Classic Lego 4 wide truck designs and why they're ideal for your town

My affinity for classic Lego sets is obvious from the videos on this channel, but making 4 wide trucks is not as easy as you would think, because trucks are supposed to be BIG. So how do make a small truck look MASSIVE on a city street when everything is 4 wide?

Office Tower Grows Up and Up

Years ago, it was decided that the people of Bricksburgh couldn't all be expected to spend their days working as firefighters and police officers (which seem to the majority of Lego careers), so we built an office building for them to work in.

That original office building has since grown.  And grown.  And now it has grown again!

Well, HERE'S an Idea!

With Father's Day looming on the calendar you might be finding yourself wondering.... "Hey, WHAT am I going to get dear old Dad??"

Lucky for you, here at Bricksburgh, we have a GREAT Lego idea to pass along.   Consider it "open source" just like Tesla's patents.  (H/T to Mr. Musk!)

So what is it?   Glad you asked....

Racer Adaptations

We've acquired a lot of the Racer sets over the last few years.  While only slightly more expensive than Matchbox/Hot Wheels cars they're better because you can change the cars' designs around and, of course, when they crash you can "damage" them.

The only downside is that you can't put a minifig in them...  and their wheels are set too wide to match the rest of the Bricksburgh traffic.   So, we had to adapt them.

Air Superiority

Every big city needs an aerial unit in their police department.  Bricksburgh isn't THAT big, but given Lego's enthusiasm for creating police sets our citizen:cop ratio is pretty high!  How do the police keep Bricksburgh citizens safe?  With their "eye in the sky" police helicopter, of course.  Last year we showed you some of the design in our post called:  "Rule the Air" and in the video below.

This year... we're showing you how to BUILD it.   Click on through!

Repair Shop Finished!

As we wrote about a few weeks ago in "Repairing the Repair Shop", we've been rebuilding and redesigning some parts of town as it gets set back up.  We've since finished the reconstruction of the Repair Shop-- and here it is!

It's now taller than ever!  Why?  Read on.

Banana Luxury Apartments

Well, okay we're not really going to call it that... But the newest building in Bricksburgh DOES have a yellow outside and a white middle.   With the exception of the hotel at the other end of the boardwalk, this new building is the only residence in town that is truly "walk out" beachfront property.

 Read on to find out more about it!

Revisions Revisions

We're still working to bring Bricksburgh back.
Last post we showed you our Repair Shop redesign taking shape.  Today we've posted a new video that shows how the town is coming along and also shows you how the Repair Shop has been improved and enlarged since our last posting.  There's still much to do, but a lot has changed since our last video, most notably the beachfront area.  Check it out:  http://youtu.be/zk0-HiyLUoY

Repairing the Repair Shop

In real estate they always say that the most important thing is "location, location, location".  And here we have a prime location ready to build on.   It is right across the street from the police station and on a two busy street corners!

So what business will get built next to the pizza shop?  Read on, as we rebuild Bricksburgh!

The Comeback!

Who doesn't love a comeback?    We're proud to call Pittsburgh our adopted home.  This city was once a huge powerhouse that was pushed to the edge of oblivion as success moved on.  But then... IT CAME BACK.  It is now a beautiful park-filled vibrant city on the rivers.  It has exceeded its own best expectations and is continuing to rebuild itself into a gleaming jewel with big city attractions with a small town atmosphere.

Like Pittsburgh, our own Lego town enjoyed great success on YouTube but then was pushed-- literally!-- into oblivion (if you consider getting packed out of sight, oblivion).
After nearly a year in boxes, crates, and storage bins...
BRICKSBURGH IS COMING BACK!   Want to see?   Click on!

October's September Update

Seems like we've been in a holding pattern for a few months here, but the clock is finally winding down our on "two house lifestyle".   Tyler and I have been working on the design for the new Lego tables and spending some money on eBay while the moving related house projects wrap up.  

Since there might be some new eyeballs on the blog in the next few days, here's a little pandering to our guests:  

Wondering what that is all about?  

More Car Variations - As Requested

A while back we posted a YouTube video on how to make a Porsche but lots of folks were more interested in this:

That's right-- a family-mobile in the background attracted more attention than a sports car!  

Rooms With a View

Last time we showed you how the Bricksburgh TV Station was built.  Since we're talking about how our landmark buildings in town came into being, it seems only fitting to talk about the City Hotel.  The City Hotel was a natural addition to the town.  After all, if the town is to be a vacation island with a famous beach... it would need a hotel-- and one that would offer First Class service! 

 But what was the REAL inspiration of the hotel and why does it look the way it does?  

You might be surprised....

ARG! What Strange Lands Are These??

Often when I empty camera cards I find evidence of adventures and stories captured on our cameras by the kids.  This was a great expedition that Tyler created and photographed all on his own:

We've moved into the new house and while the Legotown remains in boxes, the Pirates have escaped.  Eager to plunder and pillage their new land they set out on an expedition around the new house-- what great discovers and adventures would await them?

Super Vans!

In between projects at the new house, projects at the old house, and moving stuff from one to the other, we've been working on some Lego projects too.   The town may be boxed up and the table dismantled but there are plenty of unused Lego pieces lurking about and now and then we find enough to cobble together some interesting creations-- some of which are good enough that they will survive to make an appearance in a future Legotown Tour.  These "Super Vans" (from our YouTube video) are two of those recent creations.  Read on for their story.

The Ugly Bus-ling

In anticipation of our Lego City Buses Video hitting 1 million views this month (probably) on YouTube, I'd love to be able to post a tutorial on how to build one--- and might still-- but for now, here's a look at one of the very early prototypes.   We call it, the UGLY BUSLING:

April Update

We're moving!   No, no.... not the blog or the YouTube channel-- US!   We'll soon be dismantling the town and packing it all into boxes for the quick trip to the new house.  

 Closing is this week and we'll make the actual move next month...  which means we'll be using "archival" Lego pictures until we get set up in the new place.  We'll mix those posts in with updates on the moving of the town itself too.  There's also a chance the Lego table might be available for sale---  anyone interested?  

Where Dwight Works

Once we move into the new house the Legotown will be getting some upgrades.  Among the first buildings to get upgraded will be the Office Building.  It will gain another floor (for a total of 4) to bring it closer in height to the Condos.  With that in mind, I thought we'd take a closer look at its history so far.

Not a Geek!

Over the years I've made a lot of custom sets for the kids.  One of the most popular was the TechMan company.  The TechMan company started out from a single idea:   I wanted to use a pair of grey panels that I'd found.   From panels...  there came a grey van...  then an IDEA.

Upside Down

More progress toward a new house.  The inspection went well and we are continuing to move forward.  Every move throws your world into the blender though, so today I thought I'd show you a creation Tyler made that fit that theme.  It's an armored car that was built.... upside down!