MEGATechNews Showcase – Even More LEGO Creations Including a Kraken Tearing Apart an Imperial Super Star Destroyer Beth Snyder April 29, 2013 Features Hey, guess what?! It’s that time again! There is no end to the project ingenuity that comes from what a lot of people think of as simply a child’s toy: LEGO. As always, many of these are projects built by LEGO masters, but where there’s a will, there’s a way, so if you think you can figure out how they did some of them you could have one for your very own. And of course there are also a few things you can actually buy, so don’t be discouraged if you lack the creativity or engineering skills to put some of them together. First up is a LEGO bicycle. This one was created by Silva Vasil, and it is entirely made of LEGO bricks. Well…I suspect the wheels are something else (looks kind of like plexiglass to me), but the frame is all LEGO. It’s even functional! However, it is described as being a “handheld size”, so I’m guessing functional is more a term to describe moving parts rather than something you can actually ride down the road, but still. I just think it’s neat. Source: GizmoDiva Oh noes! It’s a LEGO Space Kraken! Not only that, but it’s tearing apart an Imperial Super Star Destroyer (as well it should, really). Created by Iain Heath, this is a pretty sizable creation (looks to be about three feet long by at least 18 inches high, from the pictures). It debuted at the Emerald City Comicon in Seattle (also home to PAX Prime), and it’s really quite wonderful. I’m pretty sure I need one for my living room. Source: Geekologie Looks like a minifig, doesn’t it? It’s not. Well, it is, but it’s certainly not mini. It’s about the size of a three-year-old child. See those minifigs standing on it? Those really are, if that helps you figure out the scale we’re talking about here (it’s exactly 10x the size of a regular minifig). This one was constructed by “a loving Dad” for his 10-month-old daughter, and it is fully functional with moving arms and legs and a removable helmet. This one isn’t actually constructed of LEGO, but rather PVC pipe and plexiglass. Source: Nerd Approved It’s the Great Ball Contraption! Yeah, I know…there are more than one of these, because LEGO seems to demand you make a Rube Goldberg-type contraption out of them, don’t they? This particular version is built by Philip Verbeek, and uses five different modules consisting of about 2,500 LEGO pieces and two motors. Control is provided by Lego’s NXT 1.0, which also takes care of counting the balls for you. Granted, this does nothing you actually need a machine to do for you, but it’s neat to watch it in action. The source article has a video that’s well worth watching. Source: Geek.com Looks like a Nikon F body doesn’t it? Fooled ya! It’s actually a life-size replica of one made entirely of LEGO. But then you probably knew that, since this is a LEGO showcase and not a camera showcase. Suzuki is the builder of this one, and it even has some functionality. You can’t actually take pictures with it, but it does have a film loading door on the back that opens using rotating dials, and the lens also turns using more of the same. If you want to see this one become a kit you can by, head over to LEGO’s crowdsourcing site and show Suzuki some love. Source: Damn Geeky Here’s one you can actually purchase! LEGO Lone Ranger Colby City Showdown, featuring minifigs of the Lone Ranger, Tonto, Texas Ranger Dan Reid and the 2 bandits, Ray and Frank as well as a wagon, bank and sheriff’s office. This one has 587 pieces, including three rifles, three revolvers and a tomahawk. You can even use dynamite to break open the bank vault. The sheriff’s office has a jail (of course), with a rooftop cannon and exploding wall function. Take one home today for about $50.00 US. Source: 7 Gadgets Anybody can buy a Matchbox or Hot Wheels car, but you’ll be the envy of all your friends if your mini cars are made out of bricks. You get to choose between van and car styles (red or blue for the van, red or black for the car), and both kits allow you to customize the vehicle to suit your fancy. It’s kind of not fair to include these, since they’re not actually a LEGO product (their holes are too small), but they were too neat to leave out. They are compatible with Nanoblocks, though, which is almost as good. Each kit will run you about $60.00 US. Source: Technabob Did you have a Spirograph when you were a kid? I actually still have mine, although I have long since lost more than half of the wheels (or broke them…things happen). This is the same idea, except it’s a LEGO machine. I must have one immediately. Of course, this was a one-off design made by BricTechnic user PG52, which means I can’t have one, but a girl can dream. I have no idea how this was built, but it doesn’t really matter, does it? The designs it puts out are exactly like those of the old Spirograph, except more consistent because you don’t have to depend on a pen and pressure. Source: Laughing Squid Here’s another one you can take home today…LEGO Toy Story Army Men on Patrol. You know what I love best about them? They have the standard LEGO minifig face rather than actual Army men faces. This one gives you 90 pieces, and costs in the neighbourhood of $25.00 US. You get four different styles of minifigs (a medic, a soldier with a rifle, one with a walkie-talkie and backpack, and one with a metal detector), a stretcher, and a buildable Jeep with a spare tire. This would be a nice addition to either a LEGO or a Toy Story collection. Source: Geek Alerts This one is a concept, but you could vote to help make it a reality if you want one. Created by Jazlecraz, there are actually two versions to this Adventure Time Tree Fort; a micro and a full size. The micro consists of 400 pieces, and comes with Finn and Jake minifigs. The larger one is a whopping 1,300 pieces, and is hollow so you can actually get your hands inside it to play. Of course, it also comes with the Finn and Jake minifigs. Jazlecraz is also thinking of adding other figures to the sets, but you’ll have to exercise your right to vote if you want to see these on store shelves. Source: Geekologie If you liked the earlier Lone Ranger playset, how about adding another piece? This one is the Stagecoach Escape, and has 279 pieces. Again, five minifigs (Lone Ranger, Tonto, Red Harrington and the 2 bandits, Jesus and Barret, each with weapons and accessories), stagecoach with two removable horses and also a bandit’s horse. The stagecoach features opening doors and roof, baggage launch function, opening vault with silver bar, and a mailbag with letter. No Lone Ranger set would be complete without dynamite, so of course you get some of that as well. Adding this set to your collection will set you back about $30.00 US. Source: 7 Gadgets Anime fans will go wild for this LEGO Veritech Fighter from the original Macross series (Robotech in the US)! You’re looking at Skull Leader from the Robotech/Macross saga, which transforms into Valkyrie from its Battloid mode as shown. You have LEGO creator daikoncat to thank for this one, and also to blame since you can’t buy a kit to make your own. As concept pieces go, this one is really pretty neat and should have fans of the original series swooning. Source: Nerd Approved I was not previously aware that there was such a thing as transparent LEGO blocks, but gosh are they neat! Tobias Tøstesen decided to put 8,000 of them together and create a chandelier, because pretty much you’d have to. This is a two-tier chandelier, constructed entirely of clear LEGO bricks. Then all he had to do was hang a light inside, and he had instant coolness to hang in any room. He unveiled his design at the 2013 Milan Design Week, and I would quite honestly be surprised if this wasn’t something you could buy if you had enough money. I’m not the only one who thinks so, as apparently he was approached by several people who wanted to do just that at the show. Source: Walyou A LEGO iPad dock? Well, why not? This one comes to us from the creative minds at The Daily Brick, and it’s beautiful in its simplicity while being absolutely functional. What you’re looking at is a Lightning-connector dock for Retina iPads and iPhone 5, made out of LEGO. Could there be more awesome all in one place? The dock is actually pretty stable, and while it can break if dropped, it tends to break into LEGO bricks so it’s easy enough to reassemble. If you’re looking for something containing good speakers, however, you should probably look elsewhere. But…LEGO! The kit for iPad costs £19.95 (about US $31.00), while the iPhone 5 kit runs in the £11.95 ($18.50) range. Source: Gizmag There’s something about the combination of LEGO and Star Wars and flashlights that makes me want to give away my money. In fact, if you look down at the gallery, you’ll see a picture of the LEGO Darth Vader headlamp (which I actually own, and use on a regular basis). This, however, is a LEGO Yoda flashlight, and I think I need it, too. One can never have too many flashlights. Press the button on his chest, and the bottoms of his feet light up with two LED lamps, each of which can be angled for proper seeing in the dark. You can also pose his arms. At just 2 3/4 inches tall, you can take him just about anywhere. Each one will cost you about $12.00 US. Source: Geek Alerts There used to be a segment on one of my local radio programs called “Fun Facts To Know and Yell.” Here’s your Fun Fact for today: A LEGO brick can typically be used 37,112 times. Try to wrap your mind around that for a second. Dylan Duarte has already reported Engineers in UK Discover How Much Weight a Lego Brick Can Hold, but now we know you can use them an almost ridiculous number of times. Using an Arduino, a servo with a custom-made arm, and a pair of 3×2 bricks, Phillipe built a rig that connected and disconnected a pair of bricks for ten straight days before they wore out. Neat! Source: Geek.com Finally…Edible LEGO? I want some, but I don’t think I’d ever eat them. Even though I know these are actually made out of candy (and really, they look a lot like Pez, don’t they?), I would have this mental block against eating them because I’d be afraid I’d break my teeth. You know, like the dental equivalent of stepping on one in the dark. Yikes! These are really neat, though…they can even be stacked and interlocked just like normal plastic LEGO bricks. Their flavours match their colours, and you can pick up anywhere from one pound to 5.5 pounds at a time, with pricing ranging from $7.00 to $29.00 US. Source: Technabob Share This With The World!
