Many LEGOLAND Parks and Discovery Centers have offered printed promo bricks over the years. Also known as promotional or commemorative bricks, the fan community generally just calls them promo bricks. Join BrickNerd as we look into the past, present, and future of promo bricks. Promo bricks generally take two forms: Duplo, Brick 1 x 2 x 2, or Brick 2 x 4 x 3. LEGOLAND California has only used the Duplo version, while LEGOLAND Deutschland has fully embraced the system brick version. As we’ll see, the other parks have often used a strange combination of both versions. I’ll mention here that this article isn’t going to be an exhaustive catalog or listing of all the promo bricks. We’re going to touch on the more common occurrences of LEGOLAND-specific promo bricks and discuss trends. West Coast is the Best Coast We’ll start our journey in sunny Southern California since that’s where my...

Have you ever been at a LEGO convention when all of a sudden two people in a buffalo costume burst into the room and start dancing? How about a con where two people give out swag, MOC kits, and even tasty treats all themed around the letter B? Let me introduce you to Miles Finlay and Stephen Joo, the B Boys of Canada who created AfobLife and became the heart and soul of BrickCan in Vancouver. I’ll have one of BrickCan’s organizers, John Langrish explain it for us: “In 2016, Miles and Stephen burst onto the scene and immediately showcased how the generosity and creativity of the AFOL community extend far beyond the bricks. I became fast friends with both of them, as did so many other members of our community. BrickCan is fortunate to have them as a core component of the show, and we collaborate closely with them throughout the year to...

Gears. It’s what Technic is all about (apart from pneumatics 😉). When LEGO first created gears in a Samsonite set back in 1965, there were only four different sizes and the gears were all similar. Fast forward to 2024, and LEGO has produced gears in nearly 50 different shapes and sizes! Let me take you through the history of LEGO gears. Along the way, you’ll learn about different types of gears, why so many have teeth in multiples of four, and see some of the clever design choices in the LEGO gear family. Early Days The first LEGO gears, the Samsonite gears back in 1965, had no axles. They were simply round plates you could put on wheels. Five years later, the Expert Builder gears looked very similar, but they now have axles. A big improvement when you want to turn something! These gears have long, thin teeth, almost like spokes....

For each issue of BrickJournal Magazine, the BrickNerd team creates instructions for a LEGO mini-model to go with the theme of the cover story. For their recent issue about minifigures, we created a LEGO builder’s dream studio. Building a LEGO Studio To celebrate the minifigure, we decided to make a studio for all their building needs. Who doesn’t need a sleek building desk for their LEGO hobby? The studio has drawers full of colorful pieces, a stack of baseplates on the floor, a nifty angled lamp, and even some awesome gear on the walls for decoration. Some of those decorations include a Classic Space tile from the Galaxy Explorer and a LEGO logo brick from the 1970s! You can, of course, customize your studio habitat with whatever you like. Imagine a studio with the shield of your favorite Castle faction or the dark red LEGO tile from the Pickup Truck hanging...

Today’s guest article comes from BrickNerd patron Wayne Tyler. We’ve featured Wayne’s architectural work many times, and today he takes a look at the LEGO Architecture 21061 Notre-Dame de Paris. Half and Half There are two things that really set me off when talking about LEGO architecture sets. First, I complain bitterly when an architecture set only gives you half the model. Can you say 21030 U.S. Capitol Building or 21058 Great Pyramid of Giza? View fullsize View fullsize In both cases, I bought a second set so that I could have one complete model. Second, though I own them all, the Skyline series of architecture sets strays from what attracted me to the architecture line of LEGO sets in the first place: stand-alone builds of iconic structures. Think 21005 Fallingwater or 21045 Trafalgar Square. View fullsize View fullsize An architecture set doesn’t even have to be intricate or complicated. My favorite set, which is...