meyerc13

It's too bad that LEGO no longer shows the parts contents on the box. I hadn't noticed it, but apparently they stopped doing that last year (at least on the Star Wars set, which is the only Calendar I bought last year). Then people wouldn't be disappointed when the contents aren't what they expect. As far as showing things on the box that aren't in the calendar, they've always included a sort of poster on the inside of the cover/front of the calendar showing sets in the theme in a holiday setting, but for someone who hasn't bought a calendar in the past I could see how that would be confusing.

Another criminal genius. He just couldn't resist getting those $5 rewards back. I still want to know how they pulled this off. Open a huge box and remove the contents (not always an easy task to get some of toys out of their boxes), wheel a cart full of high value toys to the spot in the store where you are doing this, load all of it into the box (again, not an easy task to get everything to fit right), then tape the box back up. The cashiers must have been willing to leave it in the cart and scan the barcode, because you'd think they would notice a box that weighed quite a bit more than it should, not to mention one that rattles like LEGO bricks when it shouldn't. Can you imagine this scam working anywhere other than TRU? Where were the staff? The store must have been fairly empty for nobody to see this, but then why weren't their staff around to catch them in the act?

What I do is sort the bricks I'd use to make a wall by color. For example, 1x1, 1x2, 1x4, 1x6, 1x8, 2x2, 2x4, 2x6... all of those are sorted by color into large, clear plastic bins. I'll usually group some colors, contrasting to make it easy to spot the color I want (white & black, blue & red, yellow & green, grays & browns, etc.). For smaller parts, I believe the most common method is to sort by part. It's easy to find the color you want if they are grouped by the type of piece. The problem with this method is that it can take up a lot of space, depending on how granular you want to get. I started sorting each type of piece into its own spot, but quickly realized that I had to start grouping some or I'd have more storage than LEGO. Ultimately the best method is whatever works for you. I've changed the way I sort the small parts a few times now, but the one thing I haven't changed is grouping the 1x and 2x bricks by color.

Thanks for posting this! I have his other books and I look at them as much as my kids do. While the books aren't long, they pack a lot of detail in their few pages. Just a few days ago I was wondering where he could go for his next book, now I know, and this could become my favorite book if it is as good as his others.

Why would he need to go to Peeron for a parts list when he could just click on the "Inv" button on Bricklink next to the set number? As for instructions, I've found the links on Brickset.com to LEGO to be the most useful. Honestly, I almost never go to Peeron, the combination of Bricklink and Brickset work just fine.

I have to agree with those championing Weathertop. One of my favorite parts of the book, the movie, and a great set. It doesn't hurt that I picked up extra Nazgul in an incredible LEGO store grab bag find. The Mines of Moria, on the other hand, was my least favorite set. First, it was one of my least favorite parts of the movie trilogy, because the Cave Troll CGI didn't suspend my disbelief, it just looks too fake. I compare it to the Rancor in Return of the Jedi, which decades earlier seemed much more realistic... so to me it was a failure and I hope that some day Peter Jackson redoes the CGI for that part of the Fellowship film. As for the set... it's a bunch of disconnected pieces, with no feeling of being inside a mountain, and worse it is 34 studs long so it can't fit on a standard baseplate even if you wanted to put it on one. The only reason I picked it up was because I got it at an incredible deal (37% off) and because I wanted the (thus far) exclusive minifigs in the set. I must admit that I had fun building it, but overall I don't like the design, while I love Weathertop. I guess the lesson is - to each their own.

Not only is the MOC amazing, but the photography is superb as well. At first glance, two of your pictures looked like reference pictures of the real thing rather than LEGO, in part because of the excellence of the model, but also due to the camera angle. Well done!

That's my local store too, if you consider local as 100 miles away. If you think that wall is good, you need to check out the Mall of America store sometime. Although I did manage the best grab bags I've ever found at the Wauwatosa store. Let's just say that for some reason (damaged boxes?) they must have had at least three of the Lord of the Ring Weathertop sets split into the grab bags, plus parts from some other great sets. At a high volume store like MoA, any good sets like that get dilluted into more bags so it isn't as likely to find as many awesome parts at once.

You are right that there are differences, but some of those are minor and could be explained by lack of training. There are quite a few things that point to this being a company store. The brand ribbon, the brick light fixtures on the ceiling, the display cylinders in the front window (not sure if there is an official name for them), the fact that there is a pick-a-brick wall (albeit fake).

To answer your last question, in the US the LEGO stores have a 'soft opening' first, in which they open for a few weeks to let the staff get familiar with the store, the products, and the procedures. Then, about 3-4 weeks later is the 'grand opening' and that is when they give stuff away. If your store just opened for business a few days ago, perhaps the grand opening is coming up? I can't believe the pick-a-brick wall is decorative only, that's the best reason (in my opinion) to visit a LEGO store. Perhaps they are having some logistical issues importing the parts to fill the wall? I'd write to LEGO and express your concerns. I know that in the past I regularly replied to LEGO surveys telling them my disappointment with the build-a-minifig section, and eventually they totally revamped that part of the store with a new method of displaying the parts. It never hurts to offer your opinion, maybe they'll tell you why or maybe they'll work harder to change it. LEGO has great customer service.

In that case, I'd go with the Heartlake Dog Show at $20. It comes with two puppies and lots of activities for them to do.

If you can afford one of the bigger sets, the Cafe and the Beauty Shop are incredible in the $25-30 range. If you are limited to $10, I'd consider what interests your sister. If she likes music, Andrea's Stage is great. If she likes science and technology, Olivia's Invention Workshop is great. If she likes Fashion, Emma's Fashion Design Studio is great... really they are all great, but it depends on what your sister likes the most. The $6 sets aren't as interesting from a build/parts perspective, but another option might be to buy two of those to have two Friends for her to play with. You don't mention her age, so I'm assuming she is young enough she'll want to play with the sets.

Grand Emporium. As the older set, it is likely going to be retired first. Not to mention, every LEGO town needs somewhere to shop.

Scorpiox - For me, the choice was simple - Two Face Chase. If you love Batman you need a Batmobile. Puck - Again, this would be an easy choice for me - Weathertop. It's one of my favorite parts of the Lord of the Rings and it is a nice looking set. It has one of the best characters - Aragorn, and comes with two Ringwraiths. Pythor - Earth Defense HQ all the way. I was ambivalent toward the Alien Conquest line, but this set won me over. First off, it's blue, my favorite color. Second, it has some rare and useful parts even if you don't like the set. Third, even if you don't like the campy alien attack stuff, the vehicle would work great with any scifi layout. Definitely get this set, you won't regret it.

Just out of curiosity, for those finding 6x16 plates on the wall, how many fit in a large cup? I'd test myself, but I don't think I own enough 6x16 plates to fill a cup.

I still don't think it has to do with weight, I still think it is parts that are more easily lost. Why do they include extra 1x1 round plates, tiles, and cheese, but not extra 1x1 square plates? I think because some are more likely to bounce and get lost, and others tend not to bounce and roll or slide away. Not to mention, who here hasn't found a round 1x1 plate stuck in the corner of the bag? I know I have on more than one occasion when I'm missing the extra part I expect to find.

Wow, what an incredible model. I was loving it as I scrolled down the page, and when I saw the shuttle bay I must admit that my grin grew even larger. Very well done.

Making a model with so much of one color can be a real challenge. It's all too easy to lose detail when building like this. However, you have really done a great job of bringing out a lot of detail by using plates and tiles, rounded edges and sharp edges, the contrasts really work well. Great job! Hard to believe it's only your second model (the first was great as well, btw) in years.

If it's August at the LEGO store, I suspect it will start showing up soon at whichever retailer is going to carry this (TRU?).

I've heard that theory - that it is the lightest parts and that they are included to help the quality control weigh-in, but as the original poster said, it doesn't make sense. It seems to be the parts that are the most easily lost or broken. My theory rests on the Antenna Whip 8H piece (http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=2569). Clearly it weighs much more than a 1x1 round plate or a 1x1 cheese, yet sets always include a spare. Why? Because I'm sure that part is very easily broken being so thin. If it was a weight issue, there is no way that the spare parts would never differ... they are always the same, just check against the Bricklink inventory.

Sometimes I don't know whether to be jealous (6x16 plates!?!) or glad that I haven't found these items on the pick-a-brick wall... because if I had found them, I'd probably be leaving with much less money than I entered the store with. On second thought... for 6x16 plates I'd gladly pinch my pennies.

I really love this creation. If the window was on the wall opposite the computer, with a door where the window is, this would be my first computer room in the house where I grew up. It was about this size and was about that color. Very well done!

The bus is perfect, definitely love it. I really like the trucks as well, although I think they may be a bit out of scale. Since detail and size can be enemies, I think you've hit a good compromise between the two. I'd buy it if I saw it on the shelf, so well done!

I was loving this from the first picture, but then I got to your action shots and I now love it even more. It looks fabulous next to the loader, and you are correct that with a few stickers it would look just like an official set. Very well done.

My favorite is Attack on Weathertop, probably because that is one of my favorite scenes from the book. Strider is easily my favorite character, and it's early in the book when they are just starting on their adventure and they come face to face with real danger. I think LEGO captured the scene quite well, the only thing missing from the set is a pair of hobbits and several ringwraiths.