Today LEGO unveiled the massive and heavily-rumored 10261 Creator Expert Roller Coaster. Clocking in at 4,124 pieces, the set includes 11 minifigures, new red track, and a functioning chain-lift. The huge set will retail for $379.99 USD beginning May 16 for LEGO VIPs followed by general availability on June 1.Ever since the introduction of the new roller coaster system in 70922 Joker Manor, track pieces have appeared in LEGO City Mining, Marvel Black Panther, Speed Champions, and even an upcoming Pirate-themed Creator set. These pieces stoked the rumor that a massive roller coaster was coming, and LEGO has delivered. A natural follow-up to the Creator Expert 10257 Carousel and 10247 Ferris Wheel, the roller coaster is BIG and dwarfs its fairground brothers in size. The behemoth measures over 20” (53cm) high, 34” (88cm) wide and 16” (41cm) deep. That is almost as big as laying out a total of six standard...

Every now and again we see a realistic civilian minifig-scale LEGO boat, and they keep getting better. The latest is this steam-powered tugboat by Koffiemoc. It is actually a recreation of the last steam tug in Germany, the Saturn. The builder was inspired by this photo and I think he has captured it almost perfectly. I love the shaping and colour blocking on the hull, but my favourite parts are all the realistic details on the deck. Notice the different minifig headgear used as lights and how the tile on top of the smoke stack is pressed in only halfway to give it a gentle slope. The realistic look is especially facilitated by use of tyre pieces on the side of the boat. The post Whatever floats your tugboat appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Luka

Building a microsocale landmark is a fine art of choosing the right miniature detail that makes your model instantly recognizable. Some landmarks are so iconic that it might seem like this would be too easy. Not so! Finding the perfect detail part can be challenging. In this model of the Taj Mahal by Jay B, several recently introduced parts provide great details, but might not be the first thing that a builder would think of. This model reminds me of one of the very first models that I posted on Flickr over 5 years ago, using a much more limited supply of parts. The post Micro Taj Mahal fits in the palm of your hand. appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel

While we can all gaze in wonder at a huge LEGO diorama, there’s also a lot of joy that comes from building fun little models with interesting techniques.  GolPlaysWithLEGO has built this fun little tank that has 61 parts and a lot of character. Gol has kindly shared instructions to allow a whole squadron of little tanks to take over the world. The colours used look lighter on the digital instruction page, so look out for the differences between Light Bluish Grey, Dark Bluish Grey, Reddish Brown and Black bricks if you want to build the exact model shown. Enjoy building this fun little model. The post Your bricks will travel wherever they want in this little tank [Instructions] appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Elspeth De Montes

Builder Berthil van Beek takes the easy and makes it complex, simply because he can! What you see here is a LEGO ball counter. Yes, you have that right. It’s a ball counter that actually displays a moving tally as the balls pass through. Dropping the balls at one end of the contraption allows the LEGO balls to run through a Technic turnstile and end up in the container at the far end. It may seem simple, but the gear mechanics and the overall design probably required some heavy math and intelligence, of which I have none. Berthil credits the chain mechanism ratio to Parax77. It just shows how a lot of sweat, toil, and inspiration from another builder can bring life to something unique and different. Check out the full video below to see Berthil’s ball counter in action: The post Counting LEGO balls with complexity [Video] appeared first on...

This year the LEGO City is getting a new hospital building — a gorgeous 60204 Hospital set. A long-rumored set has been finally revealed today. Let’s have a closer look at the new medical center opened for the citizens of the LEGO city. Considering the amount of firefighters and policemen arriving to the LEGO City every year, the new Hospital was a very long wished for set. It’s been more than 6 years since the last time a hospital building was added to the city as 4429 Helicopter Rescue set. Finally, we’re getting a very decent-looking three-storey building, even though the concept of the set very similar to the old 4429. An ambulance and a light helicopter both look like they could have been released as smaller City sets. Instead, this set has everything you need to set up medical service in any LEGO City. Obviously, both the vehicle and the...

People packs are meant to complement City sets to add more life and scenes with characters and activities. The first 60134 Fun in the Park – City People Pack released in 2016 was quite a hit with the introduction of a long-awaited baby minifigure, and last year’s version, Fun at the Beach, featured lots of beach activities. This year’s pack, 60202 People Pack – Outdoor Adventures, features a new set of minifigures doing everyday things with an outdoor adventure theme, such as camping, hiking, and rafting. There are a few new interesting elements to watch out for including a baby carrier and a bald eagle. Consisting of 164 parts, we’re expecting it to cost $39.99 USD, as the previous version did.     The post LEGO City 60202 People Pack – Outdoor Adventures revealed [News] appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Edwinder

Medieval houses are a popular motif in LEGO fan creations, but that comes at a price – even though the quality is generally very high among these builds, there is less and less room for originality. Obviously, this build by César Soares is something more. The Green Fish Inn does not look like a place where most people would want to spend their time in real life if presented with a choice, but it does look cool. The textures and exotic colours look great, most notably the recently returned legendary dark turquoise used as some strange mold all across the building. The roof is great, with a few patched holes and a nice mix of tiles and slopes that make for some subtle details. Both the island and trans-black lake add a great deal to the atmosphere of the scene. The post Anything with a roof is good in a dank...

The National Gallery of Art itself is a wonderful piece of architecture all on its own. Builder wrtyler constructed a brick-built replica of the West Building that’s more than worthy of an official LEGO Architecture set and then some. It’s amazing what a little lighting can do to bring life into a simple structure. The actual West Building has at least 3 acres of skylights covering its roof. According to wrtyler, it was a challenge to replicate that roof with LEGO transparent tiles while having the right structure in place to hold it up. At least 500 transparent cheese wedge pieces were used in total for both wings to give the intended effect. The post An artistic representation of a building of art appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Edwinder

We singled out Jeff Friesen’s Cityscapes as our 2017 Creation of the Year. If you’ve missed it then, these are still very much worth a look, and even if you’ve seen them, they’re so mesmerising that you may find something you missed earlier on. It’s almost soothing and appealing to let your eyes wander around these intricate builds. We could not resist reaching out to have a deeper discussion with Jeff to understand the mind of an artist that could create something so different and unique with the very same bricks all of us see and build with every day. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, e.g. where are you based, your LEGO history, and your work (LEGO/Photography and real life if it is different)? I’m an award-winning photographer based in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, which is on Vancouver Island. I have vivid memories of playing with LEGO...