So, the model for this ship was my first non-Lego Lego purchase. I got the Enlighten version of the Black Seas Barracuda (spending $35 instead of $200+) and heavily modified it. For those who have never made a foray over to the Dark Side, I’ll give a bit of a review.
1) The pieces aren’t bad, quality-wise. I’ve got to really look to see if it’s a Lego or an Enlighten piece I’ve picked up.
2) That said, their sticking power is not what Lego’s is. They’re not too bad to start, but after about five or ten times on and off, they can get a little loose. I solved this with a little superglue on the parts that kept falling apart or which I would have to keep taking apart for photography purposes (e.g. the yellow parts at the bow, which are under some tension, the walls of the cabin now come off in one piece, etc).
3) There is a definite quality difference in the minifigs, both in terms of printing as well as quality. This is less of a problem for the head and torso and more of a problem for the legs and hands. I’d use their legs in a pinch, but the hands are really pretty useless.
4) There is no problem getting Lego to lock to Enlighten or the other way around. As long as one of the pieces is actually Lego, the sticking issue in #2 is considerably lessened.
All in all, if you’re looking for a large set and don’t want to shell out the $$$ for authentic Lego, Enlighten bricks are not a bad choice, provided you don’t intend to be doing a lot of breaking down/building up with your model (my big ship now sits on my Lego shelf, looking very pretty amongst the buildings of Ballinabricky). Still, I don’t see myself buying any more Enlighten anytime soon.
You used a non-LEGO piece of rubbish instead of spending the money for guaranteed quality LEGO? My heart just sank, I was hoping you were a LEGO purist! *sighs*
Yup. The choice was between doing Enlighten or not doing a boat at all. I wrestled with it, I really did.
So, the model for this ship was my first non-Lego Lego purchase. I got the Enlighten version of the Black Seas Barracuda (spending $35 instead of $200+) and heavily modified it. For those who have never made a foray over to the Dark Side, I’ll give a bit of a review.
1) The pieces aren’t bad, quality-wise. I’ve got to really look to see if it’s a Lego or an Enlighten piece I’ve picked up.
2) That said, their sticking power is not what Lego’s is. They’re not too bad to start, but after about five or ten times on and off, they can get a little loose. I solved this with a little superglue on the parts that kept falling apart or which I would have to keep taking apart for photography purposes (e.g. the yellow parts at the bow, which are under some tension, the walls of the cabin now come off in one piece, etc).
3) There is a definite quality difference in the minifigs, both in terms of printing as well as quality. This is less of a problem for the head and torso and more of a problem for the legs and hands. I’d use their legs in a pinch, but the hands are really pretty useless.
4) There is no problem getting Lego to lock to Enlighten or the other way around. As long as one of the pieces is actually Lego, the sticking issue in #2 is considerably lessened.
All in all, if you’re looking for a large set and don’t want to shell out the $$$ for authentic Lego, Enlighten bricks are not a bad choice, provided you don’t intend to be doing a lot of breaking down/building up with your model (my big ship now sits on my Lego shelf, looking very pretty amongst the buildings of Ballinabricky). Still, I don’t see myself buying any more Enlighten anytime soon.
You used a non-LEGO piece of rubbish instead of spending the money for guaranteed quality LEGO? My heart just sank, I was hoping you were a LEGO purist! *sighs*
Yup. The choice was between doing Enlighten or not doing a boat at all. I wrestled with it, I really did.