell you how many times I have my cup almost full only to find a really useful part I want and not have enough room in the cup for it. Back before Christmas that happened to me, and I regretted it so much I went back to the store before I left town only to find the part I wanted had sold out and been replaced with a different part. As for why LEGO doesn't have a site like this of their own, I don't know if this is normal but the store I visit often has many duplicate bins of the same part. I know I feel a bit cheated when I see that, because why have a huge wall and then not have enough unique parts to fill it? If they had a site that showed that, it might dissuade people from visiting. My advice to the original poster - if you find yourself in the situation I did with a full cup and suddenly you notice that there is another part you really want - fill a second cup. The wall is a lot of fun and the part you want may not reappear on the wall for a long time.

I think this was a duplicate post... there were comments in the other thread: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=50085

This was posted in the City 2011 thread:

Unless you are buying it for the HP mini-figs, I'd say MMV is the way to go. I have a set coming in the mail right now, and I've been wanting it for over a year and a half since I first saw it at the LEGO store. The buildings look great and could be used in Kingdoms or City collections, plus it comes with lots of great parts like the cows, food, etc.

The great thing about LEGO is that you can do whatever you want, but the Windows in the bank are a little high to be good windows in a bus/van. You might want to take a look at one of these sets instead: Satellite Launch Platform City Corner The City Corner is a remarkable set, the predecessor to this bank in the size/style of the building. The windows on the bus would probably be more useful for your needs. The Satellite Launch Platform is a new set, and I don't have it yet, but it looks very promising for making a nice looking van.

I really like this - more than I thought I'd like a white castle. I think that the arches and indentations make nice shadows that break up the white, really making this work. Great job!

Wonderful version of the tractor. I've been wondering what wheels I could use to build more tractors for my kids, now that the LEGO tractor has virtually disappeared. Now I just need to figure out which wheels these are (I always have a hard time figuring out the wheels on bricklink). As for the snowblower, I like it. Saw one just like it a few weeks ago on my street. I'm wondering if the blower chute wouldn't look better with a more curved piece, maybe something like this:

The exterior is much improved without the gray wall sections. Wish I had the pieces (and space) to build a station this nice.

I think this is the piece: The image comes from LightningTiger's review of one of the new City sets: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=52168

If you like construction and semi trucks, the obvious choice is the 7633 Construction Site set. I haven't seen it around in a while, but there might still be sets floating around. You might also be able to get a good deal on 7747 Wind Turbine Transport, it was recently discounted on the LEGO site, and while people either like it or hate it, it would get you a nice semi truck if you can pick it up for a discount. If you will consider something that isn't a truck and isn't construction, one of the best City sets out in my opinion is the 7641 City Corner. You get two buildings and a nice bus in that set - the perfect set to start a City. Plus, since it is only about US$60, you could add a LEGO Truck for under your price point.

This is a set that I've really been looking forward to, I'm sure I'll snap it up the first time I see it. Your pictures are very clear and your review is well organized. Thanks for sharing with those of us who haven't been as fortunate!

I think the problem with the pricing on the Village Mill is the inevitable comparison with MMV. There, for only $30 more, you are getting over 900 more pieces (including two cows and a horse). I'm sure I'll pick up the Village Mill, but I'll wait for the pre-Christmas sales at Toys R Us to pick it up for 20% or more off list price. $56 is a much more reasonable price, and if you use one of the Rewards R Us 20% off coupons before TRU does their annual pre-Christmas price hikes, you can get a good deal like that.

I believe these have been discussed down in the Creator 2011 thread: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=46511

Congratulations! Glad it worked out. I'll warn you, #2 can be just as hard as #1, but in a completely different way. But it's all worth it.

I don't know... think how nice the marina would look with something like one of the old baseplate with river pattern included. There are pluses and minuses to that idea. On the positive side, I've seen some great MOC that use those old printed baseplates, and you can't buy them separately - only road, green, and blue baseplates. On the negative side, if they included the baseplate, they'd probably include less large plates in the set, and I like having those for MOC purposes. And the large baseplates give you less flexibility in laying out the set the way that you want it. I think the perfect compromise is to have various baseplates available for special order, since they don't include them in sets any longer. I know I can buy them used on Bricklink, but I'd rather buy new from LEGO.

I've seen them in Barnes and Noble and Toys R Us. TJ Maxx also had them recently, marked well below retail.

Good luck, I hear that isn't a pleasant procedure. Either way your wife is going to need a lot of support. Both of our children were born by emergency C-Section, and while everything turned out fine both experiences were stressful (the first even gave me Post-traumatic stress for a few weeks). Women put a lot of pressure on themselves to plan out what to them would be the perfect birth experience, and put a lot of blame on themselves when things don't go according to plan. This can also lead to an increased risk of post-partum depression, so you'll want to keep an eye on that, talking about things definitely helps. If it is going to be a C-Section, you can write a birth plan for that too, but double-check with the doctor and hospital on what is or isn't allowed. For example, for my first child only I was allowed in the OR with my wife, and no video only still photos. Also, I couldn't photograph anything on the other side of the surgical drape. The second birth was a different doctor and hospital, and the anesthesiologist, who also happened to be an amateur photographer, volunteered to take photos for me. So very different situations. Edit: By the way, my second was born three years ago today, so it's a good day to have a baby! Good luck again!

In regards to pink, walking into a girl's toy aisle does look a bit like a bottle of Pepto-Bismol exploded, but back on topic... I have a daughter who is almost 3 years old. She has an older brother who is five. He loves LEGO, and so does she. The sets she is attracted to are the City farm sets, the City House, anything to do with minifigs (she loves taking off their hats for some reason). Unfortunately most of the sets and themes she loves are discontinued. I've considered some of the Prince of Persia sets, I suspect she'd love a camel or ostrich, but those pieces come in the more expensive sets and I can't see paying $20+ for a pair of Ostriches, or even more to get a few camels. The $10 set has a horse which I know she'd love, but it also has a skeleton, thugs, and weapons which she wouldn't. As others have said, Zoo, Farm, Hospital, House - these are sets that both boys and girls would like, but they can't be themes with only expensive sets or parents will only buy on the major holidays. They need to have more sets like the Farmer and pig- maybe Farmer and Cow, Horse and rider, etc. For a house theme, they could have rooms with a minifig and furniture. There are so many possibilities, I can't believe LEGO hasn't figured this out yet.

My kids and I are mostly into LEGO City, but when it comes to Castle or Pirates I'd have to say Castle. For me the biggest reason is storage space. You can store Castle sets with reasonable ease, but storing a Pirate Ship with masts and sails is a challenge.

I'm really missing the farm theme. I was on a business trip this past week and my son and daughter knew I was stopping at the LEGO store and asked me to pick something up for them there. My son asked for a Pharaoh's Quest set, but my daughter wanted a barn. There aren't really any LEGO sets out now that appeal to a little girl. It's a shame really, because in the Duplo line there are many sets that would appeal to both boys and girls. LEGO, please bring back farm, and this time with more sets under $25.

When I looked at the first picture I thought it looked very nice, much like the barns you see all around my state (Wisconsin). I especially like the foundation, which is quite realistic. However, when I looked at the second picture the scale seems off to me. Barns are quite large, but typically a barn door would be at most twice the height of a grown man - 10-12 feet. Looking at your pictures, it looks like the door is quite a bit larger than that.