Maritime cargo transportation themes and sets

[Klaus-Dieter]

Hello everybody!

In this topic Richie brought up an interesting comment which I decided to upgrade in a whole topic:

TLG released maritime cargo sets in minifig-scale until now in two years: 1991 and 2007.

The maritime cargo sets from 1991 (released under the name "Nautica") were the 6541 Intercoastal Seaport and the 6542 Launch & Load Seaport.

The maritime cargo sets from 2007 were the 7992 Container Stacker and the 7994 Lego City Harbor.

Now the question arises whether which ones you prefer:

The maritime cargo transportation sets from 1991

or the ones from 2007?

Please vote!

Comments are welcome!

Klaus-Dieter

Edited August 22, 2009 by Klaus-Dieter

[Derek]

I think that the one from 2007 is more realistic, while the older one has the classic Lego feel to it. Its a tough call, but I would say the new one.

And I never realized how there was an older set that was nearly identical to the 2007 harbor set...

-darthperson

[Rick]

I think that the one from 2007 is more realistic, while the older one has the classic Lego feel to it. Its a tough call, but I would say the new one.

My thoughts exactly. The classic town versions just look cute... but the new set's scale is more realistic. I only own the new version (got it for €38 on clearance). I just can't decide on a vote...

And I never realized how there was an older set that was nearly identical to the 2007 harbor set...

TLG does that (Pirates 1989 vs 2009)

[prateek]

Hmmm.... Tough call but I like the 1991 version. It has that classic Lego feel to it and it has one more truck and one more boat I wish I had that.

[paanjang16]

I prefer the old 1991 version. The old one is so much more realistic compared to the new one.

Why the old one is better?

1) The crane is the gantry crane type usually seen at large ports, hence the name intercoastal seaport

2) The crane can move sideways along the dock on rails, you dun expect the ship to move right?

3) There is an additional forklift to load the container onto the truck

4) A pilot boat to guide the ship into port

5) The container truck can carry TWO containers

6) Total 5 containers to play with, with 2 white general purpose container, 1 with a V8 engine, 1 with a tractor and 1 with what appears to be tanks

7) Noticed the dock is much more solid than the new one. It even have 1x4 grey plates to protect the ship and dock in case the ship knocks into the dock.

8) The ship is classic lego ship which is made out of bricks instead of 1 large piece.

[Milan]

I like both segments, if I had to choose, maybe older sets, but I really have no complaint on anything special.

Both period provided great sets.

[legotrainfan]

I'd prefer the sets from 1991. I love their classic style. Since TLC has changed dimensions, the sets of 1991 and 2007 are incompatible. The container sizes are different and the vehicles aren't 4-wide but 6-wide now. Also the ship of 7994 is much bigger than the ships of the sets released in 1991. I prefer the wonderful style of the older sets to more realism of the newer ones.

[Rijkvv]

I voted 1991.

I partly disagree with those who say the 2007 sets are more realistic. The dimensions and the shape of the new ship are more realistic, but the platform pieces of the 1991 sets look much more realistic than the weak-looking bridge pieces used in the 2007 harbour. Another thing I don't like in the new set is the truck. I rarely saw a truck with container directly at the back at a harbour, it is always a truck with trailer, where a much longer container fits. The 1991 truck is small, but it's at least a truck with trailer.

Last thing I don't like about the new set is the ship's hull. Sure, with this it's easier to design big ships, capable of carrying 6-wide containers (that are way too short), but to me it looks like it's a Tupperware box. This way every single ship with different dimensions needs a new hull design (and mold). With the 1991 bow pieces it was easy to build ships the way you want.

But with that comment you gave me a great idea for this new topic, thanks, Richie.

You're welcome.

Edited August 23, 2009 by Richie

[Freddie]

I'd say the cargo-port sets from the '90s were better simply because there were different sets to choose from. I myself own the smaller cargo-port (6541, I think it was) with the yellow crane, which in my opinion has more in common with the port from 2007 than 6542, due to blue, generic cargo-ship, rotating crane instead of gantry crane.

However, the entire maritime theme from that time was designed with connectivity in mind, and those lucky few to own both of the large sets, plus the harbour police and the accessories that went along with the sets, could build up a mighty impressive harbour without a fuss. The '07 set is (sadly) only limited to the single harbour, but at least sports some compatibility with the other transportation sets from the same year (such as the pallets).

[Selander]

I like both, but I prefer the set from 2007, for two reasons:

1) The boat is much larger = meaning it has a much more realistic minifig-scale.

2) Containers are 6-wide. I could write a long novel about containers....but bottomline is that

a container to my opinion shall be 6-wide. I have experimented a lot with various sizes and my

favorite is 6 studs wide x 14 studs long, with approx 5-6 bricks height.

[Rick]

I never realized the classic container ships were entirely brick-built! Furthermore, I have to agree on the harbor 'bases': the classic ones are waaay better.

[WesternOutlaw]

Interesting topic KD. I've got to go with Classic Town (1991) - they're just more detailed with a smaller scale.

I don't own any of the older sets, but do have the new ones (the set pictured and Coast Guard collection). While the larger boats are nice, I just like the overall look and detail of the classic sets.

[Bob]

I liked the 1991 ones better, simply because they had the "lego" feeling to it.

I also like Classic Town as well better than the new ones.

[Zorbas]

Excellent topic KD!

Since the "ships" subthemes in general are my personal favorites all I can say is that I think that they play a very important role in the Town-City theme.

I don't own the 6542 (the #1 in my wish buy list) but I own the 6541 Intercoastal Seaport (in fact, I'm on my way of reviewing it for the Reviewer's Academy) and I think that this is the "grandfather" of the new harbor due to the crane design, number of vehicles and colour of the ship. (ok, the last comment is a little off...)

I will definitely go for the 1991 sets. Why? Let's see...

1. The ships are brick-built. The ultimate advantage.

2. The trucks have a trailer. The majority of vehicles transporting containers are like that today. My job involves Logistics and I know.

3. The dock in the 1991 sets are the best for building a harbor.

4. Particurarly when it comes to 6542, it has more minifigs, more containers, an extra forklift and an extra boat.

But...

If we want to be honest, the crane from the 2007 harbor is excellent. The design is really eye-capturing and it also has two movement mechanisms. One for the string to go up and down and one for the top part of the crane to "lean" back and forth.

The big disadvantages for the 2007 harbor are the truck and the ship's hull. The truck can only carry one container and the hull, although that it is big-and that is good, is like some cheap plastic ship toys for the kids to play in the sea. I'm not totally against the one piece hull, in fact the hulls from the 1987 sets (Click here to check them) were excellent. I own the 4010 and 4020. Solid plastic, heavier and had the feeling of a LEGO good quality hulls, something that the new ship lacks. (Richie's "tupperware" comment was more that correct.)

If the new ship was in the same 1987 philosophy when it comes to the hull, things would have been different for me. The hull from the Coast Guard set is better when it comes to the general impression that leaves.

I could write much more details concerning the two eras but overall, 1991 sets are better for me.

[fyparr]

Great topic. As a fan of the harbor line and lucky owner of two complete sets of 6542, two complete sets of 6541 (as well as 6338, 6540, and 6543), and the 7994 harbor, I can honestly say that the maritime sets of 1991 are far superior. I got Launch and Load Seaport as a Christmas present in my childhood, and it happens to be my favorite set of all time, so I may be a little biased in that regard. I purchased the new harbor at TRU, when they were running the buy one get one half off deal, and I'm glad I only paid the $45 plus tax as opposed to $90 for it (bought it with the police HQ at $100 and then walked straight to the returns department to get my $100 back). To me, the only thing that would justify that price tag is the massive size of the set. It's already been said by Zorbas but I'll reiterate the fact that the truck in 7994 is lame, all you get to build on the boat is the cabin and containers, and the dock is weak at best. I will also admit the crane is pretty sweet. I have 7992 (container stacker) as well, which is nice for that extra container but the thing is too wide for the dock, whereas you get a nice little forklift with 6542. In terms of playability and appearance, I have to go with the sets of 1991.

I see 7994 as the love child of 6542 and 6541, as traces of both the old design and color are present in the new set. It will be interesting to see if LEGO revisits the harbor in the future.

[Zzz]

1991 is way superior. 6542 is superior to the new harbour: brick-built ship, pilot boat, stacker, better truck, crane is like 10 times better.

So if you want to compare what TLC did, 1991 is a winner. If you just compare sets, the new harbour should be compared to 6541 cause of obvious reasons. Would still vote for 1991 though. Brick-built ships are a huge winner.

[5150 Lego]

Ahh, the Nautica theme. One of TLC's finest! For me its old school all the way baby!!

6542 is superior in a very way!

I prefer the old 1991 version. The old one is so much more realistic compared to the new one.

Why the old one is better?

1) The crane is the gantry crane type usually seen at large ports, hence the name intercoastal seaport

2) The crane can move sideways along the dock on rails, you dun expect the ship to move right?

3) There is an additional forklift to load the container onto the truck

4) A pilot boat to guide the ship into port

5) The container truck can carry TWO containers

6) Total 5 containers to play with, with 2 white general purpose container, 1 with a V8 engine, 1 with a tractor and 1 with what appears to be tanks

7) Noticed the dock is much more solid than the new one. It even have 1x4 grey plates to protect the ship and dock in case the ship knocks into the dock.

8) The ship is classic lego ship which is made out of bricks instead of 1 large piece.

Exactly! One other positive aspect of the ship is that the bottom floor had compartments that opend for storage of adional cargo. Man i can still remember sitting on the floor docking the ship at the port! I made additional trailers for the cargo ship, and the crane and its containers were also compatable with Victory cup racers!

This rig used to show up at my port many times to transport the racers across the pond! Aw, the memories...

Thank you for this fantasic topic Klaus Dieter! We need more of them!

[ACCURATEin]

I remember as a child I also dreamed of having one of the seaports.

[Rijkvv]

Seeing the post from 5150 I remember another advantage of the 1991 ports: they had the same size containers, so they could be changed. 6352 is an excellent set that fits well with the harbor, I think.

[Klaus-Dieter]

It's great to see so many people interested in this topic!

Thank you very much for your many, interesting and nice comments so far!

Like for some of you, too, it was a very hard choice for me to choose the favourite theme since both themes had pros and cons:

1991:

Cons:

-brick-built ship base parts

-no interior in the lower floor of the ships

-the lower floors of the ships can't be opened

-very small ships

Pros:

-decent harbor baseplates

-many more minifigs

-lovelier design

-many more containers

-more accessory and more vehicles

-containers with doors to open

-two containers fit on one truck

-cars with doors

2007

Cons:

-a very simple harbor baseplate

-only very few containers

-only very few minifigs

-less accessory and less vehicles

-no doors in the containers

-truck can carry only one container

-cars without doors

Pros:

-bigger ship

-ship base part consisting of only very few molds (and not brick-built)

-the lower floor of the ship can be opened

-interior in the lower part of the ship

So I voted for the

2007

maritime theme.

Klaus-Dieter

Edited August 31, 2009 by Klaus-Dieter