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Brick Breakdown: LEGO Upscaled Minifigure

by Thita (admin) on August 14, 2023

in LEGO Minifigures

(Written by William)

A unique set recently released by the LEGO Group is the #40649 LEGO Upscaled Minifigure. From its main picture, it doesn’t look like a whole lot. After all, blue pants, a red shirt, and a blue hat does not make the most interesting minifigure, no matter what size it is.

But this upscaled version is a fun variation of the regular size minifig wearing the same outfit in classic LEGO colors and it looked like it might be an interesting build, so I thought to check it out. so I thought to check it out. So, let’s see what this $50 USD upscaled minifigure offers.

LEGO UPSCALED MINIFIGURE – JOINT RESISTANCE

Given how plain the upscaled minifigure looks, I wasn’t expecting the number of LEGO Technic elements found in the set. However, this does make sense, since one of the building challenges in upscaling anything is how to handle the additional weight. With the arms and legs having only one attachment point to the body, it becomes crucial that the joint has resistance so that it is able to hold a pose.

This reintroduced a technique I’ve seen before. In one of the Elves sets that had a dragon, I looked at how the legs used multiple large ball joints to multiply the friction and thus add more resistance. This technique is used again in the upscaled minifigure’s legs.

But how do you get a similar result in the torso where there’s not enough room for this technique? Well, LEGO designers surprised me with the use of gears. First, you have the central gear that holds the main axle. Then to either side, you add gears on pins that have a friction ridging built into the pin itself. By placing these two gears on either side of the main gear, it then lessens the stress placed on each pin by distributing out the weight.

Typically, when you upscale a model, you often end up with more room to work in. But thanks to odd shaping or placement, you can’t always count on that to be the case. So, it’s nice to have yet one more option in your toolbox, if you ever are in need for adding resistance to a joint.

LEGO UPSCALED MINIFIGURE – JOINT INNER SUPPORTS

Now that you have a joint that can handle the weight of a limb, all your problems are solved, right? Well, not necessarily. You see, some limbs are longer than others. Structurally this means the further out they go, the less stable they are. Fortunately, this model gives us two methods to solve this particular issue.

The legs of the upscaled minifigure are built solidly and have a longer reach than the arms. These two factors could make the legs highly unstable. However, if you reinforce the inner supports, you can make them handle the majority of the stress and leave the more decorative elements just for the looks.

The first inner support is something that fills up the inner portion of the leg. In this respect, it acts like a bone. It is also built in such a way that it is in a completely different direction than the leg. By changing the direction of inner support, you are strengthening the leg rather than exposing a potential weak point. It does this in part by making it so that the section would have to break entirely before it made the rest of the leg have to endure any stress.

The other way the inner supports were strengthened was by creating another connection point for the joint. This allowed the weight to be redistributed among two points on the joint rather than just one. As a general rule of thumb, the more opportunities you have to redistribute weight, the more stable your creation tends to be.

LEGO UPSCALED MINIFIGURE – UPSCALING

With all the fancy joint work aside, I think the feature that impresses me the most about this model is the upscaling process. LEGO designers were consistent enough that I know this model has been scaled up six times. I can confirm this fact with simple math.

A minifigure’s foot takes up a 1×1 stud space. That means if it is scaled up six times, then the large minifigure should have a foot that is 6×6 studs, and it does! Likewise, a minifigure is 2 studs wide. That means the large minifigure should be 12 studs wide, and it is! For the most part, the measurements are all true to scale.

There are a few issues with the forearms of the minifigure not being rounded all the way and the hat having a little extra bill on the sides and back, but honestly, it is the measurements that will determine how well or poorly you have scaled a model.

Ultimately, the trick is figuring out which detail you want to base the scale on since there will be details that you can’t possibly create. But as long as you have your initial measurement and choice of scale, everything else is just doing the math.

LEGO UPSCALED MINIFIGURE – FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, this set was a bit more of a complex build than I was expecting. The robust inner workings as well as all the decorated elements getting prints instead of stickers indicates that this is a set meant for adults and collectors, but it also makes a great toy.

In the video below, I discuss the set in a bit more detail and also show you the features and functions.

Some years back, I picked up the LEGO Wooden Minifigure and I was incredibly disappointed. Sure, it was a large minifigure, but only its hands could move. This set not only can be posed, but it is a fun building experience and costs less than half what the wooden version did. Plus, you have the secret compartment with the minifigure driving in the top of the head. Put simply, this was a set I didn’t think was for anyone in particular, but it’s definitely a model I’d recommend to everyone. If you want to check it out, it’s currently available at the LEGO minifigures section of the Online LEGO Shop.

What do you think? Do you like the upscaled LEGO minifigure? Is this a set you already have or planning to get? And what do you think of the techniques we discussed here? Feel free to share in the comment section below!

And you might also like to check out the following related posts:

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Review of the LEGO Walt Disney Tribute Camera

by Thita (admin) on August 9, 2023

in LEGO Disney

(Written by William)

Over the last few months, LEGO has been releasing quite a few sets to celebrate Disney’s 100th Anniversary. So far, every set that has celebrated the anniversary has been pretty interesting to build. The upcoming #43230 LEGO Disney Walt Disney Tribute Camera is no exception. The question is would the model as well as the included minifigures warrant the $99.99 USD MSRP? Well, we got our hands on a review copy, so let’s take a look.

LEGO WALT DISNEY TRIBUTE CAMERA – CHARACTERS

A big driving force why many Disney fans will want to pick up this set is the new characters. Mickey and Minnie are going to be popular of course, even though we have gotten black and white versions of the characters in the previously released #21317 LEGO Ideas Steamboat Willie set and in the Disney Collectible Minifigures series. I prefer Minnie’s hard plastic skirt used here instead of the cloth version that she wears in some other sets (in my experience, the cloth skirt never seems to lay quite right).

Next up is Walt Disney himself. This is a version of the man in his early days. He has his iconic mustache and two grinning expressions on his face. His accessories include a pen as well as a 2×2 tile featuring an early sketch of Mickey Mouse. This might not be the most exciting minifigure to many, however, I can’t imagine he’ll appear in many other sets apart from this one. I think the potential rarity of this minifigure might intrigue a collector or two. Design-wise, he’s pretty nondescript with a dark gray suit, black tie, and white undershirt. Frankly, I just find it neat that he’s included, but I won’t claim the minifigure is all that memorable.

Then we get the true stars of this set. Bambi and Dumbo are both fully printed. Dumbo even has his collar and cap molded into the figure. Bambi does take up some considerable space with his legs all akimbo, which gives him a rather unique appearance. Sadly, both characters are solid pieces. They have no articulating elements. Bambi takes up a 2×3 stud space, while Dumbo sits on a 2×2 footing. Of course, parts of Dumbo do hang over and, in the end, he’ll most likely need a 4×4 space if you need to put him in an enclosure.

LEGO WALT DISNEY TRIBUTE CAMERA – FEATURES

Given the fact that the camera is a display model, LEGO designers have gone out of their way to cram in as many interesting little details as possible. For starters, the stand that the minifigures are placed on is designed to be a clapperboard. LEGO designers even made it a functional clapper. There is some smart use of triangle tiles to recreate the white and black angled lines at the top of the board.

Behind the characters is a version of Disney’s multiplane camera, which allowed the studio to break up a project into multiple layers. This gave animators the ability to easily play with depth as well as accomplish more sophisticated techniques. Inside the camera are three doorframes each with a printed window. The bottommost layer is the background shot and it shows off the sky and the moon. The middle layer features a mill. Finally, the top layer has a road and other foreground elements. Put together, all of these represent one of Walt’s earliest projects called The Old Mill.

Next, we look at the large camera. Despite the various elements that look adjustable on the tripod, all of those are purely decorative. The tripod is only functional to the extent that it holds something up and stands on three legs. It has no ability to be adjusted in any way.

This doesn’t mean the camera is devoid of functionality. At the front of the model, you have a sliding matte box, which can restrict exactly what the camera can see. Additionally, you have three lenses on the camera that are mounted on a turntable. This allows you to choose which lens the camera is using at any point.

Then you have one of the coolest play-features I’ve seen in a while. The crank on the side of the camera can only turn one way. The reason for this is that there is a gear inside that has a piece loosely resting on it. But it is not that functionality that is interesting. Rather, there is a hollow cavity inside the camera. Combine this with the sound the gear and the loose piece make, and it sounds like a working camera. It’s rare to have LEGO build something for its acoustics. The last time I saw anything like this was in the #71374 LEGO Super Mario Nintendo Entertainment System model with the TV dials making a clicking sound. So, it is really novel to have them engage more of our senses in their designs.

Now, let’s move onto the side opposite the crank and check out the viewfinder. I should state upfront, you can’t look through the viewfinder. It is a solid piece. However, it can be rotated and tilted a bit due to its connection. That’s not really meant to be a feature of the camera, but rather a way for it to be moved out of the way to open up the secret compartment inside the camera. Recall that I mentioned there was a hollow interior? Well, this is a little cubby where you can place Walt at a drawing desk to work on his various films.

Speaking of film, it is worth noting that the film you see that wraps itself around the model is stationary. It is a flexible plastic that connects to a number of ball-joints on the model. That does mean the two reels you see at the top that make up the 100 sign do not rotate.

LEGO WALT DISNEY TRIBUTE CAMERA – NOTABLE PARTS

When building a new model, I’m always stoked to find new elements to play with. As with most sets designed for adults, we have only printed elements in the model. This includes the sketch Walt holds, the printed scenes on the windows for the multi-plain camera, and the scenes featured on the filmstrip. The nice thing about the filmstrip is that each scene is shown at the beginning of the instructions. They are LEGO versions of some iconic Disney movies, and the instructions feature each scene with the movie it came from and the year it was released (just in case you don’t recognize some of them).

I was also impressed with the number of curved tiles this set has. You get everything from a 1×1 quarter round to a 4×4 macaroni curved tile. But the tile that I thought was extremely interesting was at the top of the number 1. It is a piece that takes up a 2×2 space, however, two of the corners that are opposite one another look like they are missing each a quarter round. In this model, it sits right above a quarter round, so I knew it was missing exactly that much from a full 2×2 square.

The other part I thought was worth mentioning was a new LEGO Technic half-pin. At least it is new to me. I do admit, I’m not the most well-versed when it comes to LEGO Technic parts, but I think I’ve built enough that this would have come up. Instead of a stud at the end of the half pin, you get the underside of a 1×1 round tile. This means you can take it and just stick it on a stud. This makes a fantastic transitional piece for those who are using both LEGO Technic and LEGO System parts in their creations. I know LEGO Technic designers like to stick with very few colors for their connectors, so look for a new green pin!

LEGO WALT DISNEY TRIBUTE CAMERA – FINAL THOUGHTS

Previously, I built the #43179 LEGO Disney Mickey and Minnie statues. Although that model was also targeting adult LEGO fans, it didn’t include any difficult building techniques. However, the Tribute Camera is not like that. The top part of the tripod, in particular, featured a lot more LEGO Technic connections and sometimes not the best visuals in the instructions. I can see less experienced builders getting a tad frustrated with the model. Additionally, the tripod is not the sturdiest of structures. I nearly broke the model when placing the 100 sign at the top. So, expect to have points that might spike the difficulty of building.

On the other hand, the pieces are separated into six sets of numbered bags. So, LEGO designers did a decent job breaking down the model to make it a little more accessible for novice builders.

Another key point is that, despite some play-features, this model clearly fits in the display category. So don’t expect to do too much with it after it’s built.
Overall, I do think the price is a tad high. However, I do know that the larger elements like the big round plates that make up the reel add costs, as does all the printing. Plus, you get unique molds with Bambi and Dumbo. On top of this, I keep forgetting that LEGO did raise prices across the board, especially for adult-oriented sets. So, I understand the price, but I can’t immediately recommend the set. In the video below, I will show you the set in more detail.

The long and short of it is that this is purely a collector’s item. I am a collector and I absolutely love Dumbo, so I would have picked it up. However, this set does feel more niche than other models. The real question is, is this the art piece you want for your home? Sure, it has some interactive elements, but it definitely is more art than anything else. I believe many will just buy Bambi and Dumbo on the secondary market, but I can’t imagine they would be cheap. If you do want to check it out, it will be available starting on September 1st at the LEGO Disney section of the Online LEGO Shop.

What do you think? How do you like this unique tribute to Disney’s 100th anniversary? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below!