LEGO Minifigures Online - Beta test
Hurry! To those who interested to join the beta test, register yourself here! http://www.playminifigures.com
I just did =)
Beware of Lego imitation!
Original vs Imitation
Of course you can identify which one is the imitation.. right?
Another Completed MOC
I love the ironman soooo much that i think getting only ironman set like malibu mansion attack 76007, Extremis Sea Port battle 76006 and Mandarin Ultimate Showdown 76008 is not enough. Lucky for me, Lego publish building instruction for Ironman Lab!!!Took me about 2 months to get the parts. You can download the instruction here: Ironman Lab Building Instruction
and here's what mine looks like:
i try to follow the instruction as detail as i can and i'm really proud of it. love every detail like this one:
Price? In total is about RM200.. because i order the parts from many seller hence the postage cost is very expensive. Plus, i try to follow the instructions one by one and some parts are very expensive like the baseplate here, i think it's about RM15. Instead of getting one single baseplate like this, i may opt small pieces baseplate and combine them that might cost me lower.
When you have nothing to do..
Look at what i have done to my black tumbler!
i paint it camo!!. Maybe next time i can spray it with hello-kitty theme =p
My first collection of Lego Bicycle
Let's the picture do the talking =)
All 7 bicycles cost me about RM150 being the yellow is the most expensive. There are other 2 colors that i wont buy: Bright Light Orange and Blue that cost USD100 each. no typo here. You read it right. USD hundred. I read somewhere about this 2 color soo rare because they are either from factory test molds or distributed at special Lego event. =)
I love Clowns!
I finally have enough tile for this set!
Just another exclusive minifigure
This is McCain from City Theme. I got him from polybag (5000281 Chase Mccain) that come free with pre-order of game LEGO city undercover. The only different is the printed badge on his arm... err.. and the machinegun is not from lego.it is custom made =)
hmm, maybe i should do review on other exclusive minifigure that i have eh.
Next Pride Stuff.. Droid?
This is still not complete. Waiting my *bling*bling* chrome gold C3P0 to arrive. then i can sealed them in display case =)
update: this is the latest pic of my droid collection
My Pride - Star Wars Astromech
Individual price is not that expensive, but how i got them what make i appreciate them the most. I got them from many seller across the world. and it took me months to complete them.
Superman Alarm Clock
Today is my birthday and look what my wife bought me! Superman Alarm Clock!
Gungan Style?
If only i can improve my photoshop skill =(
CMF Series 10
It's finally here! Actually i bought them from Germany. The postage is only Euro11 and sealed box of 30 only cost me Euro 48. Plus, minus, multiply,divide and each pack is only RM8.50 (inclusive postage yo!!). How much TRU sell them? RM12.90! That's RM4.40 more expensive! I forgot to write down what i got in those 30 packs of CMF but definitely no Mr.Gold, otherwise i'll announce it on the first and main post. haha.
you'll be guaranteed to receive 1 complete set of 16 s10 minifigures... and another 14 mix minifigures in each box of 30 pack.
It's sealed.. so chances of getting Mr.Gold is there.
The extras to let go
My first 4 modular
I miss the first 3 modular (10182 cafe corner, 10190 market street and 10185 Green Grocer) because they are already EOL (End of life cycle) by the time i start collecting modular. now i only have 4 out of 5 modular available on the lego website =)
I'm getting 10197 Fire Brigade next =)
My new UCS
I believe i'm one of the earliest in Malaysia that have this UCS set-Red Five X-wing Starfighter. Released on 4th May 2013 in US and i got them in my hand on 7th May 2013. How cool is that?? Paid RM900 for this set. The box is not so huge.. consider ok la for UCS. I took picture of the box with mineral water bottle side by side to show size comparison.. not that the bottle come with the lego =)
This is my 2nd UCS.
My first 2000++ bricks
I'm really excited when i bought this set that i took only 5 hours to build it! This is one of UCS (Ultimate Collector Series) version that i can get at affordable price.
presenting.. UCS R2-D2 from Star Wars theme!
update: and i found the best case for my R2-D2! I kept this in my office room. Definitely not good idea to put at home since i have 2 little gremlin who definitely will tear this robot into pieces =)
Oh, i paid RM200 for this case.. if i recall correctly lah.
Email me if you need to know the place where i order this case.
Hot wheels + Lego + Daiso Case
I didn't collect hot wheels. but for this model is an exception =p. And some nice minifigure to complete the look =)
Promotional Brick
I don't know if i want to start collecting these or not. This is the only promotional brick that i have. 2009 Master Builder Event.
Remember This figure?
These are among the earliest mini figure that i play with when i was a kid. that's about 25++ years ago!
What i love about Lego CMF Minifigures
Aside from recent Shell Lego promotion (6 polybag of ferrari vehicle and 1 polybag minifigure), Lego CMF Minifigures are probably the cheapest way to collect unique lego minifigures. Sold in sealed packet, you have to use certain skill(picit-picit) to guess what's inside each packet.
The first series was released by Lego in 2010. To date, there are 9 series released. Each series have 16 different minifigures. I myself start collecting them a bit late. I bought series 1 last year, (that's in 2012) that cost me RM640 for 16 minifig. (That's freaking RM40 for each minifig!) i think the original RRP should be RM10.90 to RM12.90 each. Amazing how they appreciate in just 2 years!
However, the value that collector put on each minifig isn't same. The zombie most likely the most expensive. I've been told that zombie in series 1 alone might cost you RM1xx per piece!
Hi there! I'm worth rm1xx.! Dont play play!
what's inside each packet? you have to guess!
From left side, series 1 to series 8 inside sealed packet
Let's do some calculation here.. 16 minifigures for each series.. For 9 series, you already have 144 small minifigures in collection. keeping/displaying them is a problem if you didn't plan well.
Lego do sell display box that look like this: (source: internet)
but the price is freaking expensive!
This is what it looks like when i first display those minifigures in my display cabinet. crowded and doesn't look exclusive at all.
So, i come out with my own DIY. I want to display them so that its more organized, looks exclusive and easy to distinguish between series. I'm thinking of design like bench@stadium - stages!
Using a few block of styrofoam, a ruler, a pencil, a styrofoam cutter and double sided tape, i manage to prepare this!
end result
This is my collection of series 1 (bottom) to the latest series 9 (top)
side view
Ever thought using frame to display your minifigures?
I have roughly 400 minifigures and from that amount alone, 160++ are star wars minifigure. Here are some of them.
Ì love star wars character very much that i think they deserve special attention. I stumble upon few blogs that use ikea frame to display minifig. How cool is that?! The one they use is Ribba-type. It's not a rocket science. you just need:
1) ribba frame,
2) 2x2 bricks,
3) superglue,
4) a pencil,
5) a ruler,
6) a knife, and
7) thick cardboard for background.
One fine day, i went to Ikea Damansara and spent about 30 minutes standing in front those frame, unsure which one should i get.
I've decided to buy the smaller frame. It can hold nicely 18 minifigures compared to 70 minifigures that the bigger frame can hold. The smaller frame cost me RM35 and the bigger frame is RM65. It's not the money issue. Using the bigger frame definitely cost me less compared to buying the smaller frame. for 160 minifigures, i have to buy 10 smaller frame (RM350) but if i choose the bigger frame, i only need 3 of those (RM195).
The only reason i didnt buy the bigger frame because it's too huge! and very heavy! so i have no regret getting the smaller one. I bought 6 of those! hehe.
Now i have these prepared for my new project:
I don't know how to explain in detail what i did. but you have to do some measurement to nicely stick 2x2 bricks on the cardboard. Then you may choose your favourite minifig to have a place on the frame. Please remember: DO NOT superglue your minifig to the bricks. Only glue the bricks to the cardboard!
The end result, walla!!!!!!!
update: 21/08/2013: it's been a while, but finally i manage to kinda *sort* my star wars minifigure in the frame. The difficult part is which character to go in which frame. The sad part? i dont have enough character to complete the category! arghhhh! Look at the label that i tag in the frame. huhu
Cheapest display box in town
Please visit Daiso. They have very cute RM5 display box. It's cheap. but hey,, its serve the purpose. You can elegantly display your minifig and at the same time, no dust can get to them. so far i found there are flat, mini, and stair type. there are also other design as well, why dont u guys have a look? only in daiso (free promo.. hehe)
example of mini type
Here are some photos of my other minifigures. I try to group them to the same theme. i only use stair type frame.
i've yet to find correct case to store my Toy Story minifigures. The RM5 display case wont fit all in.
I read somewhere that daiso@ gurney plaza have RM20 display case. Its bigger and wider. I plan to use that case to fit my toy story minifigure.
update@1st June 2013;
I found the case i was looking for. It's RM15 only and definitely from daiso.
I really love the case. Cheap and good quality too. Apparently, not all Daiso have these bigger case. Most of them have those RM5 case. but if you are looking for this RM15 case, please visit Daiso in Sg.Wang. I've heard about red daiso, green daiso.. but really forgot this Sg.Wang outlet is which one..
as usual, once i'm crazy about something, i always bought them extra..
even lightning mcqueen and his friend also got new home =)
I have 2 kids at home.. 3 years old and 1 years old. Lego definitely is not suitable for them, so i have to keep it off their reach. It's up here.
closer look
temporary case. found RC car case in the store. too small and crowded.
also crowded ... but i love the hulk! Grrrrr!!
minifigure from the latest ironman set (year 2013)
minifigures from team olympic
i almost give up on batman minifigures. most of super heroes minifig very expensive. Alfred or nightwing minifigure cost more than RM150 each!
This really bring my childhood back... Its Ninjaturtle!! This is 2013 theme.
Final Result
Bonus Part: I'am FURIOUS!!! (lol)
Look at what i received today. something
I am too angry to check the contents.. i'm really sure there's something missing from the parcel. This is the risk that i have to bear when buy stuff from oversea. Don't know who to blame; seller? courier guy? Arghhhh!!!
Part 2: I got the parts!
Let the picture do the talking ;). Yup. I ordered the parts from a few seller hence the postage cost quite *shock*
And the *yawn* moment was when i need to sort it out. phew. nearly two hours to check if the seller sent the correct parts i ordered.
I think i love black parts =)
Part 1: I'm OUT OF control!
This is what happen when i try to complete the batman tumbler and a few MOC. it's really scary. I just show you how many orders i already made. wont disclose how much i already spent thou. what i can say.. its scary... it took almost 3-4 weeks after you place order from other country will reach your doorstep.
First attempt to MOC
Expensive Hobby
Lego is surely a very expensive hobby. my wishlist is Super Star Destroyer 10221. Retail price in US is USD399.99 equivalent to RM1,200.00. RRP in UK is GBP349.99 equivalent to RM1,750.00. Its always cheaper from US because nowadays EVERYTHING is from US. demn.
Guess how much they are sold here at our local toys "R" Us? RM1999!!!!!. ALJ is the only sole distributor of lego in Malaysia. They must be very profitable company. I know there are other cost than price of the item itself, eg: postage cost, handling cost, custom tax,.. but hey, ALJ dont get stock from Lego website. they must got very special distributor rate since they buy in really large quantity and the postage also, must be really cheap since it's in bulk. bla bla bla.. i really mumble a lot about ridiculous price that ALJ put on price tag.
The best place to get Lego
If you live in Malaysia, then I wish you good luck. You will have very hard time hunting the best price for lego that you are going to spend. not to mention about the stock availability and the condition of the box. (please note that there are few people who not only buy lego just to have the set, but to keep the box in the best condition ever).
Buying online from official Lego website is not available to Malaysian. That's mean you have no other choice but to buy Lego from physical store like Parkson, Aeon Big, Isetan, TRU, Brickboy.. all supplied by ALJ. Who is ALJ? SOLE DISTRIBUTOR.... SOLE DISTRIBUTOR.. SOLE DISTRIBUTOR!!
Hey, i forgot to mention, if you don't mind to pay slightly more for lego, then go on, just buy from those physical store that i mention above. no need to continue reading. but if you have tighter budget, wanna get lego from other source, please continue reading.
for normal lego set.. easy to find set:
Aside the physical store, the best place to buy is via online. Even tough we dont have the option to buy from official lego store, we have alternative such as ebay.com.my, mudah.my, lelong.com.my, forums and from blogs! Don't be suprise if the price that you will find is below what's displayed on the shelves at Parkson. Yup, it's true. for those easy to find lego set, the price advertised on those online site is CHEAPER. (those discontinued lego set, hard to find set is exception in this case). Certain party/individual who are willing to import those set from US MANAGE to get them cheaper, I wonder why Parkson and others are selling at high price? V.E.R.Y H.I.G.H
for EOL (end of life) set, hard to get:
If you are looking for EOL set, then you have no choice but to pay premium for those set. They are not even available at official lego website because they are no longer produced. The alternative is to get from ebay/amazon (amazon dont ship to malaysia).. or bricklink. Bricklink (www.bricklink.com) is very large marketplace for lego stuff. But IMHO, they are riskier then ebay/amazon. No contract made in bricklink. you simply put order>receive invoice>pay to seller>wait for seller to post the item. I've read few experience of blogger who either lost the parcel sent to them or seller didn't post the item at all/send the wrong item. But sometimes, you have no other choice but to buy from bricklink. Let me put this in example. Please google lego set 10182 "cafe corner". Its first released in April 2007. Now is 2013 and the set was long EOL. The set was priced roughly at USD140 in 2007 and in 2013, price for MISB (mint in sealed box) is about USD 1,800! yes, you read it right. Meaning those set in malaysia now will cost you RM6,000++. Here's where bricklink come in example. If you are lucky enough, you may get USED set of cafe corner from bricklink at RM2,000++.
Planning/Budgeting
I realized that i'm not the best to lecture on about how to spend within budget because i myself always over spent. so i wont write long about this :). What i do know, you must focus on what are you targeting/want to achieve. If you have unlimited fund, then no problem lah.but for me as normal malaysian citizen, makan gaji summore, i always have to remind myself what i want and stick to it.
I love minifig, not that i hate the set. but i'm too busy working and having 2 kids make my 24 hours is not enough. i don;t have time building the bricks and i have problem displaying them. for me,i love star wars, LOTR, POTC, super heroes and sponge bob minifig. So in my daily hunting, i dont bother looking at the set, my eyes only scan those minifigures.
For those parents looking for lego set for their 7 year old kids, i recommend "CREATOR" 3 in 1 set. you can build up to 3 variant (model) from the same bricks. eg set 31004. you can build an eagle, a scorpion or a beaver . how cool is that?
It's very tempting to get all the lego set available. but you will go bankrupt if you want all theme. Just stick to few theme that you are comfortable and enjoy it.
messy shelves
Last saturday, i went to Jusco Midvalley to buy planet series. as usual, the available set is pathetic. what's more pathetic is someone try to hide the set behind bigger set or maybe at other shelves. Since i went there early, i have time to gather the set according to series. (i know, i'm not paid to do so but i just hate people hiding the boxes). There are only 2 complete set of planet series. i bought 1 set and i left the other set like this.
Let other customer have equal chances to buy lego, shall we?
Hmmm...
My story at jusco midvalley didnt end there. After i make payment at the counter, i was stopped at the exit when the alarm sound. 2 lady staff come and look inside my shopping bag. Without explaination, they took out my lego boxes and tear out the security seal at the bottom of the boxes. I think it's very rude not to explain things what they are doing to stuff already paid by the customer and 2nd.. why they have to tear the security seal? don;t they just need to bring the item to counter to deactivate something? now look what they did to my lego box:
I didn't know why i dont file complaint about this. but i did ask for refund the next day. they told me i have to wait 30 days for the refund to appear in my bank account. but i dont mind. I bought the very same item at Brickboy, The Garden. Now i have nearly perfect box condition. Hey, i pay these lego at premium (compared to prices in US/UK) so i expect to get the best for my money!
This is series 3 and series 4 of my planet series
update: i've got my series 1 and 2 of planet series.
update 2 (18/08/2013): i just read somewhere that the planet series will be discontinued and replaced with microfighter series. waaaaa!
The cutest turbo tank
i know i can built it cheaper if i order the bricks separately and refer to free instruction manual that available on the net... but....
i paid RM120 for this polybag!!! *shock*
Biggest minifig that i have
Look at the size, compared to the actual boba fett mini figure
Just kidding! it's actually alarm clock. Bought at Borders The Garden for RM110.00. I think it's really good price. Retail price in US is about USD30. after conversion is about RM90. To think that we can get it in Malaysia for RM20 difference, i think it's good enough.
This is the cheapest i found so far.
Uh uh.. now i need to find him a cape and blaster =)
Souvenir from Legoland
Brick Calendar, Keychain
Bought these when i visit legoland in Johor for the 2nd time. The brick calendar is RM59.90 and i think it's fair enough. US retail price after conversion is RM50. and that's not include postage.. so i grab one!
and the keychain... i think it's RM19.90.. actually i can get it cheaper if i bought them in Brickboy. I think 10% cheaper because of the discount for member.. but i still bought these from LLM because i want to buy something that i can remember. "uh, i bought this keychain from LLM". it's more like sentimental value that i can remember in the future..
