It takes me about 2 days after I build a set before I get sick of looking at it and must take it apart and start MOC’ing. What I do is make a vignette-esque shrine for the minifigures and then with the remaining pieces, make something else (if possible).

I think you're going to have answers ranging from within seconds to years. This might be asked in the form of poll unless it's already been done.

instantly

15 minutes

30 minutes

60 minutes

2 hours

6 hours

1 day

2 days

7 days

1 month

2 months

6 months

1 year

2 years

5 years

never

Or some thing like that. :/

If I want to build a MOC, but an official LEGO model I own that has most of the parts I need, It gets taking apart. But not always, because It depends If I like the model or not. I also take models apart when I don't have enough display space for other models I'd like to build.

So, time will tell.

Most sets don't last longer than it takes me to parade them around the house. So maybe one hour at most. I do have the Ninjago Skeleton Motorbike still around. The Motorbike part only though, not the figs. And whenever I need a piece I take it (it's standardly missing a few pieces).

I think the most common answer you will receive is the same answer I'm going to give, which is;

It totally depends on the set. I've had 10231 space shuttle built for a couple of months now, but most of my sets don't last but just a couple of days. Then they get dismantled, sorted, and stored away. My UCS MF lasted almost a whole year before I took it apart.

Depends, but I like to keep mine together. A few of them I separate into parts for MOCs and that's that. I still have the Robie House in perfect condition, but I've modded a few other sets into how I feel LEGO could have made the set better or more playable.

I only came out of my dark age around august 2012 & i can't bring myself to take apart any models yet,but the thing is it was all the wonderful moc's that i have seen posted that got me back into lego again!

It totally depends on the set and whether or not my cats have "helped" to disassemble it. If I had to guess, I'd say I've probably got four dozen or so sets hanging around that have been assembled since the 1980's. My most recent "disassembly" was the Death Star II which, after an unfortunate experiment in gravitational attraction, ended up in more pieces than the one in the movie. The parts remain segregated, however, and I plan on putting it back together one of these days.

For me it also depends on the set. Most just eventually get dismantled. I have several still together, and I think they'll stay together.

To give you an average time though, I'd say about 3-6 months.

Depends on the set. Some I dismantle as soon as I finished and swooshed it. Some like my 6382 Fire Station is still assembled since the 1983.

Depending if I have to clean out some dust or if I wanna MOC from pieces with the colour I need. Usually I try to keep them intact for...well, forever.

Sets stay together indefinitely. Same goes for most MOCs, since finding BL. MOCs that were built long long ago, with whatever pieces I could scrounge up, have either been dismantled or rebuilt to a higher standard depending on what the MOC originally looked like

Out of all the sets I buy, I only build the modulars (generally speaking). I leave those built as I use them for other things and parts from all the other sets I buy just get sorted/used for mocs.

I have not taken any modulars apart and don't plan to, though I did dissemble part of Fire Brigade for some photos. I should probably fix that soon.

It depends on the size of the set for me and how much I like the set. Most bigger sets stay for a week or so. My Modulars, 10228 Haunted House,10210 Imperial Flagship, 7965 MF and 10225 R2-D2 have remained built since the day I bought them and I have no plans on dismantling them anytime soon.

I never take anything apart unless it needs either cleaning (shouldn't be a problem with my new cabinets) or there is a problem with how I built it (rarely).

I never pull any official set apart to make MOCs and I never pull any of my MOCs apart to make new ones.

I like to keep my sets whole. I used to break them down... but eh... too many times I've wanted to rebuild a set and struggled to find the pieces again. Sometimes I take a set apart after a few months though.

As my first criterion when buying a set is the usefulness of its inventory I always take them apart after some time and use parts for MOCs. Same for MOCs, it would simply take up too much space and resources if everything stayed assembled forever.

I rarely take apart a set, as I display them on my table. Some sets however are destroyed within 1-3 years. My 3221 Lego Truck is now awaiting demolition and convertion to a building. [There's just so many panels!]

Edited April 22, 201311 yr by Dat Lego

For now space is the deciding criteria. When I run out of space for a new set, I dismantle the set I like less.

Edited April 22, 201311 yr by leoparder

My space sets never get taken apart. Just trying to think when the first wave of classic space stuff came out? (1978/79?) Well when ever it was that is how long the longest lived set of mine has stayed together.

I had lots of sets (Pre Minifig.) when i was a kid that were taken apart/played with and built into other things etc. But with the advent of classic space they became my collectable range and just stayed together. That has pretty much continued right up to now.

I buy lots of sets that never get made up though as I specifically want the bits for something else. However most of my MOCing bricks come from Bricklink or LEGO PAB, so not really any need to take apart a set anyway. Even if there was a bit I needed and I knew it was in a set made up, I would not dismantle that set, I would just buy another bit off Bricklink and wait for it to arrive.

So in answer to your question, some sets have been made up for 37 years right up until about the start of the April which was when I bought the last set that I made up and it is still made up. It is unlikely that these will ever be dismantled beyond me dropping them by accident.

Depends on how much I like the set, whether I need the display space, whether I need the parts for something else, and when it needs cleaning. MOCs last longer than official sets because I don't have instructions and hence almost impossible to reproduce if I should ever want to - I suppose also because more of my own effort went into designing them.

When I was younger I let most of my sets fall apart, only for me to come back years later to piece them back together again. Because I don't want to repeat building a set again, I keep all my new sets and many of my older ones all together; using the sets I have not put back together yet as MOC fodder.

It always depends on the sets involved. I have King's Mountain Fortress built for over 20 years now. It was in my box when I put it in storage. Last year I re-built Black Knight's Castle and that will be built forever as far as I'm concerned. Unfortunately, nothing is safe since I started MOCing. I love my Modulars, but I don't have any together other than Pet Shop. I think I have Hagrid's Hut built still. Otherwise, I want to rebuild my Modulars and Winter Village sets.

But most sets don't get put together to begin with unfortunately.

Depends! I have a collecting of my Creator houses standing on my shelf, so before I want to buy another house I take them apart.

My modular buildings will be standing there for years I guess. If everything is okay and I don't drop them. (I dropped them once when I walked upstairs with two of them to show them my Grandpa...)

Other sets (like cars) don't "survive" that long, I sometimes take them apart instantly after I build them.

It takes me about 2 days after I build a set before I get sick of looking at it and must take it apart and start MOC’ing. What I do is make a vignette-esque shrine for the minifigures and then with the remaining pieces, make something else (if possible).

I never MOC my sets... but I do build it as soon as possible!