Micro Mini Modulars
 

Does anyone have any pics from Brickbash yesterday? I noticed you had a few on Flickr, Jim.

Yes, I have more pictures to post including a shot or two of Spencer's completed WTC complex. I thought I would wait to see if Spencer wanted to post his own pictures first.

Including fantasy structures as part of "LEGO skylines" may be a bit of a stretch but J.R.R. Tolkien seemed to have a "thing" about towers. He scattered mentions of a dozen or more towers throughout the Lord of the Rings and the Silmarillion. Some of these were destroyed but others lasted for a thousand years or more. The heights of the towers were generally not mentioned with two exceptions and both of these would meet the current definition of skyscrapers (500 feet or higher) assuming they were contiguously habitable structures from top to bottom.

The roof of the Tower of Orthanc was specific mentioned as being 500 feet above Isengard.
Here is my 7.9 foot high more or less minifig scale LEGO version of Orthanc:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7052/6...75edaf88_z.jpg
Photo credit: me / flickr

The other tower, Barad-dur, Middle Earth's only Supertall at an estimated 3,000 or more feet tall, was built by Sauron and when he was vanquished the tower went with him.

Yea, give me a week or two to unveil the official shots. I've got a couple of little things to fix up on the model first.

That thing is wicked. Love the top.

im not worthy im not worthy, holy crap that is awesome

That is just wicked cool. Great spot to shoot the photo too.

finally getting a lego store
 

I dont mean to brag or anything, Im just so excited, but for all of us in the milwaukee area, we are finally getting our own lego store! its about time...

I know how you feel. Michigan got its first (and only) LEGO store in Sept. 2010 at the "Somerset Collection" (a mall). Prior to that time, Metro Detroit was the largest metro area in the US that did not have a LEGO store and Michigan was by far the largest state that did not have a LEGO store. At least you had the Chicagoland stores which by the way were also the nearest stores for Michigan residents as well until the Somerset store opened.

Also guys, thanks for the comments about my Orthanc model. I displayed it for the first time at Brickbash (March 24, 2012, Ann Arbor).

I'm surprised that was the first time you displayed it. Haven't you had it for a number of years? I'm sure the guys that did the LOTR layout at Brickworld last year would have loved to have included this in their landscape. I'm pretty sure it was open to anyone on MOCpages to contribute to.

500 ft huh? That seems about right judging by the movies. I can't believe Barad Dur is over 3000 ft though!

Tolkien gives the exact figure of 500 feet in his description of the top of Orthanc:
The four spikes make the entire structure taller, perhaps 570 feet to the "architectural top".

I had built a smaller (and less detailed) 4.5 foot high Orthanc model in 2004. I destroyed that model about two weeks ago as I neared the completion of the present 7.9 foot high Orthanc model.

J.R.R.Tolkien does not give an exact figure for the height of Barad-Dur. He does say something to the effect that Orthanc is like a toy in comparison. Some avid Tolkien readers have put together several passages from the "Lord of The Rings" book to suggest that figure of 3000+ feet. For example, the window of the eye at the top was supposedly level with the entrance to Mount Doom which was at 3,200 feet above the plateau of Gorgoroth.

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs51/f/20..._chessykat.jpg
Image Credit: ChessyKat / DeviantArt

To get away from Tolkien, I am starting to plan the construction of an 8.5 foot high model of Detroit's art-deco Guardian Building (as soon as the LUGBulk order arrives).

I should mention that if I win the lottery tonight all of Manhattan is getting built in LEGO at 1/650 microscale. :)

Have you actually purchased tickets? If you purchase just one ticket, your odds of winning are said to be 1 : 176,000,000.
(you have a better chance of getting a date with a supermodel right before being struck by lightning).

LUGBulk is gonna be good to me as well;)

@Spencer, if you win the lottery and build Manhattan at 1/650 scale, I might have to sell you my WFC once I'm finished! :haha:

LUGBulk?
 

To reap the benefits of LUGbulk, you need to be part of a club??

Yes, you have to be in a LUG. I'm pretty sure that's all I can say on it.

When i lived in Fallon, NV the closest was in Sacremento, but we usually just drove up to Seattle and went to the store in Bellevue

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5445/7...fda4f897e5.jpg
LEGO Burj Al Arab by Spencer_R, on Flickr

Well, I didn't win the lottery, so I had to build something smaller and cheaper. Here's a small Burj Al Arab in the scale and style of the LEGO Architecture kits.

Nice. :tup: