I have decided to build the, what is in my opinion, best ship in Star Wars: the classic and sleek imperial shuttle.

From making a wanted list and ticking off what I actually have, is there any other advice you guys can pass on to me? It is a bit daunting but I have amassed about 25% of the total parts and just thinking of that beauty pushes me on.

Thanks.

 

Be sure to check Lego bricks and pieces for all of the parts:

https://wwwsecure.us.lego.com/en-gb/service/replacementparts

Lego sometimes carries a stock of "rare" parts which have only appeared in a handful of sets and are otherwise expensive on bricklink.  Couple of examples from 10212:

  3685 Slope 75 2 x 2 x 3 Double Convex: Bricklink, around = £1.39,   Lego price = £0.41

  6183 Brick, Arch 1 x 6 x 2 Curved Top: Bricklink from about £0.50 each,   Lego price = £0.36

Also, check for alternate ID numbers, e.g. parts 30360 and 93168 are essentially the same but one version might be cheaper.

 

The only really hard to get part appears to be 89762 Windscreen 7 x 4 x 2 Round Extended Front Edge in white, can't remember where it fits on the models but it was only in a few sets in white.  A brick built replacement might be better.

 

That's quite the journey! You'll love the outcome. I bought an incomplete shuttle from ebay that including everything minus the minifigs, stand, and head/cockpit section for 240 and was able to bricklink the rest of the ship or about 60 bucks.

I agree with Nathan though, check lego b&P for pieces that seem a bit expensive on bricklink, particularly those double convex bricks on the cockpit.

Also, keep in mind that white bricks are subject to discoloring, so if you really want the shit to look uniformly clean, I'd suggest buying all new parts. Otherwise, you'll have discolored sections that really stick out. This is especially important for this ship since it's almost completely white.

Best of luck though!

Thanks guys!

I never thought about B&Ps but I'll definitely check it out. I have sourced the windscreen for under a pound which is reasonable in my opinion, now for the other hundreds of parts 

Just something for you to consider when working with a large wanted list.  I've found that collecting around 75% of the parts for a large project often only accounts for 25-30% of the total cost.  There generally comes a point when you can only get a very small number of parts per shop and shipping gets expensive.  In addition, I've never pieced together a set and come out ahead, as far as, money is concerned.  The only advantage is that you don't have to come up with the full cost all at once, if you have a Lego budget.

Was going to say you'd be better off buying one from bricklink but just checked the prices and they've really gone up the last few years.  About $300 more than I paid just a couple years ago.

Bricks and Pieces is a good idea.  The shipping cost is also a flat rate which can save money.  I always copy and paste the inventory off bricklink into a spreadsheet and then look for alternate parts and compare prices. 

Like Jhaelego pointed out white coloring can vary so you'll definitely want new parts.  My shuttle was actually an off white color straight out of the new box. 

44 minutes ago, teos said:

Just something for you to consider when working with a large wanted list.  I've found that collecting around 75% of the parts for a large project often only accounts for 25-30% of the total cost.  There generally comes a point when you can only get a very small number of parts per shop and shipping gets expensive.  In addition, I've never pieced together a set and come out ahead, as far as, money is concerned.  The only advantage is that you don't have to come up with the full cost all at once, if you have a Lego budget.

10179 and 10143 are definite exceptions to that.  You will come out way ahead. Also if you make color substitutions to 10019 you can save a fortune.

I'd say check what is available on Pick a Brick and B&P first. Then try to get the rest from Bricklink with the minimum number of shops (the shipping costs add up fast). Then, check if the items in your Pick a Brick and B&P baskets are available in the bricklink shop you've selected, and swap them if they are (if they are cheaper obviously).

If you have a lego shop nearby, checking their wall could be a good idea too.

I've got most of the parts for this, there isnt much that is really expensive. I've specified only new parts, and will comfortably get the whole thing in under £300 with no substitutions. 

Time to resurrect this dead topic!

I'm currently BL-ing the UCS Shuttle as well.

I'm probably around 2/3 of the way trough parts-wise. Luckily I had quite a bit of parts already in my collection, and this morning I placed a decently large BL order with most of the technic beams and all of the curved arches for the sides of the hull, and other miscellaneous parts.

All in all I'm expecting to spend around 180/200€ in total including S&H (excluding the stickers, that I might decide to get a reproduction instead).

I'll keep you posted, if anyone is reading.

could it have been cheaper to buy second hand sets ?

On 1/12/2021 at 6:00 PM, macaron35 said:

could it have been cheaper to buy second hand sets ?

Sorry for the very late reply. I just placed my last BL order for this project. In total, including S&H I spent between 200 and 250 euro. Much cheaper than you can usually find used copies for. Added bonus: 99% of the parts where in new condition, so hopefully the whites will be as close as possible.

I'll post again as soon as the final parts show up and I can finally start building.

Awesome!  That's definitely a great deal for one of the best UCS sets to date.

Curious if you decided to mod the engine exhaust section!

Image is link:

17 hours ago, CaptainSerMig said:

Sorry for the very late reply. I just placed my last BL order for this project. In total, including S&H I spent between 200 and 250 euro. Much cheaper than you can usually find used copies for. Added bonus: 99% of the parts where in new condition, so hopefully the whites will be as close as possible.

I'll post again as soon as the final parts show up and I can finally start building.

oh gosh

i'll wait then

it's not like it was urgent so far just because the new one is coming that I have to rush buying the old one

On 2/11/2021 at 9:45 PM, lowlead said:

Awesome!  That's definitely a great deal for one of the best UCS sets to date.

Curious if you decided to mod the engine exhaust section!

Image is link:

Thanks! it looks really great, I will consider it

Edited February 15, 20214 yr by CaptainSerMig

Today the last pieces I was missing came in!

I hope to start building in the next few days. I’ll keep you posted.

15 hours ago, CaptainSerMig said:

Today the last pieces I was missing came in!

I hope to start building in the next few days. I’ll keep you posted.

I am looking forward to it!

It’s really a great model, i might bricklink one someday.

Well oh well, long story short I couldn't wait for the weekend and I built it in the spare hours I had in the last two days.

I would wager it took about 5 hours + 2.5 hours spread over the last month to organize all the parts as they came in baggies, by shape. Gotta say it was 100% worth the time, as the build went almost smoother than regular sets with numbered bags.

Let's address the elephant in the room: this thing is HUGE, which as a side effect means that I'll have no choice other than display it landed (at least I'll be able to recreate the imperial inspection scene, with two 2021 TIEs by its side).

At first (and second, and third...) glance you would never guess that it has been BL'd together. Since I built it I know that there are a few slightly used parts here and there, the 25 2x2x3 white slopes are the newer version with solid studs and the UCS sticker is a reproduction. None of these things are a dealbreaker for me though.

Looking back, almost 2 months and 8 BrickLink orders later, I have to say that this was well worth the effort.

Thanks for tuning in everybody, it's been a blast!

Edited February 24, 20214 yr by CaptainSerMig
grammar :/