fred67

Yeah, I certainly didn't mean to drive this off topic, but I see it somewhat like Toastie... yes, Enlighten ripped off LEGO's design, but they ripped off sets you can't buy first hand anymore. They are filling a demand, even if we wished TLG would do it instead.

I have to say, and this may not be the best thread for this subject because there are several involving MegaBlocks, Cobi, and other brands. It's pretty much accepted facts that these are cheap imitations, it's true... I won't argue with those who continue to tout the quality of LEGO over other brands. Many of these companies produce sets that are identical (or nearly so) to LEGO sets. That's also true. Enlighten certainly does this. But I'm getting a little tired of the comments about other companies ripping off LEGO parts... Ole Kirk Christensen "stole" the design from Kiddicraft, eventually buying the rights. I know TLG is everybody's favorite company - mine, too; they certainly make the best quality bricks (at this time, IMO), but I'm not going to belittle these other companies for wanting to get in on the market. MB makes Halo; if you want Halo, you buy MB. Enlighten seems like now it's the only company making compatible curved track - and the only one making brown track, which seems like a much better color than gray... (we'll see what ME comes up with, but it doesn't look like directly compatible RC track). So, sorry, I'm venting a bit that it's annoying to see people complaining about "stolen" designs for parts and sets when Kiddicraft was the original "victim" at the hands of Ole Kirk Christensen, who apparently saw the design of Kiddicraft the very year he bought an injection mold. Now back onto this topic - belittle Enlighten all you want, if I can find "track packs," I'll be inclined to buy them, even if just for shelf displays. I'm not inclined to buy sets with bricks that I don't think will stay together well, so while some of the sets look interesting, I don't feel it's worth it yet, but I find it hard to believe that tracks would have the same problem... they are held together differently, and don't need the tight tolerances that bricks need to clutch.

You bought three boxes (whole boxes, not just 60 packs) and only got 1 Samurai? Most of what people are posting here is just anecdotal; you can't base your answer on what a few individuals managed to find - most individuals do not buy enough minifigures (it would have to be thousands) to be able to suggest a decent statistical sampling. What Dadzilla wants to know is the statistical distribution, in which case the fisherman initially only came two to a box, making it the "rarest." Subsequent releases had more in the box, evening it out, but because it started "rare," it's likely technically the rarest one. On the other hand, the most wanted one was the elf, which, after people have raided the boxes on the shelves, makes it the hardest to find, which makes it also considered "rare," because even if there's more than fishman, there's a disproportionately higher demand... but that's not what Dadzilla wanted to know. This is the post you were looking for (way down at the bottom).

Well... since people are sharing. I got an order of 30 from TRU. I was five figures short of a complete set. I did NOT get any: Musketeers Vikings Hazmat Guys Soccer Players Figure Skaters Out of thirty, based on the characters I want several of, those top THREE really hurt. I did, however, beat the odds and got 2 scientists... both of which my kids snatched up and now I have none. This is what I got (out of 30), in order they appear on the sheet: 1 Gnome 3 Geishas 0 Musketeers 5 Punk Rockers 2 Surfers 0 Vikings 4 Frankenstein's Monsters 2 Hockey Players 1 Skate Boarder 3 Sailors 0 Soccer Players 5 Wolfmen 0 Hazmat Guys 2 Painters 0 Figure Skaters 2 Scientists I have a box of 60 coming, so while the two scientists were nice, the rest are bothersome, but that's what you get with random... I've gotten really lucky in the past, and I've gotten really screwed... I supposed it all evens out. The only one I wanted that many of were the wolfmen (mainly for the elf hair).

LEGO Lights at Think Geek, $9.99 (for one, pick the color), on sale from $17.99. I was going to post this in the sales thread, but reread the first post of that thread and and it doesn't seem to fit there.

Updated, added a couple of Series 4. ADDED A MINOTAUR! Come on! I need a couple of Statues of Liberty... opened or closed!

I know... I completely missed 1 (went on vacation to the Amazon the day they came out... they were completely gone when I got back). Series 2 were also hard to find and sold out everywhere around here except the LEGO store. Series 3, though... still available at TRU, LEGO Store and LEGO S@H... so I'm not too worried about 4 - besides the fact I ordered a whole box (who knows if the source will come through), I'm sure I'll be able to find them at the store. I'm so glad... I don't know if they make more or distributed them better, but whatever it is, I'm glad. I just think "finally" is hilarious when they're not even officially released yet.

I agree... nice job using all LEGO parts (I'd have ended up using a lot of brickforge stuff); I like the accordion. Needs more cowbell.

FINALLY!

Sometimes people sell currently available sets on Ebay because: A) They know some people are just suckers and don't know enough about LEGO; the buyer sees a set they've never seen in the store (like they only shop at TRU or something) and don't know it's a LEGO Exclusive, or Walmart Exclusive, or, or that those "rare!" parts are available on bricklink for half the price, or what have you... IOW, they're taking advantage of shopper ignorance. B) Sometimes LEGO doesn't sell to some countries, or the MSRP in those countries is very high; it can actually be cheaper to buy from someone in the U.S. and have it shipped, even with a markup. The second answer is also your explanation for why some BL sellers sell it for more. There's also the case that some BL sellers don't want to just "sit" on new inventory until it becomes more valuable, so they put it in their store with a markup to make a profit and if neither (A) nor (B) happens, the set eventually IS discontinued and their price becomes commensurate with the "value" of the set.

I almost always keep specific characters together (any licensed theme characters and most of the others), but sometimes I mix and match to get something different; I also have several dozen heads and extra hair and so forth so that I can mix things up, like my line of Hula dancers each has a different face, for example, so they can be in the same MOC and not look like triplets. I also have a lot of parts separately and essentially have my own "build a minifig" box; when I do take parts from a "whole" character, I often toss the rest of the bits in there. When I buy in BL, I generally browse the minifigures and parts to bulk up smaller orders and have ended up with quite a bit over time.

... and yet another +1 for Prozac.

and Which is why: I agree with UsernameMDM... I'm almost 100% with feeling, and the only time I messed up I was being rushed.... and no, the packs don't like they've been through the wash when I'm done.

I have a problem that way. If I buy one set, I build it and that's it (I may make some modifications, but generally it's the LEGO set - they still usually do a lot better than me). If I want one to save, I have to buy both - one to build, one to save. If I want one for parts, I have to buy two - one to build, one to use for parts. Yes, I know... it's like a mental disorder, but that's how I am. I mean... some people save boxes. But... if that's what they want, so be it.

Obviously you're not going to be able to try to get exactly what you want, but I aside from ordering a box at one place (for less than MSRP, not tax, free shipping), I also did an order at TRU - over $75 and shipping is free, so while I can't find them here yet, I was able to order them at no extra cost.

+1 broomhandle.

Well then it's definitely not a LEGO Group publication....

Looks really cool... any idea how much it might be, and what the availability is? Is it published/sold by LEGO or a third party? And, having never seen one before, what do the number of bricks indicate (they all seem to have six bricks with half filled in)?

So... do we bump this thread if we have updates?

Why? Why couldn't they just make two smaller sets? I always figured the point of modular was a big, detailed building for AFOLs.

Cool train, cool layout... looks like you just slapped a 9V motor on it?

Ok, this worked for me. Not a whole lot they left up that I was interested in (lame, a Tantiv IV would have been great), but I got a General Grievous Starfighter for $30 + $5 shipping. Palpatine's Shuttle is still there (I'm just not that interested).

... and when you buy it's "sorry, limit 5!" while everyone else seems to get them by the box.

The other day someone scored some at a TRU near Buford GA... I'm just down the road a little; the TRU near Gwinnett Place Mall had only Series 3 (BOGO50%, though...). Target the road from there didn't have any (but I finally got Target Practice).

Because S@H honors it's stated release dates, while TRU isn't bound to do that. Our local LEGO store does the same thing with the exception that if shelves are empty from a sale or something, they'll fill it with what they were holding in the back. I got series 3 and Diagon Alley before the official release date from the LEGO Store because the shelves were empty from Christmas, but I don't expect that to happen again anytime soon.