On The Job Roundup

Turns out Gwen Stefani is a hollaback girl after all. I’m all like “heeeeey” and then she’s all like “Holla!”.  And I’m all like...that solves that god damned issue right there! I don’t know what all the fuss was about. Anyway, welcome to the round up for the challenge we like to call On The Job...all about the vehicles we sometimes use while doing our jobs. Taxis, fire trucks, and zambonis are all the rage, so lets see what the hard working people all over the world are driving, shall we?

No, its not a fire truck/ tour bus. Its a Fiat 682/RN2 Bartoletti Ferrari Race Transporter as built by Apefight and it comes complete with fully working Power Functions remote control, opening doors, dropping tailgate, lowering top deck, detailed interior...but, as it turns out, nothing to haul.



One builder who didn’t forget the payload is TechnicFenix13 with his I-ran-out-of-black-so-also-went-with-four-other-colors low loader tow truck. Its just the perfect thing when you leave your yellow Ferrari abandoned at the scene of your LEGO worktable and need to tow it away pronto.



Back before most of us were born the hard working 1964 Ford Thames Trader brought goods to and fro in eye catching Jonathan Derksen color blocking style. That’s just chock full of classic Ford goodness right there!



Let’s face it, whether we work as a pizza delivery guy or a bikini waxer, none of us would get to our jobs if it wasn’t for fuel to take us there. This is why christophbrill built us a 30’s era old timey Octan Fuel Truck. The little minifig there...helping others get to their jobs by doing his. Do you think they had bikini waxers in the ‘30s?



While we all ponder that question we can marvel at this tan and blue Milk Float as built by Legogil. Back in the milk delivery days, we had the Divco in America, but most of Europe had the Milk Float, a quiet battery operated vehicle suited to silently deliver milk in the wee morning hours. Good stuff, Gil!



L@go built what looks like a 70’s era winnebago flattened by a truck trailer. That’s because its a Steinwinter and its a real thing! It was designed to maximize payload while giving the rest of the truck an extremely low profile.



We go from the bizarre Steinwinter to...the humble stroller as built by NK DeSign-er. Sure we’re all about big, rugged automotive vehicles here, but the stroller has an important job to to...to keep little tykes safe and happy while moms and dads go about their business. As usual for NK, this is an alternate model to the official 5867 Creator set.



When you think of the Ford Focus you think of a small fuel efficient hatchback. But Sangi13 takes it a step further and converts the little Focus into...of all things...a tow truck. I’m not quite sure how much tow capacity a Focus has but it sure does haul a big...um...double crucifix...thingy.



Here’s the scene: You’re racing across state lines in a candy apple red convertible with Johnny Law in hot pursuit. You’ve keestered a balloon full of high quality bon bons, you have a blow up sex doll in the passenger seat, a trunk load of illegally smuggled Venezuelan fruit bats and no one can explain why you’ve let a chimpanzee take the wheel. I know, we’ve all been there, right? But if you were in Australia you’d be chased by Bruce the Highway Patrolman in his ’86 Holden VL Commodore as built by Lego911



Next on the Lego911 slab is busty Sharon and her 2013 Ford Flex. You see, Sharon has the hardest job in the world...being a soccer mom. Between all the schlepping the kids to school, the puking, head lice, spilled juice, hair pulling, kid farts, and crying its a wonder she still looks as good as any of the gals from Desperate Housewives.



See, now here is a law enforcement scenario I’m much more familiar with. Take the same scene from before, only set it in the forested and rain soaked Pacific Northwest and you have yourself Sheriff Johnson and his 2009 Crown Vic Washington State Patrol Car. You also have my preferred ride home after a big night out. What with me being car-less its always nice when Seattle’s finest offers up their services for a safe ride home and the right to remain silent.



I had the right to remain silent but didn’t have the ability. That’s because I was so excited about Peter’s fourth entry, this Aston Martin V8 Vantage N24 Racer driven by Oliver Mathai. His job is being a 24 hour race car driver. Seems exciting but what if ya gotta drop the kids off at the pool? Or...yanno...take the browns to the superbowl? Are any of you getting these analogies?



I was talking about pooping, in case you didn’t know. Anyway, in case you got a hankering for pepperoni and cheese delivered straight to your door, we have Peter and his Ford 2011 Focus Trend Hatchback. Ahhh yes, that familiar red, white and blue color scheme can only mean one thing...maximum taste at minimum wage!



What travels on a track but isn’t a train? Turns out its this Western Star Brandt Power Unit built by Ricecracker. This is powerful enough to pull up to 10 loaded train cars and would make those awkward father-son road trip talks a whole lot better. You know the one...your mom used to have a hot ass but now has an ass like a bag of wet clothes.



Ok, that made no sense at all, but I wanted to slip in a father-son awkward road trip joke and none of these hard working vehicles are really suited for father-son car rides. Lets just admire DeTomaso77’s Mercedes-Benz O 317 Renntransporter "Porsche". I have no idea what its supposed to transport, but its still cool as hell.



We all know what this next build by Aaron F1 transports. I have fond memories of riding these school busses as a kid. Their bright yellow color, their green vinyl seats, their flashing lights...the stop sign that flips out to alert passers by that pint sized tikes are exiting. reminds me of that one time this kid brian threw up on the bus and no one ever saw him again.



Thats because Brian probably grew up to be a British Police Officer somehow. Its an unlikely story but how else was I going to segue from the school bus to this UK Police Ford Focus built by Ralph Savelsberg. Writing is all about smoothly segueing one idea to another. And awkward father-son car trip jokes. And dropping off the kids at the pool.



Someone else with police cars on the brain is DoktorZapp with his Jensen Interceptor Police Car. Its seen here negotiating the punishing terrain of a berber carpet. That stuff right there...the number one cause of rug burns on my knees and elbows. Don’t ask how I know this.



Peteris Sprogis delivers some fine Octan fuel to a busy minifig intersection with his Octan Delivery Truck. Cuz that’s what they do...deliver Octan to...places in need of Octan delivery. Love that brick built Octan logo. Octan. Delivery. Yep. Ok, I used up my three to five lines. Lets move on, shall we?



Felipe Descomplicado also has Octan colors on the brain and a Heavy-Duty Wrecker - Sliding Rotator Boom Truck with motion effects that I can only describe as witchcraft or sorcery. Surely there can’t be some sort of magical photo shop program to make neat effects like this!



And Raphy submits what can only be described as...a hefty bag full of a broken red LEGO mess. Travel is a harsh mistress and so is the LUGNuts round up as this is the result of a 5,500 mile journey and nearly three weeks past the deadline we have no idea what the vehicle was intended to be. Sorry dude, we’ve just gotta publish as is.



And the sole reason this round up is three weeks late is to showcase this Australian 2010 Holden Ute Camera Car built by Lino Martins. I guess you can do things like this when you’re in charge. Iron Builder, crazy hours at work and other obligations made this entry late but I asked for a random assignment and didn’t want to let Marioman3138 down. So, better late than never, I suppose.



So...what did you all think of the round up? It was alright, I guess. But stay tuned for our next very special 50th build challenge where we do something crazy. Its called The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of and the best interpretation of the weird dreamy sequence gets cool LEGO prizes! Second and third place also stands to win prizes. This is an unprecedented challenge and so far...very few entries. This could still be anyone’s game and we’re all waiting on pins and needles here. And let me tell ya, pins and needles are mighty pointy and uncomfortable! So stay tuned to see how it all turns out.

LUGNuts Is Four years Old Roundup

Everyone shut your goddamned puke holes for a minute! Not that any of you were talking. Or puking. I just always wanted to start a roundup like that. Now that I have, welcome to our four year birthday roundup. As always we could pick from any challenge throughout the year and even way back in LUGNuts history and build accordingly. The birthday challenges are always a crowd favorite but this one was unique in the sense that there are more entries submitted after the deadline than before it. I guess everyone was on rock and roll time...which could explain all the aforementioned vomiting...yanno, being rock stars and all. Anyway, lets get ready to rock!

 Rolic was our opener with this stunning pair of first and fourth generation Pontiacs for the "Two Of A Kind Challenge". Actually they were originally posted at the tail end of the last challenge but as Rolic was on rock and roll time, he missed out on getting a clever write up. Makes since considering he actually is a musician...but he sings in a nice choir for his church so I don't think they trash hotel rooms and set their guitars on fire.



 Rolic comes back later with an encore performance but this time in a form of a lovely blue BMW Hydrogen 7 thereby honoring three challenges at once..."Autos Aus Deutschland", "Millennium Marvels" and "Alternate Fuels". It would be totally punk rock if his choir trashed hotel rooms occasionally and maybe propositioned prostitutes from time to time. Just sayin'.



 No stranger to trashing hotel rooms (probably) is jmaokoen with his little Lotus 49B for the challenge called "Everything Under The Sun". At first I thought he was showing some versatility as its long body and huge spoiler makes it appear to be an oldschool drag racer but upon further review he has built yet again a Formula One racer. What can ya say, the kid is a one trick pony!



 Much later in the challenge, jmaokoen returns with some slight variation to his one trick with the Lotus 49B, 56B, 63, and 72 in Gold Leaf livery for "Two of A Kind" times two. That's four of a kind...or two squared. Right? I don't know, math was never my strong suit. Neat looking slot race track, though.



Oldeconoline has at least a couple tricks up his sleeve, this time in the form of an English twin motorbike with sidecar. He was trying to replicate Hagrid's bike from the Harry Potter series and a quick Google search proves he has done alright with it.

 

Ace chimes in with a surprisingly well detailed little Sipil TT two-seater in white, orange and black. I like the fenders and the spoiler. You want another spoiler? It turns out Bruce Willis was dead the whole time in The Sixth Sense. Did I spoil that for you already in another roundup? There's only so many big movie surprises I know.



 One of the most iconic vehicles in the history of the world ever is the old Volkswagen T1 microbus. Jason Son shows us what happens when you take that beloved icon and give it a classic hot rod look. Chopped and lowered and painted in rat rod matte black and grey with a thin pinstripe, this van sports oldschool hot rod red rims undoubtedly from the new Cars Francesco set. Red rims...the best thing LEGO has done for hot rod builders in a long time.



 You know that book "A Tale of Two Cities"? Well this is a tale of Two Builders. Ralph Savelsberg also had the iconic T1 on the brain but typical to what Ralph does, he goes classically bog standard on this one. This is an updated remake of a model he built six years ago that predates LUGNuts. See, this just shows we were all Lugnuts before we were ever LUGNuts. Makes sense?



Legogil takes an adventure and goes way back in time...back to '09 with an entry for "Zombie Killfest '09". It was a more innocent time back then...back when zombies didn't have their own series on AMC and you could kill them with spike-laiden, flame throwing supercars from Mad Max. Ahhh, good times, indeed!




 Bad Furday is forever and always having...a bad fur day. But he has taken time out to build this neat little 1991 Footwork Porsche F1 racer for the "Autos Aus Deutschland" challenge. Nice presentation on that slick red reflective surface...although I suppose nowadays it could have been just a slick photoshop trick. Either way...pretty cool.



 Bad Furday chimes in again with one of my personal favorite entries...this electric bumper car for the "Alternate Fuels" challenge. I hold a special place in my heart for a vehicle that bends the rules intelligently and this one fits that bill nicely. If only automobile accidents were always this much fun.



 Then Furday comes back later for an encore performance with this 2011 Morgan 3-Wheeler for the "Everything Under The Sun" Challenge. This car would have made those long, awkward father-son road trip talks a lot more fun. You know the ones...if you had learned to wipe like a real man instead of like your mother you'd opt to be an engineer instead of going to art school. Anyway...



Some of us can surf, some can play guitar...NK DeSign-er builds really cool alternate models for official LEGO sets. Its just what he does. In this case he builds us a tow truck for the really ancient challenge #9 called "Haulin' Ass". He tells us its nice to be able to build once a year for challenges that dates before he has even heard of this place. I agree.



 He weighs in later with an alternate model once again for set #5867 Super Speedster...this one a Motorbike/ chopper. He says to be gentle on him as it was his first moto but I see no problem with his work. he also says to tell him when we get tired of his alternate models of official sets but I think we never will tire of this.



 Lego Junkie also has zombies on his brrraaaaaains with this apocalyptic rig for "Zombie Killfest '09" There is just something fun about zombie killin'. They're already dead so blasting their heads off with a shotgun seems OK somehow. Funny thing...as I type, I am wearing a shirt that has a skull on it and says "I club zombies" except the club is that club symbol from the deck of cards. Actually I've never clubbed a zombie in real life but I have shot my brother in the face with a rubber band. Does that count?



 Dohoon Kim has the "Millennium Marvels" challenge on his delicious gooey brrrrraaaaains with this rugged little Land Rover Bowler Wildcat in yellow. Oh that reminds me, when playing Left 4 Dead 2 Boomers are best killed from a distance, not up close. One time, I was mowing down this horde of zombies with a chainsaw then blindly plowed through his fat belly with it. He exploded puke and bile and I was runnin' blind for like a minute, chasing my own teammates with the chainsaw. Hilarity ensued!



 Felipe Descomplicado goes all "Autos Aus Deutschland" on our asses with not one, but two four axle German trucks. One is a Mercedes, the other a Man and together they are working to lug a huge industrial generator to...uh...wherever huge industrial generators are needed. Like a 5 year old's birthday party or a library. Probably.



Jonathan Derksen makes ugly look so good. Nothing good has ever come out of the 80's, and let's admit the 1980 VW T3 has all the lukewarm design aspects and conservative styling indicative of that decade. But Jonathan painstakingly captures the vehicle so well and even accurately captures a feel for a decade he has never been a part of. The Huxtables would have been thrilled to lug all the kids around in this.



 Tim Inman takes a break from building Chevys to show some love for the BMW Z3 M Coupe. He tells us that the rather feminine roadster is testosterone injected with flared fenders and quad exhaust tips. Yeah, I know when I want to get all macho I show off my flared fenders and quad exhaust tips.



 It was only a matter of time before the most badass truck builder on the planet builds the most badass truck ever. Bricksonwheels takes on Optimus prime in all its stunning blue and red flaming glory. As it runs on Energon, this Autobot joins the ranks of the "Alternate Fuels" challenge. it doesn't transform but we can forgive that because it runs on power functions and just look at all that dazzling chrome!



 According to Christophbrill and his son Hans, nothing says "Two Of A Kind" and "Everything Under The Sun" like an Outrunner from the game Borderlands and a 1908 Renault AX. Yeah. Normally they would go together like fried chicken and jumping jacks but the dynamic duo seems to make a pretty good pair out of such dissimilar vehicles.



 What happens when you pit Lino Martins in a blood thirsty Iron Builder battle arena against some Scottsman with a caffeine addiction? You get a pretty little custom '55 Ford F-100 called Amazon Jade. Duh, that outcome should have been obvious! But what was a little freaky-deaky about that is I built it for a challenge called "The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of". Not on the list. A future challenge maybe? Is this some sort of weird time travel thing? How can this happen? For the love of God, can someone please explain what is going on here? Stay tuned to find out. ;)



 Oh boy! Everyone kick back. Grab a hot cup of coffee. Maybe spike it with a little Baileys. Maybe make yourself a nice plate of cheese and crackers with some pepperoni slices...and apples with some honey and yogurt. Maybe throw some granola in there for texture and flavor. I don't know, cripes, what do I got to make all your decisions for you?! My point is, this Chevrolet Corvette C6 Convertible is the start of a loooong string of late entries by the ever prolific Lego911. So make yourself comfortable.



Are you comfortable yet? The Mercedes-Benz W136 170 V Limousine burns wood and gas so it fits right in the "Alternate Fuels" challenge and "Autos Aus Deutschland". When I was a kid I thought my head would fit neatly between two iron bars in a fence. As all the EMT guys can attest, it turns out it did.



 Next on the 911 slab is this 2011 Ford FG II Falcon XR6 ECOLPi Sedan built for the "Alternate Fuels" challenge at it runs on Liquid Phase Injection LPG. I have no idea what any of that means but thank God for copy/paste! Its a lot of technical writing I don't have to do thanks to 911 doing it for me.



Its no surprise that the real life engineer for Ford would go way back in Ford history with this 1911 Ford Model-T two door...as built "For The Ladies" and for "Alternate Fuels" as this "Tin Lizzie" can run on ethyl alcohol and kerosene, to suit the fuel availability in rural American communities, and to be run from farm produced biofuels. Neat!



So next, this maestro of the Ford automobile constructs this...1955 Buick and a decidedly cool one at that. The matching surf board denotes "Two of a Kind" and the Barbie looking figure is "For The Ladies" and, as it turns out, really is Barbie from the movie "Barbie A Mermaid Tale". I don't know how that movie never made my Netflix list.



 Next 911 kills three birds with one stone (gross!) with this Octan Racing Team MAN tractor and trailer...the three birds being "Octan Racing", "Autos Aus Deutschland" and "Two of a Kind". I wonder how that old expression came about.



 Speaking of old expressions of dubious and possibly sinister meaning, Peter shows that there is more than one way to skin a cat with this cool custom Fast Gassin' rig from the 2009 Hot Wheels line. You see, Peter wanted to build "By Random Appointment" and I demanded something well outside his already formidable comfort zones. I'd say he pulled it off nicely.



 Another thing he pulled off nicely is this Remote controlled Octan Racing Ultimate RC Drift Volkswagen Microbus Kombi. Holy crap, I wish I can take the controls of this thing just to see what it'll do! I just want to hug it and squeeze it and call it George! Then drive it down a flight of stairs. Can I pleaze? I can haz Kombi?



 Dark red Ramone isn't without his charms either. It was built for the "Cars, Too" challenge as it looks like it came from Cars Two. Yeah I know you foreign born English as a second language LUGNutters out there just have a field day trying to understand those homonyms. "Their", "they're" and "there" are a real hoot.



 Is that it for Peter? That wasn't so bad after all. LegoExotics conjures up a neat duo of exotic racers that fit in a myriad of challenges including: "Night and Day", "Two of a Kind","Color Me Strange","Millenium Marvels","Lemons or Le Mans","Autos aus Deutschland", "Everything under the Sun" and "Alternative Fuels". That's like a bird slaughterhouse! They're both beautiful cars though.



 Raphy is a man of few words these days. What's with that, kiddo?! He gets all silent and Clint Eastwood-y on us and quietly posts this little yellow racer as if to say...I know what you're thinking. Did I fire six shots or only five? In all of this excitement I seemed to have forgotten myself. So, do you feel lucky, punk? Well, do ya? Do ya!?



 TechnicFenix13 must have been feeling pretty lucky. First he pulls through with a Randon Appointment request. I demanded the Apollo 13 Lunar Rover and he pulled through with flying colors...or should I say muted colors in gray and black? But still very nice. Houston, we have a rover!



 Then later he gets a little more colorful and springs for a duo of dynamic hard working trucks for "Two of a Kind" and the current challenge "On the Job". Both are working flatbeds and I suspect one is a slightly modified set. Still pretty cool idea though.





If you're like me you've probably spent many a night crying yourself to sleep pleading for the love of God, can someone please build a working RC from the movie Cars 2?! I mean, cripes his name is RC so he should be remote controlled and made of lime green and blue technic parts for lightweight maneuverability and high speed handling! Well, it seems Nathan Proudlove has answered our cries in the night and puts us all to bed, warm and comfy as a fitting end to this special birthday challenge.



 What a great round up! Thanks for making LUGNuts THE cornerstone for LEGO automotive building and the standard of success for other groups to follow. I mean, go ahead...have a look around. You'll find nary a group who has done as many challenges with such consistent success as we have. Kinda makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, doesn't it? Well stick around for this month's challenge called "On The Job"...all about hard working commercial vehicles like mail delivery trucks, taxicabs, cement mixers, snowplows...and when your neighbors become particularly unruly, you've got your SWAT Assault Mobile Command Vehicles to take them down with. Its all in a day's work when you're On The Job. The SWAT team is closing in now but they'll never catch me. You punks feeling lucky? Well, are ya?!