fred67

It means CMFs have more than doubled in price - 100% price increase, since being introduced only six years ago. There's no inflationary explanation for that.

The problem is there are too many shipping choices. An over sized letter is not a package, and they will have different rates. Even among packages there are a bunch of options - if a seller uses flat rate packages, then it doesn't matter how much is in it. Agreed - international shipping can be really expensive, and some countries cost a lot more than others. It is why I do, in fact, have my bricklink searches limited to North America. I only very rarely look at other stores when I'm not finding what I need in the U.S. or Canada.

I've found some pretty interesting custom pieces here: http://www.eclipsebricks.com/eclipsegrafx/ I don't think they do "custom," but they do have a lot of interesting tiles and printed parts that might suffice.

Just my two cents on the "negativity" and calls for this thread to end... Yes and no. Some of these projects are hilariously bad. So bad that the authors MUST understand how bad they are unless they're under the age of 8 - in which case they shouldn't be posting. I mean, seriously... I've literally seen a baseplate with a minifigure standing on it. Can you imagine a mature person (or mature enough - 13+) actually defending that, getting indignant and saying "Hey, that's not nice! I put a lot of work into that!" I don't care for people posting the moderate projects here - just because they won't make it doesn't put them in the "best of the worst" category. If people posted some of these moderate ones on Eurobricks, they would likely get a lot of love, or at least constructive criticism. One thing I find funny is that, in fact, if we go all the way back to post 23 (the tumblr link), they actually posted this as one of the worst. Does the guy that put that there feel like an idiot now? I hope so. A good example of going to far to bash an idea "for laughs" when you don't need to look further than the many bad ones that actually get posted every day. I'm enjoying the really bad models.... I don't really think I need them, I do visit Ideas from time to time and see them all over, and I do find it annoying that these obviously bad ones, so it's nice to turn it into laughs. I don't go past the "discover" page when I see bad ones - I should, because sometimes the descriptions and comments are gold. I don't know if I should laugh or cry about lighteningtiger. So yes, there's some negativity there, but I don't want this thread to stop - I just think it should focus on the projects that fit the title "The best of the worst."

Agree with Littleworlds. While I see some styling I don't care for (especially different aspect windows and... very horribly, different types of shutters), on the whole I don't have a huge problem with their aesthetic appeal. I wouldn't want one for functional reasons (like, maintenance - they require a lot more roof, and the roof is a lot more complicated - if you needed to get new shingles, it would cost a lot more while a similar sized, better designed house would amortize a simpler roof design), but I don't think they look bad.... often more interesting visually than the ones he's comparing them to.

NOTE FOR PEOPLE IN THE ALTANTA AREA: we can arrange for pick up/delivery in the N.E. Atlanta area - by Sugerloaf Mills, Gwinnett Place, etc. For various reasons I have decided to sell off the bulk of my LEGO collection. I've been into LEGO, as an Adult, for about 16 or 17 years now, and I've continued buying the sets I wanted all those years despite the fact I have no place to show them off after I've built them. I had always hoped I'd eventually have room to build out city displays, Harry Potter displays, castle displays, Star Wars displays... I also bought extras a few sets because they were army builders, or I thought they'd make great presents (which some of them have). I can't bring myself to sell it all, but I'm starting with my new sets because I obviously was preferring the ones I actually opened and built. Some of the sets have been de-boxed and stored in plastic "shoe" boxes (or larger plastic boxes). It's a vast minority, and ANYTHING unusual about the set - if it's been opened, de-boxed, or otherwise will be noted in the list. I'm basing my asking prices on the Bricklink North American six months sale average, and then taking a percentage off that. I will try to keep shipping low, but shipping is on the buyer - I can de-box to keep shipping lower, if desired. Some of these sets are quite large and heavy, and I may need packaging. I will NOT EVER ask for more than it costs to package and ship, and I have a great deal of boxes and packaging material already that I won't charge for (IOW, I won't ask you for anything I can't show a receipt for). PICTURES Castle: 7946 King's Castle $140 7188 King's Carriage Ambush $35 Architecture: 21010 Robie House $350 Toy Story: 7597 Western Train Chase $125 7595 Army Men on Patrol $20 Holiday: 7553 Advent 2011 Calendar $35 10199 Winter Toy Shop $100 If you're interested in Star Wars stuff: http://www.eurobrick...howtopic=138683

I've been away for quite some time, and am going to admit I haven't read all the replies (although I've read a good number of them). For me the issue is cost (I know, I know, the usual whine). I think the D2C sets have been absolutely spectacular.... the problem is I can't afford any of them. I can't afford the Bat Cave, I can't afford the Ghostbusters HQ, I can't afford the Disney Castle. The prices have gone crazy over the past few years with the introduction of these enormous, and extremely expensive, sets. I realize we've had UCS before, but I think it started around the time of the Hellcarrier... these are "regular" sets, not just for "ultimate collectors." I've sadly done an about-face with LEGO this year, now selling off the bulk (but not entirety) of my collection, and NOT buying anything that expensive, ever.

1. PAB. There's no easier way to get a lot of brand new bricks as cheaply as possible. 2. Bricklink... when I'm buying parts for a project, I'll bulk up my orders with interesting pieces to capitalize on the shipping. I have want lists of interesting pieces to make it easier. 3. Extra sets.... some sets seem to have a lot of interesting parts in them, sometimes a good way to bulk up on parts that might otherwise be hard to find.... so I don't like doing this in general, I like keeping sets together, but if you really do like the actual set (as opposed to just the parts), then buying multiple copies will help you get over it.

I supported this a long time ago... it sadly seems there aren't that many older fans who loved Space 1999. It's the perfect size for an Ideas project, too.

NOTE FOR PEOPLE IN THE ALTANTA AREA: we can arrange for pick up/delivery in the N.E. Atlanta area - by Sugerloaf Mills, Gwinnett Place, etc. For various reasons I have decided to sell off the bulk of my LEGO collection. I've been into LEGO, as an Adult, for about 16 or 17 years now, and I've continued buying the sets I wanted all those years despite the fact I have no place to show them off after I've built them. I had always hoped I'd eventually have room to build out city displays, Harry Potter displays, castle displays, Star Wars displays... I also bought extras a few sets because they were army builders, or I thought they'd make great presents (which some of them have). I can't bring myself to sell it all, but I'm starting with my new sets because I obviously was preferring the ones I actually opened and built. Some of the sets have been de-boxed and stored in plastic "shoe" boxes (or larger plastic boxes). It's a vast minority, and ANYTHING unusual about the set - if it's been opened, de-boxed, or otherwise will be noted in the list. I'm basing my asking prices on the Bricklink North American six months sale average, and then taking a percentage off that. I will try to keep shipping low, but shipping is on the buyer - I can de-box to keep shipping lower, if desired. Some of these sets are quite large and heavy, and I may need packaging. I will NOT EVER ask for more than it costs to package and ship, and I have a great deal of boxes and packaging material already that I won't charge for (IOW, I won't ask you for anything I can't show a receipt for). The collection has grown so large that I am going to go by themes; I'm starting with Star Wars, as I'm hoping is the most desirable and the fastest way to get rid of the bulk of my collection. Pictures available on request; I'll try to get some up anyway at some point. Other/non-Star Wars stuff: http://www.eurobrick...howtopic=139031 UCS: 10212 Imperial Shuttle $500 10198 Tantive IV (opened to see if it was smooth-hair Leia) $250 10227 B-Wing $250 10186 General Grievous $180 10174 AT-ST $400 Battle Packs: 7667 Imperial Drop Ship (x3) $25 7668 Rebel Scout Speeder $22 8014 Clone Walker BP $25 8015 Assassin Droid BP (x5) $7 8084 Snow Trooper BP $15 9489 Endor Rebel and Imperial Trooper BP $18 Advent Calendars: 7958 Advent 2011 $35 9509 Advent 2012 $25 Other: 4504 Millennium Falcon Original Trilogy Edition $225 6212 X-Wing (x2) $90 7754 Home One Mon Calamari Cruiser $75 7956 Ewok Attack $40 8087 TIE Defender $55 7672 Rogue Shadow $125 8016 Hyena Droid Bomber $20 8017 Darth Vader's TIE Fighter (x2) $115 8038 Battle of Endor (new, de-boxed, stored in plastic box) $100 8099 Midi-scale Star Destroyer $35 9496 Dessert Skiff $35 9516 Jabba's Palace $125 Misc: LEGO Star Wars Visual Dictionary, complete with Luke w/ Medal $8.00 Magnet Sets (before glue!): 852715 Darth Vader, Snow Trooper, Shadow Trooper $15.00 852554 Chewbacca, Darth Vader, Obi-Wan $15.00 852551 Anakin, Naboo Pilot, Darth Maul $17.50 852555 Yoda, Mace, Dooku $15.00 852845 Han, Paploo, Scout Trooper $15.00 852843 C-3PO, Leia, Ackbar $14.00

Given recent LEGO releases, a set like that, rendered in LEGO (not <insert that tiresome argument> with big molded pieces) would run more like $300 than $150.

The price increases are mostly profit, not increases in production or material costs. If I need to phrase it another way - the biggest cost in the price of LEGO is profit, not materials, not shipping, not set design or quality control. The biggest piece of the pie is profit. The simple fact is that LEGO has a HUGE profit margins compared to other companies - north of 25%, and increasing year after year. I don't belittle them that fact, just pointing out that most companies with that kind of sales volume are happy with 5 to 10% profit margins. But if people keep buying it, TLG is absolutely right, and running their business correctly, to keep increasing prices until sales level off.

Bumping; I've reopened my 60% trading and added some new sets to my wanted list, hopefully making it easier for people to find a trade. I will soon add S15 figures, but want to see what the fuss is about.

Well, I normally don't like participating in these kinds of "wish" threads lately, as it doesn't really get you anywhere, but it is interesting to see what people come up with... As as far as 6 goes, they should just release a %@#%@# set with the seven dwarfs, or one with all the dwarfs plus Snow White plus the huntsman, evil Queen in both Queen and witch forms, and the prince. I'd also like them to hold back on the individual figures from movies with "Ensemble" casts, and would prefer sets with the casts of movies like the Incredibles, or actually, what I really would love, is Nightmare Before Christmas. These regular series can stick to the classics.

As mentioned, oil prices have little impact on the price of LEGO because it only accounts for a tiny fraction of what you're paying for. Mostly profit. I know TLG gets a lot of defenders talking about great quality - and it does have great quality, no doubt - but it seems we've seen more complaints about quality in the past few years than before. I know I've had problems in the last year I never had before. But the proof is in the pudding, as they say. By their own accounting, once again, for the first half of 2015 their PROFIT outpaced the increase in sales. There's a number of things that can account for that, but since it happens year after year, the conclusion is simple - profit margins increased. It's really just that simple. If people are willing to pay more, and sales keep increasing, they have little incentive to make LEGO more affordable.

This is a problem with skinny little Disney princesses... they might make good minidolls, but not minifigures, and there's really nothing you can do to fix it. I'm OK with it, though - it's LEGO and it looks like LEGO, yet the characters are recognizable. Yup... as I said the other day, I thought it was Dash at first, and after reading a number of other responses, I see I'm not alone. Also, every series have people who hate it - but you can't take any critical reaction to the series as hate. As is always the case, a lot of us wish they'd taken a different approach. I see a lot of people loving on the Buzz Lightyear, for instance, and while I will admit it's cool and really well done, there's already Buzz and LGM figures out there, so why waste the potential of what they could have done for this series rehashing two figures that have already been released? Especially when so many princesses are missing - counterparts to figures that are already there... Aladdin gets Genie, but not Jasmine; Pan gets Hook, but not Wendy or Tinkerbell; Malificent doesn't get Aurora, Stitch doesn't get Lilo... and notice something all the missing figures have in common? But I will get a box of these - hopefully getting three complete series. I know I want a complete series, and my Mom is a huge Disney fan and would love a number of those figures. My daughter wants the Cheshire cat. There's a lot to like here, but being critical and wishing it had gone a different way is not "hating."

These are neat, I guess. At a count of 18, they should still give us 3 complete series in a box, but I wouldn't get my hopes up with LEGO's track record. I'm disappointed at the inclusion of Buzz and the Alien from TS because they've already been released, and if they're going to push up to 18, they should be better at including companions.... No Jasmine for Aladdin? No Lilo for Stitch? No Aurora for Malificent? A bit unfortunate, in my opinion. Yes.... look at my list. there's at least three female figures they should have had instead of Buzz and the Alien. They should have left the incredibles for, perhaps, their entire own series, or maybe taken two franchises so they could give it justice. Dash is the last of the Incredibles I'd want. EDIT: I guess that's supposed to be Mr. Incredible.... not very good, IMO. If it was short legs, it'd clearly be Dash. Now it just doesn't look that great.

Looks like the list hasn't been updated since August 2014?

Very cool, in depth, great attention to details, and I love the lighting on the AI and Inside the Engine pictures.

I backed metal that I still haven't gotten, but bought some plastic about a year ago, when it started becoming available. It may have taken a week or two, I don't recall, but not more than that.

No. Once upon a time, my son had bionicle and some Star Wars sets, and I never touched them (except to help him build them when he was little). My daughter had a couple of small sets, too, and when CMFs came out I would give them ones they liked from my collection. Skip forward a few years, and they've both given me all their LEGO; they're just not interested anymore.

Nobody cares if there's a bottle or bag of chips or something off to the side or in the background of your pictures of LEGO. It happens all the time.

After I submitted my request for replacement parts, now nearly three weeks ago, while they sent a confirmation of receiving my request, they've neither sent any replacements nor even an email. I submitted another email with the issue number and explained again, and posted a link to my photo... and again, they haven't responded.

I grew up watching this show - the best moment was when Batman says "Quick Robin! To the giant lighted Lucite map of Gotham City!" and they run over to the map... and it's a got a giant label on it that reads "Giant Lighted Lucite Map of Gotham City." Sadly, all I'd ever want from this set are the figures and the Batmobile. I'm sure I can copy that Batmobile (sans bat logos) myself, at least. Ah. The price makes me sad. I can't believe how many >= $200.00 sets are coming out lately. They are simply pricing me out of LEGO. Same thing with the GB Firehouse. Even the smaller sets are starting to seem ridiculous. Oh, and sorry Nick, Julie Newmar was HOT. Yes, Ertha Kitt was great with the purring and such, but Julie Newmar was HOT.

Hmmm... I've never seen any of the newspaper giveaways available in the U.S.. I might not always pay attention, but I had to buy the Pirates of the Caribbean ones on BL. There are definitely exclusives that never become available anywhere else.