We love motorised remotely controlled creations here at The Lego Car Blog. Arguably the TLCB Elves like them even more, especially if they’re able to squash their colleagues. However, we also love mechanical models, and not just because they mean less mopping up. Mechanical building is Technic at its purest, and it often takes more skill, ingenuity and creativity than simply adding a motor or two to make a model come to life.

Thus one of the champions of mechanical model making becomes the latest builder to join TLCB Master MOCers Hall of Fame; This is regular bloggee and mechanical wizard Kyle Wigboldy – better known as Thirdwigg – and this is how he does it…

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Hello TLCB Readers! My Name is Kyle Wigboldy, and my name in the Lego Community is Thirdwigg. It started from an old Yahoo account from the mid-’90s.

I work in higher education in Michigan, and I am married with two children. I have been interested in cars, trucks, airplanes, tractors, helicopters, bicycles, and basically anything that moves since I was a small child. My work does not interact with any of these things, so building them is a great way to keep this passion stimulated.

What do you drive in real life, and what would you like it to be (and who would be in the passenger seat)?

My daily driver is a Mazda 6 (GJ) with a manual transmission. I like to think of myself as a poorly funded car enthusiast, so this car works great for me. One of the daily little joys in my life is nailing the perfect 3-2 downshift on a local road.

I have a number of dream rides; BMW F80 M3, VE Holden Commodore, NC Miata, Unimog U400, McDonnell Douglas MD520, Diamond DA50, Moots Vamoots. I happen to own one of these, and I hope to complete the rest of the collection at some point.

There are a lot of great people in my life, and I would be happy to share the passenger seat with any of them, but I would love to have a conversation with Sufjan Stevens or Sharon Van Etten to hear a little about their story and how they support and perpetuate their creative process.

If you were a LEGO Brick, which type would you be and why?

I would be part 41678 as it is useful in endless situations. It can be both flexible and rigid. With both pin holes and alternating split axle holes, this part can be used in so many different ways; to brace liftarms, to create a sturdy pivot, mount attachments, or to decorate a chassis. The part is endlessly flexible and constantly meeting the changing needs of building situations. I like to think I am similar in life.

What was your first ever LEGO set, and what is your favourite LEGO set or theme?

The accounts are a little fuzzy, but the first LEGO set I ever got was either 6524 or 1645. Both were acquired at about the same time, and purchased by my parents. No matter which came first, my life would never be the same.

My favorite LEGO theme is Technic, though City/Town will always be dear to my heart as this is where I spent most of my childhood building. I enjoy seeing each new Technic set and MOC come out and the ideas they spark in my mind. With each new one I explore new techniques used, colors expanded, and parts developed. Most of my favorite sets are Technic (8081, 8110, 42054, 8069, 8049), though my favorite set of all time is 6542 Launch & Load Seaport. The diversity of vehicles, endless playable features, and the modular containers have never been matched. I hope to someday recreate this set in Technic.

How and why did you get started in the online LEGO Community?

Towards the end of college, I found myself ignoring final projects and distracting myself with Brickshelf and the newly developed Bricklink. My world changed. Brickshelf gave me ideas I never thought possible. It showed me that building MOCs was something others did. Bricklink facilitated the explosion of ideas that came next. I bought 8880 from Germany as a college graduation present, and everything took off. Eventually I realized the benefit of creating something daily for my mental state. Then I started sharing my builds. I began to see how my ideas would contribute to someone else’s ideas. I build and share my builds as it generates ideas to other people around the world. As long as I still have something beautiful to share, I’ll keep building.

I’m immensely grateful for the online Lego Community. I hope after all that it has given to me, I am able to give back to all who come after me. TLCB, Eurobricks, Brickshelf, Flickr, Instagram, Rebrickable; each has created a space for people to share their creations. Without these, and others, I’m not sure I would be into this hobby.

How do you start a build, and what makes your builds unique to you?

My builds are almost always manual (non-electric), and I try to add as many functions and play features as I am able. I like to think my niche is small and mid sized manual Technic vehicles. I like to have high playability, rigid construction, and accessible builds. Everything I make can be recreated by someone else of moderate skill and collection. Again, after all the online community has given me, I will try to post instructions for everything I make going forward.

I always start with the exact vehicle I want to build. I have a Pinterest file that keeps track of all my ideas, and I slowly work through designs I like. I do not like to build MOCs that are too big, so the next step determines the scale of the build, which is usually based on the tires (or other significant part) that I will use. Then I nail down what I call the hard points (wheelbase, width, length, height, engine placement). Then I do a simple draft with real parts generally placing the mechanics of the build. From here the design process continues with multiple drafts until I am happy with the final build. I end with building a Bricklink Studio file.

What’s coming next?

Hopefully a lot more. Building gives me a great creative outlet, so I hope to keep sharing more builds with the community. I’ll keep building vehicles with high functionality and I’ll keep publishings instructions for people to share in my designs.

I have a couple of MOCs ready to share, so stay tuned. I also have some other builds in the pipeline like another garbage truck, some tractors, and some alternative builds. Generally, I build about one Unimog a year, so there is a pretty good chance that will happen again. Also, I’m always up for a car, so that might happen soon. I tend to follow my motivation, and that changes frequently.

Where will you put your TLCB Master MOCers trophy?

Well I guess it depends on how big it is! I tend to keep my accolades quiet, so it will go into my little LEGO space in my attic. It will bring me a knowing smile every time I see it.

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A huge thank you to Kyle for joining us here at The Lego Car Blog, and becoming our latest Master MOCer!

So prolific is Kyle that he almost has his own section in our Archives, you can find his work on Flickr, plus – best of all – you can create his fantastic mechanical creations for yourself, as he’s produced the building instructions for dozens of his designs, many of which are downloadable for free! Take a look at the Thirdwigg Rebrickable page by clicking here to see what you can recreate at home.