Lego_Hero

Questions: When you say no "background MOC" in Category One, just how limited are we? Here's why I ask: I'm not a train collector and I don't have any tracks at all from any sets, so I had to create tracks from scratch. I think it looks great, or at least gets the job done. Now, most tracks are built up a bit from the ground around them, so I built a stretch of land coming out from the tracks. It's probably no more than 10-12 studs, but it seemed bare, so I added a little foliage (just some trees, small plants, and my version of cacti). Without giving away too much of my entry, let's just say there are a few minifigs along the tracks. With the land, greenery, and minifigs, does that constitute the "background MOC" you don't want? The train is definitely the focal point and nothing in the foreground takes away from it, but I just wanted to make sure before I continue on. AND When you say "tender", do you mean a coal or wood car (directly behind the engine) for the fire? I've never heard "tender" used that way, so I wanted to be sure.

I'm actually glad for repeats. The second Skater and Surfer are so different from the originals that the only thing they share are the skate and surf boards. They are both unique enough to stand on their own. As for some of you hoping that they stop producing series after series... stop buying them and let us folks with disposable income keep on living the dream. If you really have a problem with financing your collection, grow some self-control. I hope they stop making cheeseburgers soon, I'm getting fat! I hope they stop making shoes soon, I can't fit any more in my closet! I hope the trees stop producing so much oxygen, I've been breathing non-stop for over 37 years now! Just kidding, we're all entitled to our opinions. I, for one, am very excited to see what comes next!

That's not something Chuck Norris would say. His command of the english language is far better than that for one thing. For another, I can't think of any movie has has been in (that I've seen) where he would say something like that.

I use paint sometimes on minifigs, especially if I need something in silver or gold. I wouldn't paint bricks, though. I just don't think I could get the color right.

I have a small set of pliers that I use exclusively for my Lego (disassembling ksy chains, mostly), but even that is too big for what you need. I would use tweezers, becasue they have tongs thin enough to get in where you need them. This happened to me once and I think I broke the pin with my exacto knife.

My collection is probably somewhere in the middle of what everyone has here. I thought I had reached "critical mass", but I found that I was mistaken when I tried to build a Transformer. After realizing I didn't have the parts I needed, I finally called it quits in the wee hours of the morning. I would think critical mass would be when your collection gets away from you to the point that you can no longer manage it without an intervention. For example: -storage: not having room in your house, not having enough proper storage containers, etc. -sorting: having several sets that haven't been sorted for storage, needing to change your method of sorting because there are so many more parts than before, etc. I have 5-6 sets still to sort and two storage containers of Lego I just bought that need to be sorted. inventory: as modest as my collection is, I still find pieces I didn't know I had. I made an order on Bricklink a while back only to find later that I alreday had some of those pieces.

I did a quick check on Ebay and Brickset and identified the set. It's 6209, Slave-I. I have all the minifigs complete that come with it, except for the bounty hunter's white (ninja) mask, but the ship is obviously not in the container. There's enough in the box to justify the price tag, but I probably won't sell anything. I'm going to try to put together the other sets tonight to see what I actually have.

WOW, that is exactly what I was going to post. I don't use my LDD very often, but I go to bricklink and 'browse' all the time. When I come across a part I'm not familiar with, I study it to see how it can be used.

Last night I had the opportunity to visit a consignment sale at a convention center in town. We're talking thousands of square feet of used children's clothes, furniture, and oh yeah- toys. It wasn't open to the public until this afternoon, but my wife snagged a sneak-peak ticket from someone who works the sale. It's a good thing too, as it was people were carrying out cartloads of products. Of course my sole reason for going was to see if anyone was parting with their used Lego. After sifting through several bags and boxes of falsely labeled toys, I found two tupperware tubs of Lego. One was labeled "Star Wars Lego" and one was labeled "Sponge Bob Lego". The SW box had several visible instruction booklets. The one that caugth my eye was the original Slave I ship! That set alone would have made the asking price worth while. I shook the box and saw a Boba Fett, so I thought that maybe the set might be intact. I don't own any SB Lego, so I took a chance on that box as well. In all, I paid $60. I thought that was high, but I was gambling on the fact that I could see several of the minifigs and there were alot of Lego pieces in each box. After sorting, I'm sad to say that the Slave I is not in the box. A handful of Classic SW minifigs, including Lando, Boba Fett, and Darth Vader joined another few Anakins and Obi-Wans from Clone Wars. There were also a few Lego NBA basketball players, droid parts and a General Grievous head. There were many more unidentifiable Megablocks and Power Ranger minifigs. I'm not sure if there were any complete sets, I'll have to try building them. All the minifigs from the SB sets were included and there seems to be alot more bricks in that box, so I think I may have two complete play sets in that box. I know I made my money back in value. I'll post again once I try to build everything.

As for the MOC, that is awesomeness! I feel like the scene is literally crawling with those ants. Very nice effect with the gold ants on top as well. This is one of those vingettes that you can show to non-Lego people and still get a reaction from because of it's attention to detail and quality design. As for the paint job, I don't consider it cheating if it brings something positive to the creation. I always use a blank torso (white if I have an extra) so the print doesn't come through. For some reason, gold is my favorite as well. I use a regular spray paint from Wal-Mart. I have a few scrap Lego that I use as a base and paint each piece individually, with tape around the neck peg and flat on the bottom of the torso so that the parts still fit when I put them together. As for the arms, I wish I was at home so I could tell you what drill bit to use, but I have a superhero and a villain with four arms. You just carefully drill under the exsisting arms holes (leave a little space). If the bit is the right size, the arms fit on and are just as secure as the factory-made holes. The only drawback is that you can't lower the upper arms. To get the torso to go all the way down on the leg assembly, you have to cut a little off of the leg assembly pegs. An exacto knife works well for this. Just be careful, because some leg assemblies are more brittle and will snap off with enough pressure. Sorry if this turned into a tutorial. I always admire you guys that take the time to build and share with the rest of us. This is one of my favorite MOCs, so keep on brickin'!

My wife is not into LEGO, but she is into the fact that I am into LEGO. I go on and on and she just nods at the appropriate times. A fan of Lego when... most of your students are aware that you are the oldest Lego-maniac they know. A fan of Lego when... you not only recognize Lego pieces on the ground, but will stop just about anything to pick one up. A fan of Lego when... you feel out of the loop if you haven't checked Eurobricks for more than 24 hours.

Since you brought that up, if someone's sigfig says "banned" over it, does that mean they are banned? I thought so, but sometimes those people put up new posts. Maybe they're banned after the post and I don't see it until I get on after they have been banned. As for the Megablock dude, I hope he reforms and becomes a productive member of our society. I haven't been locked, but I've been moved at least once and someone admonished me for not introducing myself once.

Atrifex, First, is that Ozzy photoshopped as Zartan? Second, wonderful idea! Some of the minifigs mentioned, I'm not sure what they look like from memory. Still, we could always get off our rears and look them up. And C, being a minifig fan, picking one is almost impossible. I'd say Nightwing, many of the Insectoids,and a few of the Collectible Minifigs make the top of my list. Has anyone ever done a tournament-style survey where minifigs are pitted against each other with members voting each time until there is only one left? I'm not volunteering, but that would settle it.

Yo Joe! Those visors are actually just chrome heads, but the effect is the same. I'm floored by the skill that guy has. That looks like something that would be produced if Lego and G.I. Joe got together. Professional all the way. What's crazy is I just got my old Joes down from the attic yesterday while looking for garage sale fodder. Don't worry, they remained safe in our spare room tucked out of sight.

My TRU had one box sitting sideways on a shelf with no pricing label. I'm not sure they knew what they had. They usually get one or two boxes on opening weekend, but I called several times this week and they had no idea when they would come in. I even called an hour before I showed up and they said they hadn't come in yet. I picked up 17. I don't know how I lost track, but ended up with two hockey players. That's the only one I wanted two of anyway, so it must have been in my head. They were $2.69 each. This is the first Series I didn't use the code sheets at all. Last time, I used the dots and then felt out the ones I wasn't sure of. Even then, I made at least two mistakes. This time I went %100 feel and got them all right. I lucked out on several of them by feeling the dead-give-aways right off the bat. I felt the werewolf's bone on the first try, the surfer and the skateboarder's boards, the musician's mohawk, and the kimono girl's slope. I had the most trouble with the monster's hair piece. I couldn't tell what I was feeling, but the lack of other accessories narrowed it down to him. The skater's hair piece was also a hard one to figure. It's hard to pick favorites, but I really like the musician, surfer, skateboarder, hazmat, and hockey player. My least favorites are the gnome, artist (though I love the face), and the soccer player (though I love having the hair in that color).

I buy them for the new prints and accessories. My primary focus in Lego is the minifig, so this Series business has been about the best thing to happen to me in Lego terms since my childhood. Outside of these Series, I'm "forced" to buy sets for minifigs. I've picked up just about every set under $20 made in the past few years just for the minifigs and unique parts minifigs can use. I use Bricklink too, but the temptation of buying new sets at my local TRU is just too much. I've made my own superhero universe using minifigs and, thanks to the Series, I've added at least twenty new heroes and villains. I'm not big on the collection aspect, but I do have at least one of all of the Series with a few extras. I've been really blessed that my TRU is consistent (at least on opening weekend, anyway).

I haven't posted in a while, but this caught my attention as it very well applies to me. I mostly concentrate on turning minifigs into superheroes, so I'm constantly trolling (maybe not the best word) sites for ideas and I've even pulled decals from MCN (I have a file with at least a hundred torsos and masks). While I wouldn't copy anything that someone was trying to sell, I frequently use these on my minifigs. Some of you have probably seen them on my Flickr or Brickshelf pages. As far as construction, when I do build, my biggest source of ideas outside my own are from this very site. As for MCN, I don't think they post torso and face decals as extensively as they used to, so I couldn't look up the creators if I wanted to. When given the chance to describe a piece, I will say where ideas and decals came from, but that's as close to credit as I get. As for building, who's ego is so large that they know for sure that they "invented" that style/part use/idea? Tons of times I've built something thinking it looked cool only to find the same basic premise on Brickshelf by someone else. So, my official stance (as though someone asked my opinion) is: If you got an idea from somewhere, admit to it. Don't pass it off as your own. It's just the right thing to do. BUT, the audience needs to realize (and not get bent out of shape) that it's entirely possible that someone came up with the same idea all on their own. There's usually not really a way to know for sure if someone stole your idea. Brick on, my peeps!

The starter set with a blue ninja against a skeleton was on the shelf at my TRU along with a $6.99 red ninja "impulse" set. I'm not paying the ridiculous amount they wanted for the game set, so I opted for the cool red ninja. When I got to the checkout line, the cashier said her computer was telling her she couldn't sell this until January 1st. That's never happened to me before. She asked another cashier and he asked a manager. She said they couldn't sell those yet. I told the manager she had a whole display at the end of a shelf and more boxes mixed in with other lines, but she refused to sell. Being a middle-aged man towing a two-year old, I didn't push it. I heard the menager telling someone to pull everything ninja from the Lego shelves. Call me crazy, but that just makes me want to buy that set even more! Oh, it will be mine!

Imagine my surprise when checking this *gasp* from work and seeing this thread appear from nowhere to 19 pages within a day (for me anyway). I am stunned by the quality of this series. I thought Series 2 was a bit of a let-down and Series 3 only had a few solid hits, but this series is bulletproof. This will the the first series I actually plan on buying multiples of almost all of the minifigs. In my opinion, here are the least to greatest: Gnome: Outside of the hat, I have no use for this minifig. I'm not a fan of short legs and beards, so it just doesn't offer me much. Viking: I have alot of vikings. The torso and the shield will be nice additions, but... I have alot of vikings. Artist: Great face! Limited use for the rest of him, though. Football Player: The head and hair are great, but not being into soccer, I don't have any use for the torso. Love the silver trophy. I was going to paint one silver, so this is good. Frankenstien: Other than the novelty of having a Frankenstien, I'm not big on this one. Geisha: A white female face would be cool and the torso print is pretty. Sailor: Has anyone noticed the Popeye wink he's sporting?!? All around a good fig. The hat, head, and torso are all solid. I'll get multiples. Can't wait to make a Japanese schoolgirl. Ice Skater: I'm not crazy about the skirt, but the hair is out there! Does it look a little like Tin Tin? Good job on the torso/arm covering. The skates are definitely a plus. Surfer: Nice hair and face, but that torso is awesome. Skateboarder: The printed hat, face, and cool torso make this guy a must. I don't 'board, but his paintjob is nice. Rocker: The hair, the axe, the torso print... I'll pick up one on purpose and not complain if I accidentally get another one later on. Werewolf: I much prefer this version to the original in Studios. He strikes me as the 70's blacksploitation version. Maybe it's the open shirt. Hockey Player: Take away the skates and hockey stick and you have American football! I could see making a custom Dallas Cowboys team out of this minifig. Multiples! Mad Scientist: The hair, the head, the torso, and the flask. Multiples, for sure. HAZMAT guy: Has sci-fi written all over him. I can think of several uses already. I'm really excited about this one! Definitely multiples. Musketeer: Multiples. Clearly one of the top candidates for army builder of the series. There's no negative on this one as far as I can see. This is the toughest series to rank thus far. My top ten are almost interchangeable. If this is the last series, they went out with a bang. If not, it's just testament to TLG's creativity to out-do themselves every time.

I stopped by the Lego Store while shopping and picked up the Anubis keychain. While it was full price, I bought the PoP guy, Kingdoms lady, and Portal Guard from Atlantis all for half price. The PoP guy and the lady took alot of work to remove the pins. Actually, I couldn't remove the pin at all. I had to snap off the small ring at the top of the pin and pull the heads off, then snap off the rest of the pin. After that, though, they are just like regular minifigs. The lady's skirt and torso are inseperable and her head and hair are glued together as well. The PoP guy's leg assembly came apart (weak glue I guess) from the torso, so he can be taken completely apart just like a regular minifig. After some hard pulling, the Portal Guards pin came out in one piece. I'm really happy with the outcome there. The gap in the helmet fin can be overlooked as far as I'm concerned. That little gap is a $70 (or however much that set was) difference. I have the helmet from the new Atlantis set anyway. I haven't been able to pull the pin from Anubis yet, but I'm not giving up!

I really want that Anubis minifig, but the pyramid is way too steep for me. Other than having a hole in the head from where the keychain connected, what's the difference? Are all the parts glued together? Do the arms and legs move? I saw where someone wanted the golden helmet from the Atlantis Portal set, but didn't want to buy the huge set, so he bought the keychain instead (now it's available in a cheaper set). Is the minifig detatchable from the Anubis mask? Input would be appreciated b/c I may visit a Lego store in Dallas soon.

Why are TRU's so different from one another? You hear about limits all the time, but my TRU has them on the regular shelf and no one has ever hassled me over the thirty minutes I spend checking barcodes and dots and feeling the bags. My TRU is running a buy one, get one at 50% off promotion. I put all 18 on the counter and they said they could ring the whole thing up and the register would automatically take the discount. I got all 18 for what basically amounted to $2.33 each (mine is selling them at $2.99). My only gripe is that the first two series started at $1.99 each and rose with each shipment. This series started at $2.99.

I was in Canton, Texas today for the "First Monday Trade Days". This is a giant (website boasts 200,000 visitors on a given weekend) flea market/craft expo/resale/antique fair. The boothes range from high-end furniture to junkyard quality antiques. In all the times I've been there, I've never come across Lego (and I scour the place). This afternoon, I saw three gallon-sized bags of random bricks on sale for $4/5 each. I recognized some unique Lego parts right away, but when I picked up the bags to inspect them, I saw that they were mostly Megablocks. The quality difference was so obvious, I was able to eyeball the difference without reading the "LEGO" on the studs. I don't have alot of Megablocks, so I've never done this, but you can see the difference when bricks are stacked together. Where the Lego blocks made a smooth and seemless connection, the MB stack was ragged and each individual piece was easy to see. I know this isn't anything new to the readers of this forum, but I thought I'd relay today's experience. TLG is miles ahead of anything the competition has.

Tyler Texas has two boxes as of Tuesday. Apparently there's not alot of interest yet, because two days later I'm still the only one who's picked through them. I absent-mindedly left the box in front closed Tuesday and it was still closed tonight. That, and there were about the same number of bags left from last time. The boxes are on the shelf where Lego borders the off-brands. I almost missed it the first time through. On my first trip I used the dots to identify bags and then felt them to be sure. Even doing that, my first haul of 18 left me short the Indian, with an extra Elf and Cyborg. I did the Elf on purpose, but I could have sworn I felt the Chief. I remember putting two Chiefs back thinking I already had one. Tonight I came in and picked up the Chief and an extra Gorilla. I have to say I'm so much more impressed with this Series now that I have them in my hands. The printing quality is crazy good. The detail on the Elf is as good or better than any of the Castle/Kingdoms theme. I'll rank them in my next post. I don't want this one to seem too long. Forget about ranking them, there's a poll around here somewhere. My top three are the Elf, Gorilla, and Chief in that order. Top three accessories: Gorilla head, Elf hair, and Street Punk hat. Best Torso: Elf, Aviator, Gorilla/Samurai (tie).