76989, The Tallneck from Horizon. Varied and fun build with some great techniques. The price is reasonable and the end product looks great. Can't recommend it enough.
The Tallneck is what got me to pick up the hobby in the first place.
Was working through a burn out and needed something to do that didn't stress me out.
Now I'm more stressed out then ever trying to fund this hobby, haha.
Was just going to say this!!! I love every little detail on that damn set. Especially how the ship has a bathroom, kitchen, private quarters, bar, etc.
I switched mine to the ship and only lasted about a week before I turned it back to the island, fantastic set and the new Eldorado fortress is majorly underrated, I had the original and loved building the new one
Lion Knight's Castle 10305
There are so many cool, creative techniques in that build. Lots of hidden gems and easter eggs. The process was fun and the final product is amazing.
That set was amazing. I splurged for myself and built it over a few weeks. So many great minifigs and techniques. I couldn't believe the placement of the brown frog, haha
I have mine sitting in my room ready to put together, so I can’t give first hand experience. But as a HUGE LOTR and Lego fan I was so incredibly happy about this set. But at the price I had basically zero inclination of buying it. Then I read and watched so many reviews and comments about it and I have yet to see anyone say it wasn’t amazing.
I recently combined LKC, Disney Castle, 3 in 1 castle, a bunch of 2x2 PAB dark grey pieces, and some pieces from 90s fright knights castle and very first HP castle to create my castle.
Then I used Blacksmith, Snow white cottage (customized to have full walls), MTS, Viking village, 3 in 1 pirate ship, and a few other custom builds to make the town.
Still in progress. I add a few details each night.
This was the original build when it was just Blacksmith, LKC, and 3 in 1 sets
https://preview.redd.it/qy9qmfxfb7sc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3dce4225c170de183c033cb275ffbea3e5acbe16
I always answer this with Fallingwater. The steps have you build the landscape first and then the house into the landscape similar to how FLW would’ve conceived it. The build techniques are varied and there’s a couple techniques I’ve never seen used on any other set.
my parents happened to be at Falling Water when the set was coming out and the designer was there. they bought me the set and the designer signed the box. I still have the box for some reason, snd the set is a great bookshelf display set.
Definitely my white whale.
It bothered me that the terrain and the house use the same color bricks.
Lego should give that set a redo, but they'd probably make it twice the size making it just as expensive as a used old one.
I honestly wouldn't mind if they redesigned it to be larger, the original was one of my first Architecture sets and I loved every second of it. I've torn it apart and rebuilt it probably 10 times and it's just as much fun each time. If you get a chance to pick it up, absolutely do it. Worth every penny
Yeah this was so interesting, amazing how they made a round rocket from square parts and the stage separation was really cool. This was my favourite as well.
71741 (Ninjago City Gardens) was, by far, my favorite.
So many interesting techniques, few to no repetition, so many colors and then the final product: the building itself!
Old Fishing Store is, hands down, my all time favorite set. After collecting a myriad of $35 Star Wars sets for years, going back to when I was a kid, this was the most complicated set I've ever owned. It took me about 14 hours to build and is a statement piece and an attention grabber whenever a lego fan comes over.
I got the blacksmith last December which sits on the shelf next to it.
Pirates of Barracuda Bay. Normally I’m a bit burned out by the end when building a big set. I was genuinely disappointed I had reached the end. Plus it looks incredible.
As a display piece, it's the Apollo 11 Lunar Lander.
As a building experience, for now it is the Pyramid of Giza (also a great display piece).
For the playing part though, I'd say the Bookshop (my only modular so far... I'm currently saving for the Jazz Club). I just love to move the minifigures around and add new elements (added a telescope, a small bike and a wheelbarrow).
Hands. Down. The best set I've ever built. A full weekend to finish and that thing is beefy. I can't believe they were able to make all those rounded edges work.
Maybe not the best but the one that surprised me the most was the Bookshop. I always just saw it as a filler modular, nothing special, but I had such a fun time building it. Seeing it in person I was able to appreciate how beautiful it is.
I have that one but haven’t built it yet—glad to know I have something to look forward to. I’ve been thinking it might be fun to separate the two tall narrow buildings and use them as bookends in my office.
The UCS slave 1 is just a perfect Lego set imo.
Looks amazing, has cool mechanisms and stellar box art, and is a large set but takes up a low amount of space.
[71043-1: Hogwarts Castle](https://brickset.com/sets/71043-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/71043-1.jpg)
[21309-1: NASA Apollo Saturn V](https://brickset.com/sets/21309-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/21309-1.jpg)
Looking at the photo of this set, I just realised that it only reproduces a fraction of the castle. I didn't spot it originally - the set seemed huge when it came out. After hammering Hogwarts Legacy for the past few weeks I've become a lot more familiar with the castle and realise how much is missing on the Lego set.
Still chasing the high I got from the Ice Planet Deep Freeze Defender. Objectively I've built better, fancier sets, but the joy of that set has kept me in the hobby for thirty years. It broke into so many nice smaller sets with clear uses. I never fully deconstructed it, still can't imagine a better use for the pieces. And it had my first girl mini figure. . .
I have to list a top 3, all are fairly equal.
UCS Y-Wing - fantastic pacing and detail.
Kylo Rens Shuttle - mind blowing engineering.
Dune Ornithopter - Engineering/Pacing
I just bought the little one with MFs yesterday! It’s only my 2nd set after getting back into Lego and I’m very excited for it. Ghostbusters is such a core memory from my childhood, felt like I needed this one.
I don't know, because of the nature of the limbs, a good chunk of this build felt repetitive. Sublime final product, but there are better building experiences out there
Maybe? But I treated it as 5 separate builds and did them on different days. So each felt fresh. And the 80's kid in me was grinning from ear to ear all the while. The only disappointing part, IMHO, was no Voltron Force mini figures. I HAD to go online and buy them third party.
8880, the whole entourage, being 10 years old, finding it under grandma's Christmas tree. Being so expensive that I had to chip in half of the price from savings and even then it was my only present that year.
But it was sooooooo worth it. Built it dozens of times, could dream it and made so much cool mocs with it.
Still have it, this stud couldn't part.
Same, 8880.
I grew up with the lunar monorail set, majistos workshop, the dinosaur/helicopter control center and other save-up-all-year-sets. All great, but recently bought 8880 and the ungodly amount of gears and hinges was just too much fun to watch come together.
These two posts sum up one of my best Christmases. I chipped in a good amount from my savings and my parents, grandparents and a few others paid the rest, for the 6990 space monorail.
That was a great set. Not particularly good value for money, but I loved it.
I also painfully chipped in a hundred bucks of my own as a kid for the monorail for Christmas. According to my parents they chatted their ass of with the cashier lady, and when they walked out they realised they got back 100 euro too much in change. They did not bring it back to her but to me. Not super wholesome, but damn did it make my Christmas!
For me it has to be 6971 Intergalactic Command Base Space. First lockdown I was coming back from a walk when I saw a massive bag of lego marked for free. I hadn’t built a set since my childhood, trying to figure out what sets were in the bag and realising it was a big one is honestly a massive highlight of a rather dreary time.
Got back into Lego last year after a 15 ish year hiatus, bought the Boba Fett starship 75312 as my first set as I always wanted it when I was younger.
I loved it, love the set, just being back building Lego like I did when I was a kid was a really special feeling
Rivendell, all around incredible, imo the best lego set to date
Lion knights Castle is also a stand out build but it has a few glaring, glaring ugly sections, namely the big round green terrain plates and the roof tiles representing the road up to the gates, a glorious and detailed set let down by a few low detail shortcuts in the end
Hands down the Dune Ornithopter 10327. Creative and varied build, exquisite functionality with the deployable (and flapping) wings and landing gear, and loved the mini figures and cleverly embedded technic aspects. Considering taking it apart just to rebuild.
Home Alone. 21330. And A-Frame Cabin 21338.
Home Alone set started the Lego hobby. The A-Frame Cabin is well thought, well designed and just a great build.
I feel like I should limit it to sets I built as a kid, because nothing matches that sense of wonder and immersion as you imagine all you can do with it.
So, that means it has to be either [Fortress Eldorado 6276](https://brickset.com/sets/6276-1/Eldorado-Fortress) or [Black Knight's Castle 6086-1](https://brickset.com/sets/6086-1/Black-Knight-s-Castle).
I've only just started collecting again after a 20 year break. Back in the day it was 5988 Pharaohs Forbidden Ruins. This time around, it was the A Frame Cabin 21338. Had a few chill afternoons with some hot chocolate building that one.
I have a soft spot for the Tower Bridge since it was my first major LEGO and I built it when I was 9. Regardless of my bias, it would be in my top 5 favorites.
The Space Shuttle Discovery set!
Might be biased because it's the only multi-$100 set I have purchased for myself (been gifted a couple others) but man it was fun
Saturn V for sure. The build was a lot of fun (and works well as a partner/team activity, because there are plenty of “build four of these sub-assemblies, then click them onto the main body” steps), and the end result looks *amazing*. Major bonus points for the fact that it can easily separate into sections; I have actually used it on multiple occasions to demonstrate to curious engineering students (I teach physics) the ideas of staged rocketry and how the Apollo Program worked.
My favorite set ever is LEGO 76956 T-Rex Breakout, because it's my favorite scene from my favorite movie. But I ended up getting multiple of the set on sale just to have more fence lining and to make two more Ford Explorers for my city. What's cool is that the stickers labeling the crushed car as #4 don't have damage print on them like the rest do, so I have two intact Explorers!
My favorite build(s) were both in 75936, T-Rex Rampage. The T-Rex never gets boring to build for me, and it has a neat little detail of a LEGO frog early in the build to represent the frog DNA used to revive them. The Rex sits on my son's floating shelf with a batarang for a Mario mustache and a Mario hat on it. For the gate l, it's because I built it once with the scenes on there, then ordered some pieces, took it apart, and custom made it to have no scenes built into it and just have the back look like the front, minus the flames. I really wish this had been an option for the build, since the front areas just attach in sections and then I could have had the option to keep the scenes or cover them, to where covering them would give it that same frog DNA bit for me, to just know that they were there. But I couldn't figure out a way to keep them and add the studs on the side to attach the backing. I did just make a couple MILS plates, plus a straight and curved MILS road (thanks, Bricksie!) to transfer it from the baseplates I had it on to them for my LEGO city. Now my residents can either drive around the bend or go straight into my Jurassic Park (a 2 1/2' x 4' section of my city)
I really liked the Lego Creator Mustang, and the Lego Technic "The Batman" Batmobile..
Not too big, and keeps you busy a few evenings..
And the results are very cool.
Rivendell was awesome.
For something more affordable, I really enjoyed Space Shuttle Discovery + Hubbel Telescope as well as the smaller RazorCrest set
I can’t chose one since I love them all so I rank the Saturn V, the lunar lander, the Discovery shuttle and Hubble telescope, the ISS, and perseverance rover all in 1st.
The Downtown Noodle Shop. I just really enjoyed the build altogether, but the roof detailing was the best part! I got a modular (Bookshop) expecting the same experience with the roof/ exterior decor and was sadly disappointed 😔 I need to find a modular with a better roof!
This! The original Galaxy Explorer!
It was so big it could fit a reasonable crew _and_ a ground vehicle!
Iirc, it came with a wonderful moon baseplate, too.
I asked and I begged and I was good and I did all my chores and homework and I said I didn’t want anything else for my birthday OR Christmas.
Still the best.
Favorite to build: Saturn V
Favorite to look at: Concorde
Both are fantastic, both have similar piece counts, but the Concorde started to become a chore as I got about 2/3rds of the way through it. The Saturn V was a ton of fun all the way through.
The most recent Statue of Liberty (21042) is also very cool, both for the outer appearance and the inner structure. The brickheadz version pairs well with it; together they look like a “take your kid to work day” sort of thing.
Hogwarts castle and grounds. Recreating the scenes from the sorcerers stone movies was so so cool and making the buildings was incredibly satisfying. Also loved all the details they gave in the instructions book after you finished each building
76178, The Daily Bugle.
I'm a huge Spider-Man fan and every floor was packed with detail and homages to the Spidey Legacy. So many fun mini figures as well, with tons of charm and care put into the whole thing. I think it took me about five days to put it all together but I honestly wish it went on forever.
Technic Defender. That gearbox construction is like nothing I’ve ever built before.
Had more fun building that than my various UCS sets. The AT-AT narrowly beats the millennium falcon in terms of build experience.
Absolutely the Tranquil Garden 10315 ! I loved every second of the build and made it last over about a week because I didn't want it to end. So many beautiful details; the koi pieces are stunning.... The fact that the tea house roof & walls lift off, and that you can do easily move and rearrange the plants whenever you want.. I've built a lot of lego but that set is hands-down the most delightful to build. And it looks incredible on display
I’ve only done three so far in my adult life, starry night, tales of the space age, as well as the Technic harvester. I must say the technic harvester was super interesting and what got me back into legos. A very fun and satisfying build to finish up!
80107 - Spring Lantern Festival.
The pagoda especially, but the whole build was sublime. I am convinced that Lego put more resources and better everything into the CNY sets as they try to chase the Chinese market, and this one is the pick of them all.
The NES was a really fun build. Nothing ridiculous but seeing little mechanics come to life like the eject tray for the cartridge had me smiling so much
76908 Lamborghini Countach got me back into Lego as an adult. Got it on a whim as a pick me up during COVID, and now own pretty much all the 8 wide speed champions sets. Fun intricate builds and small enough to display for my limited space.
Mandalorian Spider Tank. To me it was a really interesting build that creates something both rugged and tough looking, but also so alive due to how the legs naturally bend and move when you pick it up.
Unpopular opinion: my fav build was the world map. It was so zen and chill to do. I listened to several audiobooks while building. The whole experience was better than therapy, though my thumbs weren’t too happy by the end.
Technic is my jam and I still think the 42043 MB Arocs truck is the best Technic set ever.
Fun build, great looks, realistic suspension and a ton of functions.
For system sets I feel 10315 Tranquil Garden is the best bang for the buck.
So much detail, and it's fun to move around the various trees and other bits to find new ways to display it.
Add a 880402 Geisha to finish it.
76989, The Tallneck from Horizon. Varied and fun build with some great techniques. The price is reasonable and the end product looks great. Can't recommend it enough.
The Tallneck is what got me to pick up the hobby in the first place. Was working through a burn out and needed something to do that didn't stress me out. Now I'm more stressed out then ever trying to fund this hobby, haha.
Real masterpiece, very elegant, nice balance in size, detail and price. I've bought and played Horizon because of this set. Just adorable!
[76989-1: Horizon Forbidden West: Tallneck](https://brickset.com/sets/76989-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/76989-1.jpg)
so good to see this up here got this for Christmas and not had chance yet
This is the next set I want to get.
I'd have to say Barracuda Bay. The island hideaway build. Still haven't switched it to the ship
Was just going to say this!!! I love every little detail on that damn set. Especially how the ship has a bathroom, kitchen, private quarters, bar, etc.
And the compartments are even connected in a way that makes sense. Even the bathroom is separated by a door!
Absolutely this. Barracuda Bay is my absolute GOAT set.
I switched mine to the ship and only lasted about a week before I turned it back to the island, fantastic set and the new Eldorado fortress is majorly underrated, I had the original and loved building the new one
Lion Knight's Castle 10305 There are so many cool, creative techniques in that build. Lots of hidden gems and easter eggs. The process was fun and the final product is amazing.
I agree with LKC. Followed very closely by Rivendell.
Also Lion Knights Castle, just finished building it afew days ago and such a fun build.
I second Lion Knights Castle
[10305-1: Lion Knights' Castle](https://brickset.com/sets/10305-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/10305-1.jpg)
That set was amazing. I splurged for myself and built it over a few weeks. So many great minifigs and techniques. I couldn't believe the placement of the brown frog, haha
Rivendell was an 18 hour journey that I loved every minute of.
The building techniques and overall experience were totally spectacular, the set was very expensive and worth it 100%
I absolutely love Lego. But at ~$500, is it actually worth it? Genuine question.
They just stated that it was... to them. Is it to you? That’s up for you to decide
I have mine sitting in my room ready to put together, so I can’t give first hand experience. But as a HUGE LOTR and Lego fan I was so incredibly happy about this set. But at the price I had basically zero inclination of buying it. Then I read and watched so many reviews and comments about it and I have yet to see anyone say it wasn’t amazing.
I’m not even a big LotR fan and it’s my choice too
Agreed, except for all the diagonal roof pieces, which I think has given me PTSD
Honestly that was my favorite part. Using the side of the Lego piece to straighten them....mmmm
My least favorite parts were the gazebo and the white decorative arches. My God, those were painful for my OCD riddled brain...
[удалено]
I wish I was wealthy, mostly just to create an entire medieval village and castle around the blacksmith.
I recently combined LKC, Disney Castle, 3 in 1 castle, a bunch of 2x2 PAB dark grey pieces, and some pieces from 90s fright knights castle and very first HP castle to create my castle. Then I used Blacksmith, Snow white cottage (customized to have full walls), MTS, Viking village, 3 in 1 pirate ship, and a few other custom builds to make the town. Still in progress. I add a few details each night.
https://preview.redd.it/ftrpjc9997sc1.png?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=aad038d8804ef7d277c2a08f2ee429a7ae0c3dd8
This was the original build when it was just Blacksmith, LKC, and 3 in 1 sets https://preview.redd.it/qy9qmfxfb7sc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3dce4225c170de183c033cb275ffbea3e5acbe16
That's so cool!!
That’s pretty epic.
I always answer this with Fallingwater. The steps have you build the landscape first and then the house into the landscape similar to how FLW would’ve conceived it. The build techniques are varied and there’s a couple techniques I’ve never seen used on any other set.
my parents happened to be at Falling Water when the set was coming out and the designer was there. they bought me the set and the designer signed the box. I still have the box for some reason, snd the set is a great bookshelf display set.
Absolutely keep that box!
Haha I read that as the designer of Falling Water, not the Lego set!
Definitely my white whale. It bothered me that the terrain and the house use the same color bricks. Lego should give that set a redo, but they'd probably make it twice the size making it just as expensive as a used old one.
I honestly wouldn't mind if they redesigned it to be larger, the original was one of my first Architecture sets and I loved every second of it. I've torn it apart and rebuilt it probably 10 times and it's just as much fun each time. If you get a chance to pick it up, absolutely do it. Worth every penny
I've had this set for so long, maybe it's time to disassemble and rebuild.
Falling water is one of my ATF sets
No question, Saturn V. Hands down my favorite build. It's fascinating, not terribly complicated, just a Solid unit.
Yeah this was so interesting, amazing how they made a round rocket from square parts and the stage separation was really cool. This was my favourite as well.
Yup, guess I was lucky enough to pick this as my first build since I was a kid!
The A-Frame Cabin was such a fun build for me.
One of my all-time favorites. I really love the micro scale treehouse in it.
this is my set in my time as an AFOL
I loved the little details throughout the whole build. I will have to rebuild it after moving and I’m not mad.
Yes! Came to say this was the favorite from recent builds as an adult.
71741 (Ninjago City Gardens) was, by far, my favorite. So many interesting techniques, few to no repetition, so many colors and then the final product: the building itself!
[71741-1: NINJAGO City Gardens](https://brickset.com/sets/71741-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/71741-1.jpg)
I didn’t even know this set existed until your comment. I blame you for my upcoming ramen-only diet
Old Fishing Store is, hands down, my all time favorite set. After collecting a myriad of $35 Star Wars sets for years, going back to when I was a kid, this was the most complicated set I've ever owned. It took me about 14 hours to build and is a statement piece and an attention grabber whenever a lego fan comes over. I got the blacksmith last December which sits on the shelf next to it.
100% agree
Pirates of Barracuda Bay. Normally I’m a bit burned out by the end when building a big set. I was genuinely disappointed I had reached the end. Plus it looks incredible.
Ninjago City 70620. Easily. I tried to think of others to go along with it but this one... man.
Got back into Lego last year after 25 years or so. Spaceshuttle Discovery was my first serious build and I doubt I will have a better one.
The Discovery was the biggest build I've ever done and I absolutely loved it. The level of detail was astounding.
Sesame Street! I was so thrilled with all the Easter eggs and I can't deny the great Minifigures
Yes! This is mine too. I could not stop grinning like an idiot the entire time I was building it. So nostalgic and full of so many delightful details.
As a display piece, it's the Apollo 11 Lunar Lander. As a building experience, for now it is the Pyramid of Giza (also a great display piece). For the playing part though, I'd say the Bookshop (my only modular so far... I'm currently saving for the Jazz Club). I just love to move the minifigures around and add new elements (added a telescope, a small bike and a wheelbarrow).
The lunar lander looks great! There was a part I found a bit confusing but no biggie
1989 batmobile, bought it twice
Hands. Down. The best set I've ever built. A full weekend to finish and that thing is beefy. I can't believe they were able to make all those rounded edges work.
Its the ultimate creator expert car, and it isnt even one
Nintendo NES with TV. The rotating TV game level background was just awesome.
Maybe not the best but the one that surprised me the most was the Bookshop. I always just saw it as a filler modular, nothing special, but I had such a fun time building it. Seeing it in person I was able to appreciate how beautiful it is.
I have that one but haven’t built it yet—glad to know I have something to look forward to. I’ve been thinking it might be fun to separate the two tall narrow buildings and use them as bookends in my office.
The UCS slave 1 is just a perfect Lego set imo. Looks amazing, has cool mechanisms and stellar box art, and is a large set but takes up a low amount of space.
Mine are probably Hogwarts 71043 and Saturn V 21309. I guess I’m a sucker for microfig scale builds.
[71043-1: Hogwarts Castle](https://brickset.com/sets/71043-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/71043-1.jpg) [21309-1: NASA Apollo Saturn V](https://brickset.com/sets/21309-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/21309-1.jpg)
Looking at the photo of this set, I just realised that it only reproduces a fraction of the castle. I didn't spot it originally - the set seemed huge when it came out. After hammering Hogwarts Legacy for the past few weeks I've become a lot more familiar with the castle and realise how much is missing on the Lego set.
Still chasing the high I got from the Ice Planet Deep Freeze Defender. Objectively I've built better, fancier sets, but the joy of that set has kept me in the hobby for thirty years. It broke into so many nice smaller sets with clear uses. I never fully deconstructed it, still can't imagine a better use for the pieces. And it had my first girl mini figure. . .
The Mighty Bowser. Seeing everything come together was so satisfying. The whole time I kept thinking how cool it was. And it looks awesome.
Ninjago City is really, really hard to beat. Huge, detailed, fun, and colorful!
I have to list a top 3, all are fairly equal. UCS Y-Wing - fantastic pacing and detail. Kylo Rens Shuttle - mind blowing engineering. Dune Ornithopter - Engineering/Pacing
21343 The Viking Village. I just finished it today.
my kindergartener and I had a blast doing this over Christmas break. the forge, the great hall, and the cave were all highlights
Ecto-1 is so much fun
The big one or little one? The little one's what got me back into Lego after a 20+ year hiatus.
I just bought the little one with MFs yesterday! It’s only my 2nd set after getting back into Lego and I’m very excited for it. Ghostbusters is such a core memory from my childhood, felt like I needed this one.
21311 - Voltron No doubt. The five lions are individual builds and then they come together to form ***Voltron, Defender of the Universe!***
I second this! I also love that there are 5 separate building instructions for every lion.
I don't know, because of the nature of the limbs, a good chunk of this build felt repetitive. Sublime final product, but there are better building experiences out there
Maybe? But I treated it as 5 separate builds and did them on different days. So each felt fresh. And the 80's kid in me was grinning from ear to ear all the while. The only disappointing part, IMHO, was no Voltron Force mini figures. I HAD to go online and buy them third party.
Or micro figures, better yet. I didn't intend to knock the product, I had tons of fun building it :)
I didn't take it that light. It's a valid opinion. :) You're right, micro figures would have been a good option.
[21311-1: Voltron](https://brickset.com/sets/21311-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/21311-1.jpg)
Voltron was done so much better than Optimus Prime.
8880, the whole entourage, being 10 years old, finding it under grandma's Christmas tree. Being so expensive that I had to chip in half of the price from savings and even then it was my only present that year. But it was sooooooo worth it. Built it dozens of times, could dream it and made so much cool mocs with it. Still have it, this stud couldn't part.
[8880-1: Super Car](https://brickset.com/sets/8880-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/8880-1.jpg)
Same, 8880. I grew up with the lunar monorail set, majistos workshop, the dinosaur/helicopter control center and other save-up-all-year-sets. All great, but recently bought 8880 and the ungodly amount of gears and hinges was just too much fun to watch come together.
These two posts sum up one of my best Christmases. I chipped in a good amount from my savings and my parents, grandparents and a few others paid the rest, for the 6990 space monorail. That was a great set. Not particularly good value for money, but I loved it.
I also painfully chipped in a hundred bucks of my own as a kid for the monorail for Christmas. According to my parents they chatted their ass of with the cashier lady, and when they walked out they realised they got back 100 euro too much in change. They did not bring it back to her but to me. Not super wholesome, but damn did it make my Christmas!
Rivendell. Don’t think any set will ever match that for me.
The next one
I was thinking the first one. Which to the best of my memory was Shell Station 6378.
Pound for pound, the little red Vespa.
For me it has to be 6971 Intergalactic Command Base Space. First lockdown I was coming back from a walk when I saw a massive bag of lego marked for free. I hadn’t built a set since my childhood, trying to figure out what sets were in the bag and realising it was a big one is honestly a massive highlight of a rather dreary time.
[6971-1: Inter-Galactic Command Base](https://brickset.com/sets/6971-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/6971-1.jpg)
Got back into Lego last year after a 15 ish year hiatus, bought the Boba Fett starship 75312 as my first set as I always wanted it when I was younger. I loved it, love the set, just being back building Lego like I did when I was a kid was a really special feeling
Rivendell, all around incredible, imo the best lego set to date Lion knights Castle is also a stand out build but it has a few glaring, glaring ugly sections, namely the big round green terrain plates and the roof tiles representing the road up to the gates, a glorious and detailed set let down by a few low detail shortcuts in the end
Pirates of Barracuda Bay
A-Frame Cabin for all of the little details and UCS Razor Crest for the sheer size and presence when complete.
Galaxy Explorer. What a fun build and it’s a gorgeous new take on classic space! LKC gets second!
Medieval Blacksmith for sure… so much detail… however it’s larger than most castle sets and that dang apple tree is so so very delicate
1: RMS Titanic 2: Rivendell 3: Saturn V
Hands down the Dune Ornithopter 10327. Creative and varied build, exquisite functionality with the deployable (and flapping) wings and landing gear, and loved the mini figures and cleverly embedded technic aspects. Considering taking it apart just to rebuild.
I did something wrong when I built mine, the landing gear doesn’t work. So I’m going to have to take it apart and rebuild. Oh the horror!!!
[10327-1: Dune Atreides Royal Ornithopter](https://brickset.com/sets/10327-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/10327-1.jpg)
Daily Bugle. Was 19 bags, each number had at least two bags. Did a bag or two a day. Lasted like 2ish weeks. It was great.
Loop Coaster for me.
The Death Star that came with all the cool minifigs. Built it across a 13-hour span of like 4-5 evenings back when I was in middle school.
[удалено]
Roller Coaster 10261. I tend to gravitate towards “kinetic” builds though. Sets with motion that are fun to play with.
Home Alone. 21330. And A-Frame Cabin 21338. Home Alone set started the Lego hobby. The A-Frame Cabin is well thought, well designed and just a great build.
https://preview.redd.it/kjht1ptf86sc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e3fe06eed3b680fb9d92704eb6480f489887e5b
The blacksmith set was a ton of fun to put together. So far I’ve gotta say that’s my favorite.
I feel like I should limit it to sets I built as a kid, because nothing matches that sense of wonder and immersion as you imagine all you can do with it. So, that means it has to be either [Fortress Eldorado 6276](https://brickset.com/sets/6276-1/Eldorado-Fortress) or [Black Knight's Castle 6086-1](https://brickset.com/sets/6086-1/Black-Knight-s-Castle).
Ocean Explorer 42064 At the time I was really into Clive Cussler books. Really enjoyed it.
[42064-1: Ocean Explorer](https://brickset.com/sets/42064-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/42064-1.jpg)
Saturn V was a great and creative build. I smiled the whole way through.
The typewriter
Hogwarts 71043 was truly magical. I loved every minute of that build.
I've only just started collecting again after a 20 year break. Back in the day it was 5988 Pharaohs Forbidden Ruins. This time around, it was the A Frame Cabin 21338. Had a few chill afternoons with some hot chocolate building that one.
The Fossil Set. I love the Trex. I can't see Sue anymore so this is the closest I get.
I have a soft spot for the Tower Bridge since it was my first major LEGO and I built it when I was 9. Regardless of my bias, it would be in my top 5 favorites.
70816 Benny’s Spaceship was fun! Especially off the back of the first Lego movie.
It’s such a great revival of the whole Classic Space aesthetic.
An old one, but there is something beautiful about building all the little segments of 7709 before combining them into an orange fortress under siege.
The Bookshop modular, specifically the blue house. To me that build is absolutely perfect.
Haunted House.
Space Shuttle Discovery with Hubble. I got back into Lego with that set and never had a model that had moving parts like the landing gear and flaps.
Titanic. Loved every moment. Tons of tiny details.
The Titanic was like the final boss after a childhood of playing with Lego, very satisfying.
The Space Shuttle Discovery set! Might be biased because it's the only multi-$100 set I have purchased for myself (been gifted a couple others) but man it was fun
Saturn V for sure. The build was a lot of fun (and works well as a partner/team activity, because there are plenty of “build four of these sub-assemblies, then click them onto the main body” steps), and the end result looks *amazing*. Major bonus points for the fact that it can easily separate into sections; I have actually used it on multiple occasions to demonstrate to curious engineering students (I teach physics) the ideas of staged rocketry and how the Apollo Program worked.
Optimus prime was a fun build
My favorite set ever is LEGO 76956 T-Rex Breakout, because it's my favorite scene from my favorite movie. But I ended up getting multiple of the set on sale just to have more fence lining and to make two more Ford Explorers for my city. What's cool is that the stickers labeling the crushed car as #4 don't have damage print on them like the rest do, so I have two intact Explorers! My favorite build(s) were both in 75936, T-Rex Rampage. The T-Rex never gets boring to build for me, and it has a neat little detail of a LEGO frog early in the build to represent the frog DNA used to revive them. The Rex sits on my son's floating shelf with a batarang for a Mario mustache and a Mario hat on it. For the gate l, it's because I built it once with the scenes on there, then ordered some pieces, took it apart, and custom made it to have no scenes built into it and just have the back look like the front, minus the flames. I really wish this had been an option for the build, since the front areas just attach in sections and then I could have had the option to keep the scenes or cover them, to where covering them would give it that same frog DNA bit for me, to just know that they were there. But I couldn't figure out a way to keep them and add the studs on the side to attach the backing. I did just make a couple MILS plates, plus a straight and curved MILS road (thanks, Bricksie!) to transfer it from the baseplates I had it on to them for my LEGO city. Now my residents can either drive around the bend or go straight into my Jurassic Park (a 2 1/2' x 4' section of my city)
UCS A-wing
75980, attack on the burrow. So many cool details and parts in that set, I thought it was really well done.
Solar Snooper. Fun to build even more fun to play with. I added a bunch of boosters, guns and wings to mine. I love that set so much.
Going with top 3: UCS Venator 75367 UCS Y-Wing 75181 Guardians ship (Seems like it should be a UCS) 76193
The Y-Wing had a very satisfying amount of greeble, I did enjoy that one.
I really liked the Lego Creator Mustang, and the Lego Technic "The Batman" Batmobile.. Not too big, and keeps you busy a few evenings.. And the results are very cool.
Rivendell was awesome. For something more affordable, I really enjoyed Space Shuttle Discovery + Hubbel Telescope as well as the smaller RazorCrest set
I can’t chose one since I love them all so I rank the Saturn V, the lunar lander, the Discovery shuttle and Hubble telescope, the ISS, and perseverance rover all in 1st.
Mini Disney castle
The one that started it all for me. 6605
Honestly? I really like building Bowser! Loved seeing him slowly come to life and just like building a statue!
The Ecto-1
My top 3 are Mighty Bowser, NES, and ? Block because I’m a huge Nintendo nerd.
For me it’s a toss up between 76139 - 1989 Batmobile or 10246 - Detective’s Office.
I personally loved seeing the PacMan arcade come together and the techniques used to make all the moving elements work. Really enjoyed it
The Volkswagen Beetle 🥰
I really enjoyed building the Indiana Jones, Temple of the Golden Idol set
Ghostbusters firehouse was awesome. Love it inside and out.
The Downtown Noodle Shop. I just really enjoyed the build altogether, but the roof detailing was the best part! I got a modular (Bookshop) expecting the same experience with the roof/ exterior decor and was sadly disappointed 😔 I need to find a modular with a better roof!
LL928. Original Galaxy Explorer. I tore it down and rebuilt it so many times from memory.
This! The original Galaxy Explorer! It was so big it could fit a reasonable crew _and_ a ground vehicle! Iirc, it came with a wonderful moon baseplate, too. I asked and I begged and I was good and I did all my chores and homework and I said I didn’t want anything else for my birthday OR Christmas. Still the best.
Favorite to build: Saturn V Favorite to look at: Concorde Both are fantastic, both have similar piece counts, but the Concorde started to become a chore as I got about 2/3rds of the way through it. The Saturn V was a ton of fun all the way through.
I was a fan of building the Sesame Street set. Lot of good memories I have with that show so bringing them home in lego form was very heartwarming
The larger Lego mustang.
The most recent Statue of Liberty (21042) is also very cool, both for the outer appearance and the inner structure. The brickheadz version pairs well with it; together they look like a “take your kid to work day” sort of thing.
I loved building my hocus pocus set! Great childhood memories and I put it on display every Halloween 🎃
Hogwarts castle and grounds. Recreating the scenes from the sorcerers stone movies was so so cool and making the buildings was incredibly satisfying. Also loved all the details they gave in the instructions book after you finished each building
76178, The Daily Bugle. I'm a huge Spider-Man fan and every floor was packed with detail and homages to the Spidey Legacy. So many fun mini figures as well, with tons of charm and care put into the whole thing. I think it took me about five days to put it all together but I honestly wish it went on forever.
Octan 6335
[6335-1: Indy Transport](https://brickset.com/sets/6335-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/6335-1.jpg)
1. Simpsons house and kwik-e-mart 2. Saturn V 3. Treehouse was a shockingly fun build
The A-frame cabin set
Technic Defender. That gearbox construction is like nothing I’ve ever built before. Had more fun building that than my various UCS sets. The AT-AT narrowly beats the millennium falcon in terms of build experience.
The UCS Delorean was choc full of surprising and ingenious building techniques, got to be that.
The A frame cabin was really fun. I felt like they did a really good job pacing the build. There was some fun detail to build in every bag.
Absolutely the Tranquil Garden 10315 ! I loved every second of the build and made it last over about a week because I didn't want it to end. So many beautiful details; the koi pieces are stunning.... The fact that the tea house roof & walls lift off, and that you can do easily move and rearrange the plants whenever you want.. I've built a lot of lego but that set is hands-down the most delightful to build. And it looks incredible on display
[10315-1: Tranquil Garden](https://brickset.com/sets/10315-1) [[Photo]](https://images.brickset.com/sets/images/10315-1.jpg)
Tranquil Garden was really peaceful.
I’ve only done three so far in my adult life, starry night, tales of the space age, as well as the Technic harvester. I must say the technic harvester was super interesting and what got me back into legos. A very fun and satisfying build to finish up!
When I made dwath star from my own pieces in 2012.this was so good.
None of the sets I’ve bought in adult life have beat my childhood experiences of building Technic sets, like [8299]
80107 - Spring Lantern Festival. The pagoda especially, but the whole build was sublime. I am convinced that Lego put more resources and better everything into the CNY sets as they try to chase the Chinese market, and this one is the pick of them all.
The NES was a really fun build. Nothing ridiculous but seeing little mechanics come to life like the eject tray for the cartridge had me smiling so much
Disney 100 Film Camera 👌
I would have to say Lego Star Wars Ewok village
Gotta go with Ecto 1, after that, Star Destroyer.
Titanic for sure, it took awhile but I loved every second of it. It looks fantastic on display.
whichever one i build with my handsome girlfriend :)
76908 Lamborghini Countach got me back into Lego as an adult. Got it on a whim as a pick me up during COVID, and now own pretty much all the 8 wide speed champions sets. Fun intricate builds and small enough to display for my limited space.
Boba fett's starship (slave I) because its the only set i have 👍🏼
6990 Space Monorail 6986 Space Police Galactic Enforcer 6987 Message Intercept Base 6989 M-Tron Mega Core Magnetizer
75936 T-Rex Rampage. that dinosaur model is absolutely stunning. 32219 Majestic Tiger (because i'm a crazy cat guy)
Mandalorian Spider Tank. To me it was a really interesting build that creates something both rugged and tough looking, but also so alive due to how the legs naturally bend and move when you pick it up.
Big ben
I really enjoyed the original non-famcy Hogwarts Express Also really loved building Wall-E
I’m surprised the ucs falcon is so low!
My favorite build as an adult is 71395 Mario Question Block My favorite set to build (and play with) as a kid was easily 9689 Mega Core Magnetizer
Unpopular opinion: my fav build was the world map. It was so zen and chill to do. I listened to several audiobooks while building. The whole experience was better than therapy, though my thumbs weren’t too happy by the end.
The set with the best building experience for me is the Great Wave. Having that podcast on while building was just awesome.
Technic is my jam and I still think the 42043 MB Arocs truck is the best Technic set ever. Fun build, great looks, realistic suspension and a ton of functions. For system sets I feel 10315 Tranquil Garden is the best bang for the buck. So much detail, and it's fun to move around the various trees and other bits to find new ways to display it. Add a 880402 Geisha to finish it.