Cheap, Awful Parts

[BobaFett2]

So many parts nowadays are bad quality. I have found that parts do not always fit into the set correctly. Many of the new weapons (and here are some examples) shed plastic when trying to insert them into the Minifigure's hand:

* Battle Axe from PoP

* Knife (10210 Imperial Flagship)

* Beast Fang/Claw (Also used in 10210 Imperial Flagship)

* New Cutlass (Again Imperial Flagship)

* Longbows (While these are not new and I have none of the new kind, they are extremely bad quality. The "grip" area "frays" after being inserted into a minifigure's grip a few times)

* Atlantis Trident: Slightly Better, but the handle is slightly too big. It feels stronger than the Knife, but it seems like it is getting scratchy from being held.

These cheap plastic pieces are worse than annoying. They are obnoxious. While they are cheaper for TLG to produce, we fans of LEGO can easily see the brand-new LEGO Weapons turn from Mint Condition to old and bad within a few days of use. They cost money to replace (while not a lot, it's still money). It's not fun seeing LEGO parts which are just plain bad. That's what separates TLG from Rip Off brands such as MEGA BLOKs and Invincibility Robots (Argentinian BIONICLE Rip Off). They don't even try to produce their parts in such a way that they fit together. Many of their parts break easily or fit together so badly that you won't want to buy another ever again in your lifetime. If TLG keeps moving in that direction with cheap Chinese production, it is going to end up like them. It may still be popular, but if a company is willing to sacrifice some of it's most important parts (the weapons are very useful and probably the most attractive feature to many kids) then it could just as easily lose quality in other areas for profit.

This shouldn't happen. Ever. That's why it's LEGO, and is supposed to live up to "Only the Best", Ole Kirk Christiansen's Motto.

[Spyder]

I had a problem with the dynamite piece shaving some plastic off as you stick it into a minifigure's hand, but that's it. I've never had any problems with the pieces mentioned in your post.

[Commodore Hornbricker]

I have seen some quality issues from time to time also with minifigure related items. I hope it doesn't get an worse ...getting better would be very good! Quality is what Lego is built on. Making a quick buck by sacrificing ones foundation is not a good long term business strategy.

[prateek]

Ouch. Hopefully this doesn't happen with my PoP weapons.

[Lordofdragonss]

Why they starting using rubberish plastic for all things that are pointy its the better question!

As we all know rubber spiky thing have the same chance to poke your eye just like the normal plastic one!

I would add the IJ whips, the "knifes" from Crystal king and the small spikes too

[jamtf]

It is a known problem. There is a whole topic about inferior parts and color differences, see here Lego Quality Reference.

Perhaps it is good to go and read things in there first and to continue the discussion in that topic to avoid multiple threads about the same issue. I am sure that the quality problem is under the attention of our ambassadors and that it will be discussed with TLG from time to time.

Edited May 11, 2010 by jamtf

[brickzone]

The characteristics of various Lego plastics/parts has always changed over time. At the moment from my experience there seems to be an issue where minifig hands are a bit harder plastic than they had been, combined with the aforementioned implements being somewhat softer.

I do think I have had old parts of a particular vintage (early 90s?) where the implements got very worn (kind of "shedding" plastic as has been suggested) from minifig hands. I don't think it is exactly a new problem even if it is more prevalent again just at the moment.

[Front]

So many parts nowadays are bad quality. I have found that parts do not always fit into the set correctly......

These cheap plastic pieces are worse than annoying. They are obnoxious. While they are cheaper for TLG to produce, we fans of LEGO can easily see the brand-new LEGO Weapons turn from Mint Condition to old and bad within a few days of use........

Do you really think LEGO use soft materials because it id cheaper than ABS or other harder material ? This is not the case. Materials are selected to make the element safe for kids and to meet the safety regulation demanded by the authorities in e.g. USA, Europe etc.

A lot of "minifigure tools" simply can't be designed in ABS. They will not meet safety regulations.

[Superkalle]

It is a known problem. There is a whole topic about inferior parts and color differences

Good point! Actually, that topic is of so general interest that it should probably be pinned. I'll send a PM to one of the mods.

I am sure that the quality problem is under the attention of our ambassadors and that it will be discussed with TLG from time to time.

Agree. Even so, I think that it would be interesting to get some TLG feedback, since I guess the ambassadors communicate both ways. Any kind of reply would be good, e.g.:

1) No comment

2) We are aware of the problem and are changing production setup for the future

3) It is supposed to be like that because....

[Siegfried]

Actually, that topic is of so general interest that it should probably be pinned.

We tend to only pin obvious topics, such as indexes. It's been proved time and time again that pinned topics are often ignored because they are pinned...

[Shadows]

A lot of "minifigure tools" simply can't be designed in ABS. They will not meet safety regulations.

Exactly! I can tell you first hand that in the US at least, people are crazy about finding any excuse to sue someone and will go to great lengths to do it.

As an example, Hasbro, who makes the SW action figures, produces their accessories in a very flexible plastic that literally leaves a lot of the guns warped or susceptible to it. I can say this first hand, I collected around 400 before I got tired of the constant repetition of figures (how many farmboy Luke's can you possibly need in their original package?). Over the years they have improved, but I bet it's still an issue.

LEGO, on the other hand, has managed to maintain the shape of the parts while still presenting a safer product, but people don't understand that and complain. That has to get tiresome after a while.

I have noticed that minifig hands seem a little more solid than they used to, which is probably a product of colour more than quality, and that can make things tight sometimes, but not to the point of damage. The only time it was bad was with the chromed lightsabers, and when they started to move away from those, people screamed about that.

Seriously, they can't win sometimes. I'm surprised they still listen to the small minority of gripers, but they appear to, and I think that the few issues we've had in the past are being resolved well.

[Superkalle]

LEGO, on the other hand, has managed to maintain the shape of the parts while still presenting a safer product, but people don't understand that and complain. That has to get tiresome after a while.

Good point. Agree completely. But sometimes I wish Lego would communicate that a little bit better (that they are actually able to maintain the shape etc). Explanatory statements have a soothing effect on the itchy AFOL community.

[CP5670]

A lot of "minifigure tools" simply can't be designed in ABS. They will not meet safety regulations.

This doesn't entirely explain it. Several parts that were previously made of other plastics (not ABS, but not this waxy stuff either) and have no obvious sharp edges have been changed to this material in the last year or so. Metal detectors, shovels and brooms are a few that I've seen or heard about. Actually, it seems that the problem is not only caused by the plastic itself, but also the dimensions of the tubes that the minifig hands clip on to. These tubes are too thick on some parts made of this material, which creates an excessively tight fit in minifig hands and sometimes results in their outer layers being shred off.

Also, some of the pointy parts are still sharp by Lego standards. I believe someone actually made a thread on the sharpness of the Atlantis tridents in the general section, back when this problem first surfaced.

Seriously, they can't win sometimes. I'm surprised they still listen to the small minority of gripers, but they appear to, and I think that the few issues we've had in the past are being resolved well.

I don't. This particular problem with the minifig accessories is fairly recent and may well be resolved at some point, but there are other issues that have been going on for years and TLG apparently has no intention of ever fixing them. Remember that if people aren't picky about these things and don't complain about them, TLG has no incentive to improve anything.

[badboytje88]

I'm surprised so many people have quality issues with their LEGO. Only complaints I have are some small misprints. That's all!

[jamtf]

Perhaps it also depends on how often parts are used. If you stick something in the hand of a minifig and keep it there, nothing will be visible but repeatedly changing things and taking utensils and weapons out of the minifig's hands and putting them somewhere else will result in minor wear (i.e. plastic being shred off) that is visible from the outside. Mainly, Lego is meant to be a children's toy to play with and not a collectible although us AFOLs see things probably different.

[Aanchir]

To all people who are saying the softer parts are still sharp: yes, they're sharp, and could still poke your eye out. Keep in mind that one difference is that an ABS trident is more likely to break off in your foot if you step on it the wrong way. The softer trident is more likely to just bend out of shape.

[Front]

This doesn't entirely explain it. Several parts that were previously made of other plastics (not ABS, but not this waxy stuff either) and have no obvious sharp edges have been changed to this material in the last year or so. Metal detectors, shovels and brooms are a few that I've seen or heard about. Actually, it seems that the problem is not only caused by the plastic itself, but also the dimensions of the tubes that the minifig hands clip on to. These tubes are too thick on some parts made of this material, which creates an excessively tight fit in minifig hands and sometimes results in their outer layers being shred off.

Also, some of the pointy parts are still sharp by Lego standards. I believe someone actually made a thread on the sharpness of the Atlantis tridents in the general section, back when this problem first surfaced.

I don't. This particular problem with the minifig accessories is fairly recent and may well be resolved at some point, but there are other issues that have been going on for years and TLG apparently has no intention of ever fixing them. Remember that if people aren't picky about these things and don't complain about them, TLG has no incentive to improve anything.

Yes, some of the soft material "bricks" may have shafts that has a slightly too tight fit in minifigure hands (and other clips). These same shafts does fit in cross holes, and here there has been issues with a too lose fit (as many of you probably have noticed), that results in small stuff falling off constantly. Could the compromise be better ? Maybe.

Demands and regulations on toys has evolved in the last few years. This does have effects on how the individual parts can be designed.

Edited May 11, 2010 by Front

[Nabii]

If anyone is really interested in the new laws and directives LEGO and all other toy companies operating worldwide now have to work with they can try to hack their way through these:

New 2010 European Toy Safety Directives

US Consumer Product Safety 2008 (Only the part relating to toys)

Best of luck.

Nabii.

[CMP]

Don't forget the Dagger of Time. The handle half comes off when you place it in a hand.

[MrCustomizer]

^ lol I was gonna mention that. Not my favorite piece..

~MC

[BobaFett2]

I really doubt that LEGO cannot use better plastic sometimes.

[prateek]

The softer trident is more likely to just bend out of shape.

Which is worse IMO

[Peppermint_M]

I really doubt that LEGO cannot use better plastic sometimes.

What do you mean by better plastic?

The plastic is good quality, it just isn't as hard as it was in the 90s. However, as Shadows pointed out, they need to be softer so as not to do damage to the children that play with them. The USA is on of the most litigious countries in the world and if Lego wants to trade there without lengthy and large lawsuits, they have to conform to the myriad regulations applied to toys. So now, instead of tearing the skin of your foot on a spear (hurts like hell, do not try it), it will bend.

[prateek]

What do you mean by better plastic?

The plastic is good quality, it just isn't as hard as it was in the 90s. However, as Shadows pointed out, they need to be softer so as not to do damage to the children that play with them. The USA is on of the most litigious countries in the world and if Lego wants to trade there without lengthy and large lawsuits, they have to conform to the myriad regulations applied to toys. So now, instead of tearing the skin of your foot on a spear (hurts like hell, do not try it), it will bend.

Screw the children!

I'm haven't heard of any lawsuits whatsoever on this topic, so I don't see what the problem is. They could just put a huge warning on the boxes with the manufacturing info.

[BobaFett2]

I understand what you say, but the US is stupid. I live there, and there are so many sanctions about every possible thing. I don't see how it's difference if someone steps on Hard or Soft 2x4s, they still hurt. Anyone can harm themself with a LEGO part by poking themselves in the eye, it doesn't matter how hard it is. Stupid, stupid rules.