Best products from r/lego

Posted this before but seemed appropriate.

There are several factors for why this set is so popular.

• It's a Lego Ideas set (formerly Lego Cuusoo), meaning the design of the set was based on a design submitted by a member of the community and gained enough support to be reviewed and ultimately chosen for production by Lego. That Lego Cuusoo process began over two years ago, took nine months to gather the required 10,000 votes, and then took another year and a half for product review, design and production to get us to this point, so the anticipation has been building for a while.
  
• The set is based on a very popular model by a very popular AFOL. Peter Reid first posted the model to his flickr over five years ago, and it was included in his book Lego Space.
  
• The set is produced in the style of the original Lego Classic Space, which is extremely popular with AFOL (Adult Fans of Lego). Many people continue to build in this style (see examples above) and it's a nostalgic trip back in time for a lot of us who grew up with this style of Lego being some of the first sets we ever built. The addition of green astronauts is a huge bonus and has a lot of people excited.
  
• The set is just awesome, and is full of opportunities for modification and customization. A lot of people are looking forward to buying multiples of this set in order to make them their own or create a little Exo Suit army.
  
  And finally, in addition to all of that, it's being produced in limited quantities, so there's a mad rush on it right now because people want to be sure to get their hands on them.

I'm inclined to agree despite that all I initially said was "you have no leg to stand on" but on the other hand, there's an equal amount of upvoting for the comment I replied to, which is inaccurate. It being reddit, I think people are just likely to upvote religious "neutrality" (and anti-theism) and downvote what they perceive as "pro-religion."

In the end, Lego is a company looking for consumers. There are more than enough examples of how Lego has no problem taking Christian money, and if other religions were as easy to market to I'm sure you'd find that throughout, also.

I'm actually surprised that there hasn't been a legitimate Lego nativity, at least that my super abbreviated Google search has pulled up. The Fisher Price Little People Nativity is a huge product every holiday season, and it would seem that with the different stages of Lego product they could probably hit the same families two or three times if they played their cards right (a Duplo set, a Juniors set, a Creator set, and maybe even a Collector's Series or whatever that super detailed, mega-sized edition is). Not all at once, of course, but over time.

Santa is a symbol of the Christmas spirit or Christmas marketing or whatever you want to call it, but is indelibly tied to the holiday itself with its religious roots. The Advent Calendars aren't called even something benign like "Christmas Countdowns" or "Winter Calendars" like the "Winter Village" and that says that the marketing people were in no way scared off by the religious connotation of the word "Advent."

Lastly, for all of those who want to pretend that Lego is this great Switzerland of religious neutrality, I put out there the Brick Bible which is explicitly "not endorsed or created by LEGO" but in this day and age I'd be shocked if a company couldn't put the kibosh on such a thing if they wanted to. But, why? It's marketing. It creates purchases, and enthusiasts, and it doesn't incite anyone to violence like other world religions might if their holy book was recreated in the same fun-loving spirit.

It depends what you are into. Any of the Hobbit sets are nice. I just built An Unexpected Gathering today and it was fantastic. I would strongly recommend it; it's 20% off on Amazon and you can get free shipping...it's over your budget, but only by $6.

I don't know much about technic so I won't give advice there, but you could always find a set that intrigues you. I'd also consider looking at some of the Iron Man sets...I haven't built them but they look nice and an Iron Man minifig can't hurt.

There are a few new Lord of the Rings sets being released soon/now that could be of interest to you.

I'm just like you: 23, getting back into Lego, and trying to find what I like. For me it's minifigs. I collect the Collectible Minifigures that I like and other minifigs that pique my interest. Right now I'm collecting the Hobbit dwarves. I think I need 4 or 5 more to get them all.

The Architecture sets could be good if you've visited any of the landmarks but those sets generally don't have a great price per piece ratio...which might not matter to you. The Creator sets usually have the best price per piece ratio, fyi.

There's always Star Wars as well...which is an obvious choice if you are a Star Wars fan.

Def sort by type. Sorting by color is a recipe for insanity.

Start with the common brick types first. Only after you've tackled that chore should you worry about the more specialty stuff. There will get to a certain point where you just need to start lumping things together and that's fine - but discovering where the line is for you is something that the process itself will reveal.

Many people like the Akro Mils drawers: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003P2UOCO (they have different models with different sized drawers, so try to figure out what may work best for you by browsing).

...but that may or may not work for your collection size and it's impossible for someone to know if it will work for you or not. They're very handy regardless.

I think the important thing to realize is that collection organization isn't a task to do and be done with. It's a process that never truly ends. You always need to stay on top of it and as your set grows, your sorting techniques will evolve to match the new reality of what you have.

One thing is for certain though: the sooner you start, the better off you'll be - regardless of how large a task it feels like.

Good luck.

I've seen a lot of cool vertical/horizontal mounts for the UCS Millenium Falcon, but I didn't want to mess around with them. It turns out that this wall shelf is a perfect fit! The shelf fits all 7 of the feet, and is far enough away from the wall to provide good clearance. I mounted it to a stud and it handles the weight of the Falcon just fine.

The design is from Thomas Poulsom’s book Birds From Bricks. I enjoyed his Lego Ideas birds set a lot, so I got the book and tried this rockhopper penguin design first.


The build is definitely just for show—the feet fall off with the slightest provocation and the base detaches readily. The wing articulation is fun, and the head can pivot freely. I also had trouble with the head. The design shows some of the lightsaber blades/feathers floating in air behind the head, so I made some adjustments to the head. I like the overall look a lot though, and think it does a great job of capturing the penguin’s likeness.

Interesting. for reference, I have 15-20 thousand pieces, and I'm only now considering sorting to be worthwhile. I'm sorting my most common pieces by type (all colors of 1x2 plates in one compartment) and other types in mixed categories (all 1xN slopes in one compartment (1x2, 1x3, 1x4 all together). I'm using these (several of each):

http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-25-Removable-Compartment-Professional-Organizer/dp/B00005QWYF/

http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-Removable-Compartment-Professional-Organizer/dp/B001G1CUK0/

But with under 5K parts, I'd recommend just sorting by size, as I mentioned before, maybe into something like this, with one drawer for each size:

http://www.amazon.com/Sterilite-20738006-3-Drawer-Organizer-See-Through/dp/B002BA5F6Q/

Hope that helps!

Jesus Christ that's like $1000 in Lego. Did you buy those yourself or were they presents from others? If from others you should consider yourself VERY lucky.

I received the VW Campervan 10220 from my wife and am gingerly putting it together and really enjoying taking my time with it. What do you do with your completed sets? Do you take them apart and put them back in their box or do you keep them out on display? I live in a small place so I can only have one set out at a time. How quickly do you build your kits? I bought a pieced-together 10179 from bricklink and took it apart and resold it as soon as I finished it. Took me over two months to put together (at night after I came home from work) and I loved every minute of it. But I literally had no place for it so I had to sell it.

I would store the instructions in one of the set boxes, mix all the parts together.

Not in one giant pile, mind. I think SOME sorting is necessary..having to look through a giant pile made me sick of Lego, years and years ago; when I got back into it, I sorted my lot before building anything out of it.

With only a few small kits, is a perfect place to start. You could divide them into categories like plates, bricks, cylinders, slanted pieces... minifigs and their accessories... balance it between having too many piles, and piles small enough that you can look through them easily. The number will grow as your collection does; I think I'm up to 35-40.

Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Sterilite-20758004-Clearview-Drawer-4-Pack/dp/B001OM2NGW is extremely helpful. I've got a few such drawer units. Also I keep the set boxes, cut them in half lengthwise, reinforce the edges with packaging tape and this makes good parts trays.

have fun!

Yes Yes Yes. I just organized some bricks etc. into 4 of these.

Another tip. Don't use standard tackle boxes or parts boxes. Be sure to use organizers that have the compartments that are removable. I have spent a lot of time trying to find a specific color in a bin that I could not dump out. Something like this... http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-25-Removable-Compartment-Professional-Organizer/dp/B00005QWYF/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=3FAWEZ7Y7T33W&coliid=I2SDAW2LPN6EUW

You don't need to, but I want to. These are the shelves I'm getting. https://www.amazon.com/Akro-Mils-10124-Plastic-Hardware-6-5-Inch/dp/B003TV3NL0/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1479924940&sr=8-4&keywords=akro+mills

Going to grab six of them at first once the color sort is complete. It's a lot easier to sort by type when the color is already done. When I say type I don't mean one drawer for each specific brick, more like one for slopes, one for bricks, one for modified bricks. All color sorted and ready to go.

You know, I'm in the process of cleaning and sorting my childhood Lego collection as well as a few CL hauls I've had. The thing I keep going back and forth on is the horizontal or vertical storage. Those Akro-Mils containers are fantastic for sure and they are what I call 'vertical storage'. Meaning, the mechanism to open the containers is in the vertical plane. I'm currently using things such as this, this, and this. This is all 'horizontal storage' since the opening to access the pieces is in the horizontal plane. I think I prefer this because then it is easily stackable in a closet or bookshelf.

Did you think about this when thinking of a storage solution?

Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:

Amazon Smile Link: http://smile.amazon.com/Unofficial-LEGO-Technic-Builders-Guide-ebook/dp/B009Z1XQ8I


|Country|Link|Charity Links|
|:-----------|:------------|:------------|
|USA|smile.amazon.com|EFF|
|UK|www.amazon.co.uk|Macmillan|
|Spain|www.amazon.es||
|Mexico|www.amazon.com.mx||
|France|www.amazon.fr||
|Germany|www.amazon.de||
|Japan|www.amazon.co.jp||
|Canada|www.amazon.ca||
|Italy|www.amazon.it||
|India|www.amazon.in||




To help add charity links, please have a look at this thread.

This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting). The thread for feature requests can be found here.

Off the top of my head, I think older builders / adults would enjoy the following two:

• The LEGO Adventure Book Vol. 1: Cars, Castles, Dinosaures & More! by Megan H. Rothrock
  
• The Unofficial LEGO Builder’s Guide, 2nd Edition by Allan Bedford
  
  It all depends on where your interests are. I own a decent-sized library of LEGO books (even a lot of the kid's books) that range from the company itself to coffee table-style art books.
  
  For magazines, I really recommend BrickJournal.

Plastic bins are usually the best way to go, no small holes for the tiny pieces to get through.

http://www.amazon.com/Sterilite-16428012-Storage-See-Through-12-Pack/dp/B002BDTETW/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1324926801&sr=8-10

I realize you probably don't need a 12-pack, I'm just showing you what I'm on about.

If he's an avid builder, you might want to try sorting the pieces into drawers like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Stack--DS-39-Drawer-Storage-Cabinet/dp/B000HJBA1W/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1324926793&sr=8-12

Makes it much easier to find pieces than endlessly pawing through a bucket of all your bricks.

All credit goes to Onyx Lego Storage. S/he took the time to make these labels, unfortunately they're in .CDR format (Corel Draw) and a lot of people might not have that software. Since they were free to download, I downloaded them and PDF'd them to make it easier for everyone else. If you're an organizational freak like me these will come in handy! They're sized very well to be used on drawers like this

STOP BUYING CANNED AIR!! But something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Metro-Vacuum-ED500-500-Watt-Electric/dp/B001J4ZOAW

I use mine on everything, especially the few large builds I keep for display. I also use it on the internals of my gaming rig. Had it for 2 years now and it still works great, definitely more cost effective than canned air in the long run.

Maybe invest in small drawers like these?

http://www.amazon.com/Stack-On-DS-27-Drawer-Storage-Cabinet/dp/B000Z5HY40/ref=pd_sim_hi_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=0B3HAXS4M6MP319T6K4W

I'm using 4 at the moment with some larger totes for bigger pieces.

I also separate out any parts I know I will never or rarely use in MOCs. These are in small zip lock bags in another tote.

I guess it really all depends on how much you think your collection will grow. Do you need to leave room for expansion? Have another plan in place for new sets you won't disassemble or brake apart for parts?

Good luck!

That must be it! He has that book on his Kindle, borrowed from our library's eBook collection.

Thank you! :)

Edit: since /u/Lego_Nabii is too nice to turn this into a shameless plug, I'll do it for him

• Volume 1
  
• Volume 2
  
• Volume 3 Preorder

or buy one of these http://www.amazon.com/Metro-Vacuum-ED500-500-Watt-Electric/dp/B001J4ZOAW/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1347896774&sr=8-8&keywords=dust+vac

i bought one ages back to clean my PC out with, works must better than the cans and is inifinite provided you have power LOL.

I bought four of these a few years ago: Stack-On DS-39 39 Drawer Storage Cabinet. They're not the absolute highest quality, but they're not bad, and certainly get the job done better than the containers I'd been using before. Two of them are devoted to Technic pieces, one is mostly for minifig parts, and the fourth is for miscellaneous small bits.

You got this picture from amazon.co.uk, surely you can buy that exact product?

I just searched "storage cabinet" and got the exact item you wanted for fairly cheap and free shipping:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Raaco-Organiser-Drawer-Cabinet-RAA126762/dp/B000Y8DSZM/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1370296027&sr=8-10&keywords=storage+cabinet

Why not just go with this? If it were $24 for US amazon, then I'd probably buy it. I just bought three of these because of the sale and so I can have portable storage:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001G1CUK0/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

edit:spelling

http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-25-Removable-Compartment-Professional-Organizer/dp/B00005QWYF/ and http://www.amazon.com/Akro-Mils-20-Inch-16-Inch-Hardware-Cabinet/dp/B003P2UOCO/are amazing. Drawers/bins that are removable and rearrangeable make it easier to sort out what you want for the current MOC.

When/if you fill up a bin, you can either subdivide further or move some of the Lego to deep storage.

I'm pretty dead set against sorting by color, it's WAY easier to find a red 1x2 in a bin of 1x2s than it is to find it in a bin of red.

I sort by a combination of color and piece using a three tiered system.

Tier 1 - Small Parts Storage
All of a given piece are put into a drawer at this point. As more drawers are needed, I begin to sort into colors. Once I fill 4 drawers, I move to Tier 2

Tier 2 - Stanley Cases
Most of my brick and plates are in these. Each has ten interchangeable trays so you can reorganize to have a case you can take with you for a given project. I mostly use the 10 compartment model but own a couple of the 25 compartment for things like 1x1 tiles that come in a large number of colors. Once one of the large compartments is full, I move to tier 3.

Tier 3 - Shoebox storage
Each of these holds 6.5 qts of brick which is equivalent to one Pick a Brick case from the LEGO store. If one of these gets filled up, I start a second one.

Most of my collection is sorted this way. I do use these for minifigs and plastic drawers for things like bionicle parts.

https://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Technic-Idea-Book-Machines/dp/1593272774

The same guy's YouTube channel is great. Also visit THE JK Brickworks YouTube page.

Simple Technic ideas:

http://www.amazon.com/The-LEGO-Technic-Idea-Book/dp/1593272774

AWESOME Technic designs and ideas:

http://www.amazon.com/Unofficial-LEGO-Technic-Builders-Guide-ebook/dp/B009Z1XQ8I

I have both books, and were worth the price.

I want one!

Edit: here is the set on amazon. Ordered :)

Edit 2: looks like there are a ton in a childrens series, Bible stories in lego for kids.

Edit 3: fairy tales too!

Search for part bins. You can get individual bins (like this, 6 4x5-inch bins for $10, or 24 7x4-inch bins for $50) or a cabinet, like this (about $20). I have three cabinets like the one I linked--the drawers are all removable, so you can take out the pieces you know you are going to be working with and have them right in front of you.

It doesn't appear to be a part of a line. I got it from amazon: http://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Creator-Volkswagen-Camper-10220/dp/B0050R0XEG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344092113&sr=8-1&keywords=lego+vw+bus
It was a really fun build. Took about 4 to 5 hours

http://www.amazon.com/Birds-Bricks-Amazing-Designs-Flight/dp/1631590790/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1459203363&sr=8-5&keywords=birds+lego+book

We just got it a few days ago-i's beautiful!

Personally, I love this: Stack-On DS-60 60 Drawer Storage Cabinet https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000KKUSYS/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_Lk0IwbJFQ12HY for sorting small collections of pieces. Plus the drawers come out, so you could have authentic dumping action.

And I'd recommend being firm on sorting by piece, not color. It'll save so much time down the road.

Another redditor bought this wall unit for his UCS Millennium Falcon and it looks really good. I'm about to buy one for my Falcon but I'd wager this would work well for you situation too.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EGI7V4/ref=s9_simh_gw_g23_i1_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=09EDZVW5SA9KY8MGCAMA&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=5d23eaf6-6278-49c1-b6df-7de0cb9b3a26&pf_rd_i=desktop

For those asking, I believe the drawers are these.

If they are, I have a question for OP: How do you feel about the fact that there aren't individual lids or coverings for each drawer? I've bought a couple and I like them, but if I need to move the entire set I feel like everything can just dump out too easily.

These might help:

http://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Technic-Idea-Book-Machines/dp/1593272774/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1412185208&sr=1-2&keywords=lego+technic

http://www.amazon.com/Unofficial-LEGO-Technic-Builders-Guide/dp/1593274343/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1412185208&sr=1-3&keywords=lego+technic

Better deal.

http://smile.amazon.com/Stack-On-DS-39-Drawer-Storage-Cabinet/dp/B000HJBA1W/

There is a series of three books like this one which may be enticing.

None of the bits require a computer (including a Mindstorms smart brick).

In case you ever expand your collection and need more boxes: the Stanley small-parts organizers are just about the best thing ever for storing Lego-- they have removable compartments, so you can pull out a bin, look through it, dump it out, whatever. There's a shallow version with small to medium size compartments and a deep version with big compartments, all of them stack together (nice for storage), and the compartments are isolated enough to keep everything separated if the box gets flipped upside down while closed even with the smallest of pieces.

Looks like Akro Mills.

I use something like this

I got mine on Amazon for $120.

I have this. Got both the Old and New Testaments at Amazon for $16.44. Also includes a double-sided poster.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1593272774

I think these are the organizers. I ordered one last week.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003P2UOCO/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1416775805&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SY200_QL40

I don't know if you guys have seen this, but the creator of the Birds set also released a book with fifteen more birds instructions: http://www.amazon.com/Birds-Bricks-Amazing-Designs-Flight/dp/1631590790/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1464310465&sr=1-1&keywords=lego+birds

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1631590790/ref=pd_aw_sim_21_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=61WjYWfYX1L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL115_SR97%2C115_&refRID=16VMJM0ZNGVH9F8FBZ8B

Akro-Mils 10144 D 20-Inch by 16-Inch by 6-1/2-Inch Hardware and Craft Cabinet, Black

Don't sort by color, that will cause madness. I have a combination of small parts bins and IKEA Helmer drawers.
Also if you plan on getting bulk lego get a sorter, the box4blox works worlds better than the lego brand one.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/24983112@N07/15636640999/in/dateposted-public/

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40107872/
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000KKUSYS/ref=s9_acsd_al_bw_c_x_3_r?th=1

https://www.amazon.com/BOX4BLOX-Rokenbok-Interlocking-Building-Organizer/dp/B004UJFUP2/ref=lp_3019571011_1_1?srs=3019571011&ie=UTF8&qid=1478748718&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Creator-Volkswagen-Camper-10220/dp/B0050R0XEG/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&qid=1396780744&sr=8-32&keywords=lego+creator

Small pieces/special pieces: Storage drawers

Bricks/small plates: Storage bins

Larger plates/pieces: Storage containers

This helped me a lot.

http://tomalphin.com/2014/03/from-buckets-to-bins-how-to-sort-a-lot-of-lego.html

And I bought one of these to start:

Akro-Mils 10144 D 20-Inch by 16-Inch by 6-1/2-Inch Hardware and Craft Cabinet, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003P2UOCO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_7V1qxbF8TGEW1

Akro-Mills cabinet from Amazon.

No idea why the red one is $15 cheaper than the gray one. But they work well.

I actually have one of these suspended from my ceiling via fishing line.