Do you only buy lego?

[metalgeekzy]

Not really talking about different type of building like K'NEX or whatever. 
But when it comes down to the building bricks. Is it Lego only?

There are many many many knock offs out there. Are they good enough? Or nothing beats Lego?

[CastleRail]

I've purchased a few job lots that have contained other brands and there has been quite a variety of quality in them, the best have needed reading the name on the studs to distinguish Lego from the rest. The worst you can spot a mile off with everything from colour issues to poor shaping. Other brands do a significantly better white, that's about the only plus (discounting price) I've seen.

For me it's Lego all the way but each to their own with whatever suits their way best. 

[1963maniac]

For me nothing beats Lego. But, ... when it comes to needing rare parts, paying $25 for a camel or a palm tree, well, that's just too too much $$!!!

[deraven]

Genuine Lego only.  My first-hand experience is that other brands simply aren't good enough as far as quality goes.  A few newer companies might be OK, but it's not worth the time and potentially wasted money to me to try them when Lego does a good enough job with what they're putting out and the secondary market (like Bricklink) fills the gap for other needs.  There might be a few bricks from other brands in my collection if they were actually good enough for me not to notice when sorting out bulk lots or whatever but, like CastleRail said, they usually stick out from a mile away because they're so bad.

[Peppermint_M]

I am a complete heathen. I get figure parts and accessories from any source that will supply my demand. I also get any brand of Baseplate. While I do not mix my bricks and other basic parts, I don't worry about hair pieces and weapons not being official LEGO. Also, in the case of baseplates, they are practically the table surface I build on, so getting one that is £1.99 and not £6.99 is much more fiscally sensible.

[TeriXeri]

I had some experience with a small MEGA , Bestlock and Plusbricks(supermarket promotion brand).

Best to worst :

1. MEGA (small warcraft set Colton 2012) bricks were nice and textured and rounded corners made it look like castle wall, figure eventually snapped hands easily.
2. Plusbricks, had some experience with some of the 2015 supermarket/farm promotion they had but while the idea was very nice , quality was still below MEGA.
3. Bestlock, had some very cheap Police and Fire sets but quality/clutch/piece shape was really bad , can't remember what year it was but it was somewhere early 2010s.

I can't say about any recent experience with other brands.

 

Overall not enough to even bother mixing it with LEGO, but I also currently still have my old LEGO seperate from the newer stuff (got back into LEGO in 2016)

 

Edited January 1, 2022 by TeriXeri

[metalgeekzy]

56 minutes ago, Peppermint_M said:

I am a complete heathen. I get figure parts and accessories from any source that will supply my demand. I also get any brand of Baseplate. While I do not mix my bricks and other basic parts, I don't worry about hair pieces and weapons not being official LEGO. Also, in the case of baseplates, they are practically the table surface I build on, so getting one that is £1.99 and not £6.99 is much more fiscally sensible.

The Dollar Store a few blocks from me sells base plates for.....a dollar. They dont have the streets or mountains or anything cool. Mono color base plates. But man oh man its better then dropping 7 bucks on 1 base plate. 

[dr_spock]

I buy only LEGO.  As a member of a LUG, it is harder not to. 

[Mylenium]

On 12/31/2021 at 8:23 AM, metalgeekzy said:

But when it comes down to the building bricks. Is it Lego only?

Not at all. I try to keep my LEGO collection clean & pure for MOC building and such, but I've had my share of Mega Construx models and one or two COBI. I'm also constantly tempted by some other stuff, but since I neither have the money nor the space to e.g. keep around a ton of modular buildings, that usually goes nowhere.

Mylenium

[howitzer]

For me it's genuine Lego only. Other brands are not as easily available here, except online but I don't see much reason to buy them, as I can afford basically any Lego I really want and while other brands might have useful bricks that TLG doesn't (yet) make, I like the constraint this creates, as it sparks creativity. The only exceptions I make are strings, hoses and rubber bands, as those are cheap, easy to obtain and needed in great variety. I might also be willing to (maybe, at some point) make exception for electronics, I've thought about investing in Buwizz unit and perhaps motors.

[AmperZand]

I’m not a purist. My rule is that if something doesn’t exist in LEGO (or is not identical in LEGO), I’ll go elsewhere such as third parties like BrickWarriors, BrickForge, Brick Arms etc. I even reviewed BrickWarriors’ lute and katar here at EB. 

LEGO doesn’t do entirely transparent minifigures because a polycarbonate-to-polycarbonate joint has too much friction causing the parts to break. So I use Chinese brands for transparent figures. I’m not worried about them cracking as I only pose them carefully once and then display them that way. They’re not subject to the wear that a kid playing with them would cause.

I have a very cool Assassin’s Creed glider by Megablocks that I got heavily discounted, modded and added a LEGO ninja minifigure to. LEGO has done gliders, but not one like Mega’s. 

I use some plates I got at Poundland and Wilko’s in sizes that LEGO doesn’t do.

[Agent Kallus]

I buy food as well and toilet paper and soap and video games and clothes... But in all seriousness I'm mostly a purist and I do have my childhood non-lego bricks in a box, ready to sell. I do have a few exceptions though, like using a wilko baseplate as a minifig display stand.

[williejm]

I’m 99.99% purist. Mostly a quality thing for me. 

[Lyichir]

Among brick-based building toys, yes. Way back when I was a kid I had a few other brick brands like Mega Bloks and Tyco, but the quality was inconsistent, and it was frustrating having to sort the non-Lego bricks out of the rest of my collection. And these days even if quality in some of those other brands has improved, Lego puts out enough sets that I'm interested in (and takes up enough of my budget) that I don't really need to start branching into alternative brands!

[JaBaCaDaBra]

On 12/31/2021 at 8:23 AM, metalgeekzy said:

nothing beats Lego

oh yeah
Fischer Technik is by far superior to LEGO

[EamonnMR]

The bricks tend to be slightly wonky and the designs aren't exactly inspiring but there are a few neat scifi models on AliExpress called something like Star Contend The Hegemony that I got when I was stingier. But the quality wasn't great so even though they made the rock raider helmet in tons of colors I wouldn't dream of using those parts in builds.

[Peppermint_M]

On 1/1/2022 at 12:20 AM, metalgeekzy said:

Mono color base plates. But man oh man its better then dropping 7 bucks on 1 base plate. 

I prefer to build my own terrain so a cheap plate is exactly what I need. 

As for other stuff, I like to get hair colours LEGO don't produce and weapons that they don't or won't make. 

[Toastie]

Well, I have crossed the border, I guess: Yesterday I dumped 184 1x2 LBG tiles into the bin with LEGO tiles - could simply not tell the difference - and then it is "the same" for me. I am leaning towards BlueBrixx located in Germany, shipping is ultra-fast and cheap. They sell sets and bricks/plates/etc. from different sources. My limited experience so far: The Flying Dutchman from Mould King (does beat every single pirate ship from TLG, as far as I am concerned, in many ways), 100 2x2 (5€) and 200 1x2 LGB tiles (6€), see above, and 4 train coaches as "BB special". With regard to the latter: Everything was perfect, but the wheel sets. I knew that beforehand, so no surprise here. The problem is solely the length of the metal rods. And easily resolved. Will post in the BB thread in the Community forum.

The thing is: I am really willing to accept less quality - for a fraction of the cost of TLGs products. Plus, BB has more elements in mayny diverse colors in store than PAB has:

1x2 flat tile, LBG. TLG: 0.07 cents/piece = 14€ for 200. BB: 6€. Quality: Same
2x2 flat tile, LBG. TLG: not available.

Train coaches: TLG: Not available. BB: Dark green, about 500 pieces, about 40 cm(!) long each. 24€ (as in twenty-four). Quality: Bricks/plates equal or slightly less. Wheel sets: Need to change metal rods. But: For less than 100€, my BR23 is now pulling 4 coaches with a total length of 1.6 m + engine. As said, will post brief update on that later.

I believe it is worthwhile testing the waters from time to time - it was very bad in the beginning. I also believe that the brick quality has become "the same" for a number of sources, such as Mould King and Cada. And again: At >max.< half the price for comparable LEGO sets; usually it is even down to 1/4.

With regard to set design: That really depends - on an individual per set basis. The coaches mentioned above: 6-wide = my scale = perfect. TLG has nothing that comes even close. What should I say? I am really very happy.

Best
Thorsten

 

Edited January 2, 2022 by Toastie

[Pato Sentado]

I also build TENTE/iunits, mostly for military ships

[Johnny1360]

Yes, need I say more, lol.

[Northgeorgiamasonry]

I pay for food and utilities, too.  Occasionally new socks if they get a hole.  But other than that, pretty much just Lego.

[Ajf350d]

I’ve bought a few minifigures from other brands, mainly to get old or rare figures to bulk out various sets/displays.
From what I have received I’ve been genuinely impressed overall.

So far only bought one actual set, which was a ‘mini’ blocks about 2/3rd scale of Lego. Quite odd actually as all the pieces are the same, just smaller - feels like building from across the room😂
Again, quality was actually really good, and the set was fun, which was why I got it - Hot Dog Van.
the only big sin was they use stickers across multiple parts!!!!

Nothing against future sets if it portrays something I like, especially at the prices they can be found at. I like a lot of the generic ‘Oriental’ style buildings.
I wouldn't generally go for copies of current sets that Lego have, although some older sets might be a possibility.

The general availability of none copies I don’t think hurts that much. it’s good competition for Lego and may in some instances make them see what else sells, and potentially raise their game in some areas.

I am aware several sets are peoples MOcs that have been used of course which muddies the water, but I would be happy to buy the instructions separately in that case to give back to the original designer.

 

on a side note, what do Lego use when they go after companies like Lepin  for example?
I thought the bricks themselves no longer had any copyright etc on them?

[Peppermint_M]

1 hour ago, Ajf350d said:

on a side note, what do Lego use when they go after companies like Lepin  for example?
I thought the bricks themselves no longer had any copyright etc on them?

The Minifigure is still TLG property and they will also take on the companies over branding and graphics. Even if the white text in a red block says LEPIN they are still trying to create brand confusion with a LEGO trademark mimic, the same for using font and graphical elements for themes (Next Knights is not Nexo Knights but it is in the same font and uses the same logo for example).

Also, the actual set design will count as IP, as people in the employ of TLG made it. That can get muddy with certain basic things like a generic thing like Fire Truck or Police Car, but again the bootlegs make Minifigs exactly the same, the stickers and prints will be a rip-off. 

In true whack-a-mole style though, a brand can be shuttered and then pop back up with yet another variation. 

Interestingly they tried to get Zuru over figures and bricks (also the tape) and lost on the bricks and tape part. I honestly can't see too much similarity in the figures, in comparison to Kreons and Mega figures, but of course TLG will only go after the little brands and not try to hit Hasbro and Mattel. (I love LEGO, but I really do not like TLG).

 

 

[Toastie]

21 minutes ago, Peppermint_M said:

I love LEGO, but I really do not like TLG

Same here; I love LEGOs (no offense, trying to be funny with the s), but I absolutely do not like how they behave (in certain areas, particularly legal) anymore.

Best
Thorsten

[Ajf350d]

Thanks, peppermint_m some interesting points there.
Yes, looking back over some pictures, that was the big issue really with Lepin where they tried to make everything look so similar. Most others now seem to avoid that, or just sell the bricks without a box!
Regards IP, would this only relate to Lego own themes?
Star Wars, would be a Disney IP, even if Lego designed it for them?

Curious about the tape as Lego have never made anything like that have they? design is very generic too, although the article mentioned packaging.
Would be useful though if they did!
Guess it makes sense to cover all the angles and let the courts decide which are valid points.

Just to add, I’m all for Lego as a toy so not trying to disparage them etc, mainly just curious how they manage these issues and how copyright/trademarks work.