Articles

By: Megan Rothrock
Photography by Megan Rothrock

It really doesn’t matter what part of the world you live in, you will at some point in your childhood most likely have had the chance to ride on a magical horse that went round and round and up and down in a circle. I must confess that I have been fascinated by carousels and their history since I was a child so from the first moment I saw The Grand Carousel, I had to build it!! The building experience was a very interesting one, and not quite as I expected it to be.

The color scheme is very nice; it’s bright, but not too bright with a lot of detail. One of the things I found to be very nice is that it has all of the functions of a real Carousel.  The mechanism you build is exactly the same as an actual carousel, for me, this also adds to the nostalgia of this LEGO set. I also found it very cool that even the battery box is hidden way underneath the operators’ control stand.
This set is really BIG - when you see it on the box, you don’t really see where all of the 3,263 LEGO pieces go into it. However, there is a lot more to this set than what you initially think!!

After I tipped out all of the content on the table in big pile I began to ‘twin’ up the bags, which made it easier to find the pieces. Unfortunately, the sticker sheet was a bit bent and scratched when I took it out of the box. But that didn’t affect them putting them on the model, and they look great!

The Loot

It seems there has been a lot of consideration for pieces that AFOLs would like to have, some to note are:
96 dark red 1x2 4 high inverted slopes
80 dark blue jumper plates
64 transparent white jewels
32 1x3 dark blue slopes
18 gold crystals
8 jester hats
8 Belville gold dishes
8 tan beards
1 gold flag

It is a challenging build. It was developed for ages 16+ and it is definitely more suited for an experienced builder. When you build it, you need to have a nice clear table. There are more than 25 bags and a LEGO Power Functions motor, battery box, new sound brick, and two instruction books and includes 9 minifigures too!

The Grand Carousel sits on a 48x48 green base plate (the first time this baseplate has been available in green), with just enough room to place some minifigures around the edge of the plate to wait for their turn to ride. When I started to build, it reminded me of the LEGO sets from the 1970’s and 80’s that required you to count out stud by stud where to place your bricks.  Once the tiles and jumper plates were down in the right place I was away.

Around and around

This set requires focus, and I don’t advise to speed through it or skip ahead in the instructions, if you do you’ll find yourself having to go back and fix things. While there is a lot of apparent repetition it’s best to follow the instructions when building the circles and NOT to double up on the builds of these sections since there are a lot of left and right sides involved. There are some nice techniques to creating strength for the center pier, and it is cleverly built on jumper plates so you can remove it if you drop a piece down inside or have to make adjustments to anything.

To apply the decals (stickers) takes a bit of time I used an exacto-blade under the corner of the decal to set it onto the brick and not my fingers. This also helped not to get finger prints on the gold parts too. 

There are a lot of nice details to this set from the brick-built horses to the jester heads (with happy to grouchy faces) to the upside down beards used as intricate carved elements. There is a new sound brick that plays a specially created and very happy carousel tune! When the model is completed it’s very fun to play with and is even made it so you can easily turn the sound on and off for displaying at LEGO events. Turn this on and watch peoples eyes light up, as the horses go around and around, and up and down!

My only nit pick (if I need to make one) is that it would have been nice to have the top of the carrousel be detachable so you could quickly and easily show someone the amazing way it all functions. However the sail is a new part, a new size and type of shape and it’s in white so the Pirate fans out there could build quite a nice fleet of Pirate ships with them!

At times I began to feel like an old Carousel Master Craftsman, building copy after copy of a section or chipping away at the horses. It made me consider the amount of time the original craftsmen must have spent on the classic carousels to carve all of the horses and decorations out of wood! 

In conclusion it’s a fun and challenging build, with a lot of nice pieces, some interesting building techniques, great functions, is good value for the money (249.99 USD) and good fun to operate. I think for any AFOL that would like to add something fun and unique to their town, show at a LEGO event, or just build and leave it out for you guests to marvel at it’s a ‘must have’. It is quite a conversation piece and has sparked some great discussions about LEGO sets and building techniques with our non-AFOL friends in our house since I finished it.

More photos:

Cam detail.

Bottom construction.

Ring construction.

You can order a Grand Carousel here or buy it at a LEGO Brand Retail Store.

Many thanks to Megan for her review and the LEGO Group for the set!

As part of the National Train Show on July 10-12, 2009 in Hartford, CT, Jamie Berard, set designer of the newly released 'Emerald Night' and employee of The LEGO Group (TLG), will participate as part of the show.  Jamie will be giving talks on July 10 and 11 (Fri. and Sat.) about the design process and thinking that led up to the final 'Emerald Night' set, and about the Power functions components that support it.  Fans are encouraged to participate to offer their views on the new platform.  Jamie will also be available during the show for questions about his other excellent creations - Fast Flyer, Cafe Corner, Cool Convertible, Green Grocer, and the newly available Grand Carousel.

Also as part of this year's show, Steve Witt, LEGO Community Relations Coordinator for North America, has graciously offered to host the traditional ILTCO pizza party at LEGO corporate headquarters in Enfield, CT after the show on Sat. July 11.  Along with pizza and hanging out with Steve, Jamie and some of the LEGO Master Builders from Enfield, other events such as tours of the model shop and parts of the campus will occur.  All AFOL train show participants are invited to attend.

To learn more about the layout please visit the Trains-n-Town NMRA 2009 forums at:
http://www.trains-n-town.com/forum/index.php?forum=34

Information about the National Train Show can be found at:
http://www.nationaltrainshow.org/2009/hartford.html

Hope to see you there!

Elroy Davis, Jonathan Dallas, Eric Kingsley and Mike Ripley
NMRA NTS 2009 ILTCO LEGO Layout Coordinators

Model Builder Search ends with new hires from San Diego, Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle

Mark Larson Chicago, IL	Brian Heins Poway, CA	Ryan Wood Gardena, CA	Amanda Jouan Chula Vista, CA	Joel Baker Seattle, WA

all photos courtesy LEGOLAND California

From LEGOLAND California (press release):

CARLSBAD, Calif. (June 25, 2009) – Eighteen job hunters competed for the ultimate dream job at LEGOLAND® California today and five walked away with offers to work as Model Builders at the family theme park in Carlsbad. Joel Baker (23) of Seattle, Washington; Brian Heins (35) of San Diego, California; Amanda Jouan (26) of Chula Vista, California; Mark Larson (32) of Chicago, Illinois; and Ryan Wood (25) of Los Angeles, California out built other hopeful contenders to be the newest members of the LEGOLAND Model Shop Team.

The Model Builder Search began with 150 people submitting applications online. More than 25 were selected to compete in the first round of competition on June 25 in which qualified candidates were asked to complete three challenges: a copy build, where applicants had to copy an existing LEGO® model; a team build, where applicants were challenged to build something together; and a creative build where each applicant built a model within just one hour, testing their creativity and time management skills.

The search culminated with today’s final build-off where Park guests watched in anticipation as the finalists had just two hours to build an impressive 3D model based on the Park’s newest area, Land of Adventure. They were judged on their creativity, strategy, ability to build a three-dimensional model and their calmness under pressure. After today’s competition, all of the finalists got the chance to slide down Dune Raiders, the Park’s newest ride before it opens to the public June 26, 2009. The winners’ models will be installed in Dune Raiders to be seen by Park guests all summer long.

Dune Raiders features six side-by-side nearly 50-foot-long racing lanes and a pair of double-helix corkscrews that are more than 15 feet high. The fifth attraction within Land of Adventure, Dune Raiders is themed in an Egyptian bazaar motif complete with a new gaming area called Thunder’s Quest and new LEGO models including a snake charmer with animated snakes.

Baker, Heins, Jouan, Larson and Wood will not only help with projects within LEGOLAND California such as Dune Raiders, but will help build the thousands of LEGO models going on display in other Merlin Entertainments properties such as LEGOLAND Malaysia, LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Shaumburg, LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Xanadu and LEGOLAND Dubailand as well.

The Model Builders hired today will have 30 days in which to start their new job. There are a mere 24 Model Builders at all four LEGOLAND Parks. Ten of them currently work here at LEGOLAND California. Coming from various backgrounds and skills, they all have two things in common: They use every ounce of creativity in their daily work, and they’re passionate about it.

With so many talented finalists, LEGOLAND California also offered entry level positions to four of the competitors. Bryan Decker of San Diego, Samuel Swiger of Carlsbad, Eric Christie of Hemet and Dana Bradsema of San Diego will be working on the Model Shop Team at LEGOLAND California as Model Shop Associates.

Editor's Note: Two of the winners are noted members of the AFOL community. Ryan Wood is a well-known Space AFOL (Flickr gallery here ) and Mark Larson, creator of Fabuland Housewives and administrator of Eurobricks.com. His website can be found here.

Congratulations to all the winners!

For those who are attending San Diego Comic-Con, one of the largest media gatherings in the world, there will be a LEGO booth. Expected on display will be the new Buzz Lightyear LEGO sculpture seen at the Licensing Expo in Las Vegas earlier this month alongside other large scale sculptures. Ther will be at least one convention exclusive for the event also. 

Other LEGO-related products will be shown and demonstrated, including LEGO Rock Band, which will be at the Warner Brothers booth.

BrickJournal will also be there, hosting a presentation about the magazine and the community. We'll also have a guest or two to help out, so if you are planning to be at the con, drop by the TwoMorrows booth and say hi!

From the LEGO Group:

10197 Fire Brigade Ages 16+.  2,231 pieces. US $ 149.99 CA $ 199.99 UK £ 97.85 DE € 149.99

Ding ding ding! There’s a fire in town! The fire brigade drives to the scene from this detailed and realistic 1930’s fire station.  Designed to fit with other modular buildings like 10182 Café Corner and 10185 Green Grocer, the station features rare LEGO® pieces and innovative construction techniques. It includes a ‘30s-style fire truck, 4 minifigures, a fire-dog, an opening station garage door, and a removable building roof for interior access.  It also includes 2 fully-furnished floors with fire-fighting tools, racks for the firemen's helmets, fire-pole, ping-pong table, kitchen with fully-stocked fridge, couch, bookshelf and a roof with a water tower and bell.  Measures 14" (35 cm) high and 10" (25 cm) wide.

•    Includes a 1930’s-style fire truck, 4 minifigures and a fire-dog!


Photo courtesy of the LEGO Group.

•    Features lots of realistic details including fire-fighting tools, racks for firemen’s helmets and even a fire-pole!
•    The station house features an opening station garage door and 2 fully-furnished floors including a kitchen with fully-stocked fridge and a ping-pong table!

Photo courtesy of the LEGO Group.

•    Remove the roof for interior access!
•    The roof is equipped with a water tower and bell!
•    Fire Brigade features rare LEGO elements including  bricks and plates in dark tan, 1x1 dark red tiles, a red hot dog and the 3x6x5 Belleville® arch.  It also features gold fireman’s helmets, a tan hand bag and a red sliding garage door!
•    Measures 14" (35 cm) high and 10" (25 cm) wide.
•    Add Fire Brigade to your LEGO® Town and combine it with other modular buildings like 10182 Café Corner and 10185 Green Grocer!

Available for order directly through LEGO® beginning September 1, 2009 via shop.LEGO.com or via phone:
US Contact Center             1-800-453-4652
CA (English) Contact Center     1-800-453-4652
CA (French) Contact Center     1-877-518-5346
European Contact Center     00-800-5346-1111

From LEGO Set Designer Jamie Berard:

Many thanks to the LEGO Group for info and photos!

I hope you've been enjoying BRICKJOURNAL magazine as much as we've enjoyed bringing it to you over the last year-and-a-half!

But before we started the new print version of BRICKJOURNAL, there were 9 earlier issues published in DIGITAL form only, and we've collected them in PRINT form for the FIRST TIME in our series of BRICKJOURNAL COMPENDIUM books. Right now, the first two 200+ page COMPENDIUMS are on sale for HALF-PRICE!

(SPECIAL NOTE: The issues in the COMPENDIUM books are NOT the ones you've been getting in your subscriptions; these are different issues, never before in print form!)

I know that, because of the economy, a lot of you won't be making the rounds of the major LEGO conventions this summer. So now through June 30, we're featuring BRICKJOURNAL COMPENDIUM 1 and 2 at the lowest prices we've ever offered; 50% OFF! If you can't visit our upcoming booths at BrickFair and BrickWorld, this is a great way to get your LEGO fix, and get some fantastic bargains in the process.

You can get full details and order BRICKJOURNAL COMPENDIUM 1 at 50% off here.

You can get full details and order BRICKJOURNAL COMPENDIUM 2 at 50% off here.

Or just go to www.twomorrows.com where you'll find a special sale banner atop the TwoMorrows' home page, which links directly to the items on sale. All major credit cards and Paypal are accepted at checkout.

And don't forget: BRICKJOURNAL COMPENDIUM 3 will be released on July 24, compiling more digital issues in print form for the first time. You can pre-order it here (at 15% off).

This sale is only valid for orders placed at www.twomorrows.com through the end of June, and does not include shipping costs. BrickJournal Compendium 1 and 2 are in-stock, and ready for immediate shipping throughout the U.S. and abroad. Due to the expected large response to this sale, please be patient in case of minor shipping delays; we'll work as fast as possible to keep up with the influx of orders.

Happy building!

Best regards,
John Morrow, publisher
Joe Meno, editor

Kaminoan/Arealight/MMCB (K.A.M.) is sponsoring a building contest with something of a twist:

• Part 1: Create a custom Force-user minifigure using any official or modified parts from your collection, AND...
• Part 2: Create a vignette, with your custom figure in it, using only unmodified parts from ONE single battle pack set.

This contest begins May 15 and ends on 11:59 pm June 15. Details can be found here.

The annual World Festival was held at the Georgia Doem in Atlanta, Georgia. The LEGO Group had a booth showing off the LEGO MINDSTORMS sets. Here are some videos:

Help wanted for the LEGO layout at the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) National Train Show from 10-12 July in Hartford, CT!

The National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) is holding its annual convention at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, CT from 5-12 July, 2009. The National Train Show will occur 10-12 July, and included is a large space for a LEGO train layout. Trains-n-Town is proud to host the planning of the 2009 event, which is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to showcase LEGO trains and the capabilities and diversity of the entire LEGO hobby.
We are seeking participation from any and all LEGO clubs, ILTCO members, and from any and all AFOLs to display at this event. Please visit our NMRA 2009 forum for details on how you can participate. Help is also needed for planning the event, and for the event itself, so "all aboard!"

For info about the National Train Show - go here!
To participate in the LEGO train layout - go here!

From Julie Stern of the LEGO Group:

The Future of LEGO® CITY Lies With the People
 
-Polls open for excited fans to vote on proposals for expansion of LEGO CITY in 2010-
 
LEGO CITY (April 2, 2009) – Architects and planners of LEGO CITY are at odds over which section of the booming metropolis should be developed next.  After a Town Hall meeting was held on April 1, fraught with debate and indecision, CITY officials will open the polls to let residents solve the dilemma.  The future of LEGO CITY is up for vote starting Friday, April 3 at Toysrus.com/LEGOvote.
 
Parks and Rec vs. D.O.T.
Sociologists and environmentalists are rallying around the LEGO CITY Parks and Recreation Board’s plans to create a new CITY SQUARE that focuses on encouraging active play, family togetherness, resident interaction and open green spaces as a means of making LEGO CITY attractive to potential residents and business owners.  Details of the new City Square have not yet been released.
 
LEGO CITY’s Department of Transportation officials submitted two proposals for review and decision.  The first, a PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION CENTER, fosters more use of public transit and reduces traffic on the roads.  The second, a TRUCK STOP to provide rest and comfort for truckers, is badly needed as LEGO CITY’s industry and commerce growth rates are sending an increasing number of large trucks in and out of the CITY limits.  Neither plan outlined specific details.
 
CITY officials believe all three of the proposals hold merit and could be implemented with great attention to detail and fun.
 
Call to Action
Anyone with a vested interest in the future of the LEGO CITY is encouraged to log onto Toysrus.com/LEGOvote to help select the next phase of development.  From April 3 through April 24, voters will find information and instructions about casting their ballots.  Once the polls are closed and a theme is selected, CITY officials and Toys“R”Us executives may foster dialogue with residents over the specifics of the winning proposal.  In 2010, public opinion will reign supreme when the new set launches in August exclusively at Toys“R”Us and LEGO stores nationwide.
 
“Generations of children of all ages have been building cities since LEGO bricks appeared 51 years ago,” said Søren Torp Laursen, president, LEGO Systems, Inc.  “To achieve our goal of incorporating more consumer insights and wishes to our LEGO products and experiences, we’re once again partnering with Toys“R”Us to collect public opinion and comments to pick a theme that will help inspire kids around the world as they continue the city building tradition.”
 
Power to the People
This is the second consecutive year that LEGO fans have been asked to help choose a theme for an exclusive set in partnership with Toys“R”Us.  In 2008, fans chose the LEGO Star Wars™ The Home One™ Mon Calamari Star Cruiser™ set, which will be released later this year to mark the 10th Anniversary of LEGO Star Wars.
 
# # #
 
The LEGO Group is a privately held, family-owned company, based in Billund, Denmark. It was founded in 1932 and today the group is one of the world's leading manufacturers of play materials for children.  The company is committed to the development of children's creative and imaginative abilities through its products, which can be purchased in more than 130 countries.  Visit www.LEGO.com
LEGO and the LEGO logo are trademarks of the LEGO Group.  © 2009 The LEGO Group.