Set Review - Caterham Seven 620R - #21307 - LEGO Ideas

I am not a car buff by any means, but or some reason some of the recent LEGO car sets have called to me.  You can see my reviews of #10248 Ferrari F40 and #42056 Porsche 911 GT3 RS for some of the other car sets.  

Onto this set.  To be honest, I've never heard of Caterham until the LEGO set came out and I had to look it up.  There are some cool videos on You Tube about them if you are like me and want to check them out.  This set is Ideas set number 14 and was released on 1 October 2016.  It retails for $79.99 and has 771 pieces or $0.104/piece which is right around average.

Here is the box.  The box is similar to other LEGO Ideas sets in terms of how it opens and it shows a bunch of views of the model.

The set contents are 6 bags which are numbers 1 through 3 with 2 bags for each number.  There is also an instruction booklet with the instructions and info on the builders.  Wait, what was that?  Did you catch that?  No stickers!!!  Woo-hoo!!!  How awesome is that?  There are a number of pieces with printed on logos and designs, but no stickers to fight with.  YES!!!

The first 2 bags are the main part of the body and then the start of the rear suspension.  Not a ton of detail yet.

The next 2 bags have both of the axles in the car and a good portion of the body.  You can see the disc rotors for the wheels that are printed on and some pieces that have printed logos.

The final 2 bags finish up the model. You can see the pieces that can be used to put the vehicle up to display it or to show it off a bit.  The details on the hood include some pieces that have printed on colors.  The black with the yellow has a sharp contrast that helps to make it stand out.  Some have complained about the color choices, but I think the black and yellow are a good choice.

Here are 2 looks of the vehicle... one of the front and one of the back.  I didn't take pictures of the removable parts, but the hood comes off and you can take the trunk off to put the vehicle jacks into the trunk.  There are some good uses of different building techniques to make the curves so it's not just a model where you stack bricks one on top of the other.  The only complaint with the build I have is of the driver and passenger side mirrors and the rear view mirror.  Either I put it on wrong or it just doesn't stay well.  

Overall what do I think?  It's a good model, fairly quick build, but quite detailed.  There are some newer piece types and the lack of stickers is awesome.  Price is slightly high, but on average with the price per piece.   I think it will be a good addition to my other cars in the collection and I'd love to get a ride in one some day.  If you have the chance to get the model, go for it.  If you can get it during double VIP points or some other promotion, then even better!

See my reviews of other LEGO Ideas sets:

-The Big Bang Theory - #21302
-Wall-E - #21303
-The Beatles Yellow Submarine - #21306

For Sale:
Back to the Future - Delorean Time Machine - #21103
$90 (w/ free shipping

For Sale:
Research Institute - #21110 - Brick Classifieds
$45 (w/ free shipping)

Set Review - The Beatles Yellow Submarine - #21306 - LEGO Ideas

"In the town where I was born lived a man who sailed to sea..."  Okay so I was not around when this song was released by the Beatles in the 1960s.  I also never saw the movie... although I have seen "Help" and "A Hard Day's Night."  I was intrigued to see this set released as the 15th Ideas set and as a fan of the Beatles, I decided to pick up a set.  So if you're interested in the set, but not so sure if you should get one or not, here's a review that will hopefully help.

The set was released in the US on 1 November 2016.  The price is $59.99 in the US for 550 pieces ($0.109 per piece... just about average).  Here is the box:

It is very colorful like the cartoon that was Yellow Submarine.  The front is the standard display of the set and it has the Ideas logo with the #15.  The back shows the functions of the set.  The box itself is re-closable (is that a word?) like the other Ideas sets.

The contents are 5 numbered bags and an instruction booklet.  The instruction booklet includes a page about the fan designer and the LEGO designer.

Bag 1 starts off with the bottom of the submarine.  Nothing too special about that part of the build.  As you can see it also comes with a brick separator.  Finally, there's a stand for the minifigures. The stand has 3x4 plates similar to the ones that come with collectible minifigure sets, but these are light gray.  This bag contains the John Lennon minifigure.

Bag 2 includes Paul McCartney and some additional parts to the submarine.  There  are some new designs on 1x1 tile circles that haven't appeared before.  Other than that, nothing new yet.

Bag 3 adds George Harrison and more to the submarine to include the front.

Bag 4 adds in Ringo Starr.  It also adds the rudder and twin screws (propellers).  The top of the craft starts too and adds some new pieces to include 1x1 tile quarter circles.  I have never seen them before, but I could have missed them previously.  Definitely a cool piece that I could see used elsewhere like trying to build signs or letters.

Here is the final build.  I like the use of the hot dog pieces to make the railing on the top of the sub.  The periscopes are fun too.  The build includes a stand for the submarine as well for display purposes.  Finally it adds (and I had to look this up) Jeremy Hillary Boob Ph.D. 

Here is a closer look at the minifigs.  All of the minifigures have 2 faces.  Most of them look similar... mouth open or closed, but the eyes are mostly the same.  I'm not sure if the hair matches them perfectly, but close enough.  I had to look up what they are holding.  Here's what I found: John - telescope, Paul - 1x2 ‘love’ tile, Ringo - round 2x2 ‘half a hole’ tile, George - submarine motor and Jeremy - Apple

Overall... I'm not sure it was worth the purchase.  I enjoy listening to the Beatles and their music, but I don't know if this set was worth it or if I'm a big enough fan to want to show this off.  The good news is that the pieces are pretty good so you can always build something else or add to a MOC.  If you're on the fence on whether to purchase this set, wait to see if you can get a discount on Amazon.com or at Walmart.  Or maybe wait for a double VIP point month.

Set Review - Snowglobe - #40223

Christmas is a little less than a month away and LEGO sales and deals have hit the markets.  One of the ways the LEGO Company increases sales is by offering exclusive Christmas themed sets.  See my review of last year's sets here.  This year one of those sets is the Snowglobe (#40223).  It was available to VIP members in the US about a week prior to the Brick Friday sales for orders over $99 and then it was open to all for orders over $99 on the Brick Friday weekend.  It contains 215 pieces and like most years the price on the secondary markets goes up pretty quickly.  I ordered a few things in the week prior to Brick Friday and received a set so here is my review.

The container is similar to previous years.  The front has a limited edition stamp in the upper right corner.  The back just shows that it has a drawer you can open.  Magically, the round 1x1 tile pieces are floating in the air.

Set contents are 3 bags of bricks and an instruction booklet.

Onto the build... it starts off with the drawer portion of the set.  The 1x2 bricks with the brick-like tile design on the side in the brick red color are new (to me).  I think it's a great color and I hope to see it more often in more sets.  Has it appeared elsewhere?

The next picture adds the Santa figure.  I haven't compared him to the Santa figures of the past, but I think it's pretty good. The hat design seems new, but the beard is the same as previous Santas.

Here's the final set with the globe portion complete.  The Christmas tree inside fits nicely.  It doesn't have a lot of detail, but looks decent considering the space available.  The greenery on the top doesn't do much for me, but they had to do something on the top.  The picture on the right shows the drawer open.  I don't know what you'd want to put in there, but it's a nice part of the design.

Normally now is the time that I either recommend or tell you to avoid buying a set.  I can't do that this time because the set isn't available anymore.  If you want to buy it, you have to check out the secondary market.  I haven't looked to see what the prices are, but my guess is around $30.  While I'm no expert, my recommendation would be to wait for Christmas to be over and to look to buy this set in the summer when there probably isn't a lot of interest.  Usually the prices go back up and they start to move faster before Christmas so pick one up before next Christmas if you're interested in one.

Happy Building!

Set Review - Airport Passenger Terminal #60104 - LEGO CITY

LEGO CITY has some recurring themes that can get old after a while and obviously are meant for younger LEGO fans.  The Fire and Police themes within CITY quickly come to mind as it seems like they have a new run each year.  The Airport theme is one of those that doesn't quite occur every year.  The last airport set was released in 2010 and was set #3182.  This year (2016) another airport was released.  #60104, Airport Passenger Terminal, was released on 1 August 2016 in the US.  It costs $99.99 in the US and contains 694 pieces or $0.144 per piece.  I picked the set up from Amazon at 20% off or $80 ($0.115 per piece).  Yay sales!  Onto the review...

HEY!  Here is what the box looks like.  It's the standard LEGO CITY box with the whole set on the front and then some details on the back with a minifigure saying "hey!"

Set contents were 8 numbered bags, a bag of BURP pieces, a bag of random parts (not sure why they weren't in the numbered bags), and an instruction package with 4 booklets and stickers.

Here are the instruction booklets.  #1 is for the workers, baggage cart, fuel cart, and stairs.  #2 and #3 is for the passenger jet.  #4 is for the terminal.  Not a ton of stickers, but a bunch nonetheless.  

Onto the build... Bags 1 and 2 are the workers and the tractor to pull the baggage cart, fuel cart, and stairs.  Bag 1 also includes a brick separator.  

Bag 3 starts the aircraft and includes 3 minifigures (2 passengers and a pilot)  The aircraft has the standard wings and fuselage sections.  I am not a fan of the giant wing piece as it limits the number of seats.  It does however help to make the aircraft more realistic.  Given the size of the aircraft, there are only 5 seats for passengers which is rather disappointing.

Bag 4 finishes the fuselage and all that is left are the engines and tail section.  You'll notice that this aircraft has a bathroom on board as well as some storage for a non-existent flight attendant.  I think this is the first time that LEGO has put some additional details into aircraft besides just seats.  Also there is only one pilot for a 2 seat cockpit in the set.  

Bag 5 has the landing gear, tail, winglets, and engines.  This is the first larger aircraft where the engines are built up versus just a big piece to strap on.  It's not really streamlined, but I like the design and how it is built.  

Bag 6 starts the airport terminal.  Like most CITY builds, they are meant for play so it's really only half a building.  It includes one minifigure and the revolving door entrance.  While the entrance is cool looking, it's about twice the height of a minifigure and there isn't enough physical space for one actually to fit through the door.  I'm not a fan of the design.

Bag 7 finished off the front facade adds in a metal detector and the baggage check-in station.  I guess you enter from the right and then maybe the revolving doors are where you can walk out to the plane.  I'm not really sure anymore.  The conveyor belt is a nice addition to the set for playability and is set up so you can pull the baggage cart right next to it.  

Bag 8 is the final bag with the roof being completed and then the control tower.  The control tower is unmanned... or maybe the one worker does everything?  I'm also not sure how a worker would actually get up to the tower.

So that's it... It's the first passenger airport set released in 6 years.  It comes with a jet, 6 minifigures, a terminal, and some equipment for servicing the aircraft.  Should you get it?  After getting it, I'm glad I got it on sale, but I'm still not sure it was worth what I paid.  I think it needs at least another terminal worker and then a pilot and flight attendant.  Also you're paying for a lot of BURPs to help smooth the aircraft out. The age range listed is 6-12 years old so clearly it is not meant for old farts like me looking for a good building experience.  However, if you're a LEGO CITY fan and you build your own MOCs to go with your city, it has some good additions.  If you're looking to build an airport terminal of your own, you'll find some useful parts to make it realistic.  We'll see if it takes another 6 years for an upgrade.

Set Review - Airport VIP Service - #60102

It's been a while since I've had the space to set up a large city scene, but I'm a fan of LEGO City and mixing in the modular buildings and LEGO Trains that I have.  While LEGO puts out a large number of fire fighter and police sets in the CITY theme yearly, they rotate through aircraft every 2 years or so.  One of them is the set I'll be reviewing today, Airport VIP Service (60102).  It was released on 22 May 2016 in the US and is priced at $39.99 with 364 pieces ($0.137 per piece).  In my opinion it is a bit overpriced, but I caught it 20% off on Amazon.com for $31.99 ($0.088 per piece).  A little better in my opinion.  I'm glad I waited 5 months for it to go on sale.

The box shows the set which includes 4 minifigures (business woman, pilot, car driver, and airport worker), business jet, limo, and airport vehicle on the front.  The back shows all of the things you can do with the set.  The set is listed for ages 5 to 12 so I am not LEGO's main customer, but it works.

The contents come in 5 bags (which are numbered), 3 instruction manuals (shoved into the box), a sticker sheet, and then the bottom of the nose of the fuselage.

Instruction manual #1 is the airport truck with the "follow me" sign on the back and the pilot and business woman.  The airport truck could stand some re-design as the worker has to keep his arms up in the air to sit in it and drive.  The worker comes with a radio.  The business woman comes with a laptop and smart phone.  The pilot does not come with anything.

Instruction booklet #2 goes with bags 2 and 3 and it makes the aircraft.  It's a simple design with a few BURPs (big, ugly, rock pieces) and the stickers definitely help to make it look better, but are a challenge to put on.  I can't see a 5 year old putting them on as listed without adult help.  Here are pictures of the aircraft with the top off and then a view with the pilot and business woman.  The aircraft comes with a glass for her to have a beverage and a croissant to eat.

Instruction booklet #3 and bags 4 and 5 are the limo.  It includes the vehicle and driver.  Below are pictures of bag 4 complete and then bag 5 complete.  There isn't anything special to the vehicle.  There's a space for the driver and the passenger.  The vehicle comes with an "ice box" that you can put a popsicle in.  It doesn't really fit in much, but again I'm not the right age range.  Also I debate whether this vehicle should be 4 studs wide or 6 studs wide.  You could easily modify it to make it a 6 wide.  I'll leave it as 4 for now.

Here's a view of the inside with the minifigs.  There's space for the business woman to put her phone and laptop.  There's also a chart sticker that she can stare at on the cooler.  You can decide whether it is pointing up or down.

From this view, the cooler is a waste of space and adding a second seat in would be better.  Or maybe you could change the design of the cooler as the minifig has to take the roof off of the car before she can take the popsicle out.  Not very convenient if you're driving.   

Here's the final set with minifigs inside.  It doesn't have a lot of interesting building techniques and the piece selection isn't all that great, but if you're a CITY and airport fan, then it's a nice new addition.  If you can catch it on sale (it was 20% off on Amazon today - 22 Oct 16), it's even better.

Happy building!

Set Review - Creator - Vacation Getaways - #31052

I got this set a while ago and for some reason I forgot to post the review.  Sorry.  Set 31052 is part of the Creator line and is titled "Vacation Getaways."  It was released on 22 May 2016 and has a retail price in the US of $69.99.  That's $0.088 per piece for 792 pieces.  Here is my review...

Here is the box.  The front shows the camper with boat, picnic area, trees, and wildlife design.  The back shows the larger boat and the small house options as well.

First part of the build at step 17 is the start to the base, 2 minifigures (a female and male child), a chicken leg and a camera).

Next up you can see how the back opens up.  You can also see the start of a table area for eating meals.

We now have 2 seats in the front, a door on the side, and the living area built.

The designers used SNOT to put the front windshield in.  You can also see what the pull out looks like.  Pull out?  Is that what you call it?  Or is it an extension?

Here is the final build to include a small motor boat, some wildlife, and 2 trees.

Here is a look with the top removed with a better look at the eating area, kitchenette, bed, toilet, and driving area..  It also shows how the top comes off for access.

Set contents are 9 bags and the instruction booklet that is protected in a bag (Thanks LEGO!).

Step 31 of the build is still more of the base

Step 65 and it's starting to look more like a camper now.  The back is mostly done and we're starting to build up the front as sides as well.

Here is a close up during the build of the kitchen area, the bathroom area, and the bed area that pulls out.

The actual camper vehicle is done here.  We just need to add all of the extra parts on the top where the storage area is.

Here is the build with the grill, table, chairs, and skateboard set up along with the awning out for some extra shade

Final thoughts...
     -I'm a big fan of the Creator line.  It focuses on the building and not the licensed themes that are very popular.  I only built one of the 3 instructions included, but I thought it was a great build.
     -Lots of great pieces.  If you don't want to use this for your City scene or elsewhere, you can break it a part for pieces to use in your MOCs.
     -The cost is good and as of the date of this write up (10 Oct 16), Amazon has the set 20% off so if you're reading it around that date and were looking to get this set, now's the time!
     -If you're a fan of sets with lots of details, then this set is probably not for you.  Go for the VW Van.  This set is for building multiple sets with a single set of pieces.

What are your thoughts of this set?  Post them below!

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Set Review - Porsche 911 GT3 RS - #42056 - Technic - Part 5

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

I finished!  WOOHOO!  Let me tell you, it was a great build.  It took me about 3 weeks too.  Some days I put more time in then others and some days I wasn't able to build at all.  I'm glad to have a space where I can leave things out right now.  Onto the finale!

Here's the box for #4, the construction before the build starts, and the start of the instruction booklet.  

Box 4 comes with 4 parts bags.

The build starts with the driver's side in the front with the bumper, turn signals, headlights, body around the wheel, and door.  

Finalizing the door is next to include the driver's side mirror and the door handle.

Next up is the rear of the car.  You complete the engine cover and distinctive tail fin.  I show one picture with the trunk open and one with it closed.

To the left is the build at step 847.  It's pretty much done.  I'm not sure what the flexible, rubber like pieces are called, but they are added in to help create some of the curves.  You can see a bunch by the hood, around the windshield, and then running to the back.  

After you finish the back, you keep rotating the car and move around to complete the passenger side door, wheel cover, and headlight.  

The next step is to add the rims and wheels.  The wheels come in a separate box.  They are inside the box and the rims are on the top of the box.

Here are some final pictures...

At the back of the instruction booklet, it says you get get a free gift by entering your vehicle code at LEGO.com/technic.  Well that's not true.  You need to go to http://www.lego.com/en-us/technic/codebreaker.  If you're wondering what it is, you get a digital certificate that says you have a set and then a bunch of high resolution photos that can be used as wallpaper for your phone or computer (or printed I guess).  They are pretty sharp and hey, it's something else that you get for buying the set.  

Also if you go to the LEGO.com/technic web site, they have a bunch of promo videos along with a video about them packaging the set in one of their factories.  Again, nothing fancy, but interesting to see where your set came from.  

Final words... if you've read this far and through all 5 parts, then thank you.  Please leave feedback or email me with your thoughts... should I make these much shorter and to the point or is it better to see all of the details?  Anyways, back to the set...  If you can't tell, I think this set is awesome!  The build was incredible, the final set design is sleek, and to be honest, I have never build a LEGO® set like this.  I'm really impressed with how this turned out from the start with packaging and design to the finish in having the final product.  Well done LEGO®!!!!!

Set Review - Porsche 911 GT3 RS - #42056 - Technic - Part 4

View Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 5

Before I start this one, just a quick note.  For those of you who follow the blog, I recently moved from NM to FL.  My FL home is slightly bigger and my NLS agreed to designate some space for building activities.  I purchased 2 metal shelves for storage and placed a wood board on top for building.  Now I have a standing desk where I can build at.  Also you'll note that some pictures are at night with a light on and some are during the day.  I don't have a light box yet.  I'm working on it.  So I apologize up front that the pictures aren't all the same.

Box 3 of this set is assembling more of the body to include the rear, the hood and the roof.  This one starts in the instruction booklet at #532.  Before we start, here is box 3 with a picture of the hood on the box and in the instructions.  I also included the build at the end of box 2.

Next up are the contents.  It only has 4 bags of parts and it uses some of the parts from the bag included in box 1.

Some pictures of the build...  First off is some work on the back of the vehicle.

Next up is more work on the back.  The break light and turn signals are there along with the bumper and a GT3RS sticker.

The top of the car is shown with the back here.  

Another view of the back just so you can see more detail.  This one is of the passenger side in the back. 

Here's a view from the front so you can see the hood.  Still need a lot more detail here, but I think that'll all be in the next box.

A top shot of the whole set at the end of box 3.

Back to building!!!!!

Set Review - Porsche 911 GT3 RS - #42056 - Technic - Part 3

View Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 4 - Part 5

If you can't tell, I'm taking my time putting this set together.  To be fair, if I sat down to crank it out, it would take a day or two non-stop.  So let's get right to it...

Box 2 is the body of the car.  The instruction book talks about how during the building of an actual 911 GT3 RS, they have a stage where the "drivetrain is connected to the body of the car."  This section starts at instruction number 324.

Box 2 contains 9 parts bags which are shown here.  

Here's the build at instruction 349.  This is the body at the front of the car.

Here is instruction step number 403 with the front together and then the start of the driver's side.

Here's #454.  Front and sides are done and working on the back.  You can see some of the red pins that are not pressed in all the way throughout the model.  While building I was wondering what they were for, but they ended up being the way to attached the body to the drivetrain.  There were a few steps where all you had to do was just push in red pins.  

#483... almost done with this section.

Here is the final of this section with the body attached to the drive train.  The seats and roll bar are in place now.  

Just another shot from the front.  Okay, enough already... time to get back to building more.  Happy building!

Set Review - Series 16 Minifigures - #71013

I thought they were supposed to be out on 1 September, but I was totally wrong.  I'm not sure of the exact release date, but I checked the LEGO® Shop at Home web site one day and "tah-dah," they were sold out. What?  I kept checking back and happened to catch them available during a double VIP point weekend.  I ordered a bunch and it was a good thing because they are sold out again as of the time of this post.  I haven't checked to see availability at other retailers, but typically they sell quick at places like Target and Walmart.  Has anyone had any luck?

Onto the minifigures...  So these are $3.99 like past collectible minifigures and there are 16 as opposed to the Disney minifigures where there were 18.  

Here are the first four.  The ice queen looks pretty mean and is in line with some other past mean female minifigs to include Maleficient and Spider Lady.  I assume she is shooting ice out of her hands, but I can't be sure.  I've seen two names for the next one.  One is Arabian Knight and the other is Desert Warrior.  I'm not sure which is right, but his weapon is about as tall as he is.  Next up is the cyborg.  I like the blue hair piece.  It looks like you could put it on Wyldstyle if you wanted to switch her hairdo around.  The last in this row is labeled on brickset as "imp."  He looks like he'd fit right in with the series 14 Halloween themed minifigures.  

Spooky boy is the male version of the Series 12 Spooky girl.  The hiker has some new features that I haven't seen before.  He has a compass and map which both are new and a backpack that is different from the past standard minifigure backpack (I'm a fan of this character).  Next up is the wildlife photographer.  She has a camera and most importantly she comes with a small penguin.  This follows the theme of minifigures with various animals such as the skunk with the animal control officer.  The final one in this row is the kickboxer.  I like the option to put her hair on or her helmet and then there's a brick included to hold her helmet when she's not wearing it.  

Two comments on these four.  First off is the kid in the penguin outfit.  I think it's great!  Some of the most popular Collectible Minifigures have been minifigures in animal outfits like the shark man or piggy guy.  This minifigure is interesting because it comes with ice skates and a base plate.  With the ice skates you can't put the minifigure on the base plate so not sure why it's there other than that's what they always do.  Second comment about these four is the Dog Show Judge.  I found the size of the dog interesting.  In my review of the Fountain, you can see the size of most pets in the LEGO® brand.  This dog doesn't quite fit in based on its size.  Or maybe the one in the Fountain is too big?  There's a cat in this minifigure and it's about the same size as this dog.  So what's the right size next to a minifigure?

The acoustic guitar is an awesome addition to the minifigure repertoire.  We can add it to the saxophone and a few others that have appeared.  I think the banana guy will be another winner along with hot dog guy.  The sunglasses are a nice touch.  Finally, the last minifigure I show is the babysitter with a baby minifigure.  The baby minifigure was added to the LEGO® wold in the recent City People Pack.  I'm surprised it showed up again so quickly, but am glad to see it.  It's like you're getting two minifigures in one pack.  Bonus!  

Overall I think LEGO® did another great job with the design of these minifigures.  In terms of the numbers of each they product, I'd prefer even numbers of all so I wouldn't get a lot of some and only a few of others.  In the end LEGO® just wants to make money so they won.  If you're good at feeling through bags, then keep at it.  I'm not so good at it so I'll keep buying a bunch and selling the rest.  What were your thoughts on series 16?