Is there a duplicate/copy paste function in Lego Mindstorms Ev3 programing? I remember, when I first started out Lego Mindstorms, there was a copy and paste (duplicate) blocks function. I could highlight and right click the blocks then press on duplicate to make another copy of it. This was extremely useful if I needed the robot to do something almost like another line of code, albeit with some minor changes. Is there something resembling this function now or did it never exist (my mind might be playing tricks on me)?

I am using the Lego Mindstorms Ev3 Student Edition by LabView.

I don't remember any context menu that pops up on right-click, but CTRL+C to copy highlighted blocks and CTRL+V to paste them works.


How do I repair loose arm joints? The arms on my LEGO minifigures are loose.  How can I repair these to remain in place when I move the arm to the location I want it to stay in?

I have been experimenting to find the answer to this question, and today I have finally found it. I stumbled across a youtube vid of a child explaining his method, and mine was built off of his.  His idea is to take labels, cut them into tiny pieces that are stuck onto the arm at the point where it connects into the torso. This works, all too well. Here's the problem. The arms get incredibly tight, as a result of there being too much pressure. This pressure slowly puts stress on the torso, and within weeks you will notice the modified figures busting open at the seam off the torso. This is generally on the sides, at the base, and it slowly cracks it's way up to the armpit permanently destroying your figures. I found this out the hard way when 10 of my superhero figures were destroyed. Still, I am thankful because this lead to my discovery. Once the figures had been destroyed, I quickly removed the labels from all the others I had done, to stop them from suffering the same fate. What I realized was that once the arms had been doctored, after removing the label (I used small pieces of a cat hair roller, and I'd advise you use this because I'm not sure labels are sticky enough) the arms retained Their clutch. This is a result of the stickiness staying with the arms after the sticky paper/cat roller material had been removed, but it feels like a perfect arm. The clutch is there, and you will not have to worry about the torso cracking. So now that you know, don't make the same mistake I did. This is what I would advise.

Remove the loose arm.
cut a small square off the cat roller.
place it on the connected part of the loose arm.
insert it into a torso that you have double of, or don't care about.
set it down, and wait an hour.
remove the arm, take off the sticky paper.
carefully insert arm back into the original torso.

Now you have a perfect arm. It has amazing clutch, and best of all because the clutch comes from a sticky texture instead of immense pressure, your torsos will stay intact.


How can I emulate this wheel from the mowing unit of a ride-on mower? I am trying to build a model of a specific ride-on mower with Lego and I cannot find a satisfying solution for the wheels supporting the mowing unit.

This is what they look like on the original:

Note that the bottom of the wheel is below the bottom line of the unit that it supports.

The scale on which I am working and my best solution so far is this (the front part):

The wheel nicely extends below the structure it supports, but:

horizontally, it extends rather far from the structure,
it builds up quite high vertically,
the construction is not very robust.

Thus my question is: What other part or combination of parts could I use to emulate this wheel? I prefer if the required parts are easily available in red, but I appreciate other suggestions as well, as I may have missed something that I can do with the parts at hand.

My first thought would be to try and build this using 2x 32017 - Technic Liftarm 5 Thin and the following combination of a 1/2 bush and a tire (same tire you have on the wheel on the black part of your build, though the front tire might fit too).

If you use a 2L axle (in red!) this should look quite sleek. Not sure if the tire is going to be tall enough to support the mower, but it would definitely be sturdy, given that you're using Technic.


Please help me identify the set these LEGO parts are from They could definitely be from two separate sets. Any help would be appreciated!

That's an easy one:

It's part of the Modular Buildings series in the LEGO Creator Expert line.
It's a series intended for the advanced builder, consisting of detailed buildings that click together to form a street.


MOCs: A question about using LEGO trademark I recently made a MOC using LEGO bricks that I would like to sell. I know that, since this is my own construction I have the rights to do that, but my question is about the LEGO trademark. I want to make a box to ship the guides and pieces, and I would like to know if I can say "made with LEGO bricks" on it or something related to LEGO. I do not intend to use their logo or try to fool the buyer trying to make him think this is a official product.
Would something like "non official made with LEGO product" get me in trouble?

If you read the Fair Play Brochure linked from the Fair Play policy, you will see more detailed sections covering "Attempted Association" and "Product Copying". The reason you're not seeing an explicit "commercial use" call out is because there isn't one - if you want to use their trademarks commercially, you will need to get a commercial license via a licencing agreement:

The LEGO Group’s trademarks and copyrighted material may NEVER be used by unrelated third parties for their own commercial or marketing purposes, unless formal permission or a written licence has been granted by the LEGO Group.

Basically, you should not use the LEGO logo anywhere on your product or marketing materials to avoid any doubt. I'm aware of at least one LEGO Certified Professional (whose main site seems to have dropped off the net, but you can still find some bits on Facebook) whose products you can still find listed on various sites that give a fairly good example of how to do this:

I've seen these in Aquatics shops and online. A number of the listings mention LEGO but there's nothing explicit on the packaging - although the blue 4x2 is rather close to the official red 4x2 that is copyrighted. The catalogues however do carry the Logo as part of the LEGO Certified Professional program.
I would recommend doing point 1 below, as I'm not a lawyer, but I would suggest your options are either:

Not referencing LEGO in any way, other than through the product shots.
If you do reference LEGO, that should be purely in text ideally on the rear of the packaging (i.e. not prominent), include the ® symbol, and include their disclaimer (i.e. "LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group of companies which does not sponsor, authorize or endorse this product") and contact a lawyer.


Any cheap Technic sets with a good variety of parts? I want to start building a module like GBC mini loop 001, but when I check the part list some are very hard to get. How should I get started?

BTW, I got a very big set, Bucket Wheel Excavator 420555, and wanted to be able to do MOC's based on the parts in there. There are still many parts not included that I need for building this small toy. Any suggestions?

In answer to your question "I want to build a Great Ball Contraption and have LEGO set 42055, what other LEGO sets do I need to buy?" the answer is: None. You've got all the bits needed, even a motor.
Instructions to make a Great Ball Contraption from LEGO set 42055 are available for purchase for about USD25, and advertisement for the instructions can be see on YouTube. The are other instructions available - like https://www.bricklink.com/v3/studio/design.page?idModel=140147
The PV instructions are just one of dozens of alternative 42055 builds.


Can you identify a set containing a zebra and spider minifig? I have 2 bags of unopened Lego bricks but I cannot determine what set they belong to...bag 2 344R6 and bag 4 344R6. They are probably from Lego Junior. I can tell there is a zebra character minifig and a spider character minifig.

Batman baddie ZEEEeeeebra-Man,

and tough gurl TA-TAH-Taaaarantula !!!

From Set 70907-1 Killer Croc Tail-Gator.


What elements do I need to create a smooth multi cheese slope ramp? I love cheese slopes, but I am having issues when I try to produce a smooth gradient using several in succession. I end up with a gentle saw tooth effect at each junction. What combination of elements do I require to get the smooth appearance I'm trying to achieve?

To create a smooth surface with cheese slopes they must be offset by one-half plate in height. There are several techniques to do this. Here is one using the common "headlight" brick. It has the advantage of being extendable to nearly any length.


How can I keep LEGO winches from becoming tangled? I have some LEGO winches/strings with hooks.

Putting these away inevitably results in tangled strings (the next time I take them out). Even winding them up doesn't help.

Storing these in drawers and/or shelves is not an option for me. I keep most of my LEGO collection in a LEGO Star Wars box.

Is there some way I could build other bricks onto these so they won't unwind?

I take 2 of these:

Place 2 pins in the holes

And then sandwich the loop of string between.

It works well and you likely have the pieces lying nearby.


How do I get started with Mindstorms NXT 2.0? I need help programming a NXT 2.0 Lego Mindstorms. I want to make the robot turn, stop, go back, etc. when the color sensors see certain colors. For example when the robot sees red it stops then turns. Please help me I am new to Mindstorms and programming.

As was pointed out, this question is not specific in nature, so it's hard to give a definitive answer. If you haven't already done so, it would probably be helpful head over to Lego.com and grab get the NXT 2.0 User Guide and perhaps begin looking through the sample programs.

This book may also be helpful to you:

The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Discovery Book: A Beginner's Guide to Building and Programming Robots

If you run into specific problems as you are getting started, feel free to create a new question, and we'll try to help you out.


Light on color sensor is blue We had the sensor color on red and it was working with our remote.  We changed the batteries in the 'brain' and now the light sensor is blue and won't work with the remote.  Any suggestions? It's a mindstorm EV3 sensor.

The color of the LED on the LEGO EV3 Color Sensor depends on which mode it is in.

From the EV3 help file:

  COLOR MODE

  When the Color Sensor is in Color mode, red, green, and blue LED lights on the front of the sensor will turn on.

  REFLECTED LIGHT INTENSITY MODE

  When the Color Sensor is in Reflected Light Intensity mode, a red LED light on the front of the sensor will turn on.

  AMBIENT LIGHT INTENSITY MODE

  In Ambient Light Intensity mode, a blue LED light on the front of the sensor will turn on dimly.

If you want the LED to be red, make sure you are using the Reflected Light Intensity Mode in your program.

If you are doing this and the LED still does not turn red, you should contact LEGO MINDSTORMS customer support.


Why do some LEGO City vehicles have tiles in their chassis? While building 60150 Pizza Van, I noticed that the first few steps of building the eponymous vehicle have you place lime green 1x2 tiles in specific positions and black 1x2 plates in others:

These then get covered completely by light grey 2x16 plates (although you can still see them just behind the wheels and mudguards of the finished model):

A similar use of tiles appears in other LEGO City vehicles, such as the ambulance in 60204 LEGO City Hospital.

Why are tiles used in parts of the chassis construction? Is it to (slightly) reduce the number of studs holding onto the tubes of the 2x16 plates, thereby making them easier to remove when taking things apart later?

I asked one of the set designers at LEGO, Samuel Johnson, on Twitter. Here is our conversation:

This to aid in the building flow for children aged 5 and up. Easy to spot on the page, easy to find in the pile of bricks :)
— https://twitter.com/Spider_Sam_LEGO/status/1037914372897681409

Ah! Do both the colour and the shape (studless vs studded) contribute to this?
— https://twitter.com/NOVALISTIC/status/1037914613847740416

Depends on the model :)
5year olds aren’t very strong, so it can make it easier to build
— https://twitter.com/Spider_Sam_LEGO/status/1037967767847227392

That makes sense. Too many stud-and-tube connections can make building difficult even for me at times. Thanks for answering!
— https://twitter.com/NOVALISTIC/status/1037994518295994368

So, it's an interaction of several factors including ease of following the instructions, as well as ease of physically attaching elements together (and, presumably in turn, disassembling them).


What did Lego set instruction manuals look like in the past? Earliest date mentioned in this link is September 2008. Now knowing the age of Lego makes me want to know: what did Lego set instruction manuals used to look like? Because I am a millennial, that "Auto CAD" look is the look that I've always known to be the "Lego manual" look. When was this style first used? What did previous styles look like? How many previous incarnations of the Lego manual style have there been?

The earliest LEGO sets did not have any kind of instruction manuals, since they were sold as sets of building blocks, without any specific models in mind.
Exmaple: Set #7002, Automatic Binding Bricks from 1949

In 1955, the first sets have arrived that were intended to be built as some specific model, like 1237-2: Service Station

I can't find any instructions for this one, but two years later the 1306: VW Garage had four steps on the inside of the box to aid in building:

A newer example from 1965 is the 320: Airplane set, which had a four pages long instruction manual of which two pages were inspirational images of alternative builds:

Jumping another ten years ahead to 1975, we see that the instruction manual for 253-2: Helicopter and Pilot has a whopping 3 pages dedicated to the main build:

Further 10 years into the future, a representative set would be 107-2: Mail Truck, whose assembly instructions do not differ significantly, just get a bit more detailed:

By 1990 we get to the most complex style yet, with stepwise part lists and insets in insets for the Technic and the similarly complex Model Team lines, like for example the instructions for 5590: Whirl and Wheel Super Truck:

From there the style is basically unchanged, and the trend is to use fewer pieces per step, sometimes "sacrificing" a whole step just to show the model being flipped or rotated.


Why was 4265 redesigned? According to Bricklink, there are three versions of the part 4265:

4265a with teeth and tight-fit axle hole
4265b with teeth and loose axle hole
4265c without teeth and loose axle hole

Looking at the release dates it seems like B superseded A and C superseded B, although there were long overlap periods. My guess is B was introduced to reduce the amount of plastic used per-part and possibly to make it easier to slide it on an axle.
Then C removed teeth because they're fragile and tend to break off.

Is my theory correct? If not, then why was that part redesigned?

I'll speak from my experience with these items as I don't have any formation backed by TLG.

The teeth themselves, found on A and B version of the 4265, while looking fragile, weren't the cause of the redesign I think. These could bend or deform but still be gripping with Technic plates with toothed ends as well as toothed pin axle connectors (which I think was the primary reason teeth existed on half bushes at first).

First two versions seem to be quite weak since they tend to crack quite often. Especially with aging, when clutch strength increases (perhaps parts shrink a little over time?). Don't know the reason behind designing version B, but it looks like the issue with cracking was observed and TLG tried to remediate this.

As for version C, I cannot really tell if supplemental sets released in 1993 really had this version included. It looks like the actual year C version was used is 1997, being part of several sets. You'll also notice this is also the year modern Technic connectors (like 32016) were introduced. These new connectors have the same angles you could construct from toothed pin axle connectors with busing of A or B type and are much stronger. Due to this there's no need for half-bushing to have teeth, thus it can have a little more plastic to make it stronger. In fact, I cannot really remember if any of modern 1/2 bushing I have got cracked or broken.

As seen on this picture from Rebrickable C version (represented here as 32123a and 32123b) had minor mould change over its production as well. Bricklink doesn't distinguish these variations and use 4265c part number for both.


Can I download a programm written in C# into brick? I use C# language and http://www.mindsqualls.net/ library. But I could not find how to download my program into brick. Actually, is it possible? Or I just have to control my nxt 2.0 robot via bluetooth? Are there any languages/libraries which allow to download programs into brick or it is only possible for mindstorms nxt 2.0 visual editor?

It doesn't seem to be possible. To quote mindsqualls' site:

  MindSqualls is a .Net library for controlling a LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT or NXT 2.0 robot via either a Bluetooth- or an USB connection. It is written in C# and requires .Net v. 2.0 or newer.

Which means it allows you to control your NXT brick from the PC, and from the PC only. It does not offer any possibility to create a program which you would download on the brick.

But fortunately, the second part of your question has a more positive answer: yes, there are alternatives to the visual editor provided by LEGO, and there are actually a lot of them. This has been covered extensively in another question, so I won't get into the details again, but a good start is this list of alternatives compiled by Steve Hassenplug. Note that Mindsqualls is on that list, in the section devoted to software that only runs on the PC ("remote controls").


Where can I buy engraved LEGO bricks? What is the cheapest site to buy engraved LEGO bricks?

I am searching for the cheapest site to buy engraved 2X4/2x6 bricks so that I can put names on them and send them to people. Any insight is greatly appreciated.

Online I would recommend BrickEngraver
I think your best bet would be to find a local trophy shop, most will engrave items.  Take them some LEGO to test and they should be able to provide what you need without the need to pay shipping.


What is the writing on this sticky note tile? Is it a bullet-point list? Or some kind of poem? Or non-words?

LEGO Tile 1 x 1 with Black Writing (Sticky Note / Post-It) with Groove (25389)

First trace of that piece is in LEGO Olivia's Exploration Car Set 41116. It featured stickied on an astronomy-oriented map.

Probably a bullet point list, and the second word might be Mars ?. No idea about the first one

It was also released in other sets at around the same time, one of those is Emma Creative Workshop 41115-1

In that case the sticky note is in a girly room/workshop, and it could conceivably be a list of two character names, Ian and Marc, as @V2Blast said in the commands. These sets are part of the Heartlake stuff of LEGO Friends, I don't know if there are two characters with these names.

And, in the end, it's probably left vague deliberately, after all it's LEGO, where we are supposed to create new stuff from their bricks, not be constrained by the sticky note's words. As an examples this sticky notes brick is also used in a LEGO Ideas (Old Fishing Store), where it is on top of the cash register, and it's clearly not used for what's written on the note (Ian, Marc or Mars), just as a generic sticky note.


How can I make a working pin tumbler lock? I'd like to make a working pin tumbler lock out of LEGO bricks. I have already designed a key I'd like to use that should be compatible with five cylinder lock.

This would push the pins up and down like a normal key would.

Here is the basic system. I don't have time to build to whole thing but this resolves the main problem and proves the feasibility.

The main problem was to reproduce the pins system with LEGO bricks since each pins needs to have different lengths.   Early in this project, I wanted to have a 'analog' approach of setting the pins length so to not be constrained by only stacking plates.  For that I used axle perpendicular-joiner (6536) on an axle to build the driver pins (top pins):

The key pins (lower pins) are caped with angles connectors (32013) creating the needed round tips on which the key can push.

In a standard pin tumbler lock system, if the right key is not pushing on the pins, both the driver pins and the key pins can prevent the rotation motion.  If the key tooth is too low, the driver pins is blocking and, if the key tooth is too high, the key pin is blocking.  In my system the driver pins are doing both functions.

In the prototype the red rounded beam and the driver pins would be fixed while the rest would rotating with the key.  In the following picture you can see the lock without the key.  In that state all the driver pins go through the black Technic beam (under the red rounded beam). This would prevent the key from turning.

In the following picture the key is now inserted and all the driver pins are now flushed.  In this position ther driver keys are not engaged into the beams that are part of the rotating module.  This enables the key to turn.

If the wrong key is used or the key is not inserted correctly, the pins would be either too low or too high engaging into the beams that are part of the rotating module and thus preventing rotation.

Movie time! Here's a video demonstrating the mechanism.

The biggest downsides of this system are the size and the fact that the driver pins are not pushed down by spring but by gravity.  Both of those troubles are put to shame by the total awesomeness of having a functioning pin tumble lock made of LEGO bricks.


Please identify LEGO sets based on these parts Any ideas what set they belong?

You have the fuselage of 4618 Twin Rotor Cargo:

The red windshield is from one of these sets (the yellow sticker does not belong):

70706: Crater Creeper
4621: Jack Stone Red Flash Station
4796: Ogel Mutant Squid
9320: Voyage into Space (Journey Into Space Set)

And the 2x3 slope is from one of these sets.


Why are Technic holes slightly smaller than studs? We know that Lego studs almost never should be placed into Technic holes because studs are slightly larger and will stress the hole.  However, why is there this discrepancy?  Surely when Lego created Technic they would have considered this possibility.  Is there simply not enough room for the hole to be slightly larger?  And if Technic holes were never meant to accommodate studs, why didn't Lego make the discrepancy larger to more naturally discourage such a mating?

I'm going to guess that when axles were first introduced Expert Builder was not a thing and the hole size was based on making a convenient path through the 4x2 brick that was the only thing with holes in it. Those holes do not work with studs, they are too large. Even the "new" 1x2 bricks with hole type 1 and 2 didn't accept studs (and the gap/slot at the top prevented it). That allows axle slop, but with the huge parts at that time this was not a problem, in fact it meant low-precision models worked just fine.

In 1970 there was the "Gear Supplementary Set" and "Gear Set with Motor" that had the first mention I can find of axles and gears.

Note that the set is labelled "Universal Building Set" and TLG appear to agree that "Expert Builder" appeared after that in 1977. In 1976 when the 695 "race car" was released it used second variant red axle stops and 1x2 brick with hole type 2 but wasn't Expert Builder.

The 1x2 brick with hole makes it clear that putting a stud in the hole was not possible (this may be the reason for the slot?)

AFAIK those bricks and axles are compatible with current Technic (they work IME but the dimensions might have changed a tiny amount and I wouldn't know)

Then we can look at TLG's current view of their history and see this from "The beginning" of Technic

  In the early 1970s, Jan Ryaa was one of the very first LEGO designers to play with the idea of building cars, using large square LEGO Mobil bricks in yellow, red and blue with white cross-axles and cogwheels. These were used for showroom models and were not planned as production models, nor intended for sale.

I suspect he was using the production axles and bricks, but trying to make more mechanically accurate/challenging models and found the giant gears and 4x2 bricks a bit useless.

Brickset's history of Expert Builder makes it clear that by the time that theme was launched the "modern" Technic brick was in production. All four models used those bricks, and the hole were as compatible with studs as they are today.

Again, I can't find an official statement from TLG on this, but I will guess that since Expert Builder used existing axles they just ran with that size, only tightening up the hole a little to make their tiny-toothed gears work properly.


What are the buildings in Miniland in the Legoland Park set 40346-1? The Legoland Park set 40346-1 contains three plates with buildings/structures from the Legoland Miniland: https://www.mecabricks.com/en/models/8xaDX5zwaB7 (building instructions: https://www.lego.com/biassets/bi/6282853.pdf )

I can recognize some of them: Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge, Big Ben, Brandenburger Tor, perhaps Nyhavn.

But what are the rest supposed to be?

The comment by user "Stephan3321" (the creator of the digital model) on the linked page lists the following buildings / monuments:

Statue of Liberty
Tower of London
Steamboat Willie
Golden Gate Bridge
Brandenburg Gate
Neuschwanstein Castle
Burj Khalifa
Petronas Twin Towers

The blue, lime, orange and brown buildings could be Nyhavn, indeed, but I couldn't find any official description.


Is there a database of images of LEGO pieces without a background? For a project I am working on, I need pictures of individual LEGO pieces, but with a transparent background. Does such a database exist?

I was unable to find any sites with a decent database of images in the file format you are looking for.  I don't know what your experience is with image formats or what type of related editing software you may have access to that could help you obtain them yourself.
 If the list of parts isn't extensive then manually converting them is an option if you have the knowledge and software.  There are a lot of sites like Rebrickable & Brickset that have an excellent database of parts with neutral backgrounds that would make a crop & conversion fairly easy.  If there is a pre-existing database available that someone else answers with, I too will benefit from your question.

I did find this site that has online functionality and has the tool you need to convert pictures.  I tried it out first to make sure it worked and it certainly does.
https://www194.lunapic.com/editor/

Here is an example of the trial I did with a picture from Brickset. Hovering over them should show you the different file extensions. (Win 8.1 w/Chrome it's on lower left corner of window) You can't really tell the difference unless you click on the pictures and/or save them.

As a last resort you could add them (part# & color) to your question. I would be willing to convert them for you, just not sure how to get them to you as this Q & A format would be inappropriate.


Age recommendations explained? Can you explain the rationale behind age recommendations for various Lego products?

For example, what makes a 4-7 rating different from a 6-8? Is it unreasonable to buy a set labelled 12+ for my very advanced six year old if I will be building it with him?

Is there some guideline that explains the complexity or number of pieces? Is it related to the durability of the finished project?

The complexity of the model and the expected time to complete it will increase with the recommended age.

Lower aged sets, like the Juniors line, feature builds that rely heavily on standard stacking and more basic bricks.

As the age recommendation goes up, you'll see more advanced building techniques such as offset stacking (think stair stacking), studs not on top (SNOT technique), thinner walls (think 1x4 instead of 2x4), more plates instead of just bricks, and more.

Sets for younger children are also designed for the type of play those ages engage in. And they tend to feature brighter, primary colors, which also appeal to those age groups.

Looking at set 10672, LEGO Juniors Batman: Defend the Batcave, we can see evidence of these things:

The set uses large pieces for structure, which is  a very basic and easy technique.
The set features a car, the Batmobile, which is low on detail but structurally will hold up to the more rough play of 4-7-year-olds. Cars are very, very common for these types of sets
The set is very open, so it's easy to access from many angles for an age range still developing motor control
We see a lot of bright colors, including a blue Batman instead of a black or earth (dark) blue Batman suits we normally see

Now, we can contrast this with a slightly higher age range set, 75099 Rey's Speeder.

The Batman set was ages 4-7, and this Star Wars set is ages 7-12:

The Star Wars has more pieces, 193 vs. Batman's 150
The set itself is smaller in size, because it makes use of smaller pieces (which require more fine motor control to properly place)
The set does not come with a play area, although that's not always the case
The speeder itself features the sideways building techniques, where the tops of the elements don't point up
The color scheme is more muted, featuring dark reds and and more grays, although this is also common with licensed sets

You won't necessarily be able to apply these attributes universally across sets, especially since the age-ranges sometimes overlap, as seen in 60043 Prisoner Transport, which has an age range of 5-12.

None of this is to say that younger kids can't assemble and enjoy older-ranged sets, but the ranges given are typically where the most enjoyment and least frustration will be found.

Something else you won't see on the box is the difference in styling of the building instructions. For the Batman set's (PDF), we see there's only a single task per page, and they're often broken down into smaller steps or have large, clear arrows indicating placement. In the Star Wars set's (PDF), we see that each page has two numbered tasks and placement is less likely to be indicated by arrow for simple tasks.

These differences in instructions are because of the expected abilities and attention spans of the intended audiences. Again, this is to reduce frustration and enable the children to be more successful building the sets without relying too heavily on the adults to help.

The LEGO company does a lot of research into what types of play are better for children at different ages, because it gives them a better product. You can seem some of the information they provide parents about types of play on their Parents website, and more involvement with child education from their LEGO Education company.

This answers comes from my experience as a consumer of LEGO product for different age ranges and as a previous customer service representative. I was asked questions about the recommended age ranges on a weekly basis, and the answer I provided to customers was similar to the answer here.


Is Mindstorms EV3 backwards compatible? LEGO Group announced the next Mindstorms version, the EV3 which will be available in the Fall, 2013.

Does anyone know if the new version, specifically the controller, will be backwards compatible with the NXT 2.0 sensors and motors?

I'm assuming all of the other parts are standard Technics parts and should inter-operate without a problem.

The LEGO Group have advertised the EV3's excellent backwards compatibility with NXT.

As the cables are the same, the EV3 will work with NXT sensors, motors and, of course, LEGO Technic bricks. RCX sensors will work with the aid of converter cables.

Software designed for programming the NXT will not work for the EV3 as the NXT runs firmware, but the EV3 runs Linux. However, the graphical software that ships with the kit will be able to program older bricks.

From the official EV3 FAQ:

  Q: Can NXT sensors and motors be used with the EV3 P-brick?
  A: Yes. LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 uses the same LEGO® TECHNIC elements and RJ12 connector cables as the MINDSTORMS® NXT, so all your existing sensors, motors and building elements will work  with the new platform, and the software will recognize them as NXT sensors/motors when they  are plugged in.


Is there an XML format for Lego? I've seen some pretty neat applications using customized XML formats. There is a Musical Notation XML so that a user can create sheet music on XML. With the right software, that XML can be converted to ACTUAL sheet music, and other plugins even convert this XML to a MIDI output that plays the music.

I'm wondering if there is an XML format for Lego? I would assume it would follow a procedural output where Step 1 is take a 2x2 piece and attach peg Top-Left to 4x1 piece bottom slot. Or something similar.

Just wondering... if there isn't, I feel like there should be. With a Javascript app written for it you could have people converting Lego instruction books to XML or creating custom instruction books with walk-thrus available with a Javascript app.

Yes, there is LXFML - which is if you like an "offical" XML format for LEGO models - in that it's produced and maintained by The LEGO Group.

The .LXF format used by LEGO Digital Designer is a compressed archive containing a thumbnail in .png format and a model definition file in LFXML.

As I noted in the answer to that question, the LDD team have shared both the documentation and XSD for validating this.

Within the definition, there is scope for a <BuildingInstructions> element that can contain one or more <BuildingInstruction> elements. These in turn contain <steps> which reference one or more parts or contain sub-steps:

<BuildingInstructions>
  <BuildingInstruction name="b6206_" cameraRefID="4">
    <Step name="b6206_s1">
      <Step name="b6206_s2">
        <PartRef partRefID="0"/>
      </Step>
      <PartRef partRefID="1"/>
      <PartRef partRefID="2"/>
    </Step>
    <Step>
      <PartRef partRefID="3"/>
    </Step>
  </BuildingInstruction>
</BuildingInstructions>

Note that the <PartRefs> are Ids to parts in the <Model> elements, which define the actual element, colour and orientation.

The default steps created within LDD have been known to be a little hit and miss, adding multiple elements at once and not always visibly or in a valid order (although that may have improved since I last used it for step creation).


Best sensor for balancing inverted pendulum I want to build a balancer for an inverted pendulum. Which of the following sensors is best suited for detecting the tilt?

Accelerometer
Gyroscope
Angle sensor

As you say yourself, you want to detect the tilt of the pendulum rod, so I'm assuming what you're after is actually its angle. Measuring anything else would probably result in tedious calculations anyway; and in addition, considering you'll want to try to keep the angle in a specific range, you'll need to know it.

As such, an angle sensor may seems the most logical choice; but a gyroscopic sensor will not only offer you the angle, but some indication of the current rotation speed as well, which will be useful if you want to mimic the behaviour of a servomechanism.

However, these two sensors are single-axis only, which means that if you want the rod to be able to swing in more than one dimension, you'll have to use one sensor per axis, which may prove cumbersome to build. In that case, the acceleration sensor is probably better.

All in all, all 3 sensors are probably usable somehow, but it really depends on what exactly it is you want to build, and what you've tried so far. I'd also recommend searching for similar projects; for example, there are numerous NXT "segway" robots out there, and there's a detailed tutorial on how to build one with a gyroscopic sensor. Note that the feat seems to be possible even using a simple color sensor to detect ground proximity instead of knowing the exact angle.


Please help me identify set Please help me identify which sets these are from. I got a bag or LEGO and I think it is from multiple sets.

Thank you!

The white Plate 1X2 W. Vertical Schaft is probably from 4625: Pink Brick Box from your other question

The Turbine Ø31.81 X 2 and Tail Ø 3,2 are only together in 7984-1: Deep Sea Raider

The combination of the white Mini Claw W. Fork and the black Link 1M Fric/Fork/Stumpf can only be found together in some of the 2015 Deep Sea sets.


9v Regulator Power Question, 1 enough or multiple? I have 2 questions:

For a big 9v train layout, do you need more than one regulator to power the whole track without a shortage of power?
If a 9v layout was to have more than one regulator wouldn't it be inconvenient to control the speed of the extra regulator that is further away or do people just extend the 2nd regulator to be close together?

It is never a good idea to electrically connect two regulators to the same piece of track. You could damage both of them!
I assume you are referring to voltage drop (and thus reduced power when the loco is a long way from the regulator input.
The problem is due to the fact that the electricity is carried through steel which has a higher electrical resistance than copper.
The best solution is to feed the power from the regulator along sufficiently thick copper wire to several points along the track.
The loco will then see very close to the regulator output voltage no matter where it is on the track.
I hope this helps.


Where can I go to get good custom LEGO minifigures? I want certain LEGO minifigures, but TLG doesn't make them. I would like to find someone or someplace to get some good custom minifigures. I can pay.

There are several minifig-customizer businesses ... the most famous one is likely http://minifigs.me.


List of parts to buy for to "upgrade" existing Mindstorms NXT 1.0 to Mindstorms EV3 set? Is there a list of parts available I need to buy to "upgrade" an existing Mindstorms NXT 1.0 (8527) set to a Mindstorms EV3 set?

I don't know of such a list, but you can find the inventory for the EV3 on Bricklink and other similar sites.

However, it would be more economical to buy an entire EV3 set. The 31313 retail set is about $350 (USD). To buy just the EV3 brick, motors and sensors individually would be more than that.

EV3 Intelligent Brick - $190
EV3 Large Motor - $25 x 2
EV3 Medium Motor - $20
EV3 Infrared Sensor - $30
EV3 Infrared Beacon - $30
EV3 Touch Sensor - $20
EV3 Color Sensor - $40
Total: $380

It is also possible to use the EV3 programming software (the desktop version) to program the NXT brick (with some limitations, like no Bluetooth support). So, you could "upgrade" the software without having to obtain any new parts.


What is the name/number of this Technic brick with two arms ending in tiny clips? What is the number of the brick shown below? I have been searching, but had no success. There is no number shown on the brick, but it has the LEGO logo.

That's two Magnet Holder 2 x 3, it has part number 2607.


What is the piece and piece number of the rocket launcher accessory this Joker figure is holding? He is holding a rocket launcher type piece that I cannot identify.  What is the piece and piece number of the accessory this figure is holding?

6195916: Function Element, Female

+

306226: Round Brick 1X1

makes:


Decorations on drawbridge At about 0:28 of this video, it depicts a descending drawbridge with some metal decorations. Are there any decorated tiles that come close to this? Is there some other way I could achieve a similar looking effect?

This part is a typical wood plank with nails (which are metal) on it. There are many variations of it, and almost all of them have nails, therefore they don't really count. However I've looked at all variations and the only ones I can find that have more metal are this one, this one and this one.


Identification of a fence-like part In the pictures of a very large Rivendell moc of some years ago I came across a fence-like piece(I have encircled one of them). I have tried to identify it myself by browsing through the parts catalog in Bricklink but wasn't able to find it. Does anyone know which part this is?

They are custom parts from altBricks.
From their interview with Brothers-Brick a few years ago:

TBB: Were there any structures you just couldn’t find a way to recreate purely from LEGO bricks?
Alice: I know the purists will cringe, but I used a few pieces made by altBricks because they fit so perfectly with the elegant, flowing style of the Elven architecture. The panel piece is one of my favorite pieces in this model since you can can apply it in so many different settings: tower-top decorations, windows, and balcony railing to name a few. I also used their 1×2 column since I like the fine texture of the fluting and the back has a nice arched opening as well.
David: In the bridge section, the altBricks element was key, since tan telescopes were not available and I really needed to project that sweeping flowy look. I tried to remain as purist as possible, but in a build like this we needed that part to really get the look we wanted.

This is also confirmed on Alice's Flicker photostream where she captions a few of the shots with:

Elven 2x2 panels by altbricks.com


Part identification - Red 2x2 tile with fire print Can anyone help me identify this part. I know it was probably from the 90’s. Thank you

This is part # 3068bp57 : Tile 2 x 2 with Groove with Classic Fire Logo Small Pattern
It was released from 1986 until 1994 and appears in 5 sets


Is there a way to move items from quote back to basket? I requested a quote on a set of parts. Got it, it was too expensive in terms of shipping, but it turns out I had only 18g of parts, when shipping would cover up to 100g. Is there a way to move parts back to my cart, so I could add additional 82g of bricks without clicking it all again? I understand some parts might not longer be available or change price. I don't really care, I just want to avoid looking them up again.

No. You cannot put items from quote back to cart, but there is a better option.
As per help topic on Bricklink:

You can add quote items to a wanted list at any time by clicking the Add Quote Items to Wanted List button on the quote summary page

Here how it looks in your quote (just at the bottom of your item list):

Once you click on that button you have an option to add items from your quote to an existing Wanted List or create a new one. This then allows you to have a list of items from quote that you can use to buy in other stores too, not just the one you've requested a quote from.
More details on how to use wanted lists when buying parts can be found in another help article on Bricklink.


Old RCX Wires Have Become Grey and Brittle I have a LEGO MINDSTORMS Robotics Invention System 2.0 (3804) that I acquired back in 2003 (17 years ago), and the wires have become grey and brittle.

The wires used to be black and smooth, and stayed that way for a solid 10 years until I stopped playing with this set in the fall of 2013. Last summer (July 2019), I got it out again for the first time in 6 years, only to find that the wires had become grey and brittle. I tested them, and they seem to be working, but I don't know how much longer that will be the case. At one point, I yanked on one of the wires a bit when detaching it from a motor, and it broke very easily. Clearly, even though the wires still work, they're not as versatile as they used to be.
Any ideas what caused this? Was it the long-term storage in the box? Was it that there hasn't been any current running through these wires in years? Or is it just inevitable that this will happen as the set ages? They've been in the box, sitting in a room at room temperature for several years.
Has anyone else with an old RCX-era MINDSTORMS set experienced this problem? Any suggestions on what can be done to stop or slow the deterioration of these wires, or perhaps even reverse the effects? It would make me sad if I couldn't use this set anymore. I had a satisfying fill of fun with this set from age 6 to 16, but I'd also love for my future posterity to get to enjoy it.

This is a common issue with the older Lego 9V cables. Lots of sources, including myself, have experienced the same thing - this particular chemistry of insulation ages poorly, no matter how well it's stored. Cables made later, circa 2004-2006 don't seem to have this issue - the insulation is less rubbery and more plasticy, and is still shiny like new to this day.
As far as repairing them goes, it's fairly simple and cheap, albeit a bit tedious. See this reddit thread and this YouTube video. The procedure which worked for me is as follows:

Use a thin flathead screwdriver or knife blade to pry off the back of the connector. There's a little tab that holds it in place.

The inside of the backplate has two ridges for guiding the wire out the back of the connector. Sand/cut these off - you'll need as much space to work with inside the connector as possible. I used a dremel.

The old wires are not soldered to the connectors so they are easy to remove. They are held in place by two tiny forks which are pushed through the insulation to connect the metal inside.

There is a little post in the center of the connector which the wire folded around. Twist it off with some needle-nose pliers.

Cut some 24-gauge speaker cable to size. Does not need to be speaker cable, but most speaker cable I've seen has two leads side by side, like the original RCX cables. You can even use two separate insulated wires if you can't find double wire.

Attach the new wires to the metal contact pads inside the connector. This is the hardest part, because the amount of space inside the connector is very small; remember you have to put the backplate back on when you're done. I could not achieve the sharp fold of the original wires, so don't bother trying. I also could not achieve the solderless connection with the little metal forks - so I soldered the new wires to the pads.
TIPS FOR SOLDERING:

Use high heat and as little time as possible to melt the solder to the wire and contact pad. Applying heat for more than 1-2 seconds will deform the plastic on the top of the connector. No pressure; if you need to add more heat/solder, just make sure the contact pad is cool to the touch before you try again.
I like to ball up the bare wire at the end of the speaker cable and stuff it into the back of one of the metal studs, then melt solder over top.
Don't bridge the gap between the two contact pads!

Once both wires are attached, add a small bead of plastic glue or epoxy on top of the two contact pads and the cable. The glue transfers force from the cable to the connector body instead of to your crappy solder joints.

Reattach the backplate. It should snap into place with a little force, use the screwdriver again if you need to. Mop up any of the glue that squishes out around the backplate - especially make sure the metal contacts on the underside of the connector are clean! Test to make sure it works.

As I said, it's tedious, but this procedure is effective and creates a strong connection between the cable and the connector body. I'm currently repairing about 40-50 wires using this method to get a little more life out of a Mindstorms classroom set.
The RCX light sensors from this era suffer a similar problem because their cables are attached to the sensor body. They can be successfully repaired in a similar way (refer to that YouTube channel I linked).


What’s this gold helmet piece and is it rare? I don’t know what this piece is and where it’s from

That looks like a Minifigure, Headgear Helmet Gladiator

I wouldn't call that piece rare.


Confused about Power Functions M-motor 8883 and 8293 Is the motor that comes with the Technic power functions motor set (8293) and the stand alone motor 8883 the same?  We have just built the LEGO Creator 10261 roller coaster set and it specifies a 8883 with 88000 battery box.  Not sure if I have bought the wrong thing with the 8293 set which is on its way.  Any guidance appreciated.

Yes, both items contain the same M-Motor part.


Saturn V set from the 60s? I have some of my dad's old Lego sets from the 1960s when he was a kid. There are circular discs that fit on top of each other to connect and form a rocket. Is this a Saturn V rocket model (the ones that took the Apollo astronauts to the moon) or perhaps some other rocket? What Lego sets like this were available in that period?

It's hard to answer this definitively without a picture identifying the exact parts you have, but this sounds a lot like the set Rocket Base (358-1) from 1973:

That was one of the first space themed sets. The round parts are similar to what you've described. It looks like an obvious tribute to the Apollo program, though it isn't licensed or branded that way.


What kind of activities can I expect to find at a LEGO Kids Fest? There is a LEGO Kid's Fest coming to my community soon, but I noticed that the admission price is steep ($20.00 for each adult). What kind of activities can I expect for the kids?

Link to LEGO Kids Fest Website

The available activities vary from city to city, but are listed on that city's page under "Fun Activities". According to the site, they do not vary notably from day to day.

Cleveland, OH (November 4-6)
Hartford, CT, USA (December 2-4)

Some common elements at all the events which are not regular at other Lego attractions are:

Creation Nation - Build your own LEGO creation to add to a huge map of the United States. In the days following the event, come back to the website to see photos of the completed map.
Big Brick Pile - Mix children's imagination with a big pile of brick -- more loose brick than you've seen anywhere else -- and you'll be amazed by the results.
Mystery Mural Build - Join fellow LEGO KidsFest attendees and contribute to a giant piece of LEGO artwork. Assemble a small, color-coded tile of LEGO bricks and add it to the Mystery Mural. As the weekend progresses, the picture develops. In the days following the event, come back to the website to see photos of the final result!

As well as the standard model displays, building areas, race ramps, and store you'll find at Legoland Discovery Centers, Legoland parks, or regular Lego stores.


Clip a wall to a 6 or 7L pole I'm planning on making a wall 6 bricks tall. The wall will have some vertical clips coming out to clip to a vertical pole.  Unfortunately, the only 6 or 7 length bars appear to have the little stopper knubs on them and I think this may interfere with the design. Is there a way to connect two 3/4 L bars together?

You might want to look at Flex System tubing. It comes in a variety of lengths (including 6L and 7L) and doesn't have a stopper.

For what its worth, this is the technique that Jamie Berard used to create the downspout on the apartment in the Pet Shop:


How are LEGO bricks categorized? What are the names and categories of LEGO bricks? Is there a consistent naming scheme? Does Lego have an official name or identification for different pieces?

It's been worked out by multiple groups who decided on different systems. The disagreement is based on what information was publicly available from the Lego Group at the time, what pieces had been manufactured up to that point, and what features the category authors thought were salient.

To really appreciate the magnitude of the problem, just try classifying every part in your own collection. Make your own categories or try to follow somebody's elses. You will raise a lot of questions about how broad the categories should be. Everybody with a storage system goes through this.

Existing Classification Schemes

Consider BrickLink's categories, which are up to 188 categories containing 25,096 parts as of this writing. In this scheme, there are no subcategories, only 2 levels. The category Brick covers 70 parts, but has 7 co-categories like Brick, Decorated (1356) and Brick, Round (38). Brick, Round shares some close neighbors in a separate group, Cylinder(47) (both terms inherited from LDRAW, by the way.) You could reasonably argue about membership characteristics for classifying under Brick, Round or Cylinder or even whether there should be two groups.
LDRAW, originated by James Jessiman), didn't categorize parts hierarchically, but for many parts the first word or two makes a genus.  Programs such as http://mlcad.lm-software.com/ displayed some of these categories in a menu but invited you to think of the big list "like the rummage in the Lego box." As of this writing, LDRAW covers 5,377 parts.
Peeron is an example of an exhaustive set database using LDRAW's part numbers and names. Peeron didn't introduce a hierarchy of its own.
PartsRef, by Steve Bliss, a major LDRAW parts author, attempted to categorize the LDRAW parts hierarchically. It had 22 top level categories, for instance: Architectural, having subcategories like Doors. However the Plate category remained undivided and included all the plates with various protrusions.
LEGO Digital Designer is a newer example with its brick palettes (sorry, I'm not a user.)
Pick-a-Brick as of this writing uses 42 categories, some of which are very broad. For instance, "Brick, Special" is one category (currently 155 parts) that other schemes divide into various groups for round bricks, modified bricks, cylinders, hinges, cones, etc.
Auczilla by Todd Lehman and Suzanne Rich (circa 1996-2000) had another exhaustive parts scheme that excelled in its use of geometric adjectives for part names, such as Half-Octagonal (debatable on math grounds) and Quarter-Round, Convex and Concave. The link is from Internet Wayback but shows the top categories.
Finally, Technica (1999) was another attempt at classifying just Technic parts.

In the end, some parts are placed into categories primarily by geometry, others by function, yet others by historical origin. You could also conceivably group bricks by building function (I'm thinking of direction-changing rectilinear bricks) or even by simply the number of studs (I'm thinking of a Kanji dictionary.)

Part Names Make Classification Muddier

Consider the language barrier: if you read Lego's English Pick-A-Brick names, you realize it's translated (from Danish). A major category is "Brick, Bow"  also known as an Arch.

Dome

Consider 30367, LEGO's "Final Brick" filed under Bricks, Special. Perhaps they meant Finial? LDRAW calls it a Cylinder with Dome Top. BrickLink puts it under Brick, Round (remember BrickLink has both categories Cylinder and Brick, Round from its LDRAW heritage.)

Jumper Plate

Jumper Plate is one name that made perfect sense to Europeans but baffled Americans; to James Jessiman (Australian) it was a Plate 1 x 2 with 1 Stud. I recall Auczilla used the adjective Offset in there. In Pick-A-Brick it's now a Plate 1x2 With 1 Knob. Or should it be a tile because it's mostly flat?

Loudhailer

Then there are multi-purpose parts: describe 4349 geometrically and it's another cone. But it could be a Minifig Weapon, or just Minifig Utensil. In LDRAW, it's a Loudhailer and has no category as such. The American term would be a Megaphone but many know it as Star Wars Blaster.

Multiply this complexity by thousands, and you get an idea that the task of naming is never settled.

Part Numbers

Many LEGO bricks have part numbers imprinted from the mold. This is now called a "Design ID" by LEGO. It served as the original basis for LDRAW part numbers. However, LDRAW invented its own numbers for parts with no number.

About the year 2000, LEGO introduced a 7 digit "Element ID" to designate a particular design in a particular color. These numbers began to be used internally at LEGO for Building Instructions software, and externally in LEGO Creator software products. They are now shown in official set inventories and in Pick-A-Brick.

Conclusion

This should give you an idea why different name and category schemes don't align. We start by talking about the same LEGO pieces but we bring preferred names from childhood or later (I always referred and still refer to 1xN bricks as 1-bumper, 2-bumper, etc.) We group them according to geometry or function, but find new reasons to subdivide or revise to make the groups more intuitive. New parts challenge these categories.  LEGO does not seem to have given the problem much thought or care, lumping parts into catch-all categories. I derive immense satisfaction from solving a problem of devising a part's genus and differentia, but I realize that just like in the taxonomy of living things, there is competition between systems, and endless revision.


How does the Super Awesome Micro Project work? I've recently read an article about a car which is made entirely of LEGO and it runs on air. I'm curious about how it works. Can someone explain the details of it?

Here is the car:

These are all the details I have:

  Super Awesome Micro Project is: A car made of Lego, that drives, has
  an engine made from Lego which runs on air. (wheels and some load
  bearing elements are non-Lego)

  Super Awesome Micro Project Factoids

  More than 500,000 LEGO pieces were used.
  The car engine is made from standard Lego pieces and runs on air!
  The engine has four orbital engines and a total of 256 pistons.
  Top speed is not very fast, around 20-30km

Assuming that you're asking about the engine in particular, it seems to be a large number of pneumatic engines that have been coupled together in order to supply the required torque. LEGO pneumatic engines typically consist of a pneumatic cylinder driving a crankshaft. Here's a basic picture to give you an idea:

The shaft usually also controls a pneumatic valve that switches the direction of the piston to allow continuous rotation as shown here:

This allows the engine to run on air pressure being directed to the pneumatic valve without the use of any electrical components.

These images come from a fairly simple single cylinder pneumatic engine by nico71 on Rebrickable that includes instructions if you are curious about more of the details of how these work, or if you would like to build your own.


What is this piece? 4x4 ring with studs, anyone have a clue for part #? This is simply a ring with 8 studs on it. Anyone know what it is or what set it's from? Can't find it anywhere on BrickLink. No part number visible anywhere on the part. 1x2 tile on the side for extra size perspective.

It's the face plate for a Lego watch. There's a couple different watches this particular piece could have come from, including this Darth Vader watch and this Luke Skywalker one. I'm unable to find an element or design ID for this part though.


9V Battery instead of PF Battery Box I want to use the PF Light Unit in a small MOC. The battery box contains six 1.5V batteries and is too large.

How can I use a regular 9V block battery to power the lights (and possibly other 9V consumers)? Which wires have to be connected to the poles of the battery?

Most Power Functions pieces will run in classic 9V mode. The IR receiver can't, but motors and lights can.

A hacky solution:

Many people have done this by cutting up an extension wire, and connecting the two outer cables to their power source of choice.

From: Lego PF Hacking – Wire Hacking

  GND – ground wire – Always connected (0V regardless of battery pack direction)
  C1 – control wire 1 – 9V when battery pack is forward, 0V when in reverse
  C2 – control wire 2 – 0V when battery pack is forward, 9V when in reverse
  9V – power wire – On when battery pack is on (9V regardless of pack direction)

A purist solution:

If you prefer a purist solution, you could get a classic 9V battery box that takes a single regular 9V battery.

They have the classic 9V wire connectors on the top (a little hard to see in the image, but there are 2x6 studs with metal connectors). Just pair that with a Power Functions extension wire (which has a 9V connector adapter) to connect your Power Functions elements.

That will give you a purist solution which doesn't require chopping up your wire.


What alternative LEGO-compatible toys are avaliable? My kids love LEGO toys, but we find them expensive. Often, they get all the sets of a series, but keep asking for something similar.

We have thus begun buying Mega Bloks and Kre-O, which include some very fancy stuff such as Transformers and CityVille Invasion.

I was wondering what sort of other alternative brick toys are available which are still  compatible with LEGO brick.

"Communist LEGO" is a comprehensive list of all the LEGO imitators and clone brands. It is an interesting read:
https://uploads.brickset.com/docs/clonebrands_v1.8.pdf

Keep in mind that, while clone brands may be cheaper at the beginning, they have minimal or no resale value, and thus can end up being more expensive than genuine LEGO. Because of LEGO's quality, reputation and popularity, you can always resell your collection once your kids outgrow them, and thus recoup the money you spent (as long as your kids kept them in reasonably good condition). Clones are hard to even give away, not to speak of selling.

Another thing to consider is safety. LEGO puts tremendous care and effort into making sure that their products are safe. This is not always the case with cheap imitators. Children often put toys in their mouths. You don't want to expose them to lead-based paints on printed items and leaching plastics.

Mega-Bloks and Kre-O should be safe as they are made by leading toy manufacturers with a long history. Their products are not the same quality as LEGO, so the resale value is not as good, but at least you know they won't poison your kids. It is best to stick with products with proven safety records rather than choosing toys just because they are cheap.

Also, you might consider the educational value of LEGO. It is not just a toy, but a system for building and learning. Math, science, coordination, engineering and creativity are all integral part of building with LEGO, and many schools and educational institutions use LEGO as part of their curriculum. So if you look at the whole package - quality, safety, and value - LEGO will still likely be your best option.

Based on your original post it appears that your children already have a good amount of LEGO, but they keep asking for more. I would suggest that you explore new activities with the LEGO they already have. LEGO provides many alternate building instructions, project suggestions, games, and lessons on their website, and there are also third-party websites, books and other materials to let your children explore the endless possibilities even a handful of LEGO bricks can provide.


How can I attach a Technic Linear Actuator to a EV3 Medium Motor? I'm pretty new to serious LEGO building (never got past very blocky houses as a kid but got into Technic a couple of months ago) and need to connect a Technic large linear actuator (61927) to a Mindstorms EV3 medium motor for a piece of lab equipment I'm making.

Does anyone have any hints on how to do this? The mounting thing on the linear actuator keeps getting in the way and I'm having trouble getting things to line up.

First of all, let's identify the parts you are trying to attach.

The EV3 medium motor is a pretty accurate description, I'll assume it means this.

The linear actuator is more ambiguous, it can mean both the smaller and the larger variant.

For the smaller one, I'd use two 3 x 3 technic beams or two technic triangles, one on each side of the motor, attached by technic pins in the first case or half-pins in the second. The axle can be connected via an axle joiner.

For the larger actuator, I'd use two quarter brackets and two hybrid beams for spacing.


Is there an official LEGO terminology for the features of basic pieces? When I read this question I remember to regularly ask myself what the features of bricks are called. At the top are there nibbles, knobs, or studs? At the bottom are there tubes? New bricks also have little "support walls" (?) at the bottom, known from DUPLO, how do you call these? Is there an official LEGO terminology at least for the most common types of features shown in this image?

For an official position, you may want to check older LEGO catalogues or instructions to see if they're naming things, and how. While you can find some names for complete elements in, for example, service parts catalogues, I don't think you'll find much for specific subparts.

Given the 1958 patent illustration, it's likely the patent itself named subparts, and more specifically studs and tubes. The original Kiddicraft patent called studs "bosses", by the way.

Keep in mind LEGO has, until recently, be very protective of what it's been doing internally; as such, the community as a whole didn't have much info, so that a lot of current nowadays terminology isn't official, but rather derived from public habit.

However, that's changed a lot recently, and LEGO isn't as shy as it was when it comes to publish internal data such as colour names and numrical IDs, design IDs, parts IDs, and even part names. The only problem is that they never bothered to have a truly consistent naming scheme, and the fact that English isn't the main language of Denmark doesn't help.

Yet it does help us find official subpart names, which we can hunt through the online pick-a-brick selection.

The first one is a shocker: the "stud" is, in fact, called "knob" (the fan-nicknamed "jumper plate", or LDraw's "Plate 1 x 2 with 1 Stud", being officially a "Plate 1X2 W. 1 Knob", and there are numerous other examples).

The small pins inside 1xn bricks are "pins" (LDraw's "Brick 1 x 2 without Centre Stud" is a "Brick 1X2 Without Pin"). But as connection point on some elements, they are called "Shaft Ø 3.2" (LDraw's "Minifig Accessory Helmet Viking Horn" is "Horn W. Shaft Ø 3.2")

The clip is a "holder" (LDraw's "Brick 1 x 1 with Clip Vertical" is "Brick 1X1 W. Holder, H0rizontal" (sic) or sometimes a "snap" (LDraw's "Bar 7 x 3 with Double Clips" is "Lattice 1X4x6 W. Snap").

I suppose you could find more, but it's rather time-consuming :-)


Is there a listing of the Types of LEGO blocks? What are the different specific "types" of LEGO blocks that have been manufactured?  I am not talking about any of the action figures or themes.  Is there some type of list, as to type, size, colors?

Are they still available for purchase?

I was especially interested in the following that I have not seen in awhile.

Cylinder (1x1)
Beveled (various)
Lettered (1x1 per letter)
Clear Window blocks (in 1,2,4,8 stud sizes)
Plates
Blocks with a hole of a wheel and of course the wheel.
Partial-circle/curved parts

There are lots of sites that document all the LEGO bricks, and indeed other items they make.

Two oft-cited examples are:

https://www.bricklink.com
https://brickset.com


Could you help me identify these vintage bricks with holes in the studs? I recently got a bulk lot of official Lego pieces from a charity shop. Amongst my treasures I discovered a load of these bricks (about 40 or so).

At first I thought they were some of the first Lego bricks but as far as I can tell Lego have always had the tubes on the underside of their bricks. Can anyone help me to identify their pedigree and/or their age? I have a very strong feeling they're knock-offs...

Distinguishing features -

These bricks have nothing on the underside to stop them from sliding around- no tubes, ridges, nothing.
The larger bricks (2x4 upwards) have holes all the way through the studs.
All bricks have a slightly sunken profile to the studs
Every brick has a random number on the underside i.e. “43”, “78” etc
In basic colours of red, blue, yellow, white, black and clear. I’ve also got a green baseplate which has square holes on the underside.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

LEGO made plastic bricks from 1949 and didn't get the patent for the tubes underneath until 1958, in the years between they made plenty of bricks with nothing underneath.

Many (I don't remember if it's all) of the (larger) LEGO bricks from that era, has a slot in one side.

That being said, with the small holes through the studs on the 2x4 and the slightly recessed studs, these bricks doesn't look like anything I've ever seen from LEGO.

Square holes underneath I have seen though, so that's not an argument against your green plate being LEGO, but without having seen it, I can't say for sure.


Problem-shooting on 8070 "Super Car" with Power Functions I have recently bought a used Lego Technic car (8070 Supercar). It was not fully built, and from the instructions I learned that it was fully built except for approximately the last 10 steps. I finished it and now there are some problems.

I assume the motor is not the most powerful for this heavy model, but it is not even possible to open the hood or the doors easily*. I have to sometimes touch the wheels to allow them to open. This leads to the second uncertainty: If the switch for example is in position "hood" the wheels also are moving. But in a video clip I saw them open without the car moving.

I want to locate the problem with the least effort. Worst case for me is to completely de-build and then have to rebuild new. Maybe this model has known weak points I can check first?

(Please comment if you need more information or pictures!)

(* I used new batteries ^^)

If built according to the instructions, the wheels should not be powered at all. The only motorized functions is opening the hood, doors and spoiler. Moving the wheels should not affect these functions, nor should the wheels move when operating the functions.

So my guess is that someone did a poor attempt at modding this model and you'll have to deconstruct the model further.


6 x 14 plate with 2x12 plate molded on top and metal contacts on the bottom identification Needing help identifying this part as I was offered a small bag of vintage train parts and this come with some very unknown parts to me.

I just recently got out of a 33 year old Dark Age and have zero experience regarding vintage trains, so hoping somebody could jump in and offer me a hand.

Part# BB0054 - Electric, Train 4.5V Battery Car Roof.

(But Light Gray in color.)


How to get good color readings from the color sensor? What type of setup is needed to get good color readings from the Mindstorms EV3 color sensor:

Shape of object?
Size of object?
Distance to object?
Color of background?

The color sensor works pretty well as long as the object is about 1 1/2- 2 modules from the object.

The sensing is best when the object is flat.

The object is large enough to be fully contained within the "spotlight" that the sensor emits. As long as this is true, it doesn't really matter what the background color is.

Another thing to consider is that the color sensor has different modes (active vs. passive). In "active" mode the sensing is affected much less by the ambient lighting conditions.

Pro tip: if you are using EV3-G or RobotC without Xander's drivers, the color detection works best on LEGO's colors (the color the bricks are in). This is especially noticeable for the "green" color.


Does NXC work with EV3? Is it possible to create and run NXC programs on the EV3 brick?

I installed BrixcCC, created a simple Hello World NXC program and selected "Download and Run" in the Compile menu.

The EV3 brick made a sound as if the program was downloaded; however, nothing happened on the EV3.

Very strange, but I was unable to find ANY good info on this subject on the web.

Would very much appreciate your help.

Not yet. You can try RobotC that's pretty similar.


Color Sensor/hi-tech and EV3 I want to create a line follower by EV3 using hi-tech color sensor without using switch! :( I tried some former ways but the robot cannot follow the line very well!
can anyone guide me?

This is from page 87 of a document showing how to run NXT bricks using EV3-G software.

It uses the light sensor, not color sensor.  You'll want to set the mode of the color sensor.

Inside a loop that will stop following a line if the left button on the brick is pressed.

Basically, the steering value of the motors is taken from the light sensor reading.


Rare Lego Mursten box. Where can I sell it and what would I ask? Found this box in a rural vintage shop in northern Sweden. I’ve come to understand these were among the first boxes of Lego sold, for the Scandinavian market. This particular one seems to be for the Swedish market, the price list on the inside is in Swedish.

This should be with someone passionate about Lego, not gathering dust on a shelf in my home.

What could it be worth, and where might I find buyers?

Your box is a 700/1 Swedish box (a 700/2 doesn't have that much blue space above and below the image).  Value depends on what is inside as well: the bricks/windows/doors, as well as if the interior cardboard partitions are still there.

Also, I know several collectors (with deep pockets) who would be interested if you still want to sell this set.


Reference LEGO Technic 42043 When installing the tubing starting on page 273 of the instruction booklet, the suggested length seems to be too short for the installation.  Is it permissible to cut the tubing provided to fit the situation, or am I missing something in previous construction?  If not able to cut the tubing, it becomes very congested connecting to the appropriate valve.

Instructions: http://lego.brickinstructions.com/m/lego_instructions/set/42043/Mercedes-Benz_Arocs_3245

The provided tubes all have the correct length. If you start cutting tubes than you run into problems later on.

I have build this set multiple times an never run into problems. Make sure all tubes are routed correctly and by the shortest distance sometimes its needed to route a tube underneath another.

When you start building, what helps is sorting the different tubes by length and check if you have them all.


Are those bowls genuine LEGO pieces? I've been sieving through my video collection and came across a video from 2011. It's part of a series of Ninjago videos giving you tips on fun things you could do with the Spinners. At the end of the video, there's this frame where Cole goes to a laid out dinner table to eat with the other Ninjas:

I find this scene rather adorable, but find it slightly puzzling; for starters, how are those tiles connected to each other? But that's not really my question; you don't really need to answer that. My real question is, are those 6 bowls real LEGO pieces? They look rather peculiar and Un-LEGO-y. I get how they made the cups and bottles; they just flipped some 1x1 round bricks and a chalice. But how about those bowls? If it is a real piece, could someone direct me to a set containing it, and if not, what they might be?

My guess is that they're LEGO Round Plate 1 x 1 Straight Side (Part ID: 4569058
Design ID: 6141) with paint applied to make them look like food. Details of some of the sets that contain them are available on BrickLink.


Need help identifying this non-Lego set - looks like a grey spaceship This all came in a sealed pack. I can't seem to figure out which set it is - does anyone have any ideas? I'm sure there are more pieces to it.

Tl;dr: most likely parts from Sluban or Oxford.

Original Post
@Zhaph is right that the tail fin looks like the one on the Kre-O Starscream:
Yours:

Kre-O:

I started looking for other Kre-O sets that use the piece. I found the Toy & Game Instructions page which included sets with strikingly similar pieces.
The Kre-O Star Trek USS Vengeance - A4364 Instructions (PDF) cockpit is eight studs long while the cockpit in your photo looks to be about six studs long, but they have the same geometry.
Yours:

Kre-O:

The Kre-O Transformers Battle for Energon - 98812 (PDF) includes six-by-two stud sloped bricks that look like they could match the upside down brick in your photo.
Yours:

Kre-O:

Unfortunately, it looks like the Kre-O inverted slopes (at least in Kre-O Transformers Destruction Site Devestator - 36951 (PDF)) are closer to LEGO's inverted slopes than the ones in your photo.
Yours:

Kre-O:

Yours:

Kre-O:

It's hard to tell if your six-stud-long slopes are curved or not, but they look closer to LEGO Slope, Curved 6 x 1 than they do the ones from Kre-O (at least the ones from the USS Vengeance).
Yours:

LEGO:

Kre-O:

I did find another similar match and in the correct color: the Ultimate Soldier XD F-18 Fighter Jet (Ad Blocker Warning) as referenced in this forum post.

Unfortunately again, the only details I can find about the brand (beyond the brick sets sold at Walmart and Amazon) seem to be about the figures, not building sets. There are a few sites archiving these figures if you're interested.

I would have thought that the turbine piece would have been the easiest to identify, but I haven't come across anything close. Do you have more pieces that might be unique enough to give a clue?

I'm curious to know if the molds from Kre-O's tailfin ended up being sold to someone else. That might explain both the nearly identical piece in the Ultimate Soldier sets (down to the injection sprue) and the obscurity of the set you're looking for.

Edit 1
According to the unsourced Wikipedia page for Ultimate Soldier, the Ultimate Soldier brand of die-cast figures was reintroduced as a line of military-themed building toys in 2014.
This forum thread contains conjecture about the acquisition of the die-cast tooling by either JSI or All-Go. No mention of the building toys.

JSI bought some of the 1/18 tooling, there are a couple of company's sniffing around the 1/32 molds, but on my friends last trip to China(he's been back about a week) the 1/32 molds are either crated up of sitting inside and outside :rolleyes: the plant :lol: while other projects have taken over the factories.
if they stay in weather to long they will be junk soon :huh:

For all intents and purposes, 21st Century is effectively gone. All-Go's attempt at resurrecting the line fell back into the mire it tried to spring from after reissuing the two 1/32 planes - the mistake they made there being twofold: they reissued paint schemes that had been done already (and at half the price) AND they no longer included a pilot figure. A lot of merchants dumped excess stock upon the failure of the planes to sell, and discounters like Tuesday Morning ended up with them.
JSI seems to possess the bulk of the 1/18 molds and have reissued several of 21C's vehicles in that scale.
As far as 1/32 goes, status remains unknown. Still a lot available on ebay, but obviously not at Wal-Mart prices. I have built several of the kits myself, and while plainly being more toy-like than your normal kit, they do clean up nice and if you get them at the right price are a bargain. I managed to snag a case of BF109F's for $20 a couple of years back.

If the date provided by the Wikipedia page is to be believed, then there must be another explanation for the identical parts. I doubt that Hasbro would be selling good molds in 2014 for a line of toys they were still producing in 2017.
So I checked who was actually making the toys for Hasbro. The Kre-O line is produced by the Oxford toy company in Korea. Their website is next to impossible to navigate in English, but with a little luck I came across this set with a familiar tailpiece.

I couldn't find any closer matches on their website, but Wikipedia mentions that they made a line of military-themed sets. Using Google Translate, I searched 옥스포드 군사 장난감 (oxford military toy) and found some sets that also contain pieces that appear to match the molds of your pieces.

There's your slope again (apologies for the poor quality):

They even have the square-shaped negatives in the bottoms of some pieces:

The Oxford military sets appear to be the source of the Ultimate Soldier sets still available on Amazon/Walmart. Just as they were rebranded "Kre-O" for Hasbro, it appears Oxford sets are/were rebranded "Ultimate Modern Soldier" for 21st Century Toys.
Oxford:

Ultimate Soldier (Amazon):

I'm still looking, but I'm nearly certain that your set was produced by Oxford. Either for one of their own lines or to be licensed by another company.

Edit 2
Completely by accident, I have stumbled on Sluban.
Turbine:

Tailfin:

Square recesses:

Cockpit:

Slope:


Are there any LEGO base plates that are compatible with Duplo? I'm thinking of making a LEGO table but my two children both use different LEGO sizes. My oldest uses normal LEGO and my youngest uses DUPLO. I'm wondering if there is a base plate that both types of LEGO bricks will work on?

A regular LEGO base plate will work with DUPLO bricks. As demonstated in this question, the two systems are compatible in a number of ways. Here's an example of System base plates with DUPLO bricks attached:

It should be noted that not all DUPLO bricks will be able to connect to a System baseplate. Some examples of incompatibility are round bricks and some of the minifigs and animals. In order for these to connect you'll need a DUPLO brick or baseplate on top of the System baseplate.


A 90 degree turn with Wheel part number 56145 I'm making a program for my ev3rstorm and I want it to have a 90-degree spin turn. I use the standard part ev3rstorm wheelbase or rather, treadbase. Using the move tank block (I use that block all the time) how long should I move back/forward at 75/-75 power?

Wheel picture:

Use your gyroscope sensor, set your program to have the Move Tank block turn very slowly in the "On" mode, and then use a Wait block checking the Gyro sensor until it sees an absolute change of 90 degrees. Then add a Move Tank "Off" block. That's the closest you will come to 90 degrees.


From what series is this brick? Duplo machine piece with yellow button, copyright 2007 We have ten of these, but I don't know from which series! When pressing the yellow button it makes a sound that could be a train or a tractor or something like that. We are curious. Does anyone know?

This is a Duplo Sound Effects Brick 2 x 4 with Water and Pump Sounds (Set 5605)  brick from 2008. It featured only in 1 set, 5605 Tanker Truck.


Looking for instructions for Nanoblock Synthesizer (NBC_038) I was given a Nanoblock Synthesizer (NBC_038) at Christmas last year and frankly am feeling really guilty for not having built it and put it on the piano yet. Sadly, I've lost the instructions. I've searched a fair bit without success. Does anyone have the instructions or know where I can get them?

I found video on YouTube for model speed build. Playing on 0.25 speed produce an acceptable result with parts being used in each step. At the second part of the video instruction sheet is also visible (image has been rotated, compared to video):


How to run 2 motors at the same time in the new EV3 version? So I've seen a question that solves my problem in an older version, which I don't think is possible in the Education EV3 Classroom - 1.2.2, which is the one I'm using. I want to simultaneously run 2 motors at the same time, but in the post for the older version that I saw, It talked about White Technic Bars which I don't believe is in the version that I am using, so I was wondering how to do it. If there is a block that can do this or some sort of sequence of events that can do this, please let me know. Thanks!

If the 2 motors are configured as a drive base, use the pink move blocks.
For an arbitrary number of motors or non-drive-base cases, you can use broadcast blocks to run things in parallel. Here is an example that shows how to run 4 motors for a specific number of rotations:


Curious Case of Polybag Sold Separately in ~2003 I am currently in the middle of my long Dark Age and I am trying to identify the polybag that was sold separately in Poland around year 2003. It had a number, airholes, LEGO logo and yellow accents, it contained assorted, mostly useless (including non-matching) parts in weird colors.
I am absolutely sure these were inside and I know for a fact that parts differed slightly on bag to bag basis. It looks like these were excess throw-away parts.
1x 4204: Brick 8x16 - Dark Gray
3x 41748pr0020: Wedge Curved 6x2 Left with 3 Ovals Print
3x 30144pr0015: Brick 2x4x3 with Octan Print - White
1x 30144: Brick 2x4x3 - Tan
Can somebody kindly shed some light on it, what was that and why would they even sell such things? For the record I have never had any of the sets in which these parts were originally used (according to Rebrickable).

Air holes always seem dangerous when there's a possibility of small Lego pieces that could be forced through.
North American Lego stores used to sell these bags, but stopped in roughly 2010 due to health concerns regarding sanitizing (so I was told). They were, as yours were, just leftover bricks. I realize they don't match your description of air holes or a number, but thought they might jog someone's memory.


EV3 - At what time DIRECT_REPLY is sent by brick? For example: I've sent DIRECT_COMMAND_REPLY to rotate the motor for 720 deg. When EV3 brick should send reply:

before motor finished rotation (right after my command was received) or
after motor finished rotation?

Now, I have feeling that reply is sent right after my command was received by EV3 brick.

I have the same observation as you, it seems to be sent as soon as the brick receives the command.

A workaround that I have found is to send a "stop motor" command after every movement, this way you know when the motor is stopped for sure.

Out of curiosity, what library are you using?

EDIT:

Have you been capturing the packets that the EV3 sends back to the computer?


What is the largest single LEGO piece? What is the largest single LEGO piece ever produced? This does not include LEGO affiliates like Duplo.
Clarifications

It must be a purchasable block.

By largest, I mean largest by Volume/Weight of Plastic

The "Extra Large" grey baseplate is 15"/38cm square, with 48 studs to a side.
Alternatively, the moulded castle baseplate had a greater volume (with height), and a base size of 32x48 studs and 6 bricks high (15"x10"/38x25cm) (in other colours as well):

Tim offered up the following, also with a base size of 32x48 studs, 6 bricks high (15"x10"/38x25cm) (it came in a few other colours too):

Peeron also lists a 48x48 Raised with Staircases and Pits:
Peeron.com
As well as a very old "Giant Base Plate" and a "Road 3-way Curve with Gray Pattern", both at 50x50 studs.
Joubarc suggested the "Boat Hull Floating 74 x 18 x 7":
Peeron.com
Stretching the definition of "Single Piece" somewhat, the "Electric Technic Control Centre with Yellow and Red Buttons" from the Technic Control Center was a beast of a part:
Peeron.com

Made this CW to allow others to add their contenders


What is this light and sound LEGO brick? I have some sort of light and sound LEGO brick I obtained in an assortment of various brand's bricks. The piece has three black buttons which flash red lights and play different sounds when there are two AA batteries inside the piece. It is genuine LEGO because of the LEGO mark on the studs; however, I can't find a part number on it.

That is actually two parts 30351 Electric, Light & Sound Rocket Engine and 30353 Battery Box Cover. That sound and light brick was made in 1999 and only ever came in two sets.

If you look through the assortment you got you might find the Rocket Engine Nozzle that goes with it.

Image from Brick Instructions.


Can anyone identify these Batman minifigures? Can anyone tell me something about these minifigures?
Are they custom-made or perhaps fake? I could find nothing about them.

After scouring all of the Batman minifigures catalogized by Brickset, I couldn't find any exact matches for any of the two torsos, but it is just as possible that these particular figures are not indexed by Brickset or have some kind of other name.

The wings of the right one seem peculiar to me, I suspect they are non-genuine.

Higher resolution photos could be helpful for further investigation, or you could check for the LEGO trademarks on each piece (they are usually hidden inside or on the underside) to determine if the base plastic pieces are genuine. If they are, the printing might still be 3rd party.


Identify set(s) based on open bags How can we identify these Lego bags?

It has 2017 year on the bags. Also, there are five random pieces of bags. Most of those pieces yellow and orange colors

Since at least some of these bags have been opened, their contents no longer help us in determining which set(s) they were from. At this point, they are just random plastic bags. You have combinations of elements in these bags that do not exist as combinations of pieces within one single set, for example in the top-left bag (with #2 on it) you have both a 2x8 Brick in Dark Bluish Gray as well as a 6x5 Girder in Yellow. Those pieces have never been in a set together (the Brick in Dark Bluish Gray only ever came in 2 sets).


Basic bricks in Ninjago Spinners sets Every Ninjago spinner set contains basic bricks of the same color: two 1X2 bricks and a 2x2 flat.

See:
http://brickset.com/sets?query=spinners

What is the purpose for these bricks?

These parts are used to hold the cards upright as shown in the instructions:


What are the part numbers for the original brick minifigures? I was gifted two containers of assorted LEGO bricks that had some of these:

Apparently these were only made for a few years before the minifigures we know now appeared in 1978. Does anybody know the part number for the legs, torso, and faceless head?

Slightly more info found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lego_minifigure#History

Here are Bricklink entries for the:

legs (#15)
torso (#17)
and head (#3626a)


What sets have the best price per part ratio? I am trying to get the set LEGO makes with the best price per part. I could spend the next hour calculating it or I could ask someone who has already done this.

To clarify, I am buying any new set at retail price from LEGO. I will wait until there is a good promo running, but wanted to know ahead of time. I don't care about the pieces just the price per part.

Not going to argue with the reason for the request, but here are some options that give (close to) the best price per part:

Any classic brick box typically gives you a less than $0.05 per part price. Getting those on discount can get you even lower. (E.g. 10704 when on sale at WM in the US was $20 for 900 bricks - or a little over $0.02 per brick).
Special sets not for regular retail (marked as Gear on Bricklink.com) have a good price per part ratio. 40174 Chess set has over 1400 pieces and retails for $55 (~$0.04 per part). Only available at LEGO Shop at Home and LEGO stores. Similarly for the What Am I? game - 540 pieces, currently on sale for $24, so also ~$0.04 per part.
Some smaller sets, especially when on discount, also have great price to part ratio. 100-120 pieces in a $5 set gives a price to part ratio of $0.05 or better.
On the other end of the spectrum: LEGO has released quite some large sets recently with great price-per-part ratios. Sets like Destiny’s Bounty (2300 pieces for $160, Ninjago City (almost 5000 pieces for $300) and especially Saturn V (almost 2000 pieces for $120) are expensive but proved tons of pieces.
Clearance discounts (especially those of 70% or more) are great opportunities to buy high piece-count sets for little money. For example the Imperial Assault Carrier from 2014 was available at WM clearance for $30 or less, and has 1100 pieces.

Brickset has a cool feature where you can see all sets in a Theme or in a given year sorted by the Price per Piece count. First, go to the page for the year you are interested in (I chose 2017). Then use the sorting dropdown to pick “Price per Piece (US)”. You can see that this largely validates my points above. Note that the list starts with many sets that do not have a price per piece in US dollar available (promos, limited release sets, sets not available in the US etc.) You will have to scroll quite far down before the proper list starts.


What set does this minifigure head come from? I came across this picture:

I think the body is from The LEGO Movie Pajamas Emmet polybag, but have no idea where the head is from.

It's from Fairground Mixer (10244).

Also, the rest can be had way cheaper than Pyjamas Emmet polybag in the form of Sleepyhead from Collectible Minifig series 6.


Has anyone automated the LEGO hand sorting process beyond "pawing & piling"? I need to rephrase my question. Has anyone built or used a large pigeon hole/ chute/ bin collection system to sort LEGO elements? The sorting system doesn't need to be made of LEGO bricks. I just want to know if any of you studio builders sort your elements in a more organised fashion than the average fan. I'm trying to figure out if this is a project I should take on, or a boondoggle I should avoid...

I have a fairly large collection.  Processing bricks is a lot more pleasant with my homemade device, which is vaguely similar to the devices above, but made from MDF.

Note that the commercial products have holes that are square, not round, so the size of bricks that is blocked by them is kind of variable.  My sorter has two sorting levels, one with 30mm holes and one with 15mm holes.  Because LEGO bricks are 8mm per stud, nothing 4x4 or over falls through the top level, and nothing 2x2 or over goes through the second.  I could have done 22/23mm holes for 3x3s and 7mm for sub 1x1s, but empirically they're rare pieces and not worth the effort. The holes are laid out in a hexagonal grid, on a sheet of MDF large enough to cover - and fall straight through into - my storage boxes (450mm square, as that's the size the sheets come in).  Spacing of the holes and thickness of the MDF was selected to ensure strength - MDF doesn't distort too much before breaking, and using MDF was important because it's cheap, common and unlikely to damage the bricks.  There are sides to each tray to prevent spillage, and nodes on the underside to lock each layer into the one below.

The hardest part in constructing my sorting trays was finding drill bits for making 30mm and 15mm holes; I found only one 30mm spade bit in my local hardware superstore, and I had to go to a commercial tool supplier for the 15mm bit.  I also needed a new drill, as my existing one couldn't spin slowly enough to make round holes with a spade bit.

So, here's the entire unit; you can see the sides to hold a reasonable amount of LEGO without spilling over:

And here's what LEGO swamping the 30mm holes in the top looks like. Most of the time I'm operating at this level; the second level can contain a large number of pieces given they're so much smaller.

The second level gets the smaller parts falling through while you're pawing through the top tier.  You can see the spacing created by the tall corner posts, this is to allow a 2x16 plate (the longest part I'd expect to process - 128mm) to fall through if it wants too - but typically something that long won't fall from the top level, as its lowest centre of gravity lays it flat and so the great length won't fit through the topmost holes.  If one were to slip into a hole, it could be raked into a position to fall, so about 10% or 20% of pieces as large as this fall through to this level.

The small detritus finds its way to the bottom level

Here you can see the locking nodes that prevent the tiers rotating and moving off the tier below.

Prior to building this I experimented with a number of designs and found that they had a common problem of clogging up.  This experiences that to some extent too, but has a vast number of holes to minimize the impact, and a finger poked up from below can clear the blockage.  Radar dishes and large cones, for example, are good at filling holes.

I do have a tumbler to separate out plates and other small items from bricks, but it requires a lot of work to cause the separation so I wouldn't recommend it as a sorting tool.  I could supply an image for those with an academic interest.

I showed my device at my local LUG, and a year or so later another member went and made his own tennis-racket inspired LEGO sifter. I humbly suggest this device suffers from the same problem with square (or sometimes triangular) holes that the commercial devices exhibit.


Is there a software which finds alternate models for owned sets? I know for example the catalog of BrickLink and now I wonder if there is a software which can calculate from the inventory lists which other models one can build with an owned set?

To more detail: If one owns a set with a lots of parts, there have to be some set with less parts that are included in the big set...

I have now browsed Rebrickable website, but there are only self-made instructions for owned sets. This is nice, but I searched for "original" models, which I can build of my owned sets. Did I made something wrong?

You're describing rebrickable:

https://rebrickable.com/

Besides official models, also hundreds of fan created models are available.
It's a terrific resource


How much depth does the NXT battery pack add? The NXT rechargeable battery pack does not fit flush with the back of the NXT brick like the battery cover (used with 6xAAs) does.  I don't have the battery pack (yet), so I was wondering how much depth it adds.  I found a picture of the pack installed, which gives the impression that it may be a brick taller, or maybe only a stud taller.  Exactly how much though?

It adds the same thickness as a studless beam indeed, or 8mm / 20 ldu.

(This is true for the grey 9VAC battery, but I suppose it holds for the white 10VDC one as well)