I’m catching up on my backlog of unsorted elements that have been building up over the past few years, and wrote an article about the process.
Category: Articles
Articles about LEGO and the hobby
Silly experiment in head swapping: Scooby Doo & Mini-Doll
When I was building the Scooby-Doo sets, I realized that Scooby’s head/neck connection is the same as that of a mini-doll from Friends or Elves…
The Frustrating World of LEGO Trains
The world of LEGO trains can be rather frustrating for the adult hobbyist. Here’s a quick primer for those who are interested in getting into this part of the LEGO hobby. (This is adapted from a comment I made on Facebook in response to someone who was just getting into LEGO trains in 2014.)
“LEGO didn’t make those specialized parts when I was a kid”
Have you ever been talking about LEGO with someone who said “LEGO didn’t make those specialized parts when I was a kid”? It happens all the time at shows. Whenever we have a BayLUG exhibit at a model train show or museum or Maker Faire, or on the public day at Bricks by the Bay or other conventions, there are always adults coming through who look at the clever uses of parts in our MOCs and make a comment like this.
Sorted Friends
First-stage sort of all the parts from all 14 of the Friends sets. In January I did a review of each of the sets in 14 days called “Fortnight of Friends” and these are the parts after dissassembling all the sets.
Building instructions and buying my models
A while back I posted that I was considering how best to share building instructions for my creations. There were several comments on that post and also a few email exchanges I had with people over this topic, and I’ve also had a chance to discuss it in person with a few people at BrickCon in Seattle this past October. And what I’ve decided on is this:
Review: New LEGO Technic Idea Books
There’s something new for LEGO Technic fans from No Starch Press.
Seven-way radial symmetry technique
I just stumbled across a way to build a 7-way radial symmetry in LEGO.
A technique for building 7-way radial symmetry in LEGO. The blue 2×2 plates are connected to each other using plate hinges in a ring, and when I built that I noticed the ring looked like the right diameter to go around a 4×4 round piece. The hinges actually protrude a little into the center, but by sandwiching the two 4×4 rounds together and filling the space inside with a round 2×2 plate and seven (leaving one stud open) 1×1 round plates, you can make it all fit nicely. And since the 4×4 rounds and 2×2 round plate have axle holes, it can easily be connected to any Technic mechanism.
If you stick an axle in the middle it twirls like a top – it’s very well balanced.
LDraw code after the break:
How best to share building instructions for my creations?
Every once in a while I get a request to share building instructions for my models. I am willing to do so, but haven’t quite figured out the best way. I was wondering if people might want to comment and make some suggestions?
Buying Bulk LEGO Parts
I had an email inquiry about my LEGO sculptures, and I sent the person a bunch of information about where to get LEGO parts in quantity. But then I thought it might be useful to share that information with the world on my blog, so here it is:
Brickshelf v Flickr
I’ve been using my Flickr account exclusively for LEGO photos as well as other things, like pictures from Earthquakes soccer games or various scenic shots I may take from time to time. I always tag my LEGO pictures with the lego tag though. I stopped using Brickshelf in 2006 when Kevin Loch suddenly shut it down. At that time I uploaded my back catalog of LEGO photos to Flickr and updated links in all the blog entries… what a chore that was! Then he said it would stay up after all, but I was so miffed I didn’t go back.
Sorting bins
I recently bought some plastic bins at the local pharmacy (Longs Drugs, if you’re curious) and found them to be very useful for sorting LEGO parts.
Games using LEGO?
Lately I’ve been getting into board games, card games, etc. And it got me thinking. LEGO would be a great medium for games.
Clever new SNOT technique
As I wrote recently, Unique Brick Tecniques is a great blog for discovering some of the clever ideas people have posted about.