henryhotspurs

I am assuming the loco is European. Is this kit based on a real loco that I can research or is it 'generalized'?

I was looking at the box art. Has anyone with the set tried to motorize it? Perhaps make a 9v motorized tender? Does it work on standard 9v tracks? Are the drivers compatible with the tracks?

Sure it's an old topic. But it's a good one. I like all trains but, truth be told, I grew up in the American Southwest and was more likely to see large, American freight haulers. The European trains I associate with luxury and speed while the American trains I associate with longevity and brute strength... Perhaps I am biased because I have a 20 year, veteran, Santa Fe railroad Engineer in the family. He actually gets to drive one of those American monsters every day. If you ask him he'll say there is nothing more beautiful than the engine he drives that day. His stories of long drives through the American Rockies and pacing coyotes through the desert near Winslow, Arizona are my favorite stories... Want to see a beautiful train? Look up Arizona's Grand Canyon Railway! I think it would make a great Lego model!

Thanks for the review! I have just completed my metroliner by piecing it together via Bricklink. Now I know what my next project will be!

Very nice! But I have to know, what did the three cars set you back? I am currently using bricklink to recreate my own metroliner. I have about $100.00 in it but anticipate double that to finish the kit. (That light and sound brick for the front is expensive and the gray train windows are not to be found in bulk. ) I am really enjoying the build and would love to do the cars you have done next. Thanks for the inspiration!

How about a couple of skateboarders riding a ramp nearby or some taggers spraying up the back wall? Hey, how about a police squad car investigating something? Maybe photographing a crime scene or interviewing some seedy looking tough guys. Maybe a TV crew interviewing the owner of the club? That would be cool too.

Wow those are awesome! You know what would be cool? MOC up a double decker car hauler or a train car for all those cuties. The orange one followed by the blue are my favorites! Great work!

Awesome build! I live in Phoenix, Az and you cannot go downtown without running into the parking police. They drive something very similar. Let's get together and tip a few over! LOL

no goofing around---You are a master!

what I love about this MOC is the story it tells. It is really full of depth and motion! Keep up the good work!

I really lliked the review. I immediatley went to my local Lego store and picked up the pig farm! Thanks

Very Cool!

Too Cool! Great MOC!

I don't buy the planes. After your review I was convinced I was doing the right thing. Then I got three new plane sets as gifts. The sea plane was one. I built it and discovered your review was spot on! Now the plane will be relegated to the parts bin and the minifig gets a quick makeover. Mr. Pilot went back to school where he learned to be a stockbroker. His new office is the 15th floor of my lego city stock exchange... Thanks for the review

Great review! I Bought four!

I have a large city layout. It takes an entire bay of my garage. I have trains, skyscrapers, modular buildings, creator houses and the city corner style sets. I personally think they go great together. My entire main street is the modulars while around the back is the less ornate city corner sets. The bike shop and pizzaria were slightly modded to bring up their heights but they are still open backed, which is obscured from view by the modular buildings. This entire sity block is enclosed and faces out with road plates all around the block. Large, skyscrapers sit adjacent to the Christmas toy shop. To top off the whole scene a large train yard, with independent loops, runs along the table's length then disappears into tunnels and continues underneath the entire city so that I may store all my trains on sidings and alternately run them while maximizing the space. I designed my town so every time you walk around it's expanse you see something new. This concept has been well recieved and i get complements from young and old alike. My new challenge has been to integrate the Toy Story, green army men, which I converted to "humans" by adding yellow hands and heads, into my layout. Perhaps I'll stage a parade to honor these fine vets! As you can see I think all the sets, old and new, big and small, modded or straight out of the box, work well together. It's how you integrate them and transition to a new scheme which makes or breaks a layout.

This is a great topic! I got a great nostalgic feeling as I remembered some of my fondest childhood lego memories. Everything from where and when I grew up, to the friends I had, all play a part in my cityscapes now... I love lego trains and with trains come depots, cargo docks, workers, housing, municipal services and a multitude of intricate viginettes sculpting everyday life. I love modelling the everyday in new ways: Superman kisses Lois in a back alley, a couple of kids put antifreeze in an old jalopy, a dog stares up at a cat on a fire escape... When I display my city I love to watch people's reactions. Everything from awe (friends, family) to disgust (brother-in-law) to wonder (every child who sees it). Their reactions, even the negative ones, fuel my desire to build. I am a lego narcissist, I suppose. I am by turns a great architect, a cool uncle, dad, and grandpa, and sometimes even an eccentric nut, but I created something. I inspired awe! I live for the wistful look in the eyes of adult "children" who recognize pieces of their childhoods. As a teary-eyed friend once told me (with a police boat clutched in his trembling hands) "I thought I was the only adult fan of lego in the whole world."