Out-of-this world editing

There are so many things to like about the subject of this post. The build itself is by _Tiler - a nice Eta-2 Actis Jedi Interceptor. However, the idea for the build comes from Sydag, who has built an entire series of Eta-2s in this style. He also seems to have some serious photo-editing chops, because the thing that really sets this MOC apart is how it looks on the Star Wars background:

I do believe that's Coruscant down there, and I like the subtle color similarity between the planet and the astromech dome. The fitting together of slope bricks in the wings of the starfighter is also noteworthy. A great build and presentation, and a great partnership between two talented builders!

Big Bessy

Guy Smiley :-) calls this post-apoc speeder bike model "Big Bessy." I call it "awesome". 

This thing is filled to the brim with greebles, and I love the way the lime green pops against all that gray. You'll also notice several nice part uses, such as guns, binoculars, a knife, and a soldier's hat. I really like that windscreen as well. 

QUAIL mini-mecha: the next big (little) thing?

I'm not sure what the acronym stands for, but it's the name for this type of small but mighty mecha built by Deltassius, who is quickly becoming one of our most blogged mecha builders: 

Mk. 1 QUAIL:

QUAIL Heavy:

QUAIL Artillery Command:

If more, similar builds are in the works, these 'bots have the power to become one of the great LEGO "series" by builders, such as CubeDudes or Enter the Brick or Wiffys. I hope to see more of them! 

Edible NPU

nobu_tary brings us a delectable Japanese-inspired* dish built with LEGO: a bowl of fried fish over rice. There are some great build techniques used to get the shaping of the fish and the bowl, but my favorite part is the piece used to create the effect of drizzled sauce - a trio of trans-orange chains!

*I think... 

Forbidden fortress

It's amazing how these guys do it. With several days left to build, Iron Builder contestants Tim Schwalfenberg (One More Brick) and Legopard have already churned out almost thirty builds apiece in just a few weeks - and all of them are blog-worthy! Here's another one of my favorites, a dark microscale fortress from Tim:

The seed part features beautifully in the construction of the roof, and I love how the color scheme keeps the mood grim. Those LotR rings at the front of the bridge are a nice touch of color. 

Back to business

The latest round of the ABS Builder Challenge is going by fast, with many on Flickr calling it the best round yet. One of my favorite uses of the seed part (lime green telephone) so far is in this little build from Michael the juggler: 

Stay tuned - there's likely to be more ABS coverage here in the next few days!

Speeding off into the sunset

There's a speeder bike building contest happening on Flickr, and these entries from Ted Andes are great! What a good idea to combine The Lone Ranger with sci-fi speeder bike technology...

The detail shots show off just how creative these bikes are:

Big truck

I don't know much about trucks. The LEGO Car Blog does, so if you want more LEGO things-on-wheels, head over to their site (they're big fans of ours... just returning the favor!). And Dennis Bosman (legotrucks) apparently knows a lot about them too, because from what I can tell from the source photo, his Scania T143E model is pretty damn accurate. 

Brick Bucket Review: 75074 Snowspeeder [Microfighters]

5/5

Appearance - 3/5 
Construction - 4/5 
Playability - 4/5 
Pieces - 5/5 
Minifigs/accessories - 5/5 
Value for money - 5/5

75074 Snowspeeder is part of the second wave of Star Wars Microfighters sets, released in January 2015. It retails for £8.99 / $9.99 / 9.99€ with 97 pieces, yielding a prices per piece of 10.3 cents. 



Verdict: The minifig is excellent, and for some people it may be the only reason to buy this set! I have my issues with the design of the Snowspeeder, but based on other reviews I've read, I don't think those complaints are likely to apply to other people. If you want a fun, swooshable, inexpensive set, this is for you. And if you're a MOCer, it's an excellent parts pack!

This was an impulse buy, and I was surprised to find out the set has been available for over a year already! I wasn't really interested in Microfighters, but this set might have changed my mind entirely. Read on to find out more...

Men of iron

I say this almost every round, but... this round of Iron Builder is looking like one of the best yet. If you read this blog regularly you'll have seen that almost all of our posts this month have been about IB, and for good reason: Iron Builder Tim Schwalfenberg (One More Brick) and challenger Legopard have been churning out some amazing models. In all seriousness, in terms of overall quality, quantity, and sheer size and detail of builds, this could be the greatest round yet.  

So many great models have been built in the last few days that I've decided to just compile all the ones I want to share into this one post, so without further ado: 

Church Organ by Legopard:

The seed part, the silver Technic connector, was used a whopping 153 times in this build, which could be an IB record. I love how creative Legopard was with the part, turning it both around at the base of the pipes and making use of the little slit in the side. There are other nice part uses as well, including bucket handles in the chair, and sword sheaths and a Viking shield for decoration. 

London Eye by Legopard:

The seed part gets a lot of uses here too, connected to the main structure via minifig hook-hands! The microscale building looks great as well. 

District 9 Exosuit by Legopard:

Interestingly enough, Legopard also uses the hook-hand pieces in this creation - but there are a boatload of other greebles as well. Exposed studs, orange elements, and of course the seed part add some excellent details to this mech. 

Fire truck by Tim:

Maybe we owe Tim a bit of an apology, since we've mostly been covering Legopard's models (which have blown us away, to be fair). To fix that somewhat, here's this antique fire truck, which is every bit as good as Legopard's models. It's in the style of LEGO's own "Advanced Model" vehicle sets like the Mini Cooper, which works in its favor. 


These are all amazing builds, and no less amazing is the very short time in which they are all created. This round of IB began on February 1st and the builders are already nearing twenty apiece in terms of model count! It's a testament to the skill and creativity of LEGO hobbyists that they are so successful. 

So what do you readers think... will Iron Builder Tim be dethroned by his challenger, or will he continue to secure his throne? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

I can't hear you...

One teenage stereotype I definitely conform to is the "listening to music really loud." And then when someone tells me to turn it down, I say, "What?" 

Tim Schwalfenberg (One More Brick) seems to agree and both the build and photography of his Iron Builder model are pretty slick (I love the contrast of the green background):

This is already Tim's twelfth build this round! The seed part got put to good use in both the earbuds and the phone's audio jack. You can follow the IB contest here. 

Thoughts on March 2016 Ninjago sets

The Brothers Brick just posted some details about the March 2016 Ninjago sets that we were missing. I was a bit disappointed that these sets got pushed back from what we thought would be a January release, but now we have a concrete release date of March 1st for the United States. More interestingly, we now have piece counts and, best of all, prices for these sets, and I'm becoming pretty excited to get my hands on some of them!

I'm 99% sure I'm going to get a copy of 70604 Tiger Widow Island to review here on the blog, by the way, so look for that in early- to mid-March...

On with the preview! 

The Governor

This round of Iron Builder has seen plenty of great uses of the seed part, the silver Technic connector, but this one may take the cake. It's Governor Swann from Pirates of the Caribbean, built by challenger Legopard!

And that's not the only smart part usage here - can you tell what piece the cravat is made from? 

Follow the round here. 

Speederbike Unchained

If there's two thigns I like, then that's good Mocs and good photo-edits. Now newcomer Sir_Deranged_Unicorn (this is literally his first creation on flickr) brings us this sweet minifig-scale Speederbike. The smooth design and great part integreation look good, but what really cought my eye was the edit. The way it looks like an actual advertisement is just great.

Collateral is my favorite kind of damage!

Legopard, the challenger in the current Iron Builder contest, has built this excellent siege tank from StarCraft 2. Not only does it look great, it also transforms! 

Knowing that this was built for Iron Builder tells me it couldn't have been built in more than a few days at most, probably even a single day - and that blows my mind. It's a rare builder who can create something this good in such a short timeframe. Nice one, Legopard, and best of luck in the arena. 

(The seed part is the silver Technic connector, used 18 times; Legopard's challenger is Tim Schwalfenberg (One More Brick). Keep up with the current IB round here.)

Road warrior

There's another Iron Builder round going on: challenger Legopard is taking on Iron Builder Tim Schwalfenberg (One More Brick). Although it looks like it'll be another close round, Legopard has contributed most of my favorite builds so far, and one of those is this desert bike from Mad Max: Fury Road:

This build makes good use of the round's seed part, the silver Technic connector, but there are plenty of other nice part uses and greebles galore - my favorites are the Chima gorilla fist and the way wagon wheels were placed inside tires to create a really cool wheel design. 

Stay tuned to this round in the Iron Builder Flickr pool here!