The Magazine for LEGO® Enthusiasts of All Ages! Issue 62 • June 2020
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LEGO® Trains Hit the Tracks!
Cale Leiphart’s Blue Comet PENNLug’s Train Roundhouse
AND MORE!
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2020
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Issue 62 • June 2020
Contents From the Editor....................................................2
People Building the Future: Keiichi Kamei’s Blade Runner Models.........3
Building Jack Carleson: Building Big Birds............................................8 A Tale of the Blue Comet...............................16 Edward Chang: The Princess Train.........................................24 Building the PennLUG Roundhouse......30
Creating Brick Model Railroader’s First Custom Locomotive Kit: The Reading T-1.............................................40 You Can Build It: Crossing Shanty............................................48 You Can Build It: MINI Dornean Gunship..............................56 Minifigure Customization 101: The Child...........................................................62
Community Sizing up a Theme...........................................68
Community Ads...............................................78 Last Word.............................................................79 Bricks in the Middle........................................80
From the Editor: This issue is yet another Train issue—the gang at Brick Model Railroader have come through and written some great content for this issue! Many thanks to Cale Leiphart and Glenn Holland for writing about BMR’s first set, which is an impressive achievement!
June 2020 Issue 62
Publisher John Morrow
Editor in Chief Joe Meno
Photography Editor Geoff Gray
There’s some other Train-oriented content, including instructions to a crossing shanty with a gate for your layouts, a look at a roundhouse built by the members of PennLUG, and a feature on the Blue Comet, a steam train that was built in LEGO form by Cale, and a Princess Train by Edward Chang.
Japanese Bureau Editor Nathan Bryan
There’s other stuff too—some planes by Jack Carleton, and large spaceships by Jason Ruff. There’s also a Blade Runner display that was shown in Japan, and a feature on making Baby Yoda! There’s a little bit of everything in this issue, so take a look and have fun and BUILD!!
Proofreader John Morrow
West Coast Editors Ashley Glennon
LEGO Ideas Correspondent Glen Wadleigh Contributors: Jared Burks, Jack Carleson, Edward Chang, Christopher Deck, Glen Holland, Cale Leiphart, Matthew Kay, Jason Ruff, and Kevin Hinkle. Many thanks to the websites who have served as mirrors for BrickJournal: www.LUGNET.com www.Brickshelf.com www.peeron.com www.brickmodder.net www.rustyclank.com
About the Cover: Jae Won Lee’s rendition of Huang Zhong has beautiful detail. Photo by Jae Won Lee. About the Contents Page: A minifigure’s view of the inside of PennLUG’s roundhouse. Photograph by Cale Leiphart. Star Wars and all related characters and properties TM & © Lucasfilm. All Disney characters are TM & © Disney.
Joe Meno, Editor P.S. Have ideas or comments? Drop me a line at brickjournal@gmail.com. I’m open to suggestions and comments and will do my best to reply. P.P.S... Yes, BrickJournal has a website—www.brickjournal.com! Twitter? Yep, there too—http://twitter.com/brickjournal. Facebook? Yup—http://www.facebook.com/group. php?gid=58728699914&ref=mf. Or you can scan the bottom codes with a QR reader! P.P.P.S. If you want info on a subscription, you can go to www.twomorrows.com or scan below!
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Glossary AFOL (Adult Fan of LEGO) AFFOL (Adult Female Fan of LEGO) TFFOL (Teen Female Fan of LEGO) NLSO (Non-LEGO Significant Other) MOC (My Own Creation) TLG (The LEGO Group) BURP (Big Ugly Rock Piece) LURP (Little Ugly Rock Piece) POOP (Pieces—that can be or should be made—Of Other Pieces)
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LEGO®, TECHNIC, MINDSTORMS, Belville, Scala, BIONICLE, ExoForce, Mars Mission, World City, and other LEGO theme lines are trademarks of the LEGO Group of companies. All articles, photos, and art are copyright BrickJournal Media, LLC 2011, TwoMorrows Publishing and the respective writers, photographers, and artists. All rights reserved. All trademarked items are the property of their respective owners and licensees. Subscriptions are $67 Economy US, $79 Expedited US, $101 International, or $27 Digital Only and can be purchased at www.twomorrows.com or payment sent to: TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614 USA. The editorial/advertising office address for BrickJournal is: BrickJournal Editor, 9001 Barb Anne Court, Springfield, VA 22152, USA or admin@brickjournal.com. First Printing. Printed in China. ISSN 1941-2347. BrickJournal and its staff would like to thank the LDraw community for the software it makes available to the community, which we use for making all of the instructions and renderings in this magazine. We would especially like to thank Kevin Clague for his continued upgrades of the LPub tool that is a part of2the LDraw suite. For more information, please visit http://www.ldraw.org.
People
Keiichi Kamei is a devoted fan of the movie Blade Runner who returned to LEGO building 12 years ago. He played with LEGO growing up, but quit during his teenage years. His return was prompted when his son was born, and again he started playing with the bricks. When his son went to college he quit building, so Keiichi took the LEGO his son had and restarted his building. In that time, Keiichi has built models of animals and buildings, including a rooster and wild boar. He also built a New Year’s lion mask, a Shishimai. He also built his first version of the Spinner from Blade Runner in 2012. Since then, he has made improvements and rebuilt as new elements came out. Keiichi focused his Spinner building on four areas: functioning doors, places for two minifigures to ride, changing from ground to flight mode with minimal parts replacement, and a well-balanced form. Other builders have made models of the Spinner, but Keiichi was also interested in the other vehicles and the architecture, as designed by futurist Syd Mead. Keiichi wanted to build more, so in 2017, he started to build dioramas based on the movie. At first, the diorama was only a pillar and a wall, but it eventually expanded. His resulting build is a full street scene from Blade Runner, complete with buildings and vehicles.
Keiichi Kamei with his diorama, “Deckard Chases Down Zhora” at Tchikawa Cinema City in Tokyo, Japan.
Article and Photography by Keiichi Kamei
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A breakdown of the dragon sign that is seen.
At the White Dragon, where Rick Deckard and Gaff first meet.
Deckard atop a taxi, looking for Zhora. A closer look at the full diorama, with a stickered taxi cab and Deckard moved.
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The diorama was essentially a LEGO-scale replica of one of the exterior sets of the movie, depicting an intersection in Los Angeles. With a library of minifigures and vehicles from the movie replicated, a scene from the movie could be done with the diorama. Keiichi chose a scene where Rick Deckard (the main character) is chasing Zhora (one of the antagonists). This was displayed at a theater in Japan to coincide with the run of the Blade Runner sequel. For an event in Tokyo that took place in November 9-10, 2019 that presented a crowdsourced restoration of a Spinner—the “Police Spinner Restore Project”—Keiichi split his large diorama to create a smaller layout that depicted the liftoff of the Spinner from the streets of Los Angeles. The liftoff base was built using wedges and arches on a turntable, which could be rotated. He also had another diorama of the White Dragon (the noodle bar where Deckard and Gaff first meet). The original diorama of the chase was slightly expanded.
Here, Keiichi also displayed two Spinners, one in its land mode and the other in flight mode. For the architecture of the diorama, Keiichi tried to match the style of the futuristic architecture, from the pillars to the neon signs. Of the four neon signs in the layout, two were built in LEGO, while the others were too small to build, so they were made with stickers rendered from captured footage. At the event Keiichi was able to photograph his models with the real Spinner behind as well as showing his dioramas to Sean Young, who played Rachael in Blade Runner, showing what fans can do with a movie…and with LEGO bricks!
A breakdown of the takeoff, used for the liftoff scene below. Keiichi (left) with Sean Young (who played Rachael in Blade Runner), Prop Maker Kenichi Sekine (center right), and amateur modeler Tomohiro Tanaka (far right).
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The Spinner in flight mode (left) and land mode (right). A look at the interior.
Rear view. Bottom view.
Crowded in the diorama are the vehicles that were designed and built for the movie. Only a few were given screen time, but here’s a closer look at the vehicles in Keiichi’s dioramas.
Rick Deckard’s land-bound sedan (left) and police cruiser.
A future Imperial Crown coupe.
A streetsweeper and disinfectant wagon.
The Metrokab, a taxi.
A van owned by Sebastian, one of the characters in the movie, with an ambulance behind.
Two of a kind.
A tanker.
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Building
Forward view of the B-36D.
Jack Carleson:
Building Big Birds! Article and Photography by Jack Carleson
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Introduction
My name is Jack Carleson, more commonly known as “BigPlanes” on YouTube and Flickr. I’ve been building LEGO for about eight years as an amateur hobbyist. I started having an interest in aviation about five years ago after visiting a number of air museums and shows. Since that time, I have enjoyed combining the two hobbies together. When I started building aircraft models, I built primarily military. However, as my YouTube channel “BigPlanes” started growing in size, I started branching out to civilian aircraft models such as a Boeing 737 and 787. As my channel name would suggest, I build large planes. My B-36 has a wingspan of about 6 feet and the 747 weighs so much it damages the table I display it on. I try to do airplanes that have not been done by other builders and that are often neglected from history, such as the B-36. When building supermassive models, the sheer physics of the design become apparent. Due to this, my larger builds require a Technic substructure combined with standard system elements in order to not crumble under their enormous weight. Although I mostly build largescale models, I do occasionally build smaller models. To be perfectly honest, however, large planes are what I’ve become more known for. I always try to include the little details that most people wouldn’t even notice such as the small antennae on the sides or top of the aircraft. I also try to design a functioning landing gear and flap system that is as close to the one found on the actual aircraft as possible. Building large LEGO aircraft is a mix of two of my favorite passions: aviation and LEGO.
A cockpit view.
Side view of the B-36D.
B-36D (“Peacemaker”)
The Convair B-36 was initially designed during World War II to be able to bomb Europe from the mainland United States; however, the war ended before the B-36 could enter service. Known as the “Peacemaker”, the B-36 never fired a single shot in anger throughout its time in service. The B-36 filled the role of the United States’ key nuclear deterrent during the early years of the Cold War due to it being the only aircraft in the US Arsenal that could carry the very large and bulky H bomb. Early on, the B-36 had issues with being underpowered and also had cooling issues with its pusher engines. The cooling issues were mostly resolved and to help with speed at takeoff, the B-36 was equipped with four jets mounted in pods under the wing. This led to the saying “Six turning and
four burning” however, the phrase “Two turning, two burning, two smoking, two choking, and two unaccounted for” became infamous due to the B-36’s unreliable engines. My model is a B-36D. With a wingspan of six feet and a length of 4 ½ feet. This is the largest wingspan on any model I’ve ever built. There is a detailed cockpit and of course, the crew of 15 needed to run such a large plane. Each engine has a separate Power Functions motor in it which allows this build to have at least six turning. This was a challenging build mostly because of the complexity of getting the proper airfoil of the wing and keeping that wing from sagging. In the end, this turned out great and I’m glad the B-36 can be brought back in LEGO form.
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B-29.
B-29 (“Superfortress”)
B-29 flight crew.
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A look at the nose art.
The B-29 was one of the largest and most technologically advanced bombers of WWII. This massive bomber had a pressurized cabin and remotely operated guns. The B-29 was vital for the air war in Japan and even saw service after the war in Korea. My model is built using all authentic LEGO metallic silver pieces. Yup, none of these are custom paint jobs. Sourcing this much silver was not easy. Most stores on BrickLink only have a dozen or so of each piece, which makes finding any sizeable number of these a challenge. It basically came down to slowly accumulating silver pieces over the years and finally being able to build a bomber out of it. This plane isn’t just show though. This model features fully functioning bomb bays and a retracting undercarriage. The yellow on the tail and wings was chosen because it contrasted well with the silver. The yellow was not seen as much on the B-29 as it was on other aircraft such as the B-17, but I thought it added good character. This model was not built overnight and is even still getting parts added to it as I can find them in silver. However, this model is pretty much done, which means I can focus on my next silver plane. Fun!
Pan Am 707
This model is based on a Pan Am 707-120. The 707120 was one of the very first 707 models that entered service, and I decided to build my model in the Pan Am livery due to Pan Am being one of the first major operators of the 707. The 707 was one of the jets that pioneered the future of civilian aviation by introducing cutting edge design features like swept aerodynamic surfaces and podded engines. Boeing engineers learned from the failures of the de Havilland Comet on metal fatigue and were able to apply that knowledge to the 707. My model has a full interior with vibrant ’60s colored seats with a full galley and lavatories. The 707’s engines were so loud that they were often fitted with “hush kits” to make them a little more bearable for residents near airports. The 707 was one of the jets that paved the way for modern air travel.
An interior view.
Cockpit view. Rear view.
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Sky Lounge section.
Southwest 727-200
Economy section.
The 727 series were specifically designed to be able to land on short runways and at smaller, more rural airports. The 727 even had retractable airstairs that could be deployed in case the airport could not provide one for the plane. My model is a 727-200 painted in the Southwest “Desert Gold” livery. Southwest did operate some 727s in the early ’80s despite their fleet using only 737s today. My model has a full economy interior with what Southwest called “Sky Lounges.” Two of the defining characteristics of the 727 are its three engines clustered in the tail, and its iconic T-tail. Cockpit view.
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Norwegian Airlines 787 “Dreamliner”
The 787 is the most modern of the passenger planes I’ve built. The 787 was designed to be able to fulfill the role of quad-jets but be more efficient by only using two engines. The 787 brought many new revolutionary features such as carbon fiber construction for the fuselage and a highly flexible wing. My model has a full interior with economy class and “premium economy” in the front. This model is built at 1/40 scale much like my other passenger plane models and can actually seat minifigures in the seats. The 787 is one of my largest civilian jets measuring around five feet in length and having a five-foot wingspan. Cockpit. Cockpit and Premium Economy.
Economy.
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Air Force One
VC-25 (more commonly known as “Air Force One”) is one of, if not the most recognizable aircraft in the world. Air Force One is a modified Boeing 747-200 that serves the role of transporting the President of the United States and their staff. Built with an estimated 25,000 pieces, with a wingspan of 5 ½ feet and a length of six feet, this is the largest model that I’ve ever made. This was a massive challenge, not only because of the difficulties of sourcing the parts for a monster aircraft but also because a plane this large would need serious structural support. Sporting a full interior, this model stands completely on its own landing gear without any auxiliary support. Each engine has a Power Functions motor in it and is able to spin. This model has functioning interior lamps with the wires being run under the floor and to a central battery pack. On the massive wing, you can find fully functional spoilers and triple-slotted Fowler flaps. Designing the wing was by far the most challenging part. Not only is the wing swept back at a 45-degree angle on the leading edge, but to add insult to injury, this 5 ½ foot wing has a dihedral. In order to accomplish this, I had to create a wing box that could handle the stress of such a large model. The interior is as accurate as I could make it. At the front of the aircraft is the President’s suite. This area has a room with two twin beds, a dual vanity sink and shower, desk, and of course, the President’s office. A little further back is a fully equipped medical room with a fold-down bed. Directly behind that, is a kitchen. The main conference room is sort of the “war room” on board. Behind that is the Secret Service area and the rest of the aircraft is for press personnel. Getting a full interior on this model and keeping structural integrity was by far the most challenging part. It was well worth it in the end, though.
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The President’s office.
The War Room.
Part of the Presidential Suite.
The press area.
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Building
The Blue Comet has been called the “Seashore’s Finest Train.” The train, the brainchild of Central Railroad of New Jersey President R. B. White, whisked passengers from Jersey City to Atlantic City from 1929 to 1941. The Blue Comet’s route would take New York & Long Branch trackage to Red Bank, then follow the Southern Division Main Line to Winslow Junction, where it would travel over the Atlantic City Railroad’s (part of the Reading Railroad) tracks to Atlantic City.
A Tale of the Blue Comet “A Deluxe Class Train for a Coach Class Fare” Article and Photography by Cale Leiphart
Original LIONEL “Tin Plate” train set inspired by the Blue Comet.
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Three brand new G3 Pacific locomotives were assigned to the train; numbers 831, 832 and 833, and the CNJ totally refurbished sixteen cars, inside and out, for Blue Comet service. Each train consisted of a baggage car, combine-smoker, coaches, and an observation car. The diner accompanied the early morning trip to Atlantic City and the evening return to Jersey City. The colors chosen for the Blue Comet were Packard Blue, which represented the sky; Jersey Cream, for the sandy coastal beaches; and Royal Blue, for the sea. Even the locomotives were painted for Blue Comet service. Each car was named for a comet. The diner carried the name Giacobini, the two combines carried the names Halley and Encke. The baggage cars were named for the comets Olbers and Barnard, and the coaches for Tuttle, Holmes, Westphal, D’Arrest, Faye, Spitaler, Winnecke, and Brorsen. The three observation cars were named for comets DeVico, Biela, and Tempel. The Blue Comet was born from the CNJ’s need to compete with the Pennsylvania RR for the then lucrative Atlantic City passenger trade. The CNJ also wanted to eliminate a costly Pullman parlor car lease, in which the CNJ had carried a financial loss ten months of the year. The Blue Comet would offer extra accommodations at a regular coach fare, while having assigned seats so passengers knew exactly where they would sit. The competing Pennsylvania Railroad charged extra for its all parlor car Atlantic City Limited, and New York Limited trains. In addition, the PRR charged extra fees for parlor cars on its Nellie Bly train. The CNJ’s aim was to undercut the PRR’s ticket fares, attracting shore travelers with a better train service at a lower cost.
Initially, the Blue Comet was a huge success. The first train ran on February 21, 1929 with thousands of spectators along the line coming out to see the new train. The Blue Comet ran on schedule 97% of the time for the first five years. It was such a hit with train watchers that the CNJ placed a billboard on the Routes 33/34 overpass at Collingwood, NJ listing the times the train would pass that area. Eventually, the Depression and the PRR’s direct access to New York took the life out of the Blue Comet. The Central New Jersey soldiered on with the Blue Comet through the Depression, but the end would finally come in 1941. On September 27th of that year, the Blue Comet would make its last run. Though the Comet was gone, it has not been forgotten. The train made an indelible impact on all those who encountered it. One notable Comet fan was Lionel Trains founder Joshua Lionel Cowen, who was among those who frequently rode the Blue Comet. Inspired by the train’s elegant beauty, speed, and the sublime power of its towering locomotive, Lionel offered a standard gauge model of the train in 1930. This model elevated the Blue Comet’s status and has become part of the train’s rich lore.
The full six car LEGO Blue Comet train set on display.
The Blue Comet lives on today in the imaginations of train fans everywhere. There have been multiple models of the train offered over the years, books written about the Blue
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Comet locomotive 832 was chosen as the one Cale would model for the train as it was the least photographed of the three locomotive to wear the Comet colors.
Comet, it’s had a starring role in an episode of the Sopranos, and even a full-length documentary produced on the train’s history. The Blue Comet may have had a short run, but its mark on railroad history will last a very long time.
passenger travel. Both striking and elegant, fast yet graceful, it is a work of art. I knew that when I set out to build this train in LEGO, I would have to build the very best model I could to live up to this legendary train’s status.
Destiny with a Comet
A Labor of Love, Building the Comet
I first fell in love with the Blue Comet while setting up a display at the National Toy Train Museum in Strasburg Pennsylvania. While wandering the museum, I spotted an O scale model of the train made by MTH, sitting on a display shelf in the main display room. I was infatuated with the train almost immediately. I had heard of the train before, but to see it in physical form, I couldn’t help but fall in love. It was a very striking train, with the locomotive painted in an eye-catching blue with gold pin striping, and nickelplated accents. The passenger cars were also blue, with an attractive band of white running down the windows. It was a beautiful train from a different time, a time when rail travel was king, and a journey on a train was something special. The Blue Comet had caught my imagination like it has done to so many others before. I knew then, that I should be the one to bring this train to life again in LEGO. The Blue Comet is, for me, one of the most beautiful trains ever to grace the rails. It is the height of classical railroad
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The locomotive wheels were designed by Nate Brill exclusively for the Comet model. They were then painted dark blue and pinstriped by hand.
The start of this project came long before I ever started putting bricks together. I never start a train project without first doing some research on the subject I’m modeling. The Comet became a quest to find as much information as I could on this famous train. I tracked down and purchased every book available with any content on the train. I combed through magazine articles, websites, blogs, and forum posts, and I even obtained a DVD of De Luxe: The Tail of the Blue Comet, an excellent documentary by Robert A. Emmons Jr. which I highly recommend if you can find a copy. One could argue that I put more time into researching the Comet than I did building the models. However, I had to know every detail. This train was becoming very special to me, and I wanted to build the best model I possibly could. My first step into actual design for this project came with building the cars in LDraw. I knew I wanted to build one of each car type that made up the train, plus an extra coach, for a total of six cars. I have a robust collection of parts, but I knew a project of this size would tax and probably exceed my resources. This train would be built using Bricklink orders, and I needed a shopping list for what parts to buy. Fortunately, there’s typically not a lot of mechanical issues to worry about with passenger cars, so modeling them first in CAD was pretty straightforward. It also helped that I had previously built non-Comet versions of the coach and combine cars for another train of mine, a Central New Jersey commuter train. The part total for all six cars came in at roughly 8,000 individual parts. Needless to say, a lot of Bricklink orders ensued. The locomotive, though, would not designed in CAD. LEGO steam locomotives are complex and finicky creatures. There are a lot of moving parts in close proximity to each
other, and to other non-moving assemblies. How all these moving bits interact with each other is something you can’t model with Brick CAD programs—which is why I prefer my locomotives built the old fashioned way, by putting one brick together with another until I have something resembling and working like the real prototype. This train would find me stepping far outside the ideals of “LEGO Purity” many times. I used third party brick parts like mono pods and u-clips from Brickarms. I modified several parts such as Technic pins used in the valve gear, painted a few LEGO parts I couldn’t get in dark blue or metallic silver, and even made my own 3-D printed parts. I’m sure this might lessen this model’s status in the minds of some LEGO fans, but I was never concerned about such views. I built this train for me, with the goal to be the best example of what scale modeling could be in LEGO trains. I did nothing an official LEGO designer wouldn’t do when prototyping a new set or part, and I stayed as close to the spirit and aesthetic of LEGO as I could. This train is an example of how far you can take the hobby of LEGO trains, if you are willing to get creative.
The Locomotive
The cab of the locomotive being decaled. Pin stripe tape in metallic gold was used to get the thin pin striping.
During the life of the Blue Comet, three brand-new G3s Pacific type locomotives would be assigned to the train, locomotives number 831, 832 and 833. The Central Railroad of New Jersey based their pacific design on the Reading’s G1s locomotives, but with more weight, larger cylinders, and additional equipment, such as stokers, mechanical lubricators, feedwater heaters, and a narrower firebox. The class G3s had what were essentially copies of USRA 10,000 gallon tenders for coal and water. These tenders were a bit larger than the 9,000 gallon tenders that came with earlier CNJ Pacifics. The Comet locomotives were painted in Packard Blue to suggest the sea, and Royal Blue to represent the night sky. The locomotives’ marker lights, headlights, handrails, coupler cut levers, cylinder head covers, and back valve chambers were nickel-plated, and side rods were polished to a high luster. The name of the train was painted in gold lettering on a blue nameboard that was mounted to the front of the smoke box just below the Elesco feedwater heater. The train was also known by its distinctive whistle. Mounted on the fireman’s side of the steam dome, it was usually angled forward. While the manufacturer and cadence of the specific whistle has not been verified (none are known to exist), it is reported to have been a long-bell 3-chime steamboat whistle similar to a Hancock or Star Brass 6″ long-bell 3-chime. Engines 831-832 were painted in Blue Comet colors from the start of Blue Comet service in 1929, with 833 joining in 1930. All three locomotives would wear the Comet colors into the late 1930s. A sister engine, 834, would be painted in a dark green scheme briefly for service on another CNJ train, The Bullet. And the fifth and final member of the G3 class,
(Right) The first part of the locomotive to be built was the chassis and running gear. Getting this complex mechanical arrangement to work properly is crucial to building a good steam locomotive in LEGO.
Early prototype of the locomotive smokebox, and cylinders.
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engine 835, would be painted standard CNJ black for its entire career. Both 834 and 835 would see occasional use on the Comet when one of the main locomotives were down for service. The G3s class was built in 1928, and the last were retired in 1955. Unfortunately, all were scrapped. Power for my LEGO model of the locomotive comes from two Power Functions train motors in the tender, a Power Functions I.R. receiver, and PF rechargeable battery. There are several 3-D printed parts used in the locomotive running gear. The pilot wheels are a custom size, the Drivers are 19 spoke XXL size with accurate counterweights, and trailing truck wheels are custom L-sized thin wheels (yes, you read that right, Large size), all designed by Nathaniel Brill, for me, for this train. The side rods and valve gear came from Benn Coifman’s Trained Bricks store. The eccentric cranks were designed by me and printed through Shapeways.
The Passenger Cars
From real life locomotive to LEGO, the distinctive look of the Blue Comet’s locomotive.
For the Blue Comet, the CNJ totally refurbished sixteen cars, inside and out. The passenger cars, like the locomotives, were painted in Packard Blue to suggest the sea and Royal Blue to represent the night sky. The passenger cars also had a cream band running the length of the side at the windows to evoke the sand of the sea shore. The paint scheme was unusual, since the road name, Central RRailrroad of New Jersey, did not appear on each car; rather, only the name of the train, “The Blue Comet”, appeared in gold lettering on the letter boards above the windows. Each car was named for a different comet. The name of each car was placed at the center of each car, in gold lettering, below the windows. The underframes and trucks were painted royal blue and varnished. Inside the train, the cars were lavishly furnished. Each car was clad in circassian walnut with a gold inlay pattern. The headliners were cream colored. Window shades were made of blue Spanish pantasote. The luggage racks were nickel-plated. Each car had a drinking fountain by the North Pole Sanitary Drinking Fountain company of Chicago. Collapsible cone-shaped paper cups with the train’s logo were available via a dispenser above the fountain.
Baggage Car Olbers
Two 70-foot baggage cars were chosen from the CNJ’s fleet for Comet service. The cars were named for the Comets Olbers, and Barnard, and feature six-wheel, plain bearing trucks. For my model of the train, I chose to build the car Olbers. The interior of this car is fairly plain, just your standard baggage car fixtures of the time. Eventual plans involve adding a baggage clerk desk, and of course, baggage.
Combine Car Halley The locomotive is powered by Power Functions train motors under the tender, with the PF receiver and battery in the tender. Steel weight was added to aid traction for pulling the heavy train.
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The CNJ refurbished two of their own 72-foot combine cars for the Blue Comet. The names chosen for the cars were Encke, and the most famous comet of them all, Halley. The interior of the combines, which also served as the smoking cars for the train, had 48 blue leather bucket seats. A men’s lavatory and toilet was located at one end of the car on opposite sides of the aisle. Though my model does not depict the toilet and wash stand, the rooms for these are there. The flooring was a blue-and-cream diagonal checkerboard linoleum tile. This same flooring was utilized in the vestibules and lavatories. I modeled this using 1x1 tiles in white and dark blue, in a checkerboard pattern. Each combine was furnished with 22 nickel plated cuspidors, a match striker at-
tached to the bottom of each wind post; on the back of each pair of seats was a royal blue ash tray, and a table which could be used for playing cards could be placed between the two pairs of facing seats next to the bulkhead. I chose to model Halley for my train for several reasons. First, Halley is by far the most well known celestial comet. So it would be a name instantly recognized. Second, of the two combine cars used for Blue Comet service, Halley is the only one surviving. And lastly, I had already modeled Encke in its post-Comet form for my previous CNJ commuter train.
Baggage Car Olbers.
Coaches D’Arrest and Westphal
Eight of the Central New Jersey’s class PB coach cars built by American Car and Foundry in 1923 were refurbished for the Blue Comet. They carried the names Tuttle, Holmes, Westphal, D’Arrest, Faye, Spitaler, Winnecke, and Brorsen. The coaches were fitted out with 64 individual seats which rotated, nickel-plated coat hooks, and umbrella holders mounted to the back of each seat. The seats were triple-cushioned, upholstery was Persian Blue, rendered in figured mohair. A men’s lavatory and toilet was located at one end of the car on opposite sides of the aisle. A generous women’s lounge with an adjoining toilet was fitted at the opposite end of the car. Modeling this was one of the first real challenges on the Comet cars. The lounge had a full-length mirror, two wicker arm chairs, a boudoir chair, and a cup and towel vendor. The tight space meant using some modelers licence, but I feel the result gets the point across well enough. The floor covering was a Persian Blue carpet with a gold modern pattern.
Combine car Halley.
The United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey currently owns two of the surviving coaches from the Comet, Westphal, and D’Arrest as well as one of the Observation car, DeVico. The “Westphal” (later known as CNJ #1172) and “D’Arrest” (later known as CNJ #1173) were stored for a long time at Winslow Junction, NJ awaiting plans for restoration. In March 2017, enough funds were secured to move them to Boonton, and Westphal was moved by truck from Winslow Junction to Boonton, followed by D’Arrest a few months later. In September of that year, both cars arrived in Boonton and were coupled up to the DeVico with plans for further restoration to return them to Blue Comet livery and be operated on excursions. Like the combine Halley, I chose to model Westphal and D’Arrest, as they were surviving cars from the train.
The Diner Giacobini and the Wreck of the Blue Comet
For the dining car, the CNJ rebuilt one of their wooden cafe cars and named it after the comet Giacobini. The diner accompanied the early morning trip to Atlantic City and the evening return to Jersey City.
Interior of combine Haley.
Coach Car D’Arrest.
Coach Car Westphal.
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The model of the diner car Giacobini.
A crew from the Central Railroad of New Jersey works to upright the derailed Blue Comet the day after the wreck on August 19, 1939.
The dining car could accommodate 36 patrons. Porters in blue uniforms served savory dishes and homemade goodies. The tables were set with the finest embroidered blue tablecloths with the train’s logo, special china and flatware, and a silver base lamp with parchment shade. The lampshades had an astral pattern of comets and stars, and tinted lightbulbs were employed to cast a soft blue glow. Apparently the fresh apple pie with a slice of sharp cheddar cheese was a popular offering. Giacobini was by far the hardest car to model in the train. With only six studs width of interior space to use, the kitchen area in particular became very cramped, not unlike the real car. Future plans call for installation of the wall lamps, printing for the table cloths, and of course patrons and staff. The Giacobini was involved in a serious accident while on the Blue Comet on August 19, 1939. Train No 4218 was traveling east-bound with a consist of combine Halley, coach D’Arrest, diner Giacobini, coach Winnecke, and observation car Beila. Engine No. 820, a 4-6-2 Pacific filling in for the normal G3 power, was on point. Conductor Walsh and Engineman Thomas were in charge of the train, which was carrying 49 passengers and crew. Extraordinarily heavy rains fell in the area throughout the day. It is estimated that roughly 13 ½ inches of rain fell, and about 10 ¾ inches fell between 2 and 6 pm. The train’s crew had reduced speed from the usual 70 mph to between 35-40 mph, as visibility was poor and the crew had been given a message at Winslow Junction to keep a lookout for sand on the crossings due to the heavy rains. Near milepost 86, about a mile west The Blue Comet train set on display at Brickworld 2017.
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Interior render of the model of dinner car Giacobini.
of Chatsworth station, the train hit a washout at approximately 4:37 pm. The surface water had overwhelmed two 24-inch culverts, and undermined the roadbed. The engine and tender made it across the damaged track, with the rear tender truck being derailed. The entire 5-car consist, however, had become uncoupled from the tender and derailed. The cars came to rest in general line with the track, and were leaning at various angles. Roughly 500 feet of track was destroyed. When the train failed to arrive at Chatsworth Station, personnel and local residents waded over a mile through the woods in water waist deep in parts to reach the wreck. The injured included 32 passengers, 4 dining car employees, 1 porter, and 1 train service employee. The chef, Joseph Coleman, was crushed and badly scalded in the kitchen of the dining car when the stove fell on top of him as the car overturned. He later died from his injuries. The majority of the injuries were minor however, resulting from the flying wicker chairs in the observation car, as they were never secured to the floor. A relief train arrived a few hours later to take the remaining passengers to their destination. An investigation concluded that the derailment was caused by the washout which resulted from the unusually heavy rainfall. Today, the mainline track and wreck site are abandoned and very overgrown. All of the equipment involved in the wreck was repaired and returned to service, except for the dining car Giaccobini. Being a steel-clad wooden car, it was unable to withstand the forces of the wreck and was too badly damaged to repair. The body of the car, sans undercarriage, was used as a rail yard freight office for many years after until it was eventually scrapped.
The Observation Car Biela
The three observation cars for the train were named after the comets DeVico, Biela, and Tempel. 48 rattan lounge chairs in silver and blue lined either side of the observation car. These were upholstered in Persian blue Avalon plush, with a gold-tinted floral pattern. The carpet was a deep blue, with gold tinted meteor designs worked in. A women’s lavatory was fitted to one end, and at the opposite end on the observation deck, six folding chairs were provided. No seats were sold in the observation car. This was to allow all to enjoy the luxury of the observation car without needing to pay an extra fare.
The Future of the Comet
The observation car Biela. On the rear platform are Cale (dressed as the Conductor), and friends Glenn Holland, and Nate Robinson.
It is said that a model is never truly finished, and I am not done with this train, not by a long shot. There are still things I want to do, and stuff I want to improve. All the car interiors will be getting lighting in the future. They will also be populated with figs and much more fine detail added throughout. The locomotive will get a power upgrade to better cope with the heavy car set. It will also get lighting, and maybe even sound. I also would like to build the only surviving engine to ever pull the Comet: CNJ camelback locomotive no. 592, which is preserved in the roundhouse at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum in Maryland. The Blue Comet is my train. It has been a labor of love, a bar to set higher, and a joy to research and build. It has been one of the most rewarding builds I have done yet, and it will continue to be as I add to it and run it at train shows.
Interior of the observation car Biela. The riders in the car are minifig representations of friends from Cale’s club, PennLUG.
Creating a Drumhead Part One of the most stand-out feature of the observation car is the drumhead on the rear platform. This distinctive feature carried the logo for the Blue Comet and at night was lit up, letting every one know this was a special train. For months I had wrestled with the problem of how to recreate this in LEGO. Nothing I tried was the right size or could be attached to the railing in an elegant fashion, to say nothing of trying to light it up. It was only when I started to experiments with 3-D printing that the idea of making my own special part for the drumhead was born. The design I came up with clips onto the railing with two back clips, the front is sized so that a clear 2×2 round tile can be flush mounted. The inside is hollow, allowing for an LED light to be placed inside. With a vinyl decal covering the clear 2×2 tile, the Blue Comet logo will glow when the light is turned on.
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Building
Merida driving the initial Princess Engine.
Edward Chang:
The Princess Train Article and Photography by Edward Chang
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Once Upon a Time... My first thoughts of a pink train originated some time after the launch of the Friends theme in 2012, as the world inside and outside the AFOL community was coming to terms with “Girl LEGOs.” I had the thought that perhaps people were too focused on the color and losing sight of the LEGO building experience. More pastel-colored bricks means more options in the builders’ palette. And what better color than pink to break the grey-black monotone to which model railroading is so prone? Model railroading can be such a serious business, so this was another reason for me to build a pink train. I can be picky about pulling the right types of cars with the right era livery behind the right black steam engine, but I can also have some fun with the hobby, and build something that people haven’t seen before. Or almost haven’t seen before. Lionel, in 1957, produced an infamously unsuccessful “Girls’ Train” featuring a uniformly pink steam engine and various pastel colored freight cars. My idea may have gone the same way. My earliest sketches and doodles were simply recolored trains based on my Nickel Plate Berkshire. My idea needed to develop a bit more. The big spark came in 2014, with the launch of the Disney Princess licensed theme. Now my train could be more than just a pink train—it could be a princess train. The Princess Train. It was at this point that the train took on a unique “identity” instead of just being an obvious recolor, and that was what I needed to move from a vague idea to a design to a realized model.
The first Princess Train at the LEGO Brand Retail Store at Baybrook Mall, Friendswood, Texas.
The Original Princess Train I was inspired specifically by set 41053 Cinderella’s Dream Carriage, and one part in particular—the Slope, Curved 4x1 with Ornamental Starburst Pattern (Element ID 6063718 / Bricklink 61678pb061). Color blocking was one of the biggest challenges of the design. Ignore it, as Lionel did in their single-color engine, and the model would just look boring. But my early sketches using dark purple and magenta had too much of the rainbow-warrior appearance. The medium blue color of the curved slope was much better—subdued as a pastel color but providing plenty of contrast to pink and lavender to highlight specific parts of the train. In general, I used a theme of structural/chassis elements in medium blue, with panels and decorative elements in bright pink and medium lavender. Additionally, the curved shape inspired me to move more toward more exaggerated, cartoony shapes, rather than trying to make essentially a recolored model. The ends of the cars could be rounded, the vertical lines tapered toward the roof. I still wanted to retain some degree of realism, though. There were also some technical considerations in designing this train, especially the engine. First, it had
to be a steam engine. To me, the movement of the big driver wheels and rods is just much more interesting than small wheels hidden behind frames as on electric or diesel engines. At the time in early 2014, I had only one other working steam engine MOC, which had taken me two years to get right. So I focused on a short wheelbase design—a small engine, with a very simplified rod system. Using a simple 0-6-0 design (large sized driver wheels on three axles, without smaller wheels in front and behind), the engine would be small and agile enough to handle regular LEGO curve and switch tracks. The train would be driven from the tender, pushing the engine, since the small engine would not have space for the Power Functions (PF) components. I could also use the simpler and more efficient PF Train Motor, instead of a cylindrical PF motor. The first Princess Train was finished in May of 2014 and was first displayed at an event at the Houston Children’s Museum. The train consisted of an engine, a temporary unpowered tender, and an open carriage—with the shorter temporary tender needed to reduce the length of the train so I could display it in the LUG Showcase window at the LEGO brand retail store at Baybrook Mall later that month. Even as a static model, the train was an immediate hit, and once motorized, the train quickly became a main attraction at TBRR events later in the year.
More additions:Olaf’s beach hopper, Elsa and Anna’s refrigerator car, and Ariel’s aquarium car.
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Ariel’s aquarium car.
Taking On More Cars At the end of 2014, I began work on expanding the train with an aquarium car for Ariel. Aquarium cars are a common “funny car” for toy train makers, such as Lionel, but are frequently simply modified boxcars. I wanted something more unique, and something that would keep the same styling cues to make the entire train one coherent model. To keep the eight-wide dimension and the curved ends of the cars, the model was designed around the transparent Cylinder Half 3x6x6 with 1x2 Cutout (Element ID 6003198 / Bricklink 87926). A six-wide tank allowed me to frame the “glass” of the aquarium, which I did in tan—a reference to the beach or ocean-floor theme for the mermaid.
Olaf’s beach hopper.
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Around this time, the first Disney Frozen set, 41062 Elsa’s Sparkling Ice Castle, was announced, along with Elsa and Anna minidolls. These were unquestionably the most popular Disney princesses at the time, and one of the most common requests I got at shows. So clearly, I needed a Frozen car, and that could only mean a refrigerator car! (No idea why Elsa would need help keeping things cold.) This car design was relatively straightforward—a boxcar with curve/tapered ends. However, because Elsa and Anna would be placed inside a box, I needed lights to make their faces more visible. There are two through-hole LEDs on each side of the car to provide lighting and blue glow, powered by a coin-cell battery. Set 41062 also came with an Olaf figure. I don’t remember exactly how I came to the idea of a “beach hopper,” but there was something about Olaf wanting to experience summer. I did not have any major design dilemmas
with this car, but the combination of SNOT framing, curved ends, and lack of certain parts (Bright Pink Slope Brick Inverted 45 did not exist until 2016) resulted in a complicated structure. The blue framing is done studs-out, with a nominal width of eight studs, and the pink hopper body is studs-down and seven wide. This was The Princess Train, for over two years from early 2015 until 2018. In 2015 the train won Best Train at Brickworld Chicago. The train was jokingly the “rescue train” of the PennLUG-TBRR joint layouts at Brickworld, due to its reliability—it could always run when other trains needed repairs.
A New Princess Engine Around 2017, I started planning for a bigger engine for the Princess Train. The first engine met all my original goals, but with more and more princesses joining the Disney theme, any further expansion of the train would require a more powerful engine. Additionally, I wanted to return more toward realistic train modeling. After all, that was one of the original goals I had for this train—it could be pink and cute, but also could be as technically detailed as any other LEGO train. I needed to keep a short wheel base—the more wheels, the more difficult it is to make the train run, especially on regular curved tracks. I also wanted to keep the same tender-powered configuration, but with two PF train motors. So I searched for a prototype “real engine” on which to base my model, eventually finding the Canadian Pacific F-1a Jubilee-class engine. The Jubilee is a 4-4-4 type, meaning four small wheels on the front to guide the train into curves, four big driver wheels, and four small wheels in the back to support the firebox and cab. The Jubilees were semi-streamlined—with rounded shrouding covering much of the engine, while leaving most of the
I know that the popularity of the train is mainly because it’s princesses. However, I remain hopeful that by bringing princesses in a meaningful way into the maledominated hobbies of trains and LEGO, that I can encourage people to challenge stereotypes and expand their interests.
The Princess Jubilee.
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The Princess Jubilee with open coach.
mechanical bits exposed. This was perfect for the Princess Train, as I could keep the curves while being true to the prototype, but still have plenty of details and moving parts. Even better, the Canadian Pacific’s color scheme could be easily adapted to fit the previous cars. The new engine, “Princess Jubilee,” took three months to design and build. It uses XL driver wheels from Big Ben Bricks, and 3-D printed rods from Benn Coifman (Trained Bricks/zephyr). It has a partial implementation of the PFx Brick, with an XL speaker in the hollow boiler. Printed tiles were made by Terry Akuna, and loose LED lighting wired by me. Because the design was roughly a scaled representation of the actual F-1a class, I also built a second copy of the engine as the Canadian Pacific No. 2929—but this was always the B-model! The Jubilees were first displayed at the World Greatest Hobby On Tour in Houston in 2018.
The original engine to the Princess Train, now retired.
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Reflections and Future Plans Mouths open. Hands to face. Bouncing. Flapping. Squealing. The reactions have been priceless. Boys commonly chase trains around the layout, but girls chase this train. The train stops for photos. Displaying and running this train has been one of my favorite AFOL experiences. I know that the popularity of the train is mainly because it’s princesses. However, I remain hopeful that by bringing princesses in a meaningful way into the male-dominated hobbies of trains and LEGO, that I can encourage people to challenge stereotypes and expand their interests. I also hope that I am presenting the LEGO hobby, and specifically the LEGO train community, as being welcoming to everyone. The original engine was “officially retired” in 2019 by placing one of its driver wheels on the Brickworld Esther Walner “Pink Scooter” memorial plaque. The entirety of the original train will be retired by 2020, but the Princess Train will continue on, with the Princess Jubilee pulling new passenger coaches and new character-specific cars.
Glossary Boiler - the cylindrical part of the steam engine, where water is heated to make steam. Connecting rod - the connection between the pistons and the driver wheel. Driver wheel - the larger diameter wheels, which direct the back-and-forth motion of the pistons to the track. Firebox - the furnace of the steam engine, where the fuel is burned. Hopper - a type of freight car used to carry loose commodities like coal or grain, with sloped sides to funnel the load to doors on the bottom.
About Me I have been a lifelong fan of LEGO, and in the early 2000s started to use MLCad when I did not have physical bricks. Around 2010 I started taking more interest in LEGO trains, especially the works of Tony Sava and Cale Leiphart. I joined the AFOL community with IndyLUG in 2011 after visiting Brickworld Fort Wayne, and started building with physical bricks. At the end of 2012, I moved to Houston, and was “recruited” by Tony to become a founding member of Texas Brick Railroad (TBRR). I now coordinate and design many of our public layouts, and I also serve as the LUG Ambassador.
Main rod - the connection between the driver wheels, which transmits the force from the connecting rod to all of the driver wheels Tender - a car that (in real trains) is pulled immediately behind a steam engine to provide fuel and water to the engine.
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Building
The PennLUG Roundhouse lit up during Brickworld’s World of Lights.
Building The PennLUG Roundhouse Article and Photography by Cale Leiphart
PennLUG (the Pennsylvania LEGO Users Group) has become widely known for its great LEGO train layouts. And one of the biggest structures on our layout is our steam era roundhouse, which is part of an even larger locomotive servicing terminal occupying one end of our railyard. The roundhouse once occupied a very important role in the everyday railroad operations. In the era of steam locomotives, roundhouses were commonly found in rail yards across the country. With the exception of switching locomotives, steam locomotives were designed to run in one direction—forward. As a result, it was often necessary to turn a steam locomotive to point in the direction its train is to be hauled. This was done by either using a wye, a balloon loop, or a turntable. The combination of turntable and roundhouse proved very useful to both service and turn locomotives. 30
Many roundhouses were built around the turn of the 19th century. Roundhouses were built out of brick, stone, wood, or concrete. The roundhouse would be built around a turntable, a large device used to turn locomotives. Some would only have a few stalls while roundhouses on larger railroads could have as many as fifty. The roundhouses' main function was to store locomotives between runs and provide daily servicing such as lubricating the running gear, minor repairs, and inspections. Locomotives would typically be serviced with the front of the locomotive pointing outward and the tender of the locomotive facing the turntable. This was done in case a locomotive would start to drift unexpectedly. If the locomotive drifted toward the turntable, the locomotive’s tender would fall into the turntable pit instead of the locomotive itself. This would cause less damage and the tender would be easier to remove from the pit. Each stall of the roundhouse included a vent that would allow smoke from the steam locomotive to be vented through the roof of the roundhouse. These vents can be clearly seen in most surviving roundhouses. With the arrival of diesel locomotives, which could run equally well in either direction, the need for turntables (and roundhouses) waned. By the 1950s, as most steam locomotives had been replaced by diesels, the roundhouse became obsolete. With several steam builders in our club, it was only natural that we would want a roundhouse, turntable, and engine
service terminal for the PennLUG train layout. The idea for the PennLUG roundhouse has its roots dating back to 2012. That year two shows would help to shape what our roundhouse and railyard would become. The first was Brickworld, held annually in June in Chicago Illinois. There a good friend of ours, Jason Steinhurst, was running a little tank locomotive on our layout. As the little engine was a bit too slow to run on our main line, Jason decided to use it for some switching in our railyard. Switching is a type of operation done within the limits of a yard. It generally consists of making up and breaking up trains, storing and classifying cars, serving industries within yard limits, and other related purposes. These movements are made at slow speed under special yard rules. Switching is a core part of model railroad operation, just as it is in real life railroading. But like most LEGO train builders and clubs at the time, we only focused on running trains in continuous loops around their layouts. It’s not something we in PennLUG had done much of, or even considered. However as my fellow club member Nate Brill and I watched Jason’s little switcher moving cars back and forth, a seed was planted. The second show to shape our future roundhouse plans was LEGO Kidsfest in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, held that December. The venue we were in had numerous skylights, providing natural light into the hall. Early one morning as the event was opening, we noticed that the sun was coming
Roundhouse interior views used as inspiration for the PennLUG Roundhouse.
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Track plan for the roundhouse and engine terminal.
Nate Brill’s Pennsylvania RR 0-8-0 Switcher posing in front of one of the yard backdrop buildings.
in and causing my recently complete coaling tower, the largest structure in our yard at the time, to cast a really cool shadow across the layout. PennLUG’s railyard up until this time was much like most railyards on LEGO club layouts: mostly just rows and rows of track, with very few details. It was strictly a place to park trains when not being run. Seeing the shadow stretch out across our yard got us to thinking, though. Why not start doing something more with our railyard than just using it as a train parking lot? Why not start adding more visual interest, and make it a cool thing to look at beyond just the trains sitting in it? And why not make it an actual operating yard? Seeing the fun Jason had at Brickworld switching in our yard, we wanted to do more than just run trains in circles. So we started forming some plans.
Overhead view of a typical roundhouse complex.
The first step came a month-and-a-half later at a local train show in York, Pennsylvania. We decided to reorganize how a rail yard was set up to better facilitate switching, and we built several building facades to go along the back of the railyard. Meanwhile, Nate Brill and I had built a pair of switch engines to use. I had built a model of Lehigh Valley 100, one of the three locomotives that were the first successful diesel locomotive built. Nate, however, went for steam, building a Pennsylvania RR C-1 class 0-8-0, with a remote decoupling mechanism. The de-coupler worked via a motor powered liner actuator in the tender. The actuator would push an arm out of the tender that would push on the car behind, separating the magnetic couplers. This was a brilliant idea, except for one problem. The de-coupler was only on the rear of the locomotive. And with no way to turn the locomotive around in the yard, Nate could only make use of the de-coupler on the yard end facing the rear of his switcher. We knew we needed a way to turn our trains now, and the most compact way to do that was going to be a turntable.
The first three stall of the roundhouse taking shape.
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The size of the turntable we needed was decided by the largest locomotives we had at the time. I had two large articulated steam locomotives stretching out six track lengths, or 96 studs. We added another eight studs on to that number, to allow some future locomotive that might be just a bit longer, and our table length was set at 104 studs. Nate took the lead on building the pit and turntable. The table itself was motorized with Power Functions components. An M motor at each end powered a wheel that drove the table around the pit. The motors were controlled with the PF IR remote placed in the small control house on the table, and the battery was placed toward the middle of the table under track level. It all made for a very neat, selfcontained package. The turntable made its debut a month later at a show in Reading, Pennsylvania. After working out some minor kinks, the turntable worked well throughout the show and vastly improved our yard switching operations. With a new turntable in hand, thoughts turned to what to do next. We needed a roundhouse to go with our shiny new turntable now, of course.
Nate’s turntable on display for the first time.
Every railyard improvement up until now was of the smallto medium-size build. But a roundhouse was going to be big—very big, and also much more complicated. It was going to take planning, and test builds to figure out what would be the best way to construct such a large building. That summer, Nate and I started in earnest, working out details in my basement. We needed to determine the right angle for each roundhouse stall, stall dimensions, and how to build a round building out of square blocks without large gaps. And to add to the complexity, the new roundhouse would have a full interior. Through trial and error we figured out that we could make the floor of each stall match up with the next with minimal gaps by using a half-plate offset, zipper arrangement, of SNOT blocks the length of each stall.
Roundhouse model showing an example of interior structure.
Each stall would have an access pit between the rails. These pits were common in real roundhouses, allowing the maintenance crews to easily access the underside of locomotives. We also decided to add sockets in the floor to accept beam that would hold up the roof of the building. For the exterior look of the roundhouse, we decided we wanted to replicate clay brick style construction using 1x2 plates. The tan color was decided on because our local LEGO store had 1x2 tan plates on the Pick-A-Brick wall at the time, making it cheap. This was important as we would eventually use 14,000 tan 1x2 plates in the roundhouse construction. The window would be made up of groups of 1x2x3 window frames in dark green. The dark green color worked well with the tan, and the Grand Emporium LEGO set made the window plentiful at the time. Once we had the initial details of the roundhouse worked out, it took another year before we were ready to start building. In the meantime Nate and I were working on two unrelated projects while also gathering up parts we would need for the roundhouse.
Working out the roof panels on the roundhouse.
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It was January of 2015 when the first bricks were officially laid for the PennLUG roundhouse. Nate and I began working in my garage along with new club member Glenn Holland. First we laid out the bases of each stall. In total we planned to build eight stalls: five shorter stalls approximately 5 ½ track lengths, and three longer stalls approximately 7 track lengths. Once the bases of each stall were built, we set about modifying Nate’s turntable to fit, and determined the best way to arrange the stalls in the layout space we had.
Glenn Holland and Nate Brill working in Cale’s garage on the roundhouse.
The walled off window in the roundhouse. This is where the machine shop addition would later be built, and was intended to show historical progression in the structure. Work bench and tools inside the machine shop.
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Our goal for debuting the roundhouse was Brickworld later that year in June. This gave us only a couple of months to build, but thanks to a lot of preplanning, we were able to make pretty rapid progress. We met up at my house on the weekends to work on the main structure. And during the week we would work at home on smaller projects for the build. Nate took charge of the attached machine shop and getting the roof sections worked out, while I worked on track, landscaping, and Glenn worked on a College Education. Though it was going to be a big structure, we still wanted to put as much detail into the roundhouse as we could. We also wanted to give it a sense of history. Many roundhouses over the years would change quite a bit. Through renovations and additions, a roundhouse would evolve. We wanted to add that to our model, and decided to use a machine shop expansion to do it. The machine shop itself was where workers could fabricate parts necessary to repair locomotives. We wanted our machine shop to look as if it was a later expansion to the roundhouse. We did this by using a walled off window between the machine shop and the roundhouse. We left a hole in one side of the roundhouse where one of the large windows should have gone. Then we purposely filled this in with 1x2 bricks instead of the plate construction we were using on the rest of the building. Doing this was intended to show where a window had been, but was later filled in to accommodate the newer machine shop construction. We also went with a different, slightly more modern window arrangement for the machine shop. Together, these were to give our roundhouse a story and a historical progression. Outside of the machine shop addition. A mason is repairing some of the brickwork on the corner.
Since our roundhouse was going to have a detailed interior, and we were going to first show the project at Brickworld, where the World of Lights is a popular event, we wanted to have our roundhouse interior lit up. However, since we were building a roundhouse of the late 1940s/early 1950s era, we wanted to get the look of the lighting right for the period. This meant needing to replicate that orangish yellow tinted glow of incandescent lamps. Nate and I set about this in two separate ways. For the machine shop, Nate chose to use actual LEGO lights from the 4.5 volt era. These were 2x2 blocks with tiny incandescent bulbs inside. Nate used these to create recessed lighting inside the machine shop to excellent effect. For the main roundhouse, I felt the 4.5 volt lights would be too expensive to use, and also two bulky and cumbersome to achieve the right look. Nate was able to use the ceilings of the machine shop to conceal the wiring for the lights. In the main building we did not have that option, and here, because it was an older building, we actually wanted the wiring visible. We wanted it strung across the roof beams and very industrial looking. So here I turned to LED lighting from Brickstuff. They offer a warm white LED that matches an incandescent lamp well enough, and the wire used by Brickstuff is small and thin enough that it looks right in scale with the minifig environment. The LEDs were also small, and easy enough to place in brick-built overhead lamps that looked right for the era.
Left is the real coaling tower that stood in York, Pennsylvania that the model was built after. Right is the tower model under construction.
The roof of the roundhouse is made up of three sections per stall: the front roof, the cupola roof, and the back roof with the smoke jack (vent). Each section is easily removable to allow viewing into the interior of the roundhouse. Early on, Nate and I debated on how to treat the roof. We knew we wanted to show of the elaborate interior we were creating, but how to go about that was in question. We considered several options, such as leaving the roof off entirely, as some scale model railroaders do, or leaving portions of roof open. In the end we decided to use the removable roof panel idea to give us the most flexibility. With this we could easily remove any section we needed either for viewing, or for access, and have displayed the roundhouse at shows with the full roof, partial roof, and no roof at all, depending on our desires at the time.
Inside the machine shop can be found various heavy industrial tools for metal working.
Finnished coaling tower. One of the industrial facades that line the backdrop of the railyard.
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The roundhouse was not the only thing we were working on. It was to be the centerpiece of a complete engine servicing terminal. The engine terminal was going to have everything needed to service steam and diesel locomotives. This included a coaling tower, sand faculty, and water columns, ash pit, diesel fuel depot, and wash rack.
Oil House under construction. The look of the building is designed to be older than the current roundhouse to show the evolution of the engine terminal, but the windows still tie the buildings together as being from the same railroad.
The coaling, sand, and water roles were filled by my model of the Pennsylvania RR coaling tower that stood in my hometown of York, Pennsylvania. The tower was a small, compact arrangement, capable of coaling two locomotives at a time, with built-in sand dryer (dry sand is used to gain extra traction for locomotives in slippery conditions), and two water columns in close proximity. For the diesel fuel depot, we again wanted to show a bit of historical progression. Nate constructed a small, more modern looking two track fuel depot that looked like it had been shoehorned into whatever available space there was available in the already existing terminal. For the ash pit, where steam locomotives would dump the ash left over from burnt coal, we took advantage of the recessed tables the roundhouse was sitting on to build a pit under the track. Ash pits need to be emptied periodically, and for this Nate constructed a rail converted steam crane with a clamshell bucket based on an early model I built of an Erie model B2 steam shovel. This steam crane would be positioned near the pit where it would load ash into a waiting gondola.
The Stores Manager’s desk for the Oil House. PennLUG Roundhouse with roof panels removed for viewing.On the backside of the roundhouse, one can see part of the pond from which the engine terminal draws its water supply. Also visible is the large overhead door at the back of the roundhouse.
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Lastly there was the wash rack. This is where locomotives were washed between runs before being parked in the roundhouse. For this I built a simple concrete pad area
covering two tracks, with nozzle towers capable of spraying the whole locomotive, smaller hand wands for spot cleaning, and various other washing tools on racks in the center. Around the outside of the roundhouse, we put as much thought into the little details as we did everything else. In one corner, we had a pond. This pond is the source from which the engine terminal draws all its water supply. Good clean water is important to making good steam on a locomotive, so you’ll notice that the pond is clean and pristine despite being in such close proximity to industry. Along the back of the roundhouse is a small dirt road, with access to a large overhead door at one point for bringing items into the roadhouse via truck if needed. Then by the machine shop we have a small scrap area where broken parts and trash are stored before going off to the scrapper. If you look closely, you’ll see some parts from locomotives built by Nate and me which have long since been retired. The scrap area also has an old boxcar, now used for storage, and occupied by a crazy old hobo. And radiating around the turntable there are outside storage tracks used for locomotives that do not need to be in the roundhouse.
Oil House lit up at night.
The finished roundhouse and engine terminal made its debut at Brickworld 2015 and received great praise from the train fans there. We were even nominated for Best Large Building, but unfortunately lost in voting. The lighting in particular showed off very well during the World of Lights event.
One of Glenn Holland’s locomotives is being washed on the wash rack.
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For 2016 we decided to expand on the new engine service terminal. The expansion included an oil house, new outside storage tracks around the turntable, and a new freight yard adjacent to the engine terminal. The new turntable track area included a small outhouse under construction, and more landscape detail. The freight yard completed our vision of more efficient switching operations. The oil house was where the railroads would store the lubricants used on the locomotives and other railroad equipment. For this we once again wanted to show historical progression. I took on the build for the oil house with the goal to build a structure that predated the current roundhouse, looking like it was from an earlier era when a previous older roundhouse stood where the newer one was now. For this I used a combination of dark red and reddish brown 1x2 plates to show the use of older brick, and chose an older architectural style. To tie the oil house to the roundhouse and suggest that they were in service on the same railroad, I again used the same dark green windows used in the roundhouse.
The scrap pile and boxcar used for storage outside the roundhouse. Two of PennLUG’s biggest locomotives are being serviced inside the roundhouse.
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Since the 2016 expansion, the roundhouse has remained largely unchanged. It was an awesome project to work on and has become a permanent part of PennLUG’s train layouts. It is a loving tribute to the era of steam railroading that Nate, Glenn, and I have dedicated ourselves to modeling, and an impressive sight for everyone to see. However, we can never let anything go for too long, and are once again thinking about renovations and future expansions to the roundhouse and engine terminal. But that’s for another article.
All characters TM & © their respective owners.
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Building
Creating Brick Model Railroaders First Custom Locomotive Kit:
The Reading T-1 Article and Photography by Glenn Holland and Cale Leiphart
It’s been quite a long road to get to here. By the time you are reading this, Brick Model Railroader’s first full kit, and our first locomotive model, should be in the hands of eager customers. But how exactly did we get here? And why did it take so long? That story is full of twists and turns. So let’s take a look back at the journey to create BMR’s first locomotive kit.
The Story: Developing Our T-1 Model
Our story really begins with two entirely separate locomotives. Cale has always wanted to model a particular locomotive with plans to be sold as a full kit under his own name. We’ll leave that locomotive unspecified for now, but this was our starting point. After some discussion, and before the first two bricks were assembled, Glenn had convinced Cale to switch to another locomotive; the Nickle Plate Road S-2 2-8-4 Berkshire (the operating Nickle Plate 765 is a notable example of this class). This locomotive was our primary task during the fall and early winter months of 2017, and during that time we were even able to photograph and ride behind the 765 in Ohio. We had a running and presentable model at the Greenberg Train and Toy Show in Lebanon, Pennsylvania that December, where we tested it to work out bugs. A few were found, and the model was corrected and brought again to the World’s Greatest Hobby on Tour (WGH) show in Monroeville, Pennsylvania in January 2018. After another trial, we found several more issues. Our main problems were the powertrain, which was not as
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robust as we had intended. This, along with several other design choices we had made, really disheartened us. Thus our engine sat in a box for several months. At this point, Glenn was going through the most rigorous part of his college career, while Cale was busy with other BMR projects and we found we had no time to come back to our 2-8-4 model. While we were at the WGH show that January, we had the privilege of speaking with Mr. Forrest Nace of the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association (ASR). The ASR is currently in the process of restoring Reading T-1 no. 2100, the first T-1 built, to operation. After talking with him throughout the weekend, while also mentioning the fact that we would like to model a T-1 at some point, Glenn showed him a mock-up T-1 he had designed on LEGO Digital Designer. Though we didn’t realize it at the time, wheels had started turning in a new direction for our first locomotive project. Later that year in May, we began talking about what to do for the stalled locomotive project. We had chosen the Berkshire due to its popularity. And while both of us are fans of the Berks, the locomotive just didn’t feel right for us as our first BMR locomotive. The prospect of doing the T-1, however, started looking very good. The Reading Railroad was located in the eastern part of the state of Pennsylvania, and the BMR Model Team (Cale and Glenn) are Pennsylvania residents, making the Reading a home road. The Reading T-1 felt like a natural choice for a prototype as it has been on both of our “to do” lists for a while, but other projects have taken priority since. It was a unique locomotive, with an iconic look, and loyal following. And with four surviving examples, two of which are under restoration to operation, there was a mountain of information on the locomotive available to us. The T-1 would fit well with all of our current transition-era Premium Instructions models, as all of them were used on the Reading and could very well have been seen behind a T-1 at any point during their service life. Transitioning from the Berk to the T-1 didn’t mean tossing out all our work done so far though. The Berk and T-1 both are eight coupled locomotives (eight driving wheels) and both used the same size drivers, and were roughly the
same physical size. So a lot of what we had been developing with the drive translated over. The T-1 model was also not without its challenges, however. We initially had a few powertrain issues, but these were quickly corrected using what we had learned on the Berk, resulting in one of the most robust powertrains we could build. Once the prototype model was assembled, we have had zero mechanical issues beyond routine maintenance. Next, we discovered a few traction issues and tracking issues. We quickly found that not enough weight was resting on the drive wheels, which is Steam Locomotive-101. Our prototype was designed and assembled in Cale’s basement model shop leading up to the NMRA Train Show in Kansas City in August 2018. We even had our T-1 at the show, but there was never a good time to try it out. After the show, we began to sort out the remaining issues.
T-1 no. 2100 at the head of a Rambles train.
Cale took charge of the engine from this point on, working through all of the traction and running issues, strengthening the boiler assembly, cab, and tender, and adding some details (while Glenn had creative influence from afar). In December of 2018 the T-1 prototype, along with some appropriate rolling stock, was boxed up and shipped to our friend Adam Stasiek of the Northern Illinois LEGO Train Club. The T-1 was going to make its debut at the annual Cantigny Park Christmas Train Show in Wheaton, Illinois on the NILTC layout. We tested the locomotive extensively that weekend, running with a total of ten heavy passenger cars at one point with no issues. Needless to say, we were quite happy with the results.
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In the few weeks following this show, the engine and cars were shipped back to Cale’s house where final details were applied. We spent more time going over the locomotive, adding a few last details, and tweaking a few minor items found in testing. As January 2019 came, we were finally ready to announce our model to the public.
Taking the T-1 from Prototype to Production Kit
Glenn Holland (left) and Cale Leiphart (right) with their prototype T-1 model sitting on the pilot of the real Reading 2100.
At this point one would think the hard parts were done. The locomotive design was done, it performed beyond our expectations and looked great. The truth is, the design phase was the easy part. We both are experienced LEGO steam builders, and while wrestling with creative difference was a challenge, we both knew how to build a good steam locomotive. Between the give and take of our individual styles in building, the underlying locomotive was a solid model, built from years of experience. Taking the model from prototype to production kit, though, has been a challenge neither of us have faced before. As a first for Brick Model Railroader, we would be offering this locomotive as a full kit. As such, the buyer would get everything needed to build and run the locomotive right from the box. The kit would also include add-on options for sound, lighting, and be available in undecorated, Freight, and Rambles paint schemes. This model is a big deal for us, and we wanted to make it an awesome product.
Reading T-1 no. 2102 during one of its many excursion trips in the 1980s.
T-1 no. 2117 working the rear of a train. Location and date unknown.
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To make a kit, you need to provide instructions. BMR is no stranger to making instruction books, and produces all our instructions using the LDraw tool sets. As part of the instruction making process, we need to build up every model we do in CAD before we can render the assembly images for our books. During this time we often find ways to tweak our model to make assembly easier, add more detail, or make a part of the model stronger. With a large and complex model like the T-1, we were able to make a lot of little improvements, which would add up to a much nicer experience for the builder. Once the CAD model is finished, instruction images are processed through LPub3D, and then assembled into book form through InDesign. For all BMR instruction books we also provide an introduction, a complete part list, a detailed history of the prototype being modeled with numerous historical photos, finished model views from all angles, and tips on building. Putting all this together into a quality book can be a time-consuming process, but we are train nerds at heart and are crazy over details. This is the stuff we would want if we were buying a kit like this from some one else. The T-1 locomotives featured prominent pin striping on their tenders and cabs. The Iron Horse Rambles schemes added additional pin stripes down the running boards. To produce these in decal form would have been challenging, both for us to make, and for our customers to apply. So we turned to having the graphics printed directly on the bricks by Brick Print Studios. Though it’s been a little more costly, and has taken a few attempts to get the colors dialed in correctly, printing the graphics directly on the brick has been an excellent choice for this project. The graphics are crisp and perfectly applied right out of the box.
The T-1 kit includes a number of 3-D printed parts. This proved to be one of the biggest production challenges for the kit. The drivers, pilot, and trailing wheels on the locomotive, as well as the rods and valve gear, all needed to be printed, as there is no suitable LEGO part available to meet our needs. For the prototype model, we purchased these parts from Shapeways, an on-demand 3-D printing service. For the production kit, though, this would have been very costly and inconvenient due to the volume of parts needed. We looked at multiple options, including possibly injection molding some parts. However, molding would be too costly for the low volume we needed. 3-D printing was to be the best solution, so BMR purchased our own resin 3-D printer. Fortunately Glenn has experience working with such printers at his day job, so we were not starting completely blind. With our new printer we are able to get our parts printed such that quality will be excellent and cost will be low enough to maintain a competitive production cost. This in turn has allowed us to keep the final cost of our kit lower, and provide us flexibility to produce similar parts for future steam locomotive kits. The design of our 3-D printed parts also went through some changes on the way to production. While the original parts designed by Cale looked fair, and performed as intended, we felt we could improve things a bit more. Being a Mechanical Engineer, and also much more proficient in designing parts in CAD, Glenn stepped up to redesign all our rods and valve gear parts. The result is a much more accurate representation of the real T-1 parts, and will perform even better. One of the most monumental tasks for kit production has been ordering all the LEGO parts needed for each kit. Our initial production run required nearly 90,000 parts to complete all our kit pre-orders. All of these parts had to be ordered through Bricklink, checked, and sorted into kits. We also have parts from other vendors such as lighting from Brickstuff, PFx Bricks from Fx Bricks to control speed, lighting and sound, and Packaging, and printed instruction books to coordinate. For a two-person team, one of whom has a full-time day job away from BMR, and the other working to maintain BMR’s day-to-day operations, finding enough time to work on the locomotive production has been a hurdle. Of course this has been our first time doing any of this, so just figuring out how to best tackle everything involved with making a custom kit has also taken time. We’ve certainly learned a lot along the way, but it has been a very rewarding project, and we are looking forward to the next locomotive kit for Brick Model Railroader.
Detailed backhead (the rear of the boiler) and cab interior.
LDraw models of the 3-D printed side rods and valve gear parts.
Fire Up 2100
Brick Model Railroader will be donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of our T-1 model to the American Steam Railroad Association in support of their “Fire Up 2100”project. Fire Up 2100 is a project of the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association with the goal of restoring Reading Company steam locomotive no. 2100 to operation for the enjoyment and education of the general public. Constructing the T-1’s tender.
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Nearly finished prototype model for the T-1 kit.
We here at Brick Model Railroader believe strongly in preserving our railroad history for future generations to enjoy. We are excited to be working with American Steam Railroad on this project. ASR has been very helpful in providing us technical information on the T-1 for our model kit. We are proud to support them in bringing a T-1 back to life.
A History of the Reading T-1
The Reading T-1 is a class of 4-8-4 “Northern” type steam locomotives owned by the Reading Company. They were rebuilt from 30 of the Reading’s I-10a class 2-8-0s, between 1945 and 1947. Out of the 30 rebuilt, only four survive in preservation. The T-1 class was designed by the Reading Company’s superintendent of motive power and rolling equipment, E.P. Gangewere, and a team of engineers at the Baldwin Locomotive Works. The class was the brainchild of Reading Company President Revelle W. Brown, who had previously been President of the Lehigh Valley railroad. During his tenure on the Lehigh Valley, Brown had been thoroughly impressed with the road’s 4-8-4 “Wyoming” locomotives. Upon becoming President of the Reading Company, Brown wanted a similar class of locomotives to replace the Reading’s aging 2-8-0s, 2-8-2s, and 2-10-2s which handled the majority of freight traffic on the system.
Front and back covers for the T-1 kit box.
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The T-1 class locomotives were built between 1945 and 1947 at the Reading Company’s main locomotive shop in Reading, Pennsylvania, using the boiler, firebox, and several other components of thirty existing I-10sa class 2-80s. The main reason for this was that the War Productions Board had temporarily suspended the railroads from the design of new, unproven locomotives during World War II to conserve resources for the war effort, but continued to allow locomotives to be rebuilt and modernized. By using the 2-8-0s as a starting point, the Reading had found a loophole to create a more modern, more powerful locomotive for its fleet.
Finished profile renders for T-1 showing the Iron Horse Rambles scheme.
The T-1 class entered service between 1945 and 1947 and was used primarily in fast freight service where the “THogs”, as they were affectionately known, saw use on time-sensitive mixed freights as well as coal trains, and also saw use in pusher service. Their operating territory encompassed most of the Reading system and they were frequently used in pool service with the Western Maryland Railway, and became the basis for that road’s “Potomac” class of 4-8-4s. In regular service, the T-1s were cleared to pull trains up to 150 cars in length. Despite being assigned to freight service, the T-1s were capable of powering passenger trains if needed, and the last ten were equipped with steam heating for this purpose; cab signals were also added to ten for use on the Bethlehem Branch in 1948. In actual service however, the T-1s rarely handled passenger trains outside of post– World War II troop trains. The working lives of the T-1s were relatively brief, with all being out of service by 1954. A traffic surge in 1955 brought some back in service. In June 1956, 9 T-1s (2107, 2111-2115, 2119, and 2128) were leased to the Pennsylvania Railroad, while others ran upstate in Pennsylvania on the RDG until early 1957. Upon returning to the Reading a year later, the leased engines, with the exception of 2128, were cut up for scrap. Starting in 1959, the Reading Company began operating a series of excursions throughout its system using four of the T-1s. These excursions became famously know as “The Reading Rambles.” The first Ramble, pulled by T-1 2124, ran between Wayne Junction in Philadelphia to Shamokin. Five T-1s were held by the Reading for the Iron Horse Rambles: 2100, 2102, and 2124 would be used to pull the excursions, 2101 would be kept as a back-up, and 2123 was used as a source of parts and eventually scrapped in 1966.
Rear tender view of the T-1 model. All graphics are printed on the brick by Brick Print Studios.
BMR’s T-1 model, and matching Rambles cars on display at an event benefiting the restoration of T-1 2100.
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Final CAD render of the T-1 model, sans printed graphics.
T-1 Front. The Reading Lines Diamond logo on the pilot was first used on the T-1’s during the Iron Horse Rambles.
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The Iron Horse Rambles lasted until 1964, after which, the three remaining T-1s were sold off (2124 had already been purchased by F. Nelson Blount in 1962 for his Steamtown U.S.A. collection in Bellows Falls, Vermont). All four of the T-1s used in the Iron Horse Rambles survive to this day and are the only remaining examples of the class. 2100 was sold to Streigel Equipment & Supply of Baltimore, Maryland, in September 1967, and spent almost a decade in the firm’s scrapyard until 1975, when it was purchased along with sister 2101 by Ross Rowland to be used as a source of spare parts for the former for his American Freedom Train. After 2101 was damaged in a fire in 1979, 2100 swapped tenders with its sister and was stored in the former Western Maryland Hagerstown, Maryland, roundhouse until 1988, when it was purchased by the then owner of Lionel Trains, Richard Kughn and restored to operating condition. The locomotive spent the next decade moving from place to place with various different owners until it was purchased at auction by Thomas Payne, who moved it to the former New York Central’s St. Thomas, Ontario shop, where it was converted to burn oil, with plans to use the locomotive to pull excursions in the Rocky Mountains. These plans never came to fruition, and in 2007, 2100 was moved to Tacoma, Washington where it briefly ran on the Golden Pacific until 2008, when it was placed in outdoor storage. In 2015, 2100 was leased to the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association and moved to the former B&O roundhouse in Cleveland, Ohio, where it is presently being restored to operating condition. 2101 was sold along with 2100 in September 1967 to Streigel Equipment & Supply of Baltimore, Maryland, and spent almost a decade in the firm’s scrapyard until 1975, when it was purchased along with sister 2100 by Ross Rowland for use on his upcoming American Freedom Train, and renumbered AFT 1. Restored to operating condition in 30 days, AFT 1 pulled the American Freedom Train throughout the eastern United States before handing the train of to ex Southern Pacific 4449. In 1977, AFT 1 was renumbered
2101 and painted in the Chessie System livery for the Chessie Steam Special, an excursion train to celebrate the 150th birthday of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. 2101 ran these trips until November 1978, when it was damaged in a roundhouse fire at Silver Grove, Kentucky in March of 1979. The Chessie System arranged a deal with Rowland and traded their Chesapeake and Ohio 614 for the 2101 cosmetically restored as AFT 1 for display at the B&O Railroad Museum. 2102 was sold to Steam Tours of Akron, Ohio in 1966 and spent the next 23 years running on various fan trips in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest and made a brief appearance on the Greenbrier Scenic Railroad running between Durban and Cass, West Virginia. In 1985, 2102 was moved to Reading, Pennsylvania, by the RCT&HS and used on their “Rail Rambles” with 2002 later being purchased
by Andy Muller for his Blue Mountain and Reading tourist railroad in Hamburg, Pennsylvania. 2102 spent the next six years pulling tourist trains on the BM&R as well as occasional off-line trips until its flue time expired in 1991. In 1995, 2102 was moved to Steamtown National Historic Site for a restoration which never occurred and was next moved to Port Clinton, Pennsylvania, in 1997 and placed in indoor storage. 2102 is presently stored inside the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad’s steam shop in Port Clinton, Pennsylvania. In January 2016, Reading Blue Mountain and Northern started a mechanical evaluation on the locomotive to see if it is restorable, and on January 21, 2016 announced the locomotive would be returned to service following restoration. 2124, one of the all-roller-bearing-equipped T-1’s, was purchased by New England seafood magnate and steam locomotive collector F. Nelson Blount in 1962 for static display at his Steamtown, U.S.A. museum in North Walpole, New Hampshire. In 1965, 2124 was moved to Steamtown USA’s new location in Riverside, Vermont. In 1984, 2124 along with the majority of the Steamtown collection was moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania. In 1986, ownership of 2124 was transferred to the United States National Park Service along with most of Steamtown, U.S.A.’s assets as part of the new Steamtown National Historic Site. Today, 2124 is on static display at Steamtown and has recently been repainted for the 60th anniversary of the Iron Horse Rambles.
BMR’s Reading T-1 in full Rambles paint with the real T-1 2100 in the background. Photo courtesy of American Steam Railroad.
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You Can Build It Build Crossing Shanty Design and Instructions by Joe Meno
Parts List (Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)
Qty Color 1 White 1 White 2 2 4 1 4 1 4 3 1 9 13 8 6 8 2 5 1 4 3 2
From the Whippanny Railway Museum website (whippanyrailwaymuseum.net): Before there were automatic crossing gates, a crossing shanty or watch box would be placed at grade crossings. Crossing Watchmen operated the gates and used a stop sign to control traffic. The watchmen also inspected passing trains for defects, reported engineers who failed properly sound the whistle or ringing the bell at the crossing, and kept the crossing area clear of snow or other debris that could interfere with safe operation. This model is based on a Pennsylvania Railroad Watch Box replica that was built in 2003. The gate is a simpler build, and both are built with separate bases so they can be placed on a 16x16 as seen above, or independently on a train layout. And why is there an interior stud in the shanty? There is an interior for this shanty that can be built—which is why the roof is a loose part. You can find instructions on that at the BrickJournal website (www.brickjournal.com)! Have fun building!
2 1 2 10 44 3 2 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 2 2 1 4 1 1 1
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Part Description 2431.dat Tile 1 x 4 with Groove 3069bpw0.dat Tile 1 x 2 with “Wanted - Flatfoot Thomsen” Pattern White 62462.dat Technic Pin Joiner Round with Slot Red 62462.dat Technic Pin Joiner Round with Slot Reddish Brown 2453b.dat Brick 1 x 1 x 5 with Solid Stud Reddish Brown 3020.dat Plate 2 x 4 Reddish Brown 3024.dat Plate 1 x 1 Reddish Brown 41539.dat Plate 8 x 8 Reddish Brown 54200.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Reddish Brown 60592c01.dat Window 1 x 2 x 2 without Sill w/ Trans-Clear Glass (Complete) Reddish Brown 60596.dat Door 1 x 4 x 6 Frame Tan 3004.dat Brick 1 x 2 Tan 3005.dat Brick 1 x 1 Tan 3009.dat Brick 1 x 6 Tan 3023.dat Plate 1 x 2 Tan 3040b.dat Slope Brick 45 2 x 1 Tan 3622.dat Brick 1 x 3 Tan 3666.dat Plate 1 x 6 Tan 11211.dat Brick 1 x 2 with Two Studs on One Side Tan 54200.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Tan 87087.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Stud on 1 Side Yellow 32123b.dat Technic Bush 1/2 Smooth with Axle Hole Semi-Reduced Black 3004.dat Brick 1 x 2 Black 3023.dat Plate 1 x 2 Black 3024.dat Plate 1 x 1 Black 3032.dat Plate 4 x 6 Black 3068b.dat Tile 2 x 2 with Groove Black 3069b.dat Tile 1 x 2 with Groove Black 3070b.dat Tile 1 x 1 with Groove Black 3700.dat Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Hole Black 3737.dat Technic Axle 10 Black 3937.dat Hinge 1 x 2 Base Black 4733.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on 4 Sides Black 4740.dat Dish 2 x 2 Inverted Black 4865b.dat Panel 1 x 2 x 1 with Rounded Corners Black 6134.dat Hinge 2 x 2 Top Black 6141.dat Plate 1 x 1 Round Black 6143.dat Brick 2 x 2 Round Type 2 Black 6541.dat Technic Brick 1 x 1 with Hole Black 6558.dat Technic Pin Long with Friction and Slot Black 54200.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Black 60623.dat Door 1 x 4 x 6 with 4 Panes and Stud Handle Black 85984.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 2 x 0.667 Light Bluish Grey 32034.dat Technic Angle Connector #2 (180 degree)
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You Can Build It MINI Build MINI Dornean Gunship Design and Instructions by Christopher Deck
Parts List (Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)
Hello everybody, and welcome to this issue’s mini model building session! First seen in a very short sequence during the final space battle in Star Wars Episode 6: Return of the Jedi, the Dornean gunship remained an unknown ship for a long time. With expansion of the Star Wars Universe it finally was identified, and made a return in the more recent Star Wars productions like Rebels, Rogue One and Episode 9: The Rise of Skywalker. The Dornean gunship is a very compact attack craft with lots of greebly details, and thus pretty hard to build in a small scale. The crescent-shaped head of the gunship is an extraordinary challenge. The final result is pretty unconventional, but a lot of fun to build for sure, once the bricks slide into each other perfectly. Another highlight is the engine block with the middle cylinder which only stands out halfway of the upper hull. The only possibility to obtain this shape was to build it studs-down. It works pretty well, and I am happy to have employed many of the 3x2 plate with hole (part 3176), one of the most versatile pieces of all time in my opinion. Enjoy building, and I'll hopefully see you next time!
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Qty Color Part Description 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 2921.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Handle 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 4070.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Headlight 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 4733.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on 4 Sides 3 Light-Bluish-Gray 26604.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on Two Adjacent Sides 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 49307.dat Brick 1 x 1 x 0.667 with Curved Top 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 30136.dat Brick 1 x 2 Log 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 11211.dat Brick 1 x 2 with Two Studs on One Side 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 4740.dat Dish 2 x 2 Inverted 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 96910.dat Gold Ingot 2 Dark-Bluish-Gray 59230.dat Minifig Mechanical Arm Straight 1 Dark-Bluish-Gray 3024.dat Plate 1 x 1 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 6141.dat Plate 1 x 1 Round 3 Dark-Bluish-Gray 6141.dat Plate 1 x 1 Round 3 Trans-Light-Blue 6141.dat Plate 1 x 1 Round 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 26047.dat Plate 1 x 1 Round with Horizontal Handle on Side 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 4081b.dat Plate 1 x 1 with Clip Light Type 2 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 15573.dat Plate 1 x 2 with Groove with 1 Centre Stud, without Understud 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 3710.dat Plate 1 x 4 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 2444.dat Plate 2 x 2 with Hole and Split Underside Ribs 3 Light-Bluish-Gray 3176.dat Plate 3 x 2 with Hole 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 29120.dat Slope Brick Curved 2 x 1 with Cutout Left 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 29119.dat Slope Brick Curved 2 x 1 with Cutout Right 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 30602.dat Slope Brick Curved Top 2 x 2 x 1 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 44675.dat Slope Brick Curved Top 2 x 2 x 1 with Dimples 2 Dark-Bluish-Gray 18654.dat Technic Beam 1 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 6541.dat Technic Brick 1 x 1 with Hole 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 3700.dat Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Hole 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 32000.dat Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Holes 1 Dark-Bluish-Gray 3070b.dat Tile 1 x 1 with Groove 2 Dark-Bluish-Gray 15535.dat Tile 2 x 2 Round with Hole 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 22385.dat Tile 3 x 2 with Angled End
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Introduction
Building Minifig Customization 101:
The Child! By this point, he may actually have a name. Seriously, who doesn’t know what I am talking about? The Mandalorian TV/streaming show on Disney+ was 31.9 times more in-demand than the average title on a global basis, good enough for number one TV show in the world, according to data provided by research firm Parrot Analytics. It outpaced fellow hits such as HBO’s Game of Thrones, The CW’s The Flash, Netflix’s Stranger Things and The Crown. Needless to say, this gigantic success is largely due to one very small creature known as the Child, or by fans as Baby Yoda. LEGO, like every other toy manufacturer, was not given the opportunity to create a Baby Yoda by the show creators, as they didn’t want to spoil the surprise of the character. This left me, like others, to create our own. No one knows if LEGO will ever make us a Baby Yoda, but all the customizers have been very busy. I am going to share my sprawling story of creation and the whirlwind it created.
Design Clearly, the LEGO baby body is perfect for the character, but the head needs to be tiny and one cannot merely scale Yoda’s head for the Child, as he is known on the show, because he is not as old, grumpy, and wrinkled. I started with creating a 3-D model in Meshmixer (http://www. meshmixer.com/) of the Child’s head. He is clearly different from Yoda, but we can look to Yoda for some hints. This was quite difficult due to the size and scale of the figure. I started with the basic shapes of his head and used the sculpting tools to create the design, two triangles for the ears and a ball for his head. This process is very similar to physical sculpting out of clay. Once I had the design close to what I wanted, I had to test print it. This is because the LEGO body is out of scale to the head and I needed to see just how the head related the size of the body, using the official LEGO baby head as reference.
The Child
Article and Photography by Jared Burks
When one tackles a project like this, you need to understand the limitations of your 3-D printer and know how to tweak the design. I am using an Ultimaker 3, which can be dialed down to 25 micron resolution, but for this project I took it down to 60 microns (due to the time constraints), which is still quite the feat. I am getting ahead of myself a touch though. I had to start by just getting the design to print properly and that took some work. Once the head was printing cleanly, the neck hole had to size and resize to get it to fit snugly onto the LEGO baby body neck. Oddly enough, I had some print failures and was able to photograph this snug fit. All 3-D materials have a shrinkage and the size of the neck hole is specific to the PLA material I used, which was Ultimaker Green PLA. I then had to work on resolution. Resolution improvements typically come from adjusting the speed of the printer. By slowing it down and using a smaller nozzle (0.25 micron), resolution improvements were achieved. This meant that every head took ~45 min to print on my Ultimaker.
The head.
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First printing.
Testing stud fit.
Smoothing I now had a 3-D printed head sized to the LEGO baby body, with a tight fitting attachment to the neck, and printed at 60 micron (0.06) layer heights out of PLA. I have become a massive fan of vapor smoothing, which can easily be performed when ABS is used, as acetone can surface melt the ABS material and remove the layer lines. The reason smoothing is advantageous for this head is sanding it isn’t really possible given the complex texture. I did not have any green ABS and setting the printer up to print ABS well is much more time consuming. The issue is PLA will not smooth with acetone, and when you search the internet, a wide range of very toxic chemicals are claimed to smooth it, but I have never found any of them to work if I was able to get them for home use. I had been doing quite a bit of research on PLA vapor smoothing and had read a bit of info stating that Chloroform should be able to vapor smooth PLA. I am a molecular biologist by profession; as such, I have used chloroform professionally in research protocols. I have never used it at home and never seen it available for home use. I was unsure as to how to vapor smooth, but I did know one very important detail. Chloroform is the common name for the chemical name trichloromethane. I have used several welding glues before, and if they weld plastic, that means that the surface melts the plastics together, which is essentially the same process. Therefore, I needed a welding glue that was similar to Chloroform: enter Plastruct (https://plastruct. com/). Plastruct is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Plastic Scale Model Parts for every facet of miniature scale model building, typically for scale trains. They do create two excellent welding glues, Bondene and Plastic Weld. I checked the MDSS (Material Data Safety Sheet) for the chemical compounds in Bondene and Plastic Weld and it turns out they are the exact same chemical at different dilutions (concentrations). It turns out that these two welding glues are dichloromethane, which is one chlorine group away from chloroform! Being optimistic, I bought both and gave them both a go. Please be careful, these are very strong chemicals and I used them sparingly and in well-ventilated areas with the proper masks. Turns out Bondene worked better, but evaporated very quickly, so a small volume jelly jar worked well for my vapor chamber. I had to frequently add Bondene to the vapor chamber to create enough vapor to smooth the heads, but I was very pleased with the results.
Vapor smoothing chemical.
Vapor Smoothing.
Comparison front & back: Left no smoothing, right is smoothed.
Vinyl Dye.
Painting Once the resolution was tackled, I had to start working on coloring the figure. I could have gone the route of cloth, but I felt on a figure of this size that the cloth wouldn’t look correct, especially as he changes from episode to episode on what he is wearing. You have to look closely to see these changes, but they are there. In order to find the right color green, I started by looking at Moltow paint pens, as I thought coloring the hands would be simplified over using a brush. However, the pen turned into a disaster, so I ended up custom mixing my airbrush paints to get the bright green I desired. Using my airbrush, I slowly painted the heads. Once the paint on the head had
Desert Sand painted baby body on dark tan tile.
Medium Beige painted baby body on dark tan tile.
dried, I needed to paint the figure’s eyes black, and I added a highlight reflection to the eyes with a pearl white paint.
Airbrushed heads.
Eyes and reflections.
Next, I had to find the correct color of tan for the baby body that would be hard wearing, which meant vinyl dye instead of paint. Luckily, I found a tan Dupli-Color Vinyl dye—two actually (Desert Sand and Medium Beige)—at my local auto parts store. I bought both of them and tested them for similarity to LEGO colors. Turns out I would use both for different aspects in this project, but settled on the lighter Dupli-Color Desert Sand because it was closer to LEGO dark tan, and away I went spraying the LEGO baby bodies. Once the bodies had dried, I had to brush paint the hands, as trying to tape out the rest of the body would have been painfully slow.
Wall Street Journal Coverage Once the paint had dried, I clear-coated the parts to give the head and baby body a nice shine. While working out all the details to create the figure, I had already received multiple requests from others for one of these figures. As they took about five hours each to create one, I decided to list any I created on Etsy to recoup my expense at creating them. It was this action where I received a bit of attention and was actually featured in the Wall Street Journal. RT Watson of the Wall Street Journal contacted me through a series of connections I have and interviewed me about the figure I had created. The Wall Street Journal was doing a story about how the DIY versions were the only hope of getting a Baby Yoda for Christmas. I have never been in the Wall Street Journal for anything, so this was quite exciting. The article can be found at https://www.wsj.com/ articles/star-wars-fans-want-baby-yoda-diy-versions-are-theironly-hope-11576685175
Wall Street Journal article...
...with name change.
Oddly enough the article’s title changed about an hour after publication from, “Star Wars Fans Want Baby Yoda. DIY Versions Are Their Only Hope.” to “Disney Strikes Back—Against Sellers of DIY Baby Yoda Dolls.” I can say Disney nor LEGO never contacted me about my custom figure. I have never claimed, nor do I claim it to be, an official product of Disney or LEGO. The Child in the Wall Street Journal.
Baby Yoda with the Mandalorian (left) and Kuill (right).
Resin This project, like many, are never finished; they just morph into additional projects. Santa was good to me at Christmas and I received an Epax X1 DLP resin 3-D printer with the ability to print at ten micron resolution (six times better than my Ultimaker). Several details had to fall into place to make the Child Head print correctly on the Epax X1. Resin printing requires a clean-up post-printing, which uses isopropyl alcohol to remove the extra resin from the part. Once the extra resin has been removed, the part must be cured by placing it in sunlight, or it has to be exposed to a 405 nm UV light. I quickly dove into resin printing and gathered the needed items to finish the resin printed heads. The first few prints were quick to point out that the shrinkage and print details were different. I also had to resize the neck, going back through the tweaking process. The details stood out much better on the resin printing because I did not need to vapor smooth them. While smoothing removes layer lines, it also muddies the details of a print, so not needing it was a blessing. After seeing the amazing detail, I decided to custom print the LEGO baby body. With the effective printing of small detail, I decided I wanted an articulated Baby Yoda; after all, he needs to be able to strike a Force pose. I started by recreating the LEGO baby body to scale. Once I had it created, I cut off the arms, thinking that merely allowing them to be turned would be enough. I originally kept the LEGO ball in socket concept, but had to move away from it, as it would not compress enough to fit inside the arm socket. I may revisit this, but believe it would ultimately be a fragile connection. I converted the connection to a tapered cone. This way it could be posed in different ways—and I am not really going to play with my figure, I am going to display it. It was this thought that got me started thinking: what if I could print the hands? I could a finish the articulation and allow a true Force pose. Through this process I came to understand that the LEGO baby body has shortened arms and more stubby hands. I could shorten the arms to match, but I worried about the hands. So I did what I could and went from there. I also decided to not fill the hand. I wanted Baby Yoda to grip his bone broth cup.
Resin printing.
Resin print.
Printing torsos for articulation.
Articulation for Bone Broth Cup.
LEGO Tea Cup.
As I have covered before, one can use LegoCAD to export Obj files of some LEGO elements. I found the LEGO teacup and scaled it to fit inside the Baby Yoda’s hand. I printed it out and was amazed to discover how resilient the small-scale hand was, as you could add and remove the cup with ease. The hand, however, did not stick well into the arm, which required a bit of drilling, allowing the hand to fit into the arm. In the future, perhaps Baby Yoda will get his very own lightsaber.
Five different angles of the Pram Design.
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Paint error due to cold weather caused the paint to glob—I was not concerned, as scuffing the paint is required for the final design.
It would be painfully slow to require the Mandalorian to wait for Baby Yoda to walk everywhere, so I started designing his Pram or Floating Crib (of course, Pram is merely a British term for baby carriage). I was amazed at how many iterations it took to get the Pram correct. It seems like such a simple egg-shaped object, but I wanted to keep it to the LEGO system settings, so my version is three studs wide by four studs long and is two bricks and two plates tall. It has both stud and bar acceptors on the bottom and on each side. These acceptors were so challenging. I should have heeded the woodworking adage of "measure twice and cut once." I used Fusion 360 (www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360) to create the Pram and for unexplained reasons, getting the stud and bar acceptors the correct size took multiple test printings, which at 13 hours each were painfully slow. The resin in these regions seemed to shrink heavily, but I also apparently was under-sizing them. Once I got that fixed, I had to deal with the fact I was still learning how to properly use supports for the part that are required during printing.
Display I always think about how a figure I create will be displayed. I am a massive fan of the old school LEGO Star Wars base plates that came with an action figure card to stand behind the figures. As I had, with some help, created a template to create these cards back in the day (thanks Jamie!), I decided to create one for Baby Yoda. This way everyone could properly display the figure. I need to create a stand that holds the card, but that is for tomorrow.
Various Pram angles. Using an X-acto knife, I scraped away the paint blobs and created scuff marks on the Pram. I painted the interior dark grey and orange as it is in the show.
The Child.
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Display Card.
Finally, I have been very much enjoying lighted displays. Being a fan of the show Bounty Pucks that displays an image of anyone who has an active bounty on their heads, that seemed like a perfect display piece. I found a lovely design (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3988055) at Thingiverse and off it went to my printers. I actually printed the body by FDM and the lens with resin. Ultimately, I will redesign my own puck, perhaps out of LEGO. I am pleased with the way the project has come together and with where I leave it for now. I have mentioned I have at least two outstanding efforts here, but I am also working on the other characters from the show as well as my own custom Mandalorian. The final photos display the LEGO version of the Mandalorian with BrickArms overmolded weapons, which are stunning.
Lighted Bounty Hunter Puck.
Oh, the world that has opened with resin printing. I already have three or four non-Star Wars projects in the works, but that is a story for another day.
The pram over the puck. Family shot!
The Child with his cup.
You can view Jared’s webpage by going to http://www.fineclonier.com/ or scanning this QR code!
Don’t miss Jared K. Burks’ two books Minifigure Customization: Populate Your World! and its sequel Minifigure Customization: Why Live In The Box? (available now at www.twomorrows.com)
Come back next issue for more Minifigure Customization!
Community
UP
SIZING
The upscaled Classic Space layout at Bricks Cascade 2019, with their source sets in the foreground.
a theme
Article and Photography by Jason Ruff
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One of the more unusual displays at BrickCon 2019 were some copies of Classic Space sets from the ’80s. Older sets are often showcased at fan events, but what made this display different was that these sets were built three times larger than the originals. These larger-than-life creations were the efforts of Jason Ruff, Joe Larson, Michael Gilliam, and Dan Parker. The person who started this ongoing project was Jason Ruff. He built these to evoke the feeling he had building the original sets as a child. He remembered being small enough that he couldn’t run while he swooshed his Galaxy Explorer set. When he set the venerable old LL-928 next to the much newer UCS Millennium Falcon, Jason was blown away by how small the older set felt. Jason chose 3x scale for several reasons. The first was that the scale wasn’t unheard of—even LEGO themselves used the scale with the first Ant-Man set. Second, the scale itself provides a number of conveniences: 2x2 round tiles are close to perfect for stud width, and measuring the vertical scale of a set is a lot easier—a plate in 3x scale enlarges to a brick in height! With Neo-Classic Space, which he loves building, builders often ‘update’ an old set (in this case, a Classic Space set) to what they imagined it looked like when they were young. With 3x scale, a creation feels in a builder’s hand like it did when the builder first built the original set.
Jason Ruff’s Galaxy Commander. Another angle of the layout at Bricks Cascade 2019.
Sizing a Plate up
3x
Because a brick equals three plates in height, it’s easy to expand LEGO parts by a factor of 3. A plate sizes to three plates (one brick) high, and a single brick’s width becomes three bricks wide. In this size, a stud matches a 2x2 round brick and tile, as seen on the diagram here. Sizing other parts can also be easily done—a slope can be duplicated by stacking 3 slope bricks, 3 bricks wide!
This was the main factor behind Jason selecting the 6929 Starfleet Voyager as his first upsized project, as the set was big enough that it would enlarge to an impressive size. He also wanted it to be sturdy enough to swoosh, and with its wonderfully slim midsection, he figured he would still be able to swoosh it one-handed. It turned out that he was right. Another concern was cost. Jason saw the 6x scale classic Yellow Castle built by Duncan Titmarsh and James Sutton (seen in BrickJournal #8). The castle was amazing, but if Jason wanted to construct enough sets for a layout and also interest other builders to join him, he would need the scale and resulting parts cost to stay in a price range that at least resembled something realistic. With all of this in mind, Jason began building an upsized Starfleet Voyager and later, the 6980 Galaxy Commander. Both were very challenging. With the Voyager, the process of upsizing was completely new to him. He would find individual parts that were going to be a challenge to recreate, such as four-stud-wide radar dishes and computer panels. For accuracy, he had to learn how to count, recount, then triple count the stud length every time he added a section. There was frequent backtracking once he started adding the finishing touches on each section and marking out the spacing for each enlarged stud. With the Galaxy Commander, the challenges with individual parts were multiplied. Jason had worked out a system of designing and building the structure of a spaceship, but now it was time to try to create the far more complicated and unique elements of this particular set: the thrusters under the lab section, the rear landing struts, the six-wide radar dish frame and finally, the wonderfully awesome looking ‘sensors’ at the front of the ship. Additionally, the set’s landing plate, which is technically one element in the original set, suddenly became the size of four large baseplates, and alone used over 1500 tiles and plates.
Here’s a look at the construction of the Starfleet Voyager. The orange elements are markers for studs to be added.
A rover built in the expanded scale, which also had... ...upscaled minifigure accessory elements.
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Jason hoped that other builders would participate and make this an ongoing project. He was thrilled when Joe Larson joined in. One of Jason’s fondest memories of this project was when Joe said that he’d love to build something in this scale, but didn’t have the resources. Jason told him that he didn’t have to build a giant spaceship—there were plenty of small sets from the Classic Space era. About a month later, both realized there were no ‘small’ projects in 3x scale when Joe sent Jason a Galaxy Explorer set next to his rendition of the ‘little’ 442 Space Shuttle. The shuttle was considerably larger. Jason realized at that point that he didn’t really consider the scale in three dimensions—3x scale is really 27 times the size of an original set. He wasn’t too good in thinking terms of the math, but he was perfect in terms of displaying!
Building the baseplate required making a compass to build the curves.
Michael Gilliam and Dan Parker also began building largescale models, so what began as two models has grown to seven different spacecrafts and vehicles. This universe is still expanding, with Jason working on a upsized LL-928 Galaxy Explorer for Bricks Cascade 2020.
Three of the builders behind the layout: (from left to right) Jason Ruff, Joe Larson, and Michael Gilliam. Not pictured is Dan Parker.
Building the Galaxy Explorer—note the original, and the scale ruler at the bottom.
SHIP TIMELINE BrickCon 2017 493 - Space Command Center by Michael Gilliam and Dan Parker
6929 - Starfleet Voyager by Jason Ruff
Bricks Cascade 2018
918 - Space Transport by Michael Gilliam and Dan Parker
6980 - Galaxy Commander by Jason Ruff
Bricks Cascade 2019
442 - Two-Man Scooter by Joe Larson
6901 - Mobile Lab by Joe Larson
928 - Galaxy Explorer by Jason Ruff
Bricks Cascade 2020
452 - Mobile Ground Tracking Station by Joe Larson
A crowd of minifigures getting ready for display.
Magnifying Minifigures One of the really neat elements of the layout are the minifigures—not only are they scaled to match the spaceships, they are also articulated! Jason Ruff designed the first red minifigure with the Starfleet Voyager. It uses aspects of the Ant-Man macro figure, but the arms and head are his own design. Although the other builders have made their own minor tweaks to their versions of the design, it’s great to have a unified look for them. Jason thinks it’s the figures that really bring the creations alive, and make the layouts so engaging at conventions. When he built the first one, he loved it, but when he built five more for the Galaxy Commander, he realized something: One giant minifig is awesome. Six giant minifigs is adorable. Different builders have questions about how Jason recreated different parts in that scale, but the two things almost everyone wants to know is: Who made the minifigs, and if they can play with them. He always says yes to the second one and loves watching people’s smiles light up when they play with something he built.
A breakdown of a minifigure— the scale is shown in the upper left corner.
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WHATEVER YOU’RE INTO, BUILD IT WITH
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BRICKJOURNAL #61
LEGO FIGURE BUILDING! JAE WON LEE’s historical and legendary characters, EERO OKKONEN’s stunning mythic figures, ANDREA (“Norton74”) LATTANZIO’s new ultra-realistic builds (including classic food stands and gas stations), “AFOLs” by GREG HYLAND, “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more! $ 9.95 • SHIPS JANUARY 2020!
BRICKJOURNAL #60
MYSTERIOUS, SPOOKY LEGO BUILDING! FLYNN DeMARCO’s motorized Treasure of the Snake Queen, Laika’s MISSING LINK by HOLLY WEBSTER, STACY STERLING’s HAUNTED MANSION, “AFOLs” by GREG HYLAND, “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art with TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more! $ 9.95 • NOW SHIPPING!
BRICKJOURNAL #58
LEGO WARBIRDS, PAST AND PRESENT! JEFF CHERRY’S WWII and modern fighters (P-51 Mustang and F-14 Tomcat), RALPH SAVELSBURG’S BrickJournal exclusive X-plane, MICHAEL BROWN’S F-14 Tomcat “Vandy One”, step-by-step LEGO instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art with TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more! NOW SHIPPING!
OUTER SPACE
BRICKJOURNAL #57
MICROSCALE LEGO BUILDING! Tour WAYNE TYLER’S National Mall (Washington, DC) layout, skyscrapers from ROCCO BUTTLIERE, BLAKE FOSTER’s Ugly Duckling spaceship, step-by-step “You Can Build It” LEGO instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art with TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more! NOW SHIPPING!
BRICKJOURNAL #56
LIFE-SIZE LEGO and what it takes to build them (besides a ton of LEGO brick)! HELEN SHAM’s sculptures of giant everyday items, MAGNUS LAUGHLO’s GI Joe®-inspired models, military builds by ERIC ONG, plus “Bricks In The Middle” comic by KEVIN HINKLE, “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, Minifig Customization by JARED K. BURKS, & more! NOW SHIPPING!
STAR WARS™
!
NEW
BRICKJOURNAL #17
LEGO SPACE WAR issue! A STARFIGHTER BUILDING LESSON by Peter Reid, WHY SPACE MARINES ARE SO POPULAR by Mark Stafford, a trip behind the scenes of LEGO’S ALIEN CONQUEST SETS, plus JARED K. BURKS’ column on MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION, building tips, event reports, our step-by-step “YOU CAN BUILD IT” INSTRUCTIONS, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #41
Space-themed LEGO creations of LIA CHAN, 2001: A Space Odyssey’s Orion space plane by NICK DEAN, and Pre-Classic Space builder CHRIS GIDDENS! Plus: JARED K. BURKS’ minifigure customizing, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics by DAMIEN KEE, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #59
STAR WARSTM THEMED BUILDERS! Travel to a galaxy far, far away with JACOB NEIL CARPENTER’S DEATH STAR, the work of MIRI DUDAS, and the LEGO® photography of JAMES PHILIPPART! Plus “You Can Build It” instructions, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art with TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more!
TRAINS
BRICKJOURNAL #24
Builder CALE LEIPHART shows how to get started building trains and train layouts, instructions on building microscale trains by editor JOE MENO, building layouts with the members of the Pennsylvania LEGO Users Group, fan-built LEGO monorails minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, microscale building by CHRISTOPHER DECK, “You Can Build It”, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #46
More with train builder CALE LEIPHART, updated train layouts and models from the PENNLug, BRICK MODEL RAILROADER (a new LEGO Train fan website that launched this year), and more locomotive action! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!
BRICKJOURNAL #23
Custom creations from a long time ago and far, far away! JACOB CARPENTER’s Imperial Star Destroyer, MARK KELSO’s Invisible Hand, interview with SIMON MACDONALD about building Star Wars costume props with LEGO elements, history of the LEGO X-Wing, plus minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #37
Custom ships by ERIC DRUON, incredible galactic layouts by builder AC PIN, a look at the many droid creations built by LEGO fans—truly, the LEGO Force has awakened! Plus JARED K. BURKS on minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, & more!
MECHA
BRICKJOURNAL #15
Feature editor NATHAN BRYAN spotlights mecha builders such as SAITO YOSHIKAZU, TAKAYUKI TORII, SUKYU and others! Also, a talk with BRIAN COOPER and MARK NEUMANN about their mecha creations, mecha building instructions by SAITO YOSHIKAZU, our regular columns on minifigure customization, building, event reports, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #40
Build giant robots and mechs with BENJAMIN CHEH MING HANN and KELVIN LOW, and SETH HIGGINS shows us his amazing transforming LEGO robots! And even cyborgs love Minifig Customization by JARED K. BURKS, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #48
Secrets and tricks of building mechs with some of the best mecca builders in the world! Interviews with BENJAMIN CHEH, KELVIN LOW, LU SIM, FREDDY TAM, DAVID LIU, and SAM CHEUNG! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
CARS
BRICKJOURNAL #11
“Racers” theme issue, with building tips on race cars by the ARVO BROTHERS, interview with LEGO RACERS designer ANDREW WOODMAN, LEGO FORMULA ONE RACING, TECHNIC SPORTS CAR building, event reports, MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION by JARED K. BURKS, MICRO BUILDING, builder spotlights, LEGO HISTORY, and more!
STEAMPUNK
BRICKJOURNAL #51
STEAMPUNK, with builder GUY HIMBER! PAUL HETHERINGTON talks about his cover model “Unchain My Heart,” ROD GILLIES’ latest Steampunk work, and a look at the creations of other top Steampunk builders! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
TECHNIC
BRICKJOURNAL #21
LINO MARTINS & NATHAN PROUDLOVE of LUGNuts share secrets behind their LEGO car creations, and present TECHNIC SUPER-CAR MODELS by PAUL BORATKO III and other top builders! Plus custom instructions by TIM GOULD & CHRISTOPHER DECK, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” section, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #38
LEGO car builders STEPHAN SANDER, JORDANIAN FIRAS ABU-JABER, and ANDREA LATTANZIO! Plus: Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd Pop Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, & more!
DISNEY®
BRICKJOURNAL #9
LEGO® DISNEY SETS, with features on the Disney LEGO sets of the past (MICKEY and MINNIE) and present (TOY STORY and PRINCE OF PERSIA)! We also present Disney models built by LEGO fans, and a look at the newest Master Build model at WALT DISNEY WORLD, plus articles and instructions on building and customization, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #44
THEME PARK ISSUE! ERIK JONES’ custom LEGO version of Cinderella Castle, STÉPHANE DELY’s Disneyland Paris Sleeping Beauty Castle, and JOHN RUDY’s brick versions of your favorite theme park rides! Plus “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #29
PAUL BORATKO and editor JOE MENO diagram instructions on adding functions to your models, shop-talk with LEGO Technic designers, and more creations moving at top speed! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #49
GEOFF GRAY explores Technic history, JOE MENO interviews former LEGO Set Designer SØREN HOLM about the classic Technic Space Shuttle, MICHAEL BROWN shows off his Technic-scale AH-64, and more! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
CASTLES
BRICKJOURNAL #25
MEDIEVAL CASTLES! Top LEGO® Castle builders present their creations, including BOB CARNEY’s detailed Neuschwanstein Castle, plus articles on building and detailing castles of your own! Also: JARED BURKS on minifigure customization, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #45
FEMALE LEGO BUILDERS! US Architectural builder ANURADHA PEHRSON, British Microscale builder FERNANDA RIMINI, US Bionicle builder BREANN SLEDGE, and Norwegian Town builder BIRGITTE JONSGARD! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!
SCULPTURE
BRICKJOURNAL #18
Two JAPANESE LEGO FAN EVENTS, plus a look at JAPAN’S SACRED LEGO LAND, Nasu Highland Park—the site of BrickFan events and a pilgrimage site for many Japanese LEGO fans. Also, a feature on JAPAN’S TV CHAMPIONSHIP OF LEGO, a look at the CLICKBRICK LEGO SHOPS in Japan, plus how to get into TECHNIC BUILDING, LEGO EDUCATION, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #31
Building LEGO bricks WITH character, with IAIN HEATH and TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Manga-inspired creations of MIKE DUNG, sculptures by Taiwanese Brick Artist YO YO CHEN, Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #52
Russian builder TIMOFEY TKACHEV, plus what it takes to become a LEGO Certified Professional (an elite group of builders officially recognized by LEGO), with New York’s SEAN KENNEY and Australian RYAN McNAUGHT! Also: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
BRICKJOURNAL #54
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY: HSINWEI CHI and his revolutionary LEGO animals and giant robots! We also declassify other top LEGO builders’ creations, including MICHAEL BROWN’s Technic-scale F-18 Hornet! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
BRICKJOURNAL #55
LEGO HEADS & TAILS: FELIX JAENSCH’s remarkable LEGO sculptures, from realistic animals to the human skull and amazing face masks! BRYAN BENSON’s detailed Kermorvan Lighthouse and how he built it from LEGO bricks. A spectacular Winter layout by DAVE SCHEFCIK! Plus: Minifigure customizing, step-by-step instructions, BrickNerd, & more!
LEGO®, the Minifigure, and the Brick and Knob configurations are trademarks of the LEGO Group of Companies. BrickJournal is not affiliated with The LEGO Group. All characters shown are TM & © their respective owners.
SUPER-HEROES
BRICKJOURNAL #20
Behind-the-scenes of the DC and Marvel Comics sets, plus a feature on GREG HYLAND, the artist of the superhero comic books in each box! Also, other superhero work by ALEX SCHRANZ and our cover artist OLIVIER CURTO. Plus, JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customization, building tips, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #32
LEGO ARTISTRY with builder/photographer CHRIS McVEIGH; mosaic builders BRIAN KORTE, DAVE WARE and DAVE SHADDIX; and sculptors SEAN KENNEY (about his nature models) and ED DIMENT (about a full-size bus stop built with LEGO bricks)! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!
GAMING
BRICKJOURNAL #34
TOMMY WILLIAMSON on the making of his YouTube sensation BATMAN VS SUPERMAN, BRANDON GRIFFITH’S COMICBRICKS PROJECT recreates iconic comic book covers out of LEGO, JARED BURKS and his custom Agents of SHIELD minifigs, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, and more!
MINDSTORMS & ROBOTICS
BRICKJOURNAL #5
MINDSTORMS 10th ANNIVERSARY at LEGO HEADQUARTERS, Pixar’s ANGUS MACLANE on LEGO in filmmaking, the LEGO Group’s past with the DIRECTOR OF LEGO’S IDEA HOUSE, event reports, how SEAN KENNEY’s LEGO creations ended up on NBC’S 30 ROCK television show, instructions and spotlights on builders, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #33
MINDSTORMS EV3 builders MARCANDRE BAZERGUI and ANDY MILLUZZI, designer LEE MAGPILI, CHRIS GIDDENS with his amazing robot sculptures, Minifig Customization by JARED BURKS, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, other looks at MINDSTORMS building, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #42
How schools and AFOLs build with the new WeDo, FIRST LEGO LEAGUE’s 2016 season explored (with national competitions at LEGOLand California), and robotics builders the Seshan Brothers take MINDSTORMS to the next level! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!
ARCHITECTURE & MICROSCALE
BRICKJOURNAL #43
IMAGINE RIGNEY’s Bioshock builds, NICK JENSEN’s characters and props from HALO and other video games, and GamerLUG member SIMON LIU builds LEGO versions of video game characters, spaceships and more! Plus: “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #53
TYLER CLITES and SEAN MAYO show you LEGO hacks to twink and juice your creations! Also, see big bad game-inspired models by BARON VON BRUNK, and Pokemon-inspired models by LI LI! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
UNDERSEA
BRICKJOURNAL #10
Looks at the creation of LEGO’S ATLANTIS sets, plus a spotlight on a fan-created underwater theme, the SEA MONKEYS, with builder FELIX GRECO! Also, a report on the LEGO WORLD convention in the NETHERLANDS, builder spotlights, stepby-step building instructions, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, LEGO history, and more!
DINOSAURS
BRICKJOURNAL #47
Builder MITSURU NIKAIDO shows us undersea creatures and organic builds! Then jump aboard MARCELLO DeCICCO’s minifigure-scale warships! See PEDRO NASCIMENTO’s amazing architectural creations! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!
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TwoMorrows. BRICKJOURNAL #30
LEGO ARCHITECTURE with JONATHAN LOPES, a microscale model of Copenhagen by ULRIK HANSEN, and a look at the LEGO MUSEUM being constructed in Denmark! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #35
HISTORY IN LEGO BRICKS! LEGO pro RYAN McNAUGHT on his LEGO Pompeii and other projects, military builder DAN SISKIND on his BrickMania creations, and LASSE VESTERGARD about his historical building, JARED K. BURKS on minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #36
JUSTIN McMILLAN’s micro house and other buildings, a look at the MICROSCALE Standard by TwinLUG, and featuring some of the best microscopic LEGO work from around the world, plus JARED K. BURKS’ minifigure customizing, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, and more!
BRICKJOURNAL #39
WILLIAM PUGH discusses building prehistoric creatures, a LEGO Jurassic World by DIEGO MAXIMINO PRIETO ALVAREZ, and dino bones by MATT SAILORS! Plus: Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, DIY Fan Art by BrickNerd TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!
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BRICKJOURNAL magazine spotlights all aspects of the LEGO® Community! It showcases events, people, and models every issue, with contributions and how-to articles by top builders worldwide, new product intros, and more. Available in FULL-COLOR print and digital editions.
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Last Word So wraps up another issue of BrickJournal. What did you think? BrickJournal tries to feature new and classic builders for inspiring you, the reader, to join in building and displaying. To do this, I go to events and also explore online to see what is going on with other builders worldwide. I check out Flickr every so often and also look at Facebook. That doesn’t meant I see everything, though. Flight testing a MOC.
Do you know someone who builds awesome models, whether it be microscale or life-size sculptures? Have you seen some great builds at events or elsewhere? If you have, drop a line to brickjournal@gmail.com or go to the BrickJournal page on Facebook. Also, if you have comments or suggestions, drop me a line. This is just as much your magazine as mine, so ask! Til then, build on! That Joe Meno Guy
A Spinner builder and cosplayers...
79
by Kevin A. Hinkle & Matthew Kay
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ALTER EGO #164
ALTER EGO #165
ALTER EGO #166
DRAW #36
KIRBY & LEE: STUF’ SAID
Spotlight on MIKE FRIEDRICH, DC/Marvel writer who jumpstarted the independent comics movement with Star*Reach! Art by NEAL ADAMS, GIL KANE, DICK DILLIN, IRV NOVICK, JOHN BUSCEMA, JIM STARLIN, HOWARD CHAYKIN, FRANK BRUNNER, et al.! Plus: MARK CARLSONGHOST on Rural Home Comics, FCA, and Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt! Justice League of America cover by NEAL ADAMS!
WILL MURRAY showcases original Marvel publisher (from 1939-1971) MARTIN GOODMAN, with artifacts by LEE, KIRBY, DITKO, ROMITA, MANEELY, BUSCEMA, EVERETT, BURGOS, GUSTAVSON, SCHOMBURG, COLAN, ADAMS, STERANKO, and many others! Plus FCA, Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt with more on PETE MORISI, JOHN BROOME, and a cover by DREW FRIEDMAN!
FAWCETT COLLECTORS OF AMERICA (FCA) Special, with spotlights on KURT SCHAFFENBERGER (Captain Marvel, Ibis the Invincible, Marvel Family, Lois Lane), and ALEX ROSS on his awesome painting of the super-heroes influenced by the original Captain Marvel! Plus MICHAEL T. GILBERT’s “Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt” on Superman editor MORT WEISINGER, JOHN BROOME, and more! Cover by SCHAFFENBERGER!
MIKE HAWTHORNE (Deadpool, Infinity Countdown) interview, YANICK PAQUETTE (Wonder Woman: Earth One, Batman Inc., Swamp Thing) how-to demo, JERRY ORDWAY’s “Ord-Way” of creating comics, JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews the latest art supplies, plus Comic Art Bootcamp by BRET BLEVINS and MIKE MANLEY! Contains mild nudity for figure-drawing instruction; for Mature Readers Only.
EXPANDED SECOND EDITION—16 EXTRA PAGES! Looks back at the creators of the Marvel Universe’s own words, in chronological order, from fanzine, magazine, radio, and television interviews, to paint a picture of JACK KIRBY and STAN LEE’s complicated relationship! Includes recollections from STEVE DITKO, ROY THOMAS, WALLACE WOOD, JOHN ROMITA SR., and other Marvel Bullpenners!
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ER EISN RD !! AWA NER IN W
WORLD OF TWOMORROWS
BACK ISSUE #120
BACK ISSUE #121
BACK ISSUE #122
BACK ISSUE #123
Celebrate our 25th anniversary with this retrospective by publisher JOHN MORROW and Comic Book Creator magazine’s JON B. COOKE! Go behind-the-scenes with MICHAEL EURY, ROY THOMAS, GEORGE KHOURY, and a host of other TwoMorrows contributors! Introduction by MARK EVANIER, Foreword by ALEX ROSS, Afterword by PAUL LEVITZ, and a new cover by TOM McWEENEY!
HEROES OF TOMORROW! Mon-El hero history, STEVE LIGHTLE’s Legionnaires, and the controversial Legion of Super-Heroes: Five Years era. Plus SEKOWSKY’s Manhunter 2070, GRELL’s Starslayer, Charlton’s Space: 1999 tie-in, Paradox, and MIKE BARON’s unfinished Sonic Disruptors series. Featuring the BIERBAUMS, BYRNE, GIFFEN, MAYERIK, SIMONSON, TRUMAN, VOSBURG, WAID, and more. LIGHTLE cover.
CONAN AND THE BARBARIANS! Celebrating the 50th anniversary of ROY THOMAS and BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH’s Conan #1! The Bronze Age Barbarian Boom, Top 50 Marvel Conan stories, Marvel’s Not-Quite Conans (from Kull to Skull), Arak–Son of Thunder, Warlord action figures, GRAY MORROW’s Edge of Chaos, and Conan the Barbarian at Dark Horse Comics. With an unused WINDSOR-SMITH Conan #9 cover.
Celebrates the 40TH ANNIVERSARY of MARV WOLFMAN and GEORGE PÉREZ’s New Teen Titans, featuring a guest editorial by WOLFMAN and a PÉREZ tribute and art gallery! Plus: The New Teen Titans’ 40 GREATEST MOMENTS, the Titans in the media, hero histories of RAVEN, STARFIRE, and the PROTECTOR, and more! With a NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED PÉREZ TITANS COVER from 1981!
SUPERHERO ROMANCE ISSUE! Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark’s many loves, Star Sapphire history, Bronze Age weddings, DeFALCO/ STERN Johnny Storm/Alicia Pro2Pro interview, Elongated Man and Wife, May-December romances, Supergirl’s Secret Marriage, and… Aunt May and Doc Ock?? Featuring MIKE W. BARR, CARY BATES, STEVE ENGLEHART, BOB LAYTON, DENNY O’NEIL, and many more! Cover by DAVE GIBBONS.
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TwoMorrows. The Future of Comics History.
COMIC BOOK CREATOR #22 COMIC BOOK CREATOR #23
P. CRAIG RUSSELL career-spanning interview (complete with photos and art gallery), an almost completely unknown work by FRANK QUITELY (artist on All-Star Superman and The Authority), DERF BACKDERF’s forthcoming graphic novel commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Kent State shootings, CAROL TYLER shares her prolific career, JOE SINNOTT discusses his Treasure Chest work, CRAIG YOE, and more!
WENDY PINI discusses her days as Red Sonja cosplayer, and 40+ years of ELFQUEST! Plus RICHARD PINI on their 48-year marriage and creative partnership! SCOTT SHAW! talks about early San Diego Comic-Cons and friendship with JACK KIRBY, Captain Carrot, and Flintstones work! GIL KANE’s business partner LARRY KOSTER about their adventures together! PABLO MARCOS on his Marvel horror work, HEMBECK, and more!
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KIRBY COLLECTOR #78
SILVER ANNIVERSARY ISSUE! How Kirby kickstarted the Silver Age and revamped Golden Age characters for the 1960s, the Silver Surfer’s influence, pivotal decisions (good and bad) Jack made throughout his comics career, Kirby pencil art gallery, MARK EVANIER and our regular columnists, a classic 1950s story, KIRBY/STEVE RUDE cover (and deluxe silver sleeve) and more! (84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $10.95 (DELUXE EDITION w/ silver sleeve) $12.95 (Digital Edition) $4.99 • Now shipping!
KIRBY COLLECTOR #79
See “THE BIG PICTURE” of how Kirby fits into the grand scheme of things! His creations’ lasting legacy, how his work fights illiteracy, a RARE KIRBY INTERVIEW, inconsistencies in his 1960s MARVEL WORK, editorial changes in his comics, big concepts in OMAC, best DOUBLE-PAGE SPREADS, MARK EVANIER’s 2019 Kirby Tribute Panel, PENCIL ART GALLERY, and a new cover based on OMAC #1! (84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $10.95 (Digital Edition) $4.99 • Ships Spring 2020
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RetroFan: The Pop Culture You Grew Up With! If you love Pop Culture of the Sixties, Seventies, and Eighties, editor MICHAEL EURY’s latest magazine is just for you!
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RETROFAN #1
for shipping in the US.
RETROFAN #2
RETROFAN #6
RETROFAN #7
RETROFAN #8
Interviews with MeTV’s crazy creepster SVENGOOLIE and Eddie Munster himself, BUTCH PATRICK! Call on the original Saturday Morning GHOST BUSTERS, with BOB BURNS! Uncover the nutty NAUGAS! Plus: “My Life in the Twilight Zone,” “I Was a Teenage James Bond,” “My Letters to Famous People,” the ARCHIE-DOBIE GILLIS connection, Pinball Hall of Fame, Alien action figures, Rubik’s Cube & more!
Featuring a JACLYN SMITH interview, as we reopen the Charlie’s Angels Casebook, and visit the Guinness World Records’ largest Charlie’s Angels collection. Plus: an exclusive interview with funnyman LARRY STORCH, The Lone Ranger in Hollywood, The Dick Van Dyke Show, a vintage interview with Jonny Quest creator DOUG WILDEY, a visit to the Land of Oz, the ultra-rare Marvel World superhero playset, and more!
NOW BI-MONTHLY! Interviews with the ’60s grooviest family band THE COWSILLS, and TV’s coolest mom JUNE LOCKHART! Mars Attacks!, MAD Magazine in the ’70s, Flintstones turn 60, Electra Woman & Dyna Girl, Honey West, Max Headroom, Popeye Picnic, the Smiley Face fad, & more! With MICHAEL EURY, ERNEST FARINO, ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, and SCOTT SHAW!
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RETROFAN #3
RETROFAN #4
RETROFAN #5
THE CRAZY, COOL CULTURE WE GREW UP WITH! LOU FERRIGNO interview, The Phantom in Hollywood, Filmation’s Star Trek cartoon, “How I Met Lon Chaney, Jr.”, goofy comic Zody the Mod Rob, Mego’s rare Elastic Hulk toy, RetroTravel to Mount Airy, NC (the real-life Mayberry), interview with BETTY LYNN (“Thelma Lou” of The Andy Griffith Show), TOM STEWART’s eclectic House of Collectibles, and Mr. Microphone!
HALLOWEEN! Horror-hosts ZACHERLEY, VAMPIRA, SEYMOUR, MARVIN, and an interview with our cover-featured ELVIRA! THE GROOVIE GOOLIES, BEWITCHED, THE ADDAMS FAMILY, and THE MUNSTERS! The long-buried Dinosaur Land amusement park! History of BEN COOPER HALLOWEEN COSTUMES, character lunchboxes, superhero VIEW-MASTERS, SINDY (the British Barbie), and more!
40th Anniversary interview with SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE director RICHARD DONNER, IRWIN ALLEN’s sci-fi universe, Saturday morning’s undersea adventures of Aquaman, horror and sci-fi zines of the Sixties and Seventies, Spider-Man and Hulk toilet paper, RetroTravel to METROPOLIS, IL (home of the Superman Celebration), SEA-MONKEYS®, FUNNY FACE beverages, Superman and Batman memorabilia, & more!
Interviews with the SHAZAM! TV show’s JOHN (Captain Marvel) DAVEY and MICHAEL (Billy Batson) Gray, the GREEN HORNET in Hollywood, remembering monster maker RAY HARRYHAUSEN, the way-out Santa Monica Pacific Ocean Amusement Park, a Star Trek Set Tour, SAM J. JONES on the Spirit movie pilot, British sci-fi TV classic THUNDERBIRDS, Casper & Richie Rich museum, the KING TUT fad, and more!
Interviews with MARK HAMILL & Greatest American Hero’s WILLIAM KATT! Blast off with JASON OF STAR COMMAND! Stop by the MUSEUM OF POPULAR CULTURE! Plus: “The First Time I Met Tarzan,” MAJOR MATT MASON, MOON LANDING MANIA, SNUFFY SMITH AT 100 with cartoonist JOHN ROSE, TV Dinners, Celebrity Crushes, and more fun, fab features!
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RETROFAN #9 (NOW BI-MONTHLY!)
RETROFAN #9 features interviews with two TV superheroes, Seventies’ Captain America REB BROWN… and Captain Nice (and Knight Rider’s KITT) WILLIAM DANIELS with wife BONNIE BARTLETT! Plus: remembering the Captain Nice TV series, the Wonderful World of Coloring Books, star-studded Fall Previews for Saturday morning cartoons, an eyewitness account of The Cyclops movie, the actors behind your favorite TV commercial characters, Benny Hill’s invasion of America, a trip to the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention, 8-track tapes, and more fun, fab features! Featuring columns by ERNEST FARINO, ANDY MANGELS, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, Please add $1 per issue and SCOTT SHAW! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.