Bricklinking Modular Buildings

[sin]

With Cafe Corner, as much as I love staying true to the source material, I am making a lot of changes it seems. I am keeping the original color schemes, but I ended up not using the 1x4x5 doors and instead modified the doorway to accommodate a 1x4x6. That way it is cheaper, plus it keeps it in scale with the rest of the newer modulars. since the 5 height went bye-bye.

And since I'm changing my CC to the L shaped corner instead of the traditional corner, I am using a lot more bricks, so I can't say for sure how much it has cost me so far and how much it will end up costing me. But I would definitely recommend picking up the dark red roof slopes and the dark blue arches while you can. I bought enough to build Market street also, but then I realized they are only on the alleyway courtyard area which I don't particularly care for anyway, so I have a lot of extra dark blue arches I guess.

I think that's a good call on modifying the 5 high doors, price is one factor but I think its almost more important to maintain consistency across the different buildings.

I want to see an inside corner CC, that sounds really cool! Have you built it in LDD?

Also smart advice on the dark red roof slopes and large blue arches, I think I will pick those up soon even if I don't fully proceed with CC or MS in the near future.

[Wodanis]

I just made a design on LDD of a cafe corner interior. I posted them on my blog and Flickr. Check them out. I figure I will have to do a separate order when I can assess the cost first.

I agree about those extra pieces in sets..sure they may be small, but they can add up to not needing them for a future MOC.

With Cafe Corner, as much as I love staying true to the source material, I am making a lot of changes it seems. I am keeping the original color schemes, but I ended up not using the 1x4x5 doors and instead modified the doorway to accommodate a 1x4x6. That way it is cheaper, plus it keeps it in scale with the rest of the newer modulars. since the 5 height went bye-bye.

And since I'm changing my CC to the L shaped corner instead of the traditional corner, I am using a lot more bricks, so I can't say for sure how much it has cost me so far and how much it will end up costing me. But I would definitely recommend picking up the dark red roof slopes and the dark blue arches while you can. I bought enough to build Market street also, but then I realized they are only on the alleyway courtyard area which I don't particularly care for anyway, so I have a lot of extra dark blue arches I guess.

I'll look forward to seeing how it turns out! Someone else I saw did an L shape cafe corner turned out to be quite cool. Can't go wrong with more dark blue arches. Yea the market in market street was quite bare. I'm thinking of making into a full on food market. Similar to a flea market to describe it.

[elleana]

Whoosh. Just got done ordering my first batch of bricks, about 1800 of them in all, total cost so far (excluding shipping, haven't been invoiced by BL stores as yet) is approximately $300. One annoying thing that happened a couple of times was that a store initially had stock of a particular brick when I was pricing things out, but when I got around to checking out they were no longer in stock so I had to scramble a bit.

The bricks I haven't ordered yet though are presumably rarer since I couldn't find them in a broad spectrum of stores I ordered from - nine so far - so I'm guessing my next batch of orders will be pretty expensive.

Edited January 14, 2014 by elleana

[TheLegoDr]

You have some nice builds on there. I like the interior. That will be another thing I mod on cc and gg. If I can find the time for pictures I will get some of my cc.

I like the police academy MOC. Very funny. I met Michael Winslow a few years ago. Really nice guy in real life.

[sin]

Also smart advice on the dark red roof slopes and large blue arches, I think I will pick those up soon even if I don't fully proceed with CC or MS in the near future.

I just went to check for going rates on the 1 x 8 x 2 dark blue arches, dark blue 1 x 1 x 6 pillar supports, Dark blue 1 x 4 x 5 half arches and 2 x 1 x 3 dark red slopes . And I could not help myself...

I got 6 of the dark blue arches for $2.50 each, seemed like a steal so I had to pull the trigger. Pillar supports were $1.92 each but the same seller had the half arches for $.66. Dark red slopes ran $0.96 a piece.

Now that's out of the way I need to avoid buying anymore bricks for CC or MS for a loooong time

[Wodanis]

You have some nice builds on there. I like the interior. That will be another thing I mod on cc and gg. If I can find the time for pictures I will get some of my cc.

I like the police academy MOC. Very funny. I met Michael Winslow a few years ago. Really nice guy in real life.

Thanks TheLegoDr. Really that must have been quite cool to meet him. ToysNBricks were having a 80's movie vignette contest last year and that was my entry. Lokk forward to seeing them!

Dark red slopes ran $0.96 a piece.

I paid the same for mine. However it was only after ordering them I found out I could have purchased them (last summer) from Bricks and Pieces for .26 cents each...

[sin]

I paid the same for mine. However it was only after ordering them I found out I could have purchased them (last summer) from Bricks and Pieces for .26 cents each...

Hah, you made me scramble over to the BnP site but they aren't available anymore.

[Wodanis]

Aw say it is not so! Maybe I should have ordered extra last year...I know I literally got the last of the sand green with groove bricks.

[sin]

I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can start building this by the end of this week but I'll have to see what was on back order from PAB first.

Sooooo... I found out what was in the first shipment of my partially back-ordered PAB order - drumroll - a Wild Style poster. Yup that's it, just the damn poster. How dumb is that? It took 6 days to get here too. Thankfully I received an email late last night that the remainder of the order ( that is, the entire order ) has shipped. From the looks of the tracking its coming from Europe, at least now I know why they charged me so much for shipping.

I received several more BL orders, now I am only waiting on 4 more BL orders plus the PAB order. Looking unlikely that I'll be able to start building this week but you never know.

Current progress - 1152 out of 2405, 47.9% almost half way.

[leksivalen]

I already did this November last year. I thought If ever I'm going to bricklink CC, MS & GG, I might as well do it at the same time rather than bricklink it 1 at a time. It cost me around 1,100 USD for the 3 modular including shipping. Complete minifigs and no alternative parts were used. But just like what other members comments, shipping and paypal/bricklink fees pushed the amount much higher than I expected.

[TheLegoDr]

The PAB does come from their factory in Billund, I believe, so that is why it takes longer and that could explain part of the shipping costs. It usually takes about 1-2 weeks to get to me when I order, depending on the volume of the season. Around holidays, it takes much longer.

I hadn't seen those pieces in Bricks and Pieces go for that cheap. I ordered mine from there and they were about $0.40 or so apiece. Whatever the cost, it was about half the cost of bricklink, so I'm more than okay with that. I try to order from LEGO directly as much as I can. I'd rather they get my money.

I believe the bricks and pieces catalog will be back after tomorrow. It was on hiatus over the holidays and I'm sure they were updating their inventory with the new year. I luckily got an order in before it shut down mid-December, but I've been waiting for it to come back up. It was supposed to only be down for a few days per the website and per the CS rep, but it turns out it was much longer.

I can understand spending a lot on these modulars with no substitutions and all the figures, but I don't particularly care for the exact figures most of the time, unless it is a neat torso/hair piece. And I figured I might as well create builds I like to look at instead of only sticking to the official set. I like MOCing, but I tend to MOD more than MOC it seems.

Once I get done with my exteriors, I wonder if I should post pictures, or just wait until I'm done with the interior too...

Edit: Looking at the website, it doesn't list a date that it will be back online. Now it is missing altogether. That is unfortunate!!! They kept pushing the date to sometime in the future, so maybe that feature is gone???

Edited January 14, 2014 by TheLegoDr

[Wodanis]

The PAB does come from their factory in Billund, I believe, so that is why it takes longer and that could explain part of the shipping costs. It usually takes about 1-2 weeks to get to me when I order, depending on the volume of the season. Around holidays, it takes much longer.

I hadn't seen those pieces in Bricks and Pieces go for that cheap. I ordered mine from there and they were about $0.40 or so apiece. Whatever the cost, it was about half the cost of bricklink, so I'm more than okay with that. I try to order from LEGO directly as much as I can. I'd rather they get my money.

I believe the bricks and pieces catalog will be back after tomorrow. It was on hiatus over the holidays and I'm sure they were updating their inventory with the new year. I luckily got an order in before it shut down mid-December, but I've been waiting for it to come back up. It was supposed to only be down for a few days per the website and per the CS rep, but it turns out it was much longer.

I can understand spending a lot on these modulars with no substitutions and all the figures, but I don't particularly care for the exact figures most of the time, unless it is a neat torso/hair piece. And I figured I might as well create builds I like to look at instead of only sticking to the official set. I like MOCing, but I tend to MOD more than MOC it seems.

Once I get done with my exteriors, I wonder if I should post pictures, or just wait until I'm done with the interior too...

Edit: Looking at the website, it doesn't list a date that it will be back online. Now it is missing altogether. That is unfortunate!!! They kept pushing the date to sometime in the future, so maybe that feature is gone???

PAB is shipped from the Poland distribution centre and BnP is shipped directly from Denmark. Because I live in Canada you don't pay VAT when doing BnP. So no taxes! PAB on the other hand you are 'buying' it in your country of origin so there are taxes...

As for the website I noticed that as well. I have been waiting for their BnP catalogue to come back up. Originally it was Dec 24th and then Jan 15th to start again. I just hope there won't be any more delays. The rep did tell me it should be up tomorrow.

Edited January 14, 2014 by Wodanis

[provoaggie]

What is Bricks N Pieces? I've used PAB before but I've never heard of BnP until this thread. Do they have more parts available? Prices cheaper? Advantages over PAB?

[sin]

I haven't used it but it's a better selection of available parts than PAB.

[Wodanis]

Bricks and pieces is the catalogue to order missing parts from sets. However you can also order parts that you want. The prices are usually higher for certain parts but it is worthwhile depending on what you need.

Edited January 15, 2014 by Wodanis

[TheLegoDr]

I prefer to shop exclusively from bricks and pieces, if I can. Sometimes the prices are higher than bricklink, but the shipping is lower, so it has some give and take just like bricklink.

[Wodanis]

So I have finally ordered the remaining parts for the CC and GG! My BnP will be coming in 2-3 weeks. Only four parts seem to have been back-ordered. Hopefully that won't delay things too much. The oddest thing though occurred as I wanted a few more City mini-figures. The Elite police torso and the Forest Fireman torso from 2012 were listed as 'licensed parts' and not able for order. I don't know if something has changed or if there is a glitch with their system. I'm waiting to hear back from CS about that.

[sin]

Awesome Wodanis! I expect to see some great pics of these buildings in a couple of weeks

So you have piqued my interest in BnP over the last week and I saw that service resumed today. I messed around on the site a little bit and noticed that they don't list any prices, seems to be sort of like you assemble an order and then they quote you a price after the fact. Do you actually know what you are paying for specific parts or do you just get a lump quote?

I was eying all of those dark blue and medium blue bricks that I will need for CC and MS in particular, prices on BL for them are pretty high given the number of those bricks required in those 2 sets.

Also - is there any way to get a sense for which parts may be discontinued or can you only find out when it happens?

[Wodanis]

Awesome Wodanis! I expect to see some great pics of these buildings in a couple of weeks

So you have piqued my interest in BnP over the last week and I saw that service resumed today. I messed around on the site a little bit and noticed that they don't list any prices, seems to be sort of like you assemble an order and then they quote you a price after the fact. Do you actually know what you are paying for specific parts or do you just get a lump quote?

I was eying all of those dark blue and medium blue bricks that I will need for CC and MS in particular, prices on BL for them are pretty high given the number of those bricks required in those 2 sets.

Also - is there any way to get a sense for which parts may be discontinued or can you only find out when it happens?

Right now that is what they do, a lump quote. I usually call them instead as it allows me to ask what is the price per piece (usually 10 pieces or so at a time) and place my order. You can order I think up to 80 different parts and up to 200 of a part in quantity. As for the discontinued parts, CS will know if a part is discontinued. What you have to do (I find it extremely helpful to them) is make sure you know the element or design IDs for the parts. Brick set is a good place to find them. I have it all the details beforehand on my spreadsheet so I can tell them. As far as i know the medium blue and earth blue parts are still available.

[sin]

Right now that is what they do, a lump quote. I usually call them instead as it allows me to ask what is the price per piece (usually 10 pieces or so at a time) and place my order. You can order I think up to 80 different parts and up to 200 of a part in quantity. As for the discontinued parts, CS will know if a part is discontinued. What you have to do (I find it extremely helpful to them) is make sure you know the element or design IDs for the parts. Brick set is a good place to find them. I have it all the details beforehand on my spreadsheet so I can tell them. As far as i know the medium blue and earth blue parts are still available.

Thanks for the quick answers. I am assuming that Shop @ Home shipping deals don't apply to this service, I think I will get very organized before I make one of these orders so I only have to do it once.

[Wodanis]

That's right. VIP points are earned or applied. Glad to help :)

[The Jersey Brick Guy]

I just went to check for going rates on the 1 x 8 x 2 dark blue arches, dark blue 1 x 1 x 6 pillar supports, Dark blue 1 x 4 x 5 half arches and 2 x 1 x 3 dark red slopes . And I could not help myself...

I got 6 of the dark blue arches for $2.50 each, seemed like a steal so I had to pull the trigger. Pillar supports were $1.92 each but the same seller had the half arches for $.66. Dark red slopes ran $0.96 a piece.

You got a great deal on the arches, when I bought mine last year, I got them on sale from a seller in Russia for 16 bucks each!

Sigh.

[sin]

You got a great deal on the arches, when I bought mine last year, I got them on sale from a seller in Russia for 16 bucks each!

Sigh.

It will be a great deal when they have arrived and I can see that they are legit

They come from a seller with a very high feedback rating but the price has me somewhat apprehensive.

[TheLegoDr]

I just checked the bnp today and was disappointed a lot of pieces were gone, but were available before their shut down. I will be placing an order soon to hopefully get a chunk of pieces I need.

Last I knew you could only order 40 pieces from bnp at a time. That is when I ordered in October anyway.

After seeing that sand blue grocer I've been thinking of changing my game plan. Who knows though.

They do a lump quote, but they can go through the list so you know how much you are paying for each piece. Remember some pieces may be higher but shipping is super cheap, especially coming from Europe. Every time I've ordered I have had the element id number and the set the piece is found in, because they sometimes have to look them up.

Edited January 16, 2014 by TheLegoDr

[sin]

I just checked the bnp today and was disappointed a lot of pieces were gone, but were available before their shut down. I will be placing an order soon to hopefully get a chunk of pieces I need.

Last I knew you could only order 40 pieces from bnp at a time. That is when I ordered in October anyway.

I'm pretty sure they mean you can order up to 40 different types of parts at a time ( i.e. 'lots' if you are a bricklinker ). My understanding is that you can order up to 100 of each individual part. Someone correct me if I am wrong...

Edited January 16, 2014 by sin