Author
thoroakenfelder
BrickPicker Contributor
thoroakenfelder writes about LEGO collecting and the secondary market for BrickPicker. The pieces collected here are part of their BrickPicker writing archive.
Posts by thoroakenfelder (20)
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO sets: 10134 UCS Y-Wing Attack Starfighter
It looks like it's been about 6 months since I did the last one of these. I know I intended to do more, but time got away from me.
LEGO REVIEW: Star Wars AT-ST Walker 75153
I never had a LEGO system scale AT-ST. I got a UCS one from a comic shop, but that's not really the same. Even when I was a kid in the 80's, this was never my favorite vehicle. Now I look at my AT-AT and feel like it's missing something.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO sets: 10143 UCS Death Star II
Many Bothans died to bring us this set breakdown. Well, not really, but something like that had to be said. Actually, many people tend to confuse which Death Star the Bothans died to bring information about, and this is canonically the…
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO Sets: 10175 Vader's TIE Advanced
Star Wars fans love stuff that made short appearances in the films. I remember as a kid how much I enjoyed my Empire Strikes Back AT-ST walker and the adventures my figures went on in the Twin Pod Cloud Car.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO Sets: 10190 Market Street
I don't know about anyone else, but I like looking at bulk lots and playing a guessing game about what might be there. Sometimes I can figure it out and come out well, other times I am left scratching my head wondering what other people…
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO Sets: 10185 Green Grocer
I don't collect modulars. I don't build modulars. I hear about them a lot though. When I do hear about them, one set seems to be spoken about more than any others.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO Sets: 10019 UCS Rebel Blockade Runner
Remember the first time that you saw Star Wars? Remember the feeling as the small rebel ship blazed overhead pursued by the massive Star Destroyer? It was so unlike anything we had seen before.
LEGO REVIEW: Star Wars Encounter on Jakku # 75148
After The Force Awakens was released, I looked at the available first wave sets and felt something was missing. To me, the Luggabeast conspicuously absent. Sure, Unkar Plutt was missing, but I wasn't really missing him.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive LEGO Sets: 10182 Cafe Corner
Some people probably wonder if I'm averse to going outside the comfortable zone of Star Wars sets. There's a whole universe out there of LEGO themes and sets that have nothing to do with Star Wars or Super Heroes.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive Lego Sets: 10123 Star Wars Cloud City
For me, one of the LEGO sets that I most want in my collection, but am least likely to get is the 10123 Cloud City. In Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, a lot of the action takes place in Bespin's Cloud City.
Brick Index Top 20 (March 2016) Dominated by Star Wars
The Brickpicker Brick Index was updated recently. This index gives an indication of the movement in value of each set based upon the previous 6 months of sales data from Ebay.
LEGO REVIEW: LEGO Ideas Wall-E #21303
LEGO Ideas sets are projects that were submitted by fans and voted on by other fans. If a project got 10,000 supporters, the LEGO Group brought it under review.
LEGO REVIEW: Star Wars Obi-Wan's Jedi Interceptor #75135
I have to admit that I am a fan of this ship. When I came back into LEGO collecting as an adult, I wanted Obi-Wan's Jedi Starfighter. I loved Star Wars, and I loved this ship.
LEGO Star Wars Investing Opinion: Always in Motion Is the Future
The universe of LEGO Star Wars is changing. Some of the changes may be too subtle to notice at first, but it began more than a year ago.
Throwing Money Away: Why Not Buy Everything?
There have been many recent articles, all over the web, in local papers and on the radio. They're saying that LEGO investing is better than gold. It's sensationalist. It excites the imagination. It sounds easy.
Bulk Lego Lots: Digging a Hole or Digging for Treasure?
When I first got into LEGO as an AFOL I was looking at all of the Star Wars sets that I had missed and how much they cost. It became necessary to figure out a way to get the sets cheaper or make more money.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive Lego Sets: 7181 UCS TIE Interceptor
The Ultimate Collector Series, or UCS for short, of LEGO sets tends to focus on the Star Wars brand. These UCS sets are the gold standard by which Star Wars sets are judged.
Brick by Brick, Breaking Down Expensive Lego Sets: 10212 UCS Imperial Shuttle
In this series of articles, I would like to take a look at the more expensive, most sought after sets of all time. Instead of reviewing the sets I thought I would address the parts of the sets that make them so rare and valuable.
LEGO REVIEW: Star Wars Imperial Shuttle Tydirium #75094
I've been wanting to build this set since it was released in June. I never really realized how much I enjoyed stuff from Return of the Jedi until I really looked at my LEGO collecting habits.
LEGO REVIEW: LEGO Ideas Doctor Who #21304
I have been excited for this set for a long time. Most of the time, LEGO keeps a tight lid on their upcoming products. You only officially get to know about what is coming out a month or so before it is released.