Decking Vietnam

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This is a Vought F-8E Crusader II, one of the first supersonic carrier-based fighters, and it flew from the decks of U.S aircraft carriers from the late-‘50s right up until the mid-‘70s. Which of course meant it served in the Vietnam War, where it earned the nickname ‘MiG Killer’ because it, well… killed MiGs, with an astonishing 19:3 kill ratio.

This exceptional brick-built replica of the F-8E is the work of Flickr’s Juliusz D., and includes working landing gear, the Crusader’s trick variable incidence and folding wings, an opening cockpit, a deployable air-brake, functioning flaps, a full compliment of missiles and bombs, and phenomenally accurate period-correct markings.

It’s one of the finest Lego fighters we’ve ever featured, and you can take flight from a carrier deck somewhere in the South China Sea in 1967 via the link above.

Technically Camping

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After pondering the deliciousness of animals in today’s other post we promised a vehicle for vegans, and they don’t get more vegany than a Volkswagen Camper!

This tremendous Technic example comes from Flickr’s Darren Thew, who has not only recreated the ‘60s exterior beautifully, there’s a fully fitted interior inside the opening doors complete with furniture, a folding bed, and a kitchen for making, um… lentils? We’re not sure what vegans cook, but whatever it is they can do it here!

There’s lots more of Darren’s split-screen VW to see at his photostream, and you can enjoy eat a delicious healthy van-based meal via the link above.

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.

18th Century Idiocy

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The sailing boat is the 18th century equivalent of the Ford Mustang. At least it was in our home nation, where hundreds, if not thousands, were smashed into sand bars, rocks, each other…

Cue this excellent Imperial Ship by Flickr’s Brick Knight, which has just crashed into a rock probably whilst doing something reckless leaving a boat show.

Being the 18th century, the spectators can’t video it to put it on YouTube, but we’re sure the taverns will be filled with reenactments tonight.

There’s more of the historic idiocy to see at Brick’s photostream and you can join the scene of the accident via the link above.

Brickin’ Blazer

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‘What’s that crunchy sound?’ muttered this TLCB Writer to himself as he sat in TLCB Office. A weary trudge out to the corridor revealed the source, as a remote control 4×4 drove forwards and backwards over a small pile of flattened TLCB Elves.

On seeing a human the Elf at the controls abandoned its activity and fled the scene cackling maniacally, leaving its vehicle of choice (and the pile of Elves underneath it) behind. We’ll administer first-aid to the victims later, but first let’s take a look at the model!

It’s a K5-series Chevrolet Blazer, as recreated superbly in Technic form by Madoca 1977. A suite of Powered-Up electronics are packed inside, providing remote control four-wheel-drive, steering and a high/low gearbox.

Madoca has also engineered a properly clever drivetrain, with linked pendular suspension that automatically locks the differentials at high rates of axle articulation. No wonder it made such light work of squashing our mythical workers.

There’s lots more of Madoca’s model to see – including images of the ingenious engineering within – at the Eurobricks forum, plus you watch the Blazer in action via the video below. Click the links to take a closer look.

YouTube Video

Ridge Racer

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It’s the mid-’90s, and the peak of racing games involved far too few pixels, minimal physics, empty highway tunnels, and an array nondescript Japanese-esque cars. Cars like this one, the ‘F/A Racing Kamata Fiera’ from 1993’s ‘Ridge Racer’.

Wonderfully constructed by Flickr’s StudWorks, this Speed Champions homage to the earliest days of Playstation racing captures the fictional racer brilliantly, including an authentically recreated ‘Namco’ livery on its appropriately blocky exterior.

There’s more to see at StudWorks’ ‘Ridge Racer – F/A Racing Kamata Fiera’ album and you can join us on a pixilated mountain highway in 1993 via the link above. And if you have no idea what racing games were like three decades ago, click here to see just how good you have it now!

A Good Tipper

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Anyone that’s worked in the restaurant industry likes a good tipper. Particularly in America, where in many states the minimum wage can be set below the legal amount so that tips make up the difference. Which means that they aren’t tips at all, but rather subsiding corporate greed. Sigh. Sometimes America sucks.

Still, in Europe tips are tips, paid on top of a minimum wage, and thus today we have a good European tipper; a Mercedes-Benz Arocs 4143 8×4. Constructed by regular bloggee Keko007, the Arocs is very detailed indeed considering the small scale, and it can really tip too.

There’s more to see Keko’s ‘Mercedes Arocs 4143 8×4’ Flickr album, and you can make the waitress’s day / subsidise their wages because your tip in fact goes to the owner via the link above.

Doubull

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We’re ballers at TLCB today, because we have two Lamborghini Aventador Ultimaes. And most actual Lamborghini owners probably have another one. And a helicopter.

Our Lamborghini pairing comes from The G Brix of Flickr, whose brick-built versions of the Aventador Ultimae in coupe and roadster form are constructed from around five-hundred parts apiece, and include transparent opening engine covers and seating for two mini-figures.

There’s lots more to see at G’s photostream, and you can join us pretending we belong with elite financiers, tech bros, and YouTube influencers via the link above.

Virtual Yuk

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The recent assassination of Charlie Kirk – ironically during a speech where he was criticising gun control – continues the descent of America (and many other nations, our own included) into a tribalist, binary, them and us, anyone-who-doesn’t-think-like-me-is-the-enemy hellscape.

Thus today we’re showing some BBC-esque impartiality and featuring a model of a car we dislike immensely will write about objectively.

Digitally created by Peter Blackert (aka lego911), this is an early-’00s GMC Yukon; a full-size SUV based on the Chevrolet Tahoe and powered by an enormous 5.7 V8 that made just 250bhp, similar to the vastly superior Toyota 4Runner’s much smaller V6 some 250bhp. The Yukon/Tahoe also featured side airbags, four-wheel disc brakes, and automatic headlight control, plus many other, um… facts.

Alright, we’re not very good as this factual stuff. But it doesn’t matter if we think that the GMC Yukon is two-tons of early-’00s American automotive malaise and you think it’s the best vehicle ever made. It’s OK to disagree. Even if someone’s opinions are bit unusual. We quite like the Fiat Multipla after all.

You can take a look at Peter’s excellent virtual Yukon at his photostream via the link above, whether you love the real thing, hate it, or have no opinion whatsoever.

Dixi Chic

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Mini are these days owned by BMW. But before the ‘new’ Mini was the 1959 original, which was actually first called the Austin ‘Seven’ and not the ‘Mini’ at all. And that’s because it had an even smaller predecessor, the pre-Second World War Austin 7, a car that was also – weirdly – BMW’s first.

Produced under license in-between Britain and Germany killing one another and then Britain and Germany killing one another again, almost 10,000 Austin 7-based BMW Dixis were built, before BMW designed their first in-house model in the early-’30s (although this still used a licensed Austin engine).

This lovely recreation of the BMW Dixi 3/15 comes from SvenJ. of Flickr, who has captured the German Austin 7 beautifully. There’s more to see at Sven’s ‘BMW Dixi 3/15’ album and you can head back to 1920s Germany via the link above.

Goths in the Box

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This splendid ‘GothCorp’ box truck was found on Flickr today, and comes from TLCB debutant Auto’s Builds. Excellent detailing abounds, amongst which is a refrigerator unit above the cab, allowing the goths in transit to arrive in perfectly fresh condition.

We’re not sure why goths need to be refrigerated though, seeing as they can wear a black leather coat on even the hottest of days without issue, but mopey British subcultures are way outside of this writer’s knowledge.

There’s more to see of Auto’s creation at their ‘GothCorp Box Truck’ album, where you can join the goths on-route to sulking at the local cemetery. Unless the truck is delivering something else entirely of course and our goth narrative is total nonsense. Click the link above to find out…

Gray Giant

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The monochrome vibe continues at The Lego Car Blog today with this, Lucio Switch’s immense European heavy-duty truck.

Lucio’s creation is amongst the most visually lifelike of any Technic models we’ve featured, assisted by the enormity of its scale, and is packed with working functionality. This includes a tilting and sprung cab and opening engine access panel, motorised remote control, and a pneumatically raising/lowering second axle, with air pressure built via an on-board compressor.

It’s a hugely impressive (and hugely sized) creation, and one that’s presented to perfection, with over twenty stunning images available to view at Lucio’s ‘Heavy Duty Tractor Truck’ album on Flickr. Join us there via the link above.

Black or White*

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New cars in TLCB’s home nation are a sea of monochrome. Because the British public are a) unimaginative and b) under the mistaken impression that a black SUV is classy. But back in the 1960s monochrome could look so good, as proven by this fantastic Ford Fairlane.

Constructed in white, black, and grey, builder Jonathan Elliott has presented his model on a curving grey background (a neat trick to avoid corner shadows), adding to the monochrome cool. Head to Jonathan’s photostream for more of his work.

*Today’s wonderful (if ironic) title song.

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.

LEGO Star Wars 75419 Death Star | Set Preview

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That’s no moon. But the price is lunacy. This is the brand new LEGO Star Wars 75419 Death Star.

Arriving outside the atmosphere of a planet near you on October 1st, 75419 brings Star Wars’ most iconic energy project into LEGO’s Ultimate Collector Series, with over 9,000 parts, thirty-eight mini-figures and an array of movie scenes held within a thin slice of space-station.

These include the crushing trash compactor, Princess Leia’s cell, the hangar control room infiltrated by Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, the tractor beam control deactivated by Obi-Wan Kenobi, Emperor Palpatine’s throne room, the Imperial Shuttle hangar bay, and the planet-destroying Superlaser. And all for $999.

Yes, it’s finally (if inevitably) happened, 75419 is the first one-thousand dollar LEGO set. With a recommended retail price of $999 / £899, it actually translates to over $1,200 in our home nation at today’s exchange rate. Which sounds, and is, a galactic amount of money. But perhaps black boxes and purple Imperial Dignitaries don’t come cheap.

If you’re head of a Galactic Empire you can get your black gloved hands on the new LEGO Star Wars 75419 Death Star set from October 1st. For the rest of us in the Republic, we haven’t forgotten that LEGO is supposed to be a toy, so we’ll be playing with what we’ve got.