I'm not hating on the giz legolove, though, I'll admit they're something I could never get into. I still check these stories out, not because of the toy (which I don't care much about), but because of the ingenuity and time investment. I want to see how close someone was able to replicate something and how long it took them. Cool enough.

fimo85

OMFG!

liquidsoapdispenser

I fear that soon enough, someone will bitch that this site has too much Lego...

(and non-fuckheads know full well that there's no such thing as too much Lego)

Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!

they should call this site LEGmodo.com. LEGOs are awesome

jspeed04

@Purple Dave: Holy shit it's PurpleDave. I remember the MoD days...holy shit x2

Geirskogul

Props!!!!!!!!!!

wetworker

Also, I don't wanna in that place if there are no humping rules. NOT cool!

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

Wow! This set is so huge even mini-figures aren't to scale! I guess they couldn't get their hands on a ton of old techic figures, the look like they could have been been about to scale...but then again I think they wanted women and kids, who knows if they would have the correct size...

The video is amazing! I love the voice over, makes it even more amazing! Great work Jesus!

@Purple Dave:

Well I think you already answered your question that the bricks are quite expensive and not everyone has the talent/time/space/desire/other resources in general to do such a thing! Anyhoo, I don't think you should feel ripped off, after all this is in Billund, birthplace of LEGO as we know it! At least we get great video!

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

The Straight Dope on "Do Not Hump". Basically, it means don't assemble the train by pushing cars down hills (humps) so that they connect - instead use an engine to make the connection gently.

morcheeba

You know, they had a lot of cool animal sculptures at LLCA, but I sorta feel ripped off for having gone twice and not seen anything like this. There's not a lot of stuff in their Miniland that you can't see over, aside from NYC skyscrapers, and I already know people who make those for fun and unprofit.

@HawkSkater0:
Wrong question. You should be asking why _isn't_ everyone making stuff out of LEGO bricks. Not everyone can paint or draw, but everyone can put two bricks together. Eventually, anyone should be able to build the largest LEGO model out there, even if it does end up taking them nearly a year and people keep bugging them to know when they're going to post pictures of it.

Purple Dave

My God.

It's full of blocks.

Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!

Are these solid? Or hollow?

doobiebros22

That. Is. Awesome.

Evangelion

Do not (w)hump? ... use as hemp? ... (th)ump?

comfortablesofa

Why is everyone making stuff out of legos!!!

This one is the best i have seen ever!

HawkSkater0

@morcheeba:
Yeah, that bit sorta caught my eye as well, so I looked it up. Found a description that explains _why_ it's a bad idea (and indeed it is!).

@LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M:
It's part of a Miniland display, which has become a term unto itself (Miniland-scale, where I think people stand roughly 4" tall). They always build their own people from scratch because they can do pretty much anything they want. LLCA Miniland has several people with ~2" afros, including the odd blond caucasian. This practice allows them much more freedom in the level of detail they can include (such as writing words on the side of vehicles by using different colored bricks and plates), and it's a lot easier for 6' adults to see what's going on in a ground-level display without having to crawl on hands and knees, but I suspect the real reason for not using minifigs or the like is that the Billund Miniland probably predates even the head-and-shoulders maxifigs.

And what I intended to say was that everyone should be able to build the largest LEGO _set_, whether they can/want to afford the $500 pricetag or not (I'm still the only member of my LUG who's bought one). Even if this multi-construct display counts as a single model, it's still positively dwarfed by the epic scale of the 3-million-brick Millyard Project. I've heard that, while NELUG members were excited about the prospect of being involved in this project, some of them were getting burnt out on spending two years building largely the same style of buildings.

Purple Dave

@Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!:

Ah Kasier, you should pay attention to the banhammer. The last guy that said that LEGO were hunks of plastic, and not Gizmos they got squished.

But more importantly, I think that LEGO is something most geeks hold near and dear to their hearts. I don't hear people saying, show me more fair and balanced coverage with play-mobile or mega-bloks (*shutter*) now, do ya? Though I know many geeks including myself did have some Play Mobile, its not a war like what goes on with Macs and PCs. And I will never forget when a relative gave me a dragon themed Mega Bloks set, thinking I'd like it, not knowing the difference between LEGO and Mega Bloks.

So I put it together...well....tried to...because it KEPT ON FALLING APART AS I WENT, and part of me felt like it was some evil joke just meant to torment me endlessly. with a single touch.

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

My only complaint? They didn't replicate the largest self powered tracked vehicles in the world, the Crawlers. I would have loved to see the shuttle move around the space center on it.

Git Em SteveDave has a crush on the Swedes

Houston, we have a problem.

techwiz140

@Geirskogul:
Yeah, it's been a few years. I got burnt out on BIONICLE sets I think (still love a lot of the older parts, though). I've added one or two characters to the BioniWars line and have ideas for a few more, and I recently scored a huge batch of original Toa legs in white, some of which were used to update five of my Imperial troops (previously they all had light-grey limbs which doesn't really look good on a Stormie), but these days I'm concentrating on Batman stuff. Besides, it's a lot easier to slip those into a MichLTC display...

@LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M:
I've heard worse stories where people said they practically had to use hammers to build Megabloks models because the fit was so tight...and afterwards they still barely had any clutch power. Cheap poly-styrene junk...

Purple Dave

... with protection, of course.

tehdahl

@Purple Dave:
not everyone can put two blocks together.
for instance, people with absolutely no limbs to speak of, Stephen Hawkins, and others.

oh, correction on Stephen Hawkins, he just went back in time and did it briefly.
without a tool.

tehdahl

@tehdahl:
With the proper Mindstorms-controlled construction-bot, even Stephen Hawkings could, otherwise-unaided, assemble the UCS Falcon. It might take a few months, but it's theoretically possible. Okay, so maybe attaching the 1x1 round plates and the hinged control sticks might be tricky, but if Steve Hassenplug combined his Mindstorms skills with Kevin Clague's TECHNIC pneumatic expertise, I'm sure they could come up with a means by which even small pieces could be picked up with vacuum-suction. They might need Rob Hendrix to do a little surreptitious part-modification while everyone conveniently has their backs turned, but...

Purple Dave

@2001: A Space Odyssey: *model or

2001: A Space Odyssey

I saw this when it was at it's original home at LEGOLAND CA, I hope it returns soon, it's absolutely awe inspiring in person.

roguefx

What happened to the post a day or two back about that airplane being the biggest model of what-have-you?

2001: A Space Odyssey

"Do not hump"? Is it just me or does it seem like somebody of the extreme Lego fan mindset works for them? Not me complaining, the idea of a tank car just loitering around that massive space center set with that built into the side of it makes me laugh! It reminds me of a couple of weeks ago when I saw the shuttle launch on the NASA channel.

Mr.Wilson

@2001: A Space Odyssey:
Biggest _airplane_ model. The Space Shuttle is more like an orbit-capable brick with wings.

@roguefx:
Okay, now I'm doubly pissed. Again, twice making a trip to LLCA, never saw this in person. I vaguely remember seeing a model of some sort of NASA spacecraft the first time (don't seem to have any photos of it, though), but nothing of this magnitude.

Purple Dave

nope, no new posts for the nocturnal and lonely :(

Tohe

I surely want to build it (but a lot smaller, i have not so much room for it)

what is driven a person to build it? credits or knowing it, it can be done?

TBM-Fan

The Rocket Garden!
The Rocket Garden!

Wow that's incredible.

"Honey! Put on your shoes! We're goin' to Denmark!"

strider_mt2k

"No, wait! Kennedy!"

"We're going to Kennedy Space Center first, then Johnson Space Center, then Denmark!"

"JUST GET YOUR SHOES WOMAN!"

strider_mt2k

i remember when i was a little kid, my friend and i were taken to kennedy space center for a lego day and we all had astronauts working with a bunch of kids assembling different sections of a very large space shuttle out of lego. i wonder if this is the same one i worked on. that would be pretty crazy being able to say i worked on that and helped put it together.

MormonJay

Game. Over.

This reminds me, when are you guys going to talk about the watch every gadget/space nerd needs to have in their arsenal: the Omega Speedmaster Professional. I did a search and you only have a one paragraph blurb about the Schumacher edition, which has a different movement, different crystal, and only looks like the moon watch.

xenti

JESUS CHRIST! With all these Lego posts people should have learned by now they are called "LEGO" not "LEGOS".

Rexter

@Purple Dave:
hmmmmm.
I concede.

tehdahl

I can see the headlines now:

Man builds 1:1 scale replica of the earth using lego blocks.

wolfenstein-3d is sticking to his 4GB iphone1.0

@Mr.Wilson: "Not me complaining, the idea of a tank car just loitering around that massive space center set with that built into the side of it makes me laugh!"

First of all, that's not a tank car, that's a shrouded flat car. [www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov]

There are several of them that were specifically built for transporting SRB (Solid Rocket Booster) segments from the factory to KSC. NASA has several pieces of railroad equipment... including real tank cars. More photos here:

[rides.webshots.com]

Rail cars are often sorted in "Hump Yards"...

[rides.webshots.com]

Trains are pushed up a hill, uncoupled one at a time, and allowed to roll down the other side. They're sorted by computer, which reads the RFID on each car and sets switches to direct the cars to the correct track, applying braking so they don't hit TOO hard at the other end.

Now... do you really want to do this to a car carrying live rocket propellant? Hence, "DO NOT HUMP".

Yeah, I'm a model railroader. ;)

Synthfilker

@Synthfilker: DO NOT HUMP doesn't refer to horny dogs and Lego fanboys?

OK, now I'm sad. Are you happy?

jesusdiaz

@Synthfilker:
i bow down in respect of your knowledge

Rexter

sweet!!!

is this a starter kit!!!!????? :) :)

ceez

Paul Greengrass Palsy-cam. Nauseous action in miniature, and needed a human in there for scale effect reaction.

aboriginal

Unreal.

I'm sure it will be on sale at Toys R us for a mere $4000 starting right before christmas.

In all seriousness, this is awesome.

Noiddog

They should be building the space station out of Lego.

whootowl

I hear Also Sprach Zarathustra swelling in the background.

scarbrtj

@tehdahl:
Damn. I was hoping I could get you to bet $1million that it couldn't be done. Maybe I shouldn't have tipped my hand so quickly...

@Synthfilker:
You know, and I don't really pay that much attention to Train stuff, but I don't think anyone has actually ever built an L-gauge hump yard, working or otherwise. I know there are people who have hooked Mindstorms control up to the switches in their entire layout, but flat trainyards seem to be the norm.

@jesusdiaz:
You know what helps make me be happy? Building _laaaarge_ LEGO sets.

@whootowl:
Ooh, bad idea. The only color of ABS that's supposed to be 100% UV-resistant is black, and that would make it hard to locate for docking purposes (and it would need a much more powerful heat-dissipation system than it currently has). Otherwise, the hull would degrade pretty quickly, what with extra-planetary UV levels.

Purple Dave

<3 Lego creations. This makes me so happy.

Karinabob

WHAT! A FATHER! 30,000 mini-figs????? OMG I am crying tears are going everywhere, my 1000+ doesn't even make a dent.

Must have retail therapy. ToyRus is just not good enough. 3 hour drive to Orlando tomorrow for real. Must have more LEGOs. NOW! Oh and make a stop at Universal just to ride the hulk with my season pass. Yep.

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

@Purple Dave:
eh, there's always a possibility Stephen Hawking can do just about anything.
Including Elaine Mason.

tehdahl

Ref the DO NOT HUMP joke

When you go round Legoland (California) there are a number of Lego 'jokes' if you look closely enough.

Like the topless lady on the balcony in New Orleans throwing beads....

MINI Driver

@LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M: I'm a heathen that refers to individual pieces as both Legos and Lego pieces, and will say "I like to build with Legos", and I must say how little I regret this.

Don't hit me.

Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!

@Rexter:

You know,I think that people, especially in the US say LEGO and not LEGOs.

Anyhoo, I happened to call up the LEGO shop at home number (number on LEGO.COM and asked the very sweet LEGO rep whether LEGO or LEGOs was correct, and she did say its LEGO never LEGOs. Also cool to know is that they had specials on the LEGO phone line not available on the site or anywhere else unless you dialed.

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

@LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M:
Most people everywhere say "legos", but the proper usage is to treat it (and, in fact, every LEGO-owned brand name) like an adjective. "LEGO bricks/blocks/parts/pieces/what-have-you", not "LEGO (plural)" or "LEGOS". It's a trademark thing, though, and different companies treat the issue differently. I can't think of any automobile brand names that aren't treated as nouns. (I once got a much more in-depth almost-lecture on all of this when writing an article on the first BIONICLE movie, and there used to be an oft-ridiculed page explaining the proper usage on www.lego.com).

Purple Dave

@tehdahl:
Well, he did recently prove that he can fly a rocket with just his head, and sell books about things he doesn't even understand. Oh, wait...that doesn't happen for two more days, unless you happen to have visited a store that flubbed the street dates. *whistles and tries to look nonchalant*

Purple Dave

@Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!: @Purple Dave:

I wont be mad at either of you, cause I would say LEGOs sometimes and I just wanted to know for sure! The main point is talking about LEGO in general!

LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M

@comfortablesofa:
Humps are small hills on train yards, from which train cars are sorted to the tracks on which they'll get picked by a tractor. A hump allows for using gravity for moving the cars down to their tracks rather than resorting to a dedicated tractor, allowing for faster movement and management of cars to their trains. Cars that are not "humpable" usually contain hazardous materials, or items requiring very careful handling (a humped car has more chances of something happening to it, as they go (mostly) freely down the hump track, compared to one that is moved by a tractor and fully handled by a human).

TamaraJenkins

@Mr.Wilson:

The "DO NOT HUMP" rail cars carry fueled solid rocket booster segments from Utah, where they are packed with explosive solid fuel, to the Kennedy Space Center. Each car carries one segment, four segments make up an SRB. A train usually carries eight segments, with a sand filled gondola 'buffer' between each segment. When building the train, the "DO NOT HUMP" instructions dictate coupling the cars manually, rather than a previous posts correct assertion that they not be coupled automatically by pushing the car over a small hump and letting gravity roll the car into the rest of the train.

NASAMan

Does it have lego ice clumps as well?

BiZarRroBALlmeR

@HawkSkater0: Shouldn't those be question marks after "...legos"???

Just wonderin'

BiZarRroBALlmeR

@LindsayJoy's MBP is into S+M:
Don't care right now. About anything, that is. I'm basking in the feeling of having just figured out how to build a lifesize eyeball fish. I've been wanting to do that for the past week, but things just didn't click until a few hours ago.

Purple Dave

@NASAMan: Ah, okay. Find it an odd way to shorten things down to describe the full action,but I get it.

Mr.Wilson

A monumental feat in the line of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene engineering.

800hightech

@wolfenstein-3d is sticking to his 4GB iphone1.0: o that reminds me of the pinky and the brain episode where they build a copy of earth out of paper-maché and gets every one to come to the fake earth with a promise of free t-shirts......lol...good time..... :)

superbryant

@800hightech: So you are saying that these models have nice ABS?

ps61318

okay - that stadium - I really hope that whoever built that [it's really nice by the way] got paid to do so - otherwise way too much free time_

Secondly - that Space Shuttle I think actually rivals the Millenium Falcon_

uberfu

So who actually builds these things? How about a video of that, or pictures... SOMETHING!

oneil

Do not Hump:
[www.urbandictionary.com]

chocolim

@oneil:
LEGO Model Builders build them, and yes, they do get paid. I used to be one in their Shows & Events department in Enfield, CT. Awesome job for the most part, and it gave me virtual rock-star status among the little kids in my family!

@whootowl:
I built it! It's hanging from the ceiling at the Mall of America in Minnesota (at least it was, not sure if it's still there). :) I have a picture of it somewhere...

Regarding the LEGO name, we were trained in its proper usage, in an effort to prevent dilution of the brand, like what happened to Kleenex or Xerox. We were instructed to refer to the product in general as "LEGO building bricks". Easiest example: If you remove the brand name from a sentence such as "Look what I built using LEGO building bricks", the sentence still makes sense. If you say "Look what I built using Legos", and remove the brand name, the sentence makes no sense. We generally just called them LEGO bricks, though, which is still appropriate.

Working there was probably the most fulfilling time of my life, and I look back on it fondly, warts and all.

dances-with-hops