Building a brighter tomorrow with LEGO® bricks

Little Houses

I built a trio of small houses (16×16 stud footprint) as practice in building in different architectural styles with LEGO. There is a Victorian with bay window, a house with a dormer window in the roof, and a steeply-roofed house.

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San Ladrillo Suburban Train Station

For the past year or so, the train station on the Bay Area LEGO Train Club layouts at train shows and museums has been my San Ladrillo Suburban Train Station.

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BayLTC @ Great Train Expo, San Jose

This past weekend, Bay Area LEGO Train Club (BayLTC) took part in the Great Train Expo in San Jose, CA

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BayLUG “Downtown” display at LEGO store

On Wednesday night, I got together with a few other members of the Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group (BayLUG) to set up a new display at the LEGO store in Valley Fair Mall, Santa Clara, CA.

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BayLUG Museum Show Wrap-Up

Last weekend we (members of BayLUG, the Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group) tore down our museum display, which had been on display at the Museum on Main Street in Pleasanton from June 18 to July 30, and before that in Danville at the Museum of the San Ramon Valley from June 6-17.

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Lombard Street, San Francisco

Along with the TransAmerica Pyramid, this was built for the display that my LEGO club, the Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group, had at the LEGO store in Pleasanton, CA.

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Maker Faire 2006

Maker Faire sure was a lot of fun! We (Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group) had a great time showing off our LEGO train layout to the public and other Makers at the event.

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TransAmerica Pyramid

The TransAmerica Pyramid is one of the most distinctive structures in the city of San Francisco.

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Old-fashioned Fire Truck

This old-fashioned fire truck was built in July, 2004 for the display that my LEGO club, Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group & Train Club put on at a museum in Pleasanton, CA.

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TCA Show – Sunday

I spent most of the day today at the 2006 Cal-Stewart Spring Meet of the Train Collectors Association (TCA) at the Santa Clara Convention Center. My LEGO club, Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group & Train Club, had a big train layout on display all weekend (see my previous entry with pictures of the setup on Friday).

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BayLTC at TCA 2006 Show Setup

Friday evening, March 10, I was at the Santa Clara Convention Center helping set up(*) the Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group & Train Club layout for the 2006 Cal-Stewart Spring Meet of the Train Collectors Association.

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Coastline

This is another model that I built 3 years ago but only recently posted the pictures online. This, along with the recently posted Road Bridge, was built for the BayLTC train layout in 2003.

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Road Bridge

In 2003 (or maybe 2002) I built a bridge for the BayLTC train layout. But it wasn’t a train bridge, it was a road bridge (for cars and trucks). The road pieces came from LEGO’s 6600 Highway Construction set, and the bridge’s structural elements were built of Technic bricks.

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Coast Guard Base

Last fall, the Bay Area LEGO Train Club (BayLTC) was doing a show where many of our usual waterfront models were not available, so I volunteered to build a new model for that spot. I discovered Coast Watch HQ sets on sale at Costco for about $20 each, and bought two of them. I used many parts from the sets, such as the baseplates and windows, but built a new design to be a little more realistic. The building is of my own original design, but the helicopter and cutter are based on real U.S. Coast Guard equipment. Since it was for a train show, I made it come apart into pieces for easy transport.

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Esso Garage

A garage to take your LEGO cars for their regular maintenance. Has two service bays, each with a lift to give the mechanics access underneath the car. Also equipped with a workbench and a complete inventory of repair parts and tires.

This model is fully detailed on the interior, and also features rare and valuable printed bricks (Two each of “ESSO SERVICE” and “GARAGE”) from the 1960’s.

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Modular Downtown Buildings

These buildings were made for the BayLTC train layouts. Fellow club member Kenny Paul and I agreed on a standard for the placement of Technic pegs to connect the buildings together. However, with practice it turned out to be easier to not connect them, but to just place them next to each other.

The pegs are placed in a 1×2 Technic brick with peg hole, at the 7th and 8th studs in from the street, at the 3rd and (optionally) 8th brick heights. In addition, pegs may be placed at the rear, also at the 7th and 8th studs from the edge. The backs and sides of the buildings are incomplete because they are not visible; the rule is that from street level to the 6th stud, and everything above 12 bricks in height, must be decorated.

The tan building has a removable wall on the right side. This allows it to be a corner building or to be in the middle of a series of buildings. The removable wall features a fire escape.

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Miscellaneous Cars

This assortment of cars was created for the BayLUG train layout.

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Yellow Hopper Truck

In 2002 I built two versions of this yellow hopper truck. You can see both versions in the albums below.

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Van and Sailboat

Another boat and vehicle combination, this sailboat sits high on its trailer but if you remove the keel it looks good on a blue baseplate representing water.

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Truck with Zodiac Boat

Another boat entry, this ordinary one-piece LEGO inflatable boat is
improved with the addition of a control console and outboard motor.

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Street Sweeper

Designed around the brush from the LEGO Car Wash, this truck provides an important civic service.

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Garbage Truck

My Garbage Truck gathers up all the MegaBloks and other unwanted material from the LEGO town.

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Dump Truck with Trailer

Another way of transporting sand and gravel is a dump truck with a trailer. First the truck dumps its own load, then the hopper on the trailer is moved into that of the truck, and it can then dump that one as well. This is a fairly common design, at least in my part of the world.

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Class C Motorhome

Tour the country in comfort in this luxurious model. Sleeps three minifigs: one above the cab and two in the rear. Includes a complete galley for cooking meals on the road, and television over the rear bed which is connected to a satellite dish on the roof.

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