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Lego to release deluxe Apollo 11 kit

vger

By vger
in Science & Spaceflight

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KSK

KSK

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Posted

Sort of. I'm four bags of bricks in (out of 12), with a couple more to go to finish the first stage plus engines. It does have internal tanks after a fashion which serve as a scaffold to build the outer skin around. Not yet sure whether there any easily detachable panels to let you inspect them though. Although actually it doesn't matter - this thing is pure epic! Way cooler in actuality than it looks on the teaser pictures. And the instruction booklet is fab - the cover is done up in old style sepia and wireframe drawings, with snippets about the Apollo program before the for-real building instructions start. 

Totally worth the money so far :) and I've got another 8 bags to go!

 

 

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cantab

cantab

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And mine is complete. I'm still giggling at the sheer scale of the thing, it's quite impressive, especially next to the teeny-tiny astronaut nanofigs. (Although, they're a bit out of scale, corresponding to a person just 4'4". Limitations of the medium I guess.) My shuttle set is nice but the Saturn V just blows it out of the water.

It does not have any internal detail. Each stage has a central structural core which uses some big quarter-round segments and other parts, and then curved tiles on plates attach to the side to make the outside.  There are some clever ways the various bits are attached. It's possible Lego felt they couldn't include the internal detail and a means to view it without compromising the model strength. Some of the Star Wars UCS ships use a Technic framework to support them, but not the Saturn V.

If I have a criticism, it's that the Service Module is very plain. It has a nod to the RCS quads and that's about it for detail. Compared to the F-1 engines, the Lunar Module, and the rocket body itself, it felt like a bit of a letdown. I know it's small but I feel they could have done a bit more there, even just an antenna would have been something.

They've done a nice job of making everything 'work' though, you can configure it for every stage of the mission.

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cantab

cantab

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Haha. I did take a selfie, but I'm afraid I shan't be uploading it. Maybe I'll do a full mission sequence later.

Also, I 'know' about the tyranny of the rocket equation, but I don't think I've ever felt it like I did holding the first stage and third stage of this model side-by-side with their vast difference in size. And to think that the first stage got it from 0 to 2800 m/s, the second from 2800 to 7000, and that diddy little third stage powered from 7000 to 11,000 m/s.

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KSK

KSK

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26 minutes ago, cantab said:

It does not have any internal detail. Each stage has a central structural core which uses some big quarter-round segments and other parts, and then curved tiles on plates attach to the side to make the outside.  There are some clever ways the various bits are attached. It's possible Lego felt they couldn't include the internal detail and a means to view it without compromising the model strength. Some of the Star Wars UCS ships use a Technic framework to support them, but not the Saturn V.

Old school Lego for an old school rocket. :wink:

I think that's a fair comment though. Giving it viewable internals whilst keeping everything robust enough to be reconfigurable would have been challenging. As it is, the first stage has got quite a heft to it - the finished article is going to be a beast.

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DerekL1963

DerekL1963

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46 minutes ago, cantab said:

And mine is complete. I'm still giggling at the sheer scale of the thing, it's quite impressive, especially next to the teeny-tiny astronaut nanofigs. (Although, they're a bit out of scale, corresponding to a person just 4'4". Limitations of the medium I guess.) My shuttle set is nice but the Saturn V just blows it out of the water.

How does it balance on the provided stands?  They strike me as kinda rickety for something so large and heavy.

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cantab

cantab

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The stands look flimsy but they do seem to hold it alright laid horizontal. I'm certainly less worried about it on the stands than I am having it upright. Bumping it around on the table it slides rather than toppling off the stands.

Pity it's not possible to display it 'exploded'. You'd need to get some more stands for that.

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Bill Phil

Bill Phil

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7 hours ago, cantab said:

Haha. I did take a selfie, but I'm afraid I shan't be uploading it. Maybe I'll do a full mission sequence later.

Also, I 'know' about the tyranny of the rocket equation, but I don't think I've ever felt it like I did holding the first stage and third stage of this model side-by-side with their vast difference in size. And to think that the first stage got it from 0 to 2800 m/s, the second from 2800 to 7000, and that diddy little third stage powered from 7000 to 11,000 m/s.

Yeah. Not to mention that the liquid hydrogen of the second and third stages is a lot less dense than the RP-1 in the S-IC. Although the ISP of the upper stages were much higher than the F-1s.

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Orionkermin

Orionkermin

Posted
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Picked this up from a Barns & Noble yesterday. (U.S.) They still gave me a discount for being a B&N member or whatever their loyalty card thing is. $118 after tax.

 

Love the kit, it's way bigger than I expected and will not fit on the shelf I expected it to. As others have said, I wish it came with a few extra stands so I could display it in exploded view. I might have to rig something up...

Overall an amazing kit! Now I really want a CSM and LEM in normal minifig scale. :D

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KSK

KSK

Posted
Posted (edited)
On 5/29/2017 at 7:27 PM, DerekL1963 said:

How does it balance on the provided stands?  They strike me as kinda rickety for something so large and heavy.

As @cantab said, they do the trick. The model itself is pretty heavy which helps keep it on the stands. You might want to stick baseplates under them for added reassurance.

Fantastic set all in all. 

Edited by KSK
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qzgy

qzgy

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Posted

I'm now just waiting for it to come out on the store..........

Looks like real fun!

Should also probably try to rebuild my slightly older shuttle kit... - you know, just for side by side comparison.

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NISSKEPCSIM

NISSKEPCSIM

Posted
Posted

Who here is excited for the brand-new Apollo Saturn V set that lego just released?

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1493411012-bcee47dd63cb00f3d1e8d381d07dd

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Come on!

I know that at least some of you are both Lego and KSP fans, so get talking! Who here is excited for this set, is getting this set, other stuff, etc. I basically just started this thread to discuss this new set, that was created by Lego fans Felix Stiessen and Valérie Roche, on the popular Lego Ideas website, where fans submit models they've made, and, if the model gets 10,000 supporters, Lego will review it, and, it it's passed the review process, make it into a lego set.

So come on, get talking!

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Triop

Triop

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Posted (edited)

Buying Lego is always a good investment, keep the box and the stickers and just build with the parts.

Lego is known for releasing series in small quantities.

I have original sticker sheets that are worth more now then the whole set.

Here is one of my MOC's (totaly not promoting myself) ^_^

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Edited by Triop
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Galileo

Galileo

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Posted (edited)

Is it already available? I have money. I like to buy stuff. I also have a love of the Saturn V. Coincidence? I think not. It's meant to be. :) 

I think "Lego" and "KSP" kind of go hand in hand. I don't think I have seen many KSP players say "man I love KSP, but I hate having to snap ALL these peices together in the VAB." In fact, it's quite the opposite. People love adding Legos part mods to the game!

KSP is better though because I don't accidentally step on a part from KSP in the middle of the night heading toward the kitchen :D 

Edited by Galileo
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