Category Archives: Model Team

Mon Ami

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1960s Citroens were properly weird. This is a Citroen Ami 6, a front-wheel-drive economy car available as saloon, estate, or van, powered by the mighty 602cc sub-30bhp two-cylinder engine from the 2CV, with a reverse-rake rear window, and seats you could remove to form picnic chairs. Because France.

This glorious homage to the little Citroen captures the, um… ‘unique’ styling of the Ami brilliantly in brick form, and it comes from previous bloggee SIM CAMAT who owns the real thing. With opening doors, hood and trunk, plus a detailed engine and interior, SIM’s Ami is a really lovely replica, and you can head to 1960s France via the link to his photostream above.

Tiny Turbo

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This is a Honda’s B-Series engine, as used in numerous Civics, Preludes and Accords in the late-’80s to late-’90s, and the genesis of VTEC. Available from 1.6 to 2.0 litres in capacity, the B-Series could rev to over 8,000rpm, and became one of Honda’s defining accomplishments.

An engineering masterpiece, Honda’s B-Series has featured in quite a few Lego Hondas over the years. Except of course, it hasn’t. Not really. But today we really do have a Lego Honda B-Series, because this amazing creation is a fully working replica of the B16.

Complete with brick-built pistons, crank, manifold, wastegate and ancillaries, this remarkable build captures every aspect of the real Honda engine inside and out, and – purely because it’s cool – in the version we’ve pictured above builder Delton Adams has added a motorised turbocharger for added ‘phish – whuudududu!’ noise imaginings.

As wonderful as it is unusual, there’s a whole lot more of Delton’s incredible Honda B16 to see – both in original and turbo-modded forms – at his Flickr album of the same name. Reliably rev your way to 8,400rpm* via the link in the text above.

*Unless you’ve added turbocharger for ‘phish – whuudududu!’ noises of course.

Stranger Squawks

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The eagerly awaited final season of ‘Stranger Things’ is just a few days away, when we – along with millions of others – will return to 1980s Hawkins Indiana for one last time.

Hawkins’ news outlets are likely to be very busy, with ‘94.5 The Squawk’s news van ready to cover the mysterious disasters courtesy of Alex Jones (aka Orion Pax), who has recreated it and its ‘Upside-down’ counterpart brilliantly in brick.

Opening doors, a fully-fitted interior, a removable roof, and an accurate ‘94.5 WSQK’ livery all feature, and you can join us in Hawkins at Alex’s photostream via the link above.

Stealth Bomber

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This is the Northrop Grumman B-2A Spirit, otherwise known as the ‘Stealth Bomber’. In service since 1997 and designed to be invisible to radar, the B-2 is the only known stealth bomber capable of carrying nuclear bombs, which means it’s probably a good thing there are only twenty-one of them.

Well, twenty-two today, courtesy of previous bloggee Kenneth Vaessen. Constructed a decade ago but only recently photographed, Kenneth’s spectacular 1:36 scale B-2A Spirit is built from around 12,000 pieces, with working bomb bay hatches, flaps and landing gear doors, a folding crew entrance, refuelling receptacle, and a wing-span of nearly five feet (146cm).

It’s a jaw-dropping replica of one of the world’s most recognisable (and feared) aircraft, with more superb imagery available to see at Kenneth’s ‘LEGO Northrop Grumman B-2A Spirit 1:36’ album. Click the link above to be spirited there for a stealthy closer look.

Red Removal

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LEGO’s fictional energy company has been supplying fuel to planes, cars and boats, as well as sponsoring pretty much every vehicle in LEGO City with a number, since ’92. Cue TLCB Master MOCer Dennis Glaasker (aka bricksonwheels), who has taken Octan’s iconic white, red and green colour scheme and flipped it to create this huge custom Peterbilt 389 and Polar tanker combo.

Constructed for the Legoworld Show in the Netherlands, Dennis’ spectacular 1:15 tanker features unique decals, custom chrome, and a livery so cool we don’t miss the red absent from Octan’s usual colour-scheme at all.

There’s more of Dennis’ stunning creation to see at his ‘Peterbilt Octan Tanker Combo’ Flickr album, plus you can find out how he creates amazing models like this one via his interview here at TLCB via the first link in the text above.

Bird of Prey

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Military marketeers get to use the coolest names (unless they’re Soviet of course, when it’s just a collection of letters), including Lightning, Storm Shadow, Typhoon, Tomahawk, and – as with today’s creation – Raptor.

Named after a pointy-beaked, pointy-footed bird, the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor supersonic stealth fighter is used only by the Unites States, with just under 200 units currently in operation.

This spectacular brick-built version of the F-22A single-seat variant comes from Flickr’s Kenneth Vaessen, and includes an opening cockpit canopy, working landing gear, and opening bomb-bay doors, alongside some simply superb shaping.

A gallery of half-a-dozen excellent images is available to view and you can wing your way there via the link above.

Roman Roads

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This magnificent vehicle is an AM5 crane, mounted atop a Roman SR113/114 truck, and it comes from Pufarine of Flickr.

Beautifully recreating the real Romanian truck and crane combo, Pufarine’s model harks back to LEGO’s vintage Model Team line whilst incorporating a range of mechanical Technic features within.

The truck features working steering, deployable stabiliser legs, and a wonderfully detailed engine under a raising hood, whilst the huge intricately constructed lattice crane can slew and raise, with a superbly replicated winch system controlled via neatly hidden cogs at the rear.

There’s much more of Pufarine’s fantastically presented model to see at their ‘AM5’ album on Flickr, and you can take a closer look at this exquisite creation via the link to it in the text above.

ZIL 130 | Picture Special

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It’s time for a truck here at The Lego Car Blog, and today’s is something rather special. Created by previous bloggee Michael Kulakov / Michael217, this gorgeous ZIL 130 captures one of the workhorses of the Soviet Union spectacularly in LEGO bricks. Plus a few items that aren’t strictly LEGO…

Powered by a mix of genuine LEGO motors and third-party electronics, Michael’s model can drive, steer, and change between high and low gear ratios remotely, and also features a working V8 engine under the raising hood, opening cab doors, a mechanically locking trailer hitch, plus all wheel suspension.

Those wheels are non-LEGO parts, beautifully replicating real truck rims from the period via 3D printing, and are shod in RC tyres. The steering arms too are 3D-printed, and include metal inserts, which – along with some metal driveshaft components – toughen the drivetrain to handle the remote control system.

The rest of the build, including that wonderful bodywork, engine bay and interior, is all LEGO, and demonstrates superb attention to detail. Over a dozen perfectly presented images are available to view at Michael’s ‘ZIl 130’ Flickr album, plus you can find full build details, further links, and a video of the model in action at the Eurobricks discussion forum.

Farm Fresh

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We don’t usually know what’s in the back of a truck, but we do today thanks to those tell-tale openings. Delicious animals, that’s what.

But if you’re vegan don’t worry, today’s other post will be for you. Until then we’re off to have a steak, lamb shank, or rack of ribs courtesy of Arian Janssens’ splendid DAF FA XD livestock truck, and you can join us for dinner via the link.

Minneapolis Metro

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This splendid creation is a 2000’s New Flyer D60HF Metro Transit bus, which – in this case – can bend its way around the streets of Minneapolis thanks to an articulated pivot at its centre. The work of previous bloggee JLiu15, this fantastic Model Team replica of a staple of the Minneapolis transit system is packed with motorised functionality, including doors, drive and steering, with a whole lot more to see on Flickr. Head to JLiu15’s ‘Motorized 2003 New Flyer D60HF Metro Transit Bus’ album via the link above to hop on board the No. 535.

Tanked Up

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We’re not sure what’s inside Arian Janssens’ excellent classic DAF FT 2800 truck and tanker trailer but – as is always the case with such posts – we hope it’s beer. Or wine. Or anything alcoholic in fact. Yeah, well… you try and work with mythical creatures for a job. Arian’s creation is perfectly hopped, and you can have a taste at his ‘DAF FT 2800’ album whilst this TLCB Writer tries to find some alcohol in the office that isn’t in a hand-sanitiser.

Onward Guinevere!

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The Elves is Disney movies do not look like those here at TLCB Towers. Probably because Disney don’t want their young audience members to scream/cry/vomit. Cue 2020’s ‘Onward’, in which two ‘Elf’ brothers undertake an epic adventure in an old van, which recent bloggee Tim Inman has recreated beautifully in brick form.

Complete with rusty sills, a detailed interior behind a sliding door, and a fabulous brick-built pegasus mural, Tim’s Model Team ‘Guinevere’ is one of our favourite creations of the year so far. There’s much more to see at Tim’s photostream and you can join two Elves on the road trip of a lifetime via the link above, whilst we look at ours and ponder our choices.

Green Gas

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If we saw a cloud of gas this colour floating our way we probably wouldn’t stop to find out what it smelled like. Still Tim Inman is made of braver stuff than us, because he’s taken one of LEGO’s rarest hues and somehow found enough parts to create this glorious 1933 Willys ‘gasser’ hot rod. With absurd side-pipes, an octuplet of engine trumpets, and packing a parachute, Tim’s ride isn’t messing about, and you can gas your way over to his photostream for a sniff at the link above.

*Today’s

The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau

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Naval officer, film maker, oceanographer, author, and Palme d’Or winner, Jacques-Yves Cousteau was surely one of the world’s last great adventurers.

And his legacy is one that is still felt every day in the marine biology and diving worlds, with Jacques accurately predicting that animals such a porpoises can echolocate, and inventing the first ever piece of SCUBA equipment – the Aqua-Lung – in the 1940s.

He is perhaps most famous for his oceanic mapping and discovery of numerous wrecks, with much of this work carried out on his American-built, wooden-hulled, ex-British World War 2 minesweeper the RV Calypso.

This stunning brick-built replica of Jacques’ iconic ship – which now languishes dismantled in Turkey – comes from previous bloggee Alex Jones aka Orion Pax, who has both constructed and presented it beautifully.

Measuring 50cm long Alex’s model is packed with details, and you can take a closer look at his recreation of one of the most important ships to ever sail via the link to his photostream above.

Rolling a Six

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The Lego Car Blog Elves are very excited today…

This is the 1976 Tyrrell P34, Formula 1’s only racing-winning 6-wheeler, and – as things currently stand – the only 6-wheeler that will ever win a race as the fun-sponges at Formula 1 banned cars with more than four wheels a few years later. Because… honestly we have no idea.

This fabulous recreation of the Elf-liveried P34 comes from TLCB debutant bentobrick, who has constructed motorsport’s most recognisable design brilliantly in brick, including a working replica Cosworth DFV engine and four-wheel steering (as shown in the excellent render below).

There’s more of bentobrick’s superb 1976 Tyrrell P34 to see at the Eurobricks forum, where a link to building instructions is also available, and you can head to a Grand Prix in 1976 via the link above.