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We've fallen somewhat behind in covering headline-grabbing new kits recently, but LEGO is still churning them out. One of the ones we missed was the latest Ultimate Collector Series Star Wars kit - the B-Wing Starfighter. From the October 1st release date to December 31st (or while supplies last), LEGO is including an exclusive TC-14 minifigure with the purchase of the 10227 B-Wing Starfighter. Like the last few UCS kits, this one is nicely in minifig scale (as compared to the regular kits, which usually have strange proportions in order to fit minifigures). Both Jedi News and FBTB have reviewed the kit, which looks like an interesting build.
US $199.99 CA $249.99 DE 199.99€ UK 169.99£ DK 1699 DKK
Take on the Empire in the Ultimate Collector Series B-wing Starfighter!
Now you can experience the ultimate B-wing Starfighter from the Star Wars galaxy like never before. This fantastic model features everything you would expect from our premium collector range, including rotating, self-levelling cockpit and realistic wing configurations for landing and flight. And when you’re finished battling in the skies above Endor or helping to restore freedom in the galaxy, place this highly detailed B-wing Starfighter on its own dedicated display stand and fact plaque. Measures 26” (66 cm) wide and 15” (38 cm) high in flight configuration, and 17” (43 cm) high on display stand.
• A highly detailed Ultimate Collector Series B-wing Starfighter model
• Features rotating, self-levelling cockpit
• Features realistic wing configurations for landing and flight
• Includes display stand and fact plaque
• Model can be detached from display stand
• Measures 26” (66cm) wide and 15” (38cm) high in flight configuration, and 17” (43cm) high when mounted on display stand
Available for sale directly through LEGO® beginning October 2012 via shop.LEGO.com, LEGO® Stores or via phone.
Our friends at LEGO want us to remind you of their current promotions. From now through October 31st, you can get double VIP points on purchases from LEGO Shop at Home. Additionally, orders over $99 between now and December 18th get free shipping. Now's the time to grab those kits you've been putting off getting, and to get an early start on Christmas gifts!
Details: To celebrate what would have been Alan Turing's 100th birthday, the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) in Amsterdam ran an exhibition of his work and influence through October 6th, 2012. One of the more abstract ideas, the Turing Machine, was brought to life through LEGO Mindstorms for this exhibit.
If you want to build your own (perhaps with a longer tape), there aren't building instructions (although you can probably figure much of it out from the photos and video), but the full source code is on GitHub.
Here's a solid take on the ancient myth that the world is carried on the back of a turtle. Somehow it works well both with and without the foliage applied. The juxtaposition of the shell sculpted with ordinary bricks and the tan limbs that make great use of slopes is very effective. I never get far trying to make slopes look like natural shapes, but the head on this turtle uses that technique perfectly. I'm both jealous of the realistic form and curious as to whether or not there are actually any pupils in the turtle's eyes. You could spend all day staring closely at this to determine whether or not that's just a perfectly planned shadow.
Details: Today's featured model is actually the LEGO company's booth at last weekend's Comic Con, in New York City. Creatacor has photos of both setup and the completed booth. This is the first year that LEGO has had an official presence at this event - in the past they've stuck with the larger Comic Con in San Diego. LEGO was there to announce next year's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series - you'll notice the turtles and a large TMNT mosaic in many of the photos.
Here's a round-up of NYCC photos I've come by that include the LEGO displays. Most of these photosets are of the event in general (I haven't done my usual check for all-ages appropriateness but I doubt there's anything worse than your average superhero costumes).
Details: Sean and Steph Mayo are rapidly becoming the most talked about couple in the AFOL (Adult Fan Of LEGO) community. We could do an entire round-up of just the recent models from these prolific builders. When they're not winning awards at LEGO conventions for our favorite models, they're busy making goofy inverted models (and then inverting them, they're stacking parts sideways instead of connecting them, and they're experimenting with MegaBloks for just long enough to see how well they burn. To continue showing up the rest of us, they're now making great desktop models for friends and coworkers. This one was for a friend who got a job at NASA. As usual, there are some stunning uses of unexpected parts: a knight's helmet for the top of the fuel tank, a support beam for the launch tower, minifig hands to get the shape of the wings, and round plates for tufts of smoke. It's a stunning amount of detail in just a 4 stud by 6 stud footprint.
Details: Stefan F. brings us this clever design for a support beam that uses a trapping technique to hold angled sections in. The secret sauce is a few 1x8 plates with door rails, cheese slopes connected by Technic half-pins to 1 x 1 bricks, and a few 1 x 1 bricks with studs on two sides to hold it all together. It seems simple once you see the finished result, but it's a clever way to add a more realistic texture at this small scale without having to resort to overly specialized parts. It's not that LEGO hasn't made plentyofpartsthatwilldothis, but sometimes it's the principle of the thing, sometimes you don't have that part, and sometimes you just need that look to fit a certain space that the official parts can't.
Details: The MocOlympics just started, and there are already many amazing entries. This one stood out for me, though, because of the composition. There were many large, impressive dios based on the "Seven Nation Army" theme, but Legofreak2444 took his in a different direction. Of course, mecha look cool, and this is a particularly good one. But it's the contrast between it and the desolate (and wonderfully textured) landscape that inspires a feeling of hope, but at the same time implies a difficult and epic past. I definitely think that the composition of the build is just as, if not more, important than the quality of the MOC. This is a good example- each component is wonderful, by itself, but not terribly unique. Together, though, they make an amazing final product.
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Yes, I've blogged this model before. Now, though, we can announce that you can come see it in action at this year's Maker Faire New York, coming up September 29th and 30th. There's more related news as well - the robot itself has been refined and now features a simpler, zebra-striped design (there's a new page on the builder's web site discussing the changes). Last - but certainly not least - the official Make magazine blog now has an interview with this model's creator. It's great to see a clever design improved upon, and even better to see it reach a broader audience.
Maker Faire NY is also known as "World Maker Faire" - it's intended to be the biggest and best DIY event in the world, which is how it can attract LEGO fans from Norway. Tickets for Maker Faire NY are available online. A few of our friends from New York's LEGO Users Group, I LUG NY, will also be there with a LEGO display. Searching for "LEGO" on the MFNY2012 list of Makers turns up a total of 12 LEGO-related exhibits at this year's event.
Details: This is a relatively simple model, but the cute and effective details made me smile. The ribbed tubing is used excellently on the head, and the mouth piece is perfect. The printed tiles look great, particularly on the back. It just goes to show that even simple MOCs can be great.
